Thanks For Nothing Philly.......

I have said more than once on Kevinrunningfree that it's never easy to sit and blog when things have gone pear shaped.....last Sunday is NOT the exception to that rule and while my lack of blogging the cock up that was the 2017 Philly Marathon had more to do w/ a lack of sufficient time to do the debacle justice it must be said that a whole week later I still harbour resentments and anger towards who ever was responsible for  cock ups of biblical proportion that ruined my race b4 it began and thus took my three and a half months of hard work and sacrifice and basically pissed them up against the wall......thanks for nothing arseholes!!!!

I 100% accept that we live in a time when terrorism and or the treat of a lone wolf attack on a major event is a concern so while the security check of all runners entering the runners area was maybe required I do ask where was this at Broad St when 40,000 runners gathered to run? where was this in September for the Rock & Roll Half Marathon? or even last weeks Rocky Run both of which used Eakins Oval a la the marathon?
If memory serves me correctly in my last Philly Marathon bag check was in a tent on Eakins Oval.....but this year any and all tent space seemed to be utilized for either commercial or merchandise purposes,hooray for the all mighty dollar but fuck you to the runners who like myself had devoted weeks/months of training and sacrifice to this day.
While the UPS trucks have worked for gear check for several years they dropped the ball BIG TIME last Sunday,the lines were ungodly as time was ticking down to the 7am start and then to add considerable insult to injury as I got w/in five feet of the truck I'd spent 20 mins in line for they pulled the shutter door down and told us they were full and we'd have to join another line.............are you fuckin' kiddin me???????
If you've ever watched the news when there's a natural disaster and a relief truck shows up to offer food,water,blankets,medical supplies to the needy Sunday was a reversal of that,instead of hands outstretched to claim bags you had hundreds of runners w/ out stretched  hands trying to hand bags to the UPS trucks............it was so bad I saw runners towards the end of the marathon running w/ their gear bags on their backs.....like 26.2 isn't difficult enough!!!!!!!!

By now the National Anthem had been sung,the Wheelchair athletes had started and the corrals were being sent off in 5 minute intervals,I forget what I used for my seed time as I entered in May post Broad St but when I picked up my race bib on Saturday I was given a Maroon corral place.....just behind the elite athletes......problem was having finally gotten my gear onto a UPS gear truck I was stuck at the very rear of the field.......how far back was I?????? I was behind the pace runners for the five hour runners............
Someone had the bright idea to "pen in the runners" w/ railing fences either side of the Ben Franklin Parkway,there was zero guarantee I could work my way on the outside of the pen to find a gap to squeeze in ahead of the rear of the field and given the overnight rain had only just stopped between 6 and 6.30am it would be my dumb luck to slip/trip climbing the railings so reluctantly I stayed put w/ the five hour runners preferring to try and stay positive and not use up energy ranting and raving about the cock up unfolding b4 me,eventually at 7.25am some 25 mins after I should've begun I got to start.

Prior to Sunday I had ran 14 marathons..........NEVER between Harrow in 1985 and Athens in 2005 had I encountered a situation where the mile markers were only posted on ONE SIDE of the road.......evidently said mile markers at miles one,two and three, miles were ALL  posted on the left hand side of Arch St and Delaware Ave..........I had elected to run on the right side of the street and thus didn't see a mile marker till mile FOUR   on Front St......ALSO on the left hand side of the street,I had swung left left to avoid the water station otherwise I would have missed that one also..........
Had I seen the mile marker at mile one I would've seen my split was 6.04 and eased the fuck off the gas,the plan was 7 minute mile pace but by the time I hit mile 4 in 25.36 the damage was done
I heard runners complain about a lack of clocks out on the course and while most runners prefer to use their own timing frankly a running clock from the gun going off at 7am and then 7.25am when we started would've been pointless

8 of my first 10 miles ended up at sub 7 mile pace so it is NO SURPRISE at mile 21 I just ran out of gas,my final five miles were a painful combination of walk,run,walk as my splits ballooned to 11.26-10.29-11.53-12.21-12.00 hence my 8.04 mile pace and 3.34.07 finish.............
Had I thrown caution to the wind and said "fuck it I'm going balls out to break three hours" and up my record to 9&6{nine sub three hour marathons,six plus three hours} and blown up at mile 21 fair enough but thanks to a catalog of cock ups by the Philadelphia Marathon I got well and truly STUFFED four days b4 Thanksgiving............

The blueprint coming into Philly was to notch a marathon in my 50s to go w/ the 14 I'd ran in my 20's 30's and 40's that way IF in my 60's there was a desire to try one I wouldn't have a missing decade,I had also planned to return to track in 2018 post marathon.......that has now been shot to shit,I cannot,nor will not allow this shit show to be my last marathon until Nov 2023 when I turn 60 so I'm looking into options for 2018.....I can tell you next November's Philadelphia Marathon will  NOT  be an option,this was my 4th and final Philadelphia Marathon after the shit show they produced.
I need a little time to lick my wounds" before regrouping and beginning to train again not to mention save the required airfare,entry fee,accommodation/travel expenses that coming w/ an "out of town" marathon but the Philadelphia Marathon can go fuck it's self..............