So marathons are funny things. If you don't pay them the proper respect, they humble you. Last November I ran the New York City marathon and got crushed ... started out way too fast on a hot day and spent the last six miles dragging my sorry ass to the finish line. People were passing me left and right.

This morning I ran the Vermont City Marathon in Burlington. I had no specific time in mind as a stubborn right calf injury had hampered my training. In fact, I went into it thinking I could always drop out if the calf acted up. (I woulda toughed it out as much as I could, but didn't want to aggravate the injury).

Anyway, I started out slow - about 9 minute miles - and my calf didn't act up. At about mile 19 I started cranking- not completely sure of the splits but I'm guessing my last seven miles were about 8:30 pace. Passed lots of people.

Final time? 3:52:45 ... 36 seconds slower than my November 2003 NYC marathon time. Considering the amount of training I missed from the calf injury, I'll glady take it...

The course itself was beautiful -- ran the streets of Burlington, along the lake, through various bike paths ... quite a nice race. It was sunny, but only got hot toward the very end. I have pretty distinct tan lines on my shoulders though - thankfully I wore a sleeveless shirt!