I went into the "Race Around the Lake" marathon with hesitation. After months of multiple marathons and ultras, my Achilles was so sore I couldn’t even touch it, and my body was struggling with the effects of overtraining. Simple runs felt impossible—my breathing was off, and what felt like a 7-minute pace turned out to be an 11-minute mile. I had taken a significant amount of time off, and this was my first race in months.
This marathon wasn’t exactly a well-thought-out choice—it was one of those events we were talked into running. We drove up past Boston, grabbed dinner, and relaxed until race time. Unlike most marathons, this one started at 9 PM, designed to accommodate ultra runners who would run through the night and into the sunrise.
The start of the race was less than inspiring. Gnats were swarming in dense clouds, making it impossible to avoid swallowing a few as we waited for the gun to go off. The course itself was a series of loops around a lake, which seemed fine at first. The first loop wasn’t too bad—until we encountered the aftermath of a dog’s very unfortunate bathroom break. Someone had stepped in it, and for about a quarter mile, the smell was unbearable. As the race progressed, each loop brought us back to the same spot, where the dog poop had spread and somehow smelled even worse.

The monotony of the loops started to wear on me. The course wasn’t hilly, but it was utterly dull, with the same sights over and over again. Natalie, our friend, surprised us by showing up with signs and cheering us on. She was the only form of crowd support, and her encouragement was a much-needed boost.
By the final loop, I was counting down every repetitive detail. I turned to Kim and said, “That’s the last time I’m going to hear that loud AC.” Unfortunately, the dog poop smell had permeated everything by this point and was completely unavoidable.
Crossing the finish line felt more like relief than triumph. By the time we got back to the hotel, it was close to 1 AM, and all I could think was how happy I was to be done with that race.
Final verdict? I would NOT recommend this race to anyone. Between the monotonous course, the late start time, and the infamous dog poop incident, it was an experience I’d rather forget. I will never run it again!
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