Marathon Plan

I'm running the Austin Marathon this weekend as a training run. I have a race plan that if all goes perfectly with no room for error, I should finish in 3:40:48. My plan is to start just in front of the 3:40 pace group so that I can let them pass me at the start, but also so that I see them the last mile of the race to have a rabbit to chase to the finish line.

I've plotted my projected paces and total cumulative time against what the pace groups should be doing, and here's what I should expect. (Note - The pace groups should be running perfectly even splits throughout the entire race if they are any good at what they are doing. After all, I have been an Austin marathon pacer twice before and am one of the reigning pacer queens from 2008 :) ) -

Start - Ahead of the 3:40 pace group, but I'm running a bit slower than them at the beginning. The 3:45 and 3:50 groups might also catch me in the first few miles, depending on how crowded the start actually is.

Miles 4-5 - I should catch back up to the 3:50 pace group and pass them.

Miles 10-12 - The 3:50 group will gain some ground on me, but should not catch me.

Miles 17-20 - I will catch the 3:45 pace group and pass them. I will be going 50 seconds per mile faster than the pace they are running, so I might get some strange looks.

Miles 25-26 - I should start to see the 3:40 pace group signs and use them as my motivation to catch them at the finish.

My finish time should be between 3:40:00 and 3:40:59 if all goes perfectly. I will not be disappointed in myself if I don't achieve this goal. The main focus of Sunday is to learn how to run different paces, to learn how to negative split and run fast at the end, and to stick to a plan as best I can. It will be a challenging day for me, so I hope I'm up for it. My main concern is having to pee or poop after 3-7 miles like I have been experiencing on almost every run in the past few months. I might have to wake up extra early and drink some tea/coffee just to be sure. And, no, I will not be taking Immodium like some of you guys do...it's just not for me.