I did my first marathon in 2013 and have had a guilty feeling sort of haunting me for a while because it took this long to finally run the big “hometown” marathon. The Detroit Free Press Marathon is understandably a big one for people who live in the metro Detroit area. Now I understand why.

I actually signed up to run the race in 2024 but something else came up that same weekend plus I had my big Disney Challenge on the horizon so I opted to defer to this year. Still…what took me this long? I don’t know if I really have a good answer. Part of it is that there are so many marathons that I’d like to do and I just happened to get to some of the others first. Also, I’d heard plenty of people complain about the tunnel being muggy and gross plus I knew my Garmin tracking would probably get messed up there. There was also the fear that if I had some kind of hydration belt it could leave me open to getting stopped and checked by the border guards. Now that I’ve run the race, those seem like silly reasons because none of them were issues. What matters most is that I finally did it and enjoyed it!

Since I did the Dopey Challenge (5K, 10K, half, marathon) at Disney World in January, I knew I should be able to handle the Supreme Challenge (1 mile, 5K, marathon) in Detroit. Offer up the challenge to add even more distance and it can tempt me! That meant I needed to make the 40-minute drive down to Detroit and back three days in a row. I started with a trip to the expo on Friday afternoon after work, parking in a deck right by the Huntington Place convention center.

This was a proper expo with lots of official merch from Brooks, merch from other brands, and plenty of stuff to browse.

I was worried that I’d be tempted to buy too much cool stuff and was pretty proud of myself for just walking away with a hoodie that was half off (only $35!) and a hat.

Of course I came away with official swag in my race packet as well, including a long sleeve shirt, a neck gaiter, and a very nice jacket for doing one of the challenges.

I also had a bib for each of my three races, two of which would take place back-to-back on Saturday morning.

There’s a Detroit Free Press Marathon Runners group on Facebook that has been extremely helpful throughout this journey. People gave plenty of tips for things like parking and I learned that I could park in the River East deck for free right near the starting line for Saturday’s events. The mile was due to start at 8:25 and I arrived by 7:00 just to play it extra safe. That gave me time to take photos as I wandered the riverfront and enjoyed the sunrise.

I walked out a little less than a mile then jogged my way back for a warm up. I stashed some clothes at the gear check tent, used the bathroom, and took in more scenery before I went to line up.

When I saw some of the people gathering near the starting line I realized I better get up toward the front. I didn’t plan to break any records, but I could gauge that some of the people might not be especially speedy and I didn’t want to get stuck behind them. The announcer also made a point of mentioning that faster people should move up front and slower people should move back.

I have only run a mile road race once and it was back in 2014. I had no idea how to pace myself and ran 6:25. Although I’d be curious to see if I could do better, I really don’t enjoy the short, fast stuff, and this was not the time to go all-out. The marathon was a much more important goal and I didn’t need to tweak something the day before! Still, I couldn’t help but give it SOME effort.

The super speedy pace that comes at the beginning and can’t be maintained was brought back under control almost immediately. A quick turn around a corner took us to a short climb up a hill. My first thought was that this was clearly not a PR kind of course. My next thought was that I really am a marathoner and not a miler! I do so much better when I’ve already been running for a while then roll into a faster pace to finish strong. I don’t do so well when I get out there and have to go full-blast right from the start. Still, I got a good enough rhythm going eventually without getting too out of control.

I was hoping to go sub-7 and I did, so while I’m sure I could do better, this was a good result for the day and the situation. Then I was shocked to see how well I actually placed!

I didn’t expect any kind of award for my mile time! I checked the website to see if they gave age group awards or anything. I got the impression that it gets sorted out after the fact so maybe I’ll receive a surprise in the mail one day!

With the mile starting at 8:25 and the 5K at 8:50, I thought I had some time to kill and took more pictures along the riverfront. For some reason I thought I had until 8:55, then I heard an announcement that the start was three minutes away and I wasn’t even in the corral. I scrambled and found fencing blocked off any entrance to the corral until I made my way nearly to the back. I tried to move up some but it was packed in pretty tight with over 2,000 participants. Big mistake on my part. I told myself that it would help keep me under control, but staying disciplined with my pace and avoiding tripping over walkers are two different things!

Sure enough, the start was a total cluster for me. When I saw someone with a walker in front of me I knew I was in trouble. I started out in the totally wrong spot for my kind of pace! I did the best I could to weave around people at the right edge of the road but that didn’t always work. The hill that I dreaded at the beginning of the mile was probably helpful this time around because it helped weed people out a little as they slowed down. That didn’t help me get around them, but when I finally got a break, at least I had a bit more of an opening. It actually only took about half a mile to get enough space for me to run freely.

Once I could get moving I had to remind myself to settle down. I probably shouldn’t go much faster than my goal marathon pace of 8:00 miles. It can be really difficult to stay disciplined in a race environment but I worked too hard to prepare for the marathon and kept reminding myself that it was the ultimate goal.

The course was nice and flat other than the initial hill. We ran along the riverfront a couple times and mixed in locations like the Atwater Brewery and an amphitheater along the way.

We had such a perfect day for racing – it was beautiful and around 60° at the start of the 5K. Finishing along the riverfront was especially great.

I was successful in keeping my pace under control. A 5K that I truly raced a few months ago was several minutes faster so I certainly didn’t push it to the max this time. I still did pretty good too!

Day one of racing was complete with 4.1 of my 30.3 miles done.

I collected a bottle of water and was glad they had chocolate milk so I could have something with protein, but the post-race treats were a major disappointment. They had bananas and that was about it. No granola bars or anything else. That’s why I’ve learned to throw one of my protein Picky Bars in my bag so I always know I’ll have something.

I took in more of the scenery and admired how pretty the course was from a couple perspectives.

They did have a few food trucks available but I passed on those and just headed out.

The weather forecast did not look so good for marathon day so I opted to take in all of the good photo opportunities on this beautiful morning.

It may have been a little questionable to do a bunch of extra walking, but I was glad I stopped by the Spirit of Detroit and Hart Plaza since I probably wouldn’t visit either the next day.

I rested for most of the day and even tried to nap for a hour but I usually don’t have much success trying to nap. I went out to dinner and a concert with a friend which was another questionable choice, but at least it was a seated venue that was 15 minutes from home and I was home by 10:30. It was probably good to have the distraction because the forecast had me feeling a little anxious.

There had been plenty of talk about the rain and wind in the Facebook group leading up to the race. I read through recaps of other rainy races I’ve run to assure myself it would be fine. The one good thing was that it would be on the warmer side so at least I wouldn’t have to worry about being cold. No need for arm sleeves or gloves if it would be at least 60°. Minimal, tight clothing, a hat, and plenty of Aquaphor/Body Glide was all I really needed.

Once again, I followed the advice of some people in the Facebook group and decided to park at the MGM Grand Casino. It was far enough removed from the course that I didn’t have to worry about road closures plus it was free. I got there at 5:30 and made the walk with plenty of other runners over to Campus Martius which may have taken about 15 minutes. I dropped a bag of warm clothes at gear check then ventured off to find RunDetroit’s VIP area.

I bought shoes at RunDetroit this spring which gave me entry to their Freep VIP gathering. They had a nice big area inside with their own gear check, tables, snacks, and real bathrooms. I was only there briefly and used a foam roller and hit the bathroom before venturing back out into the rain.

Since this was my first time doing the race I didn’t know how congested or tricky it may be trying to get to my corral. I entered from the south side and went all the way up to corral B without any issue about 20 minutes before the start. I had a “throwaway” raincoat from the Salvation Army which served me well for a while, then I shed it five minutes before the start.

I made it up to the very front of my corral because that’s where a 1:50 half marathon pacer was standing. Since I was aiming for a 3:30ish marathon, I should have been near a 1:45 pacer. Some slower pace groups were actually in front of us! I debated stepping over the rope into the A corral so I could get to the appropriate pace group but decided I could stay where I was.

We took off around 7:00 into the dark, rainy streets of Detroit. Unlike the congested start of the 5K the day before, I was among people doing a similar pace at the start and was able to run 8:06 and 8:07 for the first two miles. We got to the Ambassador Bridge by that point and there were plenty of border guards making sure everyone had a visible race bib. The fact that this race is international is definitely a major draw. It’s pretty unique getting to run over the bridge to Canada then come back through the tunnel!

I’ve seen plenty of pictures and heard people talk about how cool it is to see the sunrise from the bridge. Not this year! I think I actually got up there a little too early to have seen it anyway. It was still cool to see the view from the bridge but by the time I got to the peak, I was more concerned with the pelting rain hurting my face and the strength of the wind.

Although there was a big climb, it really didn’t feel that significant to me. Maybe it was gradual enough. Either way, that’s when congestion became an issue for me. I got stuck behind a pace group that had people running a little slower than I wanted to go. I couldn’t seem to find an opening to get around people and got kind of frustrated. I slowed to an 8:26 mile there and it wasn’t due to the climb. However, a big climb up means a nice drop down, and eventually I got around people and could milk the momentum on the way down. A 7:34 mile helped balance things out!

There was an announcer where we exited the bridge who made me laugh because he was wearing a swim cap. Once we hit the streets of Windsor, the course was nice and flat.

It was pretty cool getting to see the Detroit skyline from the other side of the river. Of course it would have been more scenic minus the rain. The rain seemed to die down by the time I was 3-4 miles into the race which was a relief.

There had been enough rain to soak the spectators’ signs and I totally cracked up when a guy in front of me whacked a “power up” sign really hard and it completely tore apart. I haven’t seen that in a race before!

The crowd support was great along certain stretches in Windsor and I was really drawn to a Golden Retriever who was intently staring up at its owner, still as a statue. It all made sense when I passed by and saw the person holding a box of Timbits from Tim Hortons.

We spent about three miles in Windsor before it was time to run the “underwater mile” through the tunnel. It was a pretty cool experience going through the entry lanes where the signs had messages specific to us!

I felt a little slickness off to the right side early on and decided it would be wise to move to the center of the road for better traction.

As people had joked, at least the tunnel would be one spot safe from the rain and wind! It was especially fun to see the halfway point.

A lot of people complain that the tunnel is hot and muggy. It really didn’t bother me much. It WAS refreshing when I exited to some cooler air though.

The map shows that my Garmin strayed from the path of the tunnel a little bit, but it did pretty good and I think the distance was still fairly accurate. I guess I didn’t have to worry so much about it screwing up my data.

There was a lot of energy from the crowd once we left the tunnel and plenty of spectators lined Jefferson. We ran past Joe Louis’ “fist” and toward the expo center.

It was also energizing getting to run up Woodward past one of my favorite spots. That’s an area I tend to frequent because I go to many concerts at The Fillmore, plus we went by The Fox and Comerica Park.

We spent a number of miles getting to and running through some neighborhoods. There were occasional gusts of wind but the rain had died down and I actually found myself pouring water on my neck a couple times at aid stations when I got warm. Maybe a little more rain wouldn’t be so bad!

By the time I was 12-13 miles into the race my legs got a little tired and I hoped I hadn’t been too ambitious with some miles under an 8:00 pace. Despite hints of fatigue, I still kept rolling along consistently though!

There were some students cheering as we ran past Wayne State’s campus, and I saw some people I knew around 15.5 miles in which was a pleasant surprise and made me smile.

I knew Bruce, an Infinite Multisport Triathlon Club teammate, would be stationed around 16 miles so I got to say hi to him. Shortly after, more members of the club were stationed at an aid station and I got some cheers.

We ran through the Eastern Market area and to the Dequindre Cut, a nice paved path. I had done an 18-mile training run a month earlier that was hosted by RunDetroit and it covered a good chunk of the course. It was nice to be so familiar with most of it because of that.

There was a bit of a climb on the way out from the Dequindre Cut, but I told myself it was good to change things up for my muscles for a minute. The course remained flat after that.

It took a while to run the straightway that took us to the Indian Village neighborhood so at least the fastest runners on the other side of the road provided some distraction, not to mention we had some nice fall colors.

Indian Village is definitely one of the prettiest spots of the course, with nice houses and gorgeous trees.

After I looped through Indian Village the wind picked up. A couple of spectators’ hats blew across the road in front of me! The rain started to pick up once again as well. I only had about three miles left, but it was going to be a long three miles into that wind.

The course became a grind by this point. No more screwing around with my phone for photos or videos! It was tricky trying to wipe rain off my lens when all of my clothes were wet, and I wasn’t willing to give any extra effort to anything other than finishing the run.

It was cool getting to run through part of Greektown, but I was in “just finish” mode by then. I thought I’d use the last mile or two to pick up the pace on that straightaway, but the rain and wind did not make things any easier. I reached the point when I knew I just had to round a corner to get to the finish line, then an especially strong gust hit me. It was a combination of swearing and laughing from the ridiculousness.

I assume the finishing banner was removed due to the wind, so when I approached the finish, I almost questioned it. It felt very uneventful going by some scaffolding that didn’t even mark the finish. Still, I made it!

I may always aim for the big goal of a 3:30 marathon, but I was thrilled to run 3:32:53. It was my second fastest marathon! Not bad in some challenging conditions!

As usual, if I ran closer to 26.2 miles rather than coming up with 26.6 miles, I could have shaved a few minutes from my time. Oh well, it was still pretty great!

It’s pretty cool to look back at my splits and see just how strong and consistent I was with the exception of my slowdown on the bridge and the last few miles. Even though the end felt like a grind, I wouldn’t say I hit any kind of wall…except maybe a wall of wind!

As I went through the finishing area, my friend Angie said hi from the half marathon side. We just happened to walk through at the same time!

It always feels pretty rough coming to a dead stop after running for that long. Still, I managed to put on a big smile for a photo!

The rain was steady by that point and once I stopped to get my Supreme Challenge medal, my sole mission was to get to gear check. I had to wander a little bit after the finish to finally get there and I was extremely anxious to get some warm, dry clothes. Once I did that I could take more photos and figure out what to do about food.

I wasn’t happy that a banana was the only food option after the mile and 5K, and I wasn’t happy with the few options they gave us at the end of this race either. I was thankful for chocolate milk again, but after burning 2,500 calories, I hoped for more than a few snack size things.

So many local 5Ks even load up on bagels, muffins, cookies, bags of chips, granola bars, etc. I know they had a lot of racers to move through and a bag of snacks makes it flow, but still. I ate another one of my protein Picky Bars – I’m always prepared. I decided I needed some kind of substantial treat so I stopped at the Cinnabon food truck.

The rain was so steady that I gripped my wet Cinnabon box as I made the trek back to the casino where I could enjoy the treat in a dry place. I didn’t hang out to celebrate because I was too cold and wet to stay out in the rain and wind any longer. I felt much better once I got the heat going in my car!

I felt so accomplished and proud afterward. I enjoy the journey of the training and wouldn’t feel like it had been a waste if things didn’t go well on race day, but it’s so much sweeter when all of that work pays off with the results I hope for. PLUS, it’s a major Boston-qualifier for me! The qualifying times could always get adjusted by 2027, but right now I need 3:45 to qualify. Even if it drops to 3:40 I have a nice buffer.

This was my 16th marathon and it was the first time I ran three in a year. Typically, I aim to run one in the spring and one in the fall. I had a headache the morning after because I didn’t hydrate enough after the race, but soreness was very minimal. I think I’m learning that the more I run, the more my body has grown accustomed to this.

I had a really great experience throughout the whole Freep weekend and would definitely return to this one, whether I try the marathon again, the international half, or even the shorter distances. It may have taken a while for me to get to it, but now I understand why so many friends love it.

– Janet

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