Colfax Marathon Recap

After the LA Marathon, I recovered much quicker than I have in past marathons and with a baby due in about two months, I wanted to get in some races.

First, just 3 weeks after LA, I raced the Horsetooth Half Marathon in Fort Collins. As a Fort Collins Running Club board member that helps put on the event, I was very excited to race. I was also the defending champion from the fall edition that was COVID-delayed in 2021. I didn’t know what to expect as I hadn’t done much in the way of hard workouts in those weeks in between and was still building back mileage. However, the race went extremely well and I ran almost a minute faster than my winning time in November. I took second place behind Dominic Korir but closed a 30 second lead down to just 8 seconds at the finish. 

Both of us ran considerably faster than the previous course record on a windy day that made the first half very slow, and the second half very fast. It was a blast competing in Fort Collins in one of my favorite races and a big confidence boost that I had recovered well and was going to be ready for another race before baby boy.

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So, I decided to give another marathon a shot. The Colfax Marathon in Denver on May 15th is the largest marathon in Colorado. The race had a bonus for breaking the event record of 2:24:35 and another bonus for breaking the state record of 2:18:06. The state record was set back in 1984 on a downhill course, which was certainly aiding a fast time. I knew the Colfax Marathon course profile was fairly hilly after racing the Marathon Relay several years ago as part of the Newton Running Elite team. I wanted to give the state record a shot if the weather was favorable. As I wrote about in recent blogs and on Instagram, I’ve been trying to practice being more grounded, while finding harmonious passion. Colfax Marathon was exciting and motivating because it provided a hard challenge for something I’m passionate about - the marathon. I had never raced a marathon at altitude and in a race without professional bottles, which would both be great ways to challenge myself.

During the five weeks between Horsetooth and Colfax, I built the mileage back up to a peak of 120 miles a week. It was a short build-up but I was already coming off outstanding fitness from the LA Marathon training block, so I just wanted to get the volume back up for a brief couple of weeks. I tapered the mileage and intensity the last ten days and the weather forecast for race day was cool at the start but sunny and getting into the 60s by the end of the race with 10mph winds. My game plan was to go out slightly slower than the state record since it was net uphill the first half and give myself an opportunity to negative split the second half if I felt great.

The race started and one of the relay runners stayed with me for the first 3 or so miles. We briefly chatted from time-to-time, and it was fun to be running out of City Park and through Denver.  My first few splits were pretty much spot on in the 5:15ish range, although a 5:03 downhill mile 4 was a touch quick. There were quite a few turns, and the part of the course that runs through Empower Field is particularly challenging with fairly significant uphills and tight turns to navigate. I quickly realized that I was bad at grabbing water cups and missed the first few aid stations. 

At mile 6 I got water for the first time but failed to get more than a swallow of water from the plastic cup. I carried 3 Maurten Gels in my rabbit FKT shorts so I was able to get a gel in me but lacked having enough water to really wash it down. 

Then, I really felt like I got into flow. I was just rolling out on the course and enjoying being right where I was. The Sloan’s Lake section was particularly fun as it was flat and scenic.  I had been reading about how looking out at the horizon can be good to zone out and relax so I took in the westward view of the mountains. In a five-mile section I split exactly 5:19 four times…and the only time I didn’t split 5:19, I was 5:17.  Incredibly even pacing and I was feeling really good.  Then, the section up to mile 16 gets more challenging with longer gradual uphills. 

I slowed with a couple splits closer to 5:30, which was probably very close to even pacing given the uphill. After mile 16, I knew I needed to pick up the pace on the downhill coming back Colfax to have a chance at the Colorado record. I did a little better at getting water from aid stations but was still probably only consuming about 8oz of water total by that point.  The next four miles were fun and I was flying - 5:05-5:09/mi feeling quite good and enjoying seeing the runners who were headed out on the course.

​At mile 20 you go back through Empower Field and there are a lot of turns, there is more uphill and then you get on a bike path headed back towards City Park and eventually merge with the half marathoners. At this point, the combination of running hard for 20 miles, not getting enough to drink, the rising temperatures and the challenging course started to wear on me and I slowed. I knew I was well ahead of 2nd place and well ahead of the event record, but the state record was out of reach. I tried to enjoy being in each mile even though it was getting progressively more difficult and challenging.

Finally, we turned into City Park and I thoroughly enjoyed coming into the finish line to a roar of the crowd with the announcer celebrating that I was about to shatter the course record. 2:21:08, almost 3 minutes and 30 seconds better than the previous course record from 2013. I crossed the finish line with a fatigued smile - very happy to earn a win and event record, but also very exhausted. I gave it the best I could on the day and was very proud of the race. It was also really special to have my coach of nearly a decade, Steve Jones, at the finish. Ultimately, that was my first marathon win since Kauai in 2013 (where ironically I also ran 2:21). 

The Colfax Marathon did a great job putting on a world class event weekend in Denver, and it was an incredibly rewarding experience to break the tape at the finish line and I’m so glad I made the choice to race again before we had our second baby.

Speaking of which, two days after the race my wife, Kristin, and I were having dinner and she started to have contractions. A couple of hours later on Tuesday, May 17th we welcomed Jack James McCandless into the world. We had expected to have a scheduled c-section on that Friday and not an emergency c-section on Tuesday, but baby Jack was ready to see the world and we are so very happy!

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Thanks for reading and supporting the journey. After some time off, I’ll be building up to a fall marathon with a focus on getting an opportunity to go after a marathon PR - hope you’ll continue to follow along!