I asked Kota for a little write up on his Tokyo Marathon experience. Thanks Kota, for being willing to play! Here's his report. -GB

The trip was great although the Tokyo Marathon didn't go as well as I would have liked. The weather was nice (mostly sunny) for the entire week and a half except for the morning of the race--a combination of freezing rain, snow, and wind.

What upset me, however, was that I was placed in the "B" corral. I think had about 3,000 people between me and the start, some of whom were wearing costumes and in parade mode. It was not nearly as cool as it sounds to be starting behind a girl wearing a bunny suit. To be fair, I was relatively near the front (as the corrals extended through the letter "K"), but the race directions gave preferential placement to members of the Japanese Association of Athletics Federation. To compound matters, the 10k race started at the same time and place as the marathon.

It took me about 50 seconds to get to the starting line. I was able to get around the crowd by running in the gutter on the far left of the road and by hopping up on and down from the curb. I got clear around 5k, beat the 10k winner (and just about broke the tape and called it a day), and caught the women's lead pack around 17k.

As long as I'm bitching... my Garmin couldn't get a signal in the storm (so I switched to a lighter watch) and I'm not good at k to mile math with a 50 second differential while racing.

I was not pacing myself well, but was hoping to catch a compatible group. I never did and paid for the hopping when my right calf locked up with a little more than 4 miles to go. I think I passed all but 3 of the runners in the "A" corral.

I was the 42nd finisher with a 2:32:22 clock time. I think my chip time is around 2:31:30 and that the final results will list me as 41st. Except for the top 20, official results have yet to be posted 9 days later.

The race was frustrating, but I enjoyed Japan... seeing family/friends (JET program), travelling, going to museums/historic landmarks, and eating very well. If you ever visit Tokyo, be sure to experience the Edo-Tokyo Museum.

I'm excited to begin hammering workouts for the 'Pede... maybe in a couple months.

Kota