It's that Time of Year Again

For me,when the fall season arrives,I think of marathoning. It's probably because years ago in Buffalo the marathon to do was the Skylon marathon.Starting from downtown Buffalo,it went across the Peace Bridge into Fort Erie in Canada and along a road right next to the Niagara River all the way to Niagara Falls(Canada).I remember very well the Sundays myself, Ralph Zimmerman,Joan Zirkelbach,Harvey Sipel,Freddie Gordon and many others would do our long runs along that stretch of road leading to Niagara Falls. The Skylon course served as the Olympic marathon trial's course in 1980 and 1984.Those were definitely the days my friend(s).The following is from The Stotan News and deals with the subject,Reasons For a Poor Marathon Performance. Some of this may be familiar to you,then again,to many,it may not.Either way,those who intend to run a marathon should read the following and consider it carefully.
"Those who don't learn from their mistakes are doomed to repeat them." How true that statement is! Yet runners,especially marathoners,too often make the same mistakes....too often.
The reasons for a poor marathon experience are really quite simple to identify. Some you have control over and some you don't. #1.Bad weather. Not much you can do about that. I've known runners who've bagged their race the morning of due to the weather and picked another one somewhere else a week or two later.In the fall it seems like there is a marathon every weekend not too far from where you live.#2.Starting out at a too fast per mile pace.This is something that should only happen to inexperienced marathoners but.......#3.Insufficient hydration and electrolyte replacement before and during the race.If you dehyrate and/or run out of fuel you're done,plain and simple.Months of training down the tubes because you didn't do a basic but necessary function,a physiological neccessity.#4.Not doing the proper pre-race preparation.So,you've done the 20 milers in the months before your marathon,the only problem is the race is 26.2 miles long.What in the world is going to get you through the last 10k?  You don't have to go to the extreme but running 3 or 4, 24 to 26 milers in training are essential,IF,you're running to do well.#5. Last but not least,perhaps the biggest reason for sub par marathons is due to not tapering properly before the race.You think the conditioning gained from months of serious hard training is negated because you intelligently taper down the workload as your marathon approaches? Again,months and months of training wasted and a possible great finishing time is lost because you weren't rested and fresh on race day?
Now that's not only a shame, its pure foolishness.