Twin Cities Marathon 2024: A Visually Impaired Perspective
Background
I was watching participants running the Twin Cities Marathon on a beautiful fall day in 2022. Runners were streaming by when I experienced the intrusive thought, “I should do that.”
So… that’s what I did.
Fast forward to the summer of 2023 and I landed on a beginner training plan made available for free by Hal Higdon. I updated my calendar with the distances, went to my local running store to get fitted for shoes (S/O to Saint City Running in Saint Paul), and purchased myself a new Garmin. I was under no illusion that this would be easy; moreover, there was plenty I needed to learn since a half-marathon is the longest race I completed prior to this. I also had different commitments like working daily, social events weekly, and summer plans monthly.
I decided to share my experience as it may be different from other perspectives given I’m visually impaired and had the opportunity to train majority of my time independently. I faced unique challenges most people wouldn’t experience and I think it could be enlightening to offer them to those interested. I’ll start with the marathon itself and then share general takeaways, funny anecdotes, and anything else that feels natural to fit in.
Enjoy!
Twin Cities Marathon 2024
The Race: I’ve heard the saying that the first half of the marathon goes up to mile 20 and that the second half starts after.
This rang true for me.
My body hurt but I was able to maintain a consistently steady pace up until around mile 20. At this point my quads suddenly started cramping and I could feel the soreness kicking in. I had to run-walk the last few miles or so but I’m ultimately happy with the final result. A huge and pleasant surprise was seeing a friend on the course, Matthew, and being able to run majority of the race with him. He and I were able to support each other throughout and this assisted me a ton as we got near the end.
The course was beautiful and covered many landmarks of the Twin Cities. I feel grateful that one of the marathons local to me is such a huge event that’s so well supported. I also want to thank my friend Joe for helping me with transportation to and from the race. Additionally, I had several people reach out to offer support in a variety of ways. Thank you.
Please see below if you’re interested in my race results or the course map.
The Atmosphere: The beginning of the course was located near US Bank Stadium which was fun. I was able to get to know a couple people in this area and that was a fun way to get connected. The end was located at the Capitol in Saint Paul, and that was a beautiful location to end with. Both areas were well staffed with plenty of amenities available. I was thoroughly impressed by the level of support present and I greatly appreciate all of the volunteers that came out to help keep operations running smoothly.
Support on the course was incredible. Entertainment could be found at several mile markers and people lined the sides of the roads in droves. I’m also extremely grateful that I had several friends on hand trying to locate me to cheer me on and many family members tracking at home. S/O to my friend Leah who managed to find me and ran along the course to pump me up. I needed that.
For those that weren’t aware that I was running a marathon, I wasn’t great at spreading the information. So, I apologize if that’s something you were wanting to be involved in.
The Aftermath: Spirits were high and there was a mixture of disbelief and gratitude once I crossed the finish line. My legs were still cramping slightly and the lowest curbs would make me wince as I stepped onto them. I was able to walk back to Joe’s car and, when I got home, I got clean and into a fresh change of clothes as soon as I could. Overall soreness is high as I’m typing this and my body tingles a lot with the recovery process. But things went well, I accomplished something new and finished the race uninjured. I can’t ask for more than that.
2023
Average Training Week:
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Rest day
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Low mileage day ranging anywhere from 3-5 miles.
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Medium mileage day ranging anywhere from 4-8 miles.
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Low mileage day ranging anywhere from 3-5 miles.
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Rest day
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Long run day with mileage peaking at 20.
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Cross training day which can involve walking, swimming, strength training, etc.
Anecdotes:
While the mileage I was supposed to run was non-negotiable I was flexible in how I accomplished it. An example could look like me running my long run on a Friday or Sunday instead of Saturday if I knew plans would take up most of the day. More often than not, however, I found myself waking up early before work or weekend commitments to knock my runs out.
Those that know me are aware that I don’t drink coffee. I was often asked, “How do you make it through the day if you wake up so early and don’t drink coffee?!” To be honest…
I don’t know.
I consistently hit a wall around 2pm at work but I reliably found energy where I needed it. I was also able to keep my social commitments firm and I’m grateful I didn’t need to sacrifice much in this area. Thankfully, training in 2023 went relatively smoothly given it was my first time training in longer distances. Unfortunately, a relatively smooth training plan ended on a sour note.
Inclement weather led to the day-of cancellation of 2023’s Twin Cities Marathon leaving many people, myself included, feeling a wide mix of emotions. I felt confused as to why they didn’t cancel it earlier given the weather was known for a while, but I also felt a level of understanding given the safety concerns associated with continuing the event. Either way I decided not to run it independently as I was wanting the full experience of running with others. I waffled a bit, but I ultimately decided to push forward and commit to trying it again in 2024. They refunded me for 2023 after all, so I choose to believe the sunken cost fallacy, financially at least, doesn’t apply here.
2024
Average Training Week:
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Rest day.
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Low mileage day ranging anywhere from 3-5 miles + strength training.
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Medium mileage day ranging anywhere from 4-8 (Pace) miles.
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Low mileage day ranging anywhere from 3-5 miles + strength training.
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Rest day.
-
Long run day with mileage peaking at 20.
-
Cross training day which can involve walking, swimming, strength training, etc.
Anecdotes:
In 2024 I picked a lower level intermediate running plan also made available for free by Hal Higdon. The key differences between 2023 and 2024 are that I added strength training onto my running days for Tuesday’s and Thursday’s, switched Wednesday runs to focus on running faster than normal, and ensured rest days included stretching and/or yoga. One big difference from my 2023 training was running more often after work versus before since I was fortunate to work from home most of the week. Another big difference was running more often with other people. In 2023 I ran with other people, at most, five times throughout training. A focus in 2024 was to build more community and I managed to join a local running group to work on this.
Weather-wise 2024 was super rainy early in the summer. Flooding and high waters were a consistent presence throughout most of the time I spent training. More often than not I was navigating my running schedule so that I’d get sprinkled on versus needing to run through a downpour. I prefer this over the theme of 2023’s weather: poor air quality. It was much more preferable to endure the inconveniences of rain as opposed to breathing in the air polluted by wildfires. Another observation I noticed throughout training is that my body was feeling the aches and pains more often compared to 2023. I was grateful to have integrated yoga, stretching, and more consistent strength work in 2024 because those activities were tremendously helpful in my recovery.
Visual Impairment Specific Challenges
I’ll offer as a quick reminder that I wrote an article outlining my specific visual impairment, Blue Cone Monochromatism, and the symptoms associated with it. That can be found on this page and will offer helpful context to the following information I’m listing below.
Route: One of the challenges of running is finding routes that accommodate the distances needed for training, especially with my marathon training plans having reached upwards of 20 miles. Many people choose loops, lakes, trails, etc. I decided to stick to the same route for both 2023 and 2024 and, while it became predictable and boring, there are many reasons I decided to do so.
Let me explain…
I knew traffic patterns on my route. I knew where low hanging branches, roots, and sudden turns were located. Unable to use a vehicle as a home base for water/nutrition, I knew where the water fountains were situated and how much nutrition to bring with me. All of these factors, among others, led me to running the same route over and over again. This was part of the reason I sought more group runs in 2024 so that I could get more variety. To be clear I could’ve explored further on my own and found different types of routes to run; however, I like to keep things simple and was comfortable embracing monotony in favor of consistently knowing what to expect. I’ve attached a photo of one of my long runs that was recorded via Strava for those interested.
One of my longer runs hugging the river going into downtown Saint Paul.
Hazards: Plenty of hazards littered the route I ran despite me knowing it inside and out. The most dangerous and unpredictable hazard was people. Specifically, people unknowingly, or intentionally, almost driving their vehicles into me. I recall multiple times when people got impatient, weren’t paying attention, or were driving illegally and got within inches of striking me as I was crossing an intersection. I’m proud that I only yelled at someone once (they yelled first) but I was fuming every time this happened. Sincerely, be mindful of pedestrians.
Cyclists were mostly respectful, but I can remember a handful of moments of people yelling at me as they flew by on their E-bikes telling me to get in the right lane. The kicker is that they were in MY lane; the one where people walk/run in.
People can act strange.
The other big hazards were weather dependent. After a big storm branches would litter the ground and I’d find myself high stepping to avoid falling on my face. Big puddles would be annoying more than hazardous. I’d often step into these quasi-ponds and end up enduring a soaked foot or feet the rest of my run.
Odds and Ends
Running Entertainment: Running can, simply put, get super boring. People will try a lot of things to keep busy and entertained during a run. Audiobooks, music, podcasts, etc. are popular options to pass the time. What did I use?
Me, myself, and I mostly.
I don’t see well, obviously. So running with my hearing obstructed wasn’t ideal for safety purposes. I also found that running without audio made my runs feel faster. Instead of projecting however many songs I needed to finish my mileage, I’d be lost in random trains of thought that seemingly only boredom can create. I did find my brain consistently creeping back to some familiar strategies, however, to pass the time.
One of these was trying to practice mindfulness in the form of only trying to focus on my next immediate step, bodily sensations, etc. This was effective in sometimes halting my thinking completely, and that’s a rarity for my brain. Another was trying to recall random memories and picking out as specific of details that I could manage. This would kill huge chunks of time and I found myself remembering things much better than I would’ve anticipated. The last strategy I’d pull out is what I consider ol’ reliable. My time working at the drama camp Frogwarts introduced me to a song called Rattlin’ Bog. It’s an Irish folk song that adds verses as it progresses, and I’d often sing this to myself, as dorky as that may sound, to see how far I could take the song. I’m embedding a YouTube video of a version of the song below for those interested in listening to it.
Equipment: I wanted to add a space to highlight the different equipment I used in case it might be helpful. This space won’t include detailed product reviews or anything, but I’ll offer a brief description of each item and my time using it. Unfortunately, I’m not sponsored so the following is genuine feedback from my own experiences.
Shoes: My feet are super flat, so it’s been important to me to identify supportive shoes to help with this. I typically go and get fitted in-person. From there I choose whichever shoes feel best. Mizuno’s Wave Insipire 18 and 19 shoes are what I primarily used. They fit great, didn’t hurt my feet, and have endured a beating. I did try a different shoe and an in-sole at the start of 2024 training, but this created a significant problem with blisters and general discomfort. So, I reverted back to Mizuno.
Hydration Vest: I used a Nathan brand hydration vest called Pinnacle 12 Liter. It fit all of my handheld nutrition, my phone, the water bladder, and extra clothes without feeling bulky. It also didn’t move when I ran which was important for me. People use a variety of different things for storage as they run. This hydration vest was most helpful for me.
Fitness Watch: I started 2023 with a 1st generation Google Pixel watch and found this died too quickly. So, I sold that and switched to a Garmin Forerunner 245. The Garmin was confusing to use at first, but I’ll be keeping it until I eventually need to switch to something else. It’s been durable, possesses all of the features I need, and fits well with fitness apps (at least the ones I use).
Wrapping Up
Two years of training to run one marathon wasn’t ideal, but I’m excited to have ran it. I enjoyed myself during the process and the race itself is one I’d recommend to anyone interested in running a marathon.
There’s not much else to say, so I’ll share a photo of Matthew and I in front of the Capitol at the end of our race.
Thank you again to all the support.