Every now and then, you see someone who is *not* among the elite marathoners' field but starts far enough forward and runs all-out at the very beginning to be in the lead or in the pack leading the rest of the marathon. It's always amusing to see that on television coverage of some of the World Majors Marathons.
Last year, within my age group, I finished ranked #221. While capable of better than that, that's what my races had in store for me. There have been very few qualifying marathons held so far this year, but I ran in one of them -- the Florida Marathon in early February. While I know there's virtually no chance I will retain my current place in my age group (both in US and in world), let me bask in the temporary glow of being 3rd. (!)
It surely won't last long, as there are many more marathons coming up in the next several weeks. But, even though I expect to drop a fair number of spaces, I may wind up jumping back up when I run my next qualifying race in late April. The real competition for the Top 85 in my age group will really heat up in the fall, when all of the Marathon Majors that are being held will happen, along with so many other spring marathons that have been delayed to the fall season. Fingers crossed.
