I did manage 3 interviews, however. Jamie Anderson is a good friend and fellow Trail Monster, and I’ve gotten to know the race director, Gary Allen, over this past Summer since I ran his ultramarathon back in July. The third interview was with Patrick Finney, who was just a random person that I struck up a conversation with and who had an interesting story, some of which I didn’t learn about until we actually began talking.
MDI – Gary Allen
Blaine: Alright! I’m with Gary Allen at the Mount Desert Island Marathon finish line. And how did thing go today?
Gary: I think things went well Blaine! We got people from all over the world. It was so great to be here at the finish line, and have a gentleman and a lady come up to me and say, “we came all the way from Mexico. And we are blown away! We’ve never been through an experience like this. It was so beautiful, and so fun, and so well organized.” So as a runner, the successes or failures we have out there competing, we all have felt that. But just the satisfaction when people come up to you and just say “thank you!”
Blaine: Yeah!
Gary: It’s like getting a PR! Without having to ever move. So it’s good!
Blaine: How many runners did you have today?
Gary: I don’t know how many finishers we’re gonna have, but we have about 1200 entrants.
Blaine: Right!
Gary: So we’ll see what the final stats say. How many no-shows or whatever.
Blaine: Yeah! What’s the ratio of relay to full marathon?
Gary: Oh! I would say that the vast majority are marathoners. And maybe 1100 marathoners, and 200 relay people.
Blaine: And there’s a lot of first-timers I saw.
Gary: Yeah! We did a fun thing Blaine. We color coded the Bib numbers.
Blaine: Yup!
Gary: And it proved to be a really good thing. The first-timers wore green bib numbers, green background bib numbers. And experienced runners wore blue, and we had different color codings for all the different groups. So that worked out. But yeah! I think there are a lot of people running their first marathon. As a matter of fact, a lady from South Portland, I think Kristine Guaraldo was third overall, first time marathoner.
Blaine: Yeah! I heard about her at the line already. So who won the race?
Gary: Louis Luchini, a Stanford standout and a Stanford All-American from Ellsworth, Maine. He won in a course record, 2:31:50, I’m saying unofficially, but I’m not actually sure what his official time is.
Blaine: And that’s a huge negative split from where him and the lead pack was at the half-way point.
Gary: He just looks smooth and strong, yeah.
Blaine: Yeah!
Gary: And runner-up was Patrick Fournier of Rome, Maine. And David Herr was third, 6 time champion David Herr.
Blaine: Yup!
Gary: He was on the podium as well. In the ladies race we had Leah Jabbour from Halifax, Nova Scotia. That’s our first international winner, in indoor women. And second place was Amanda Labelle, the 2009 champion. And then the California girl was third.
Blaine: Excellent!
Gary: Yeah!
Blaine: Well it looks like everybody is having a great time. So…
Gary: I think people are! Still coming in, and I hope everyone stays out there and it sounds like their communities turned out. There been a lot of spectators out there today.
Blaine: Yeah!
Gary: So it’s great!
Blaine: So if you like beautiful trees and lot of hills, then Mount Desert Island in October is a great race to come out and run!
Gary: Thank you so much Blaine!
Blaine: Thanks a lot!
MDI – Jamie Anderson
Blaine: Alright! I’m here with Jamie Anderson, who had just finished the Mount Desert Island Marathon. And how did your race go?
Jamie: Extremely well! Just everything went exactly as planned, and made it to Boston. So, I’m pumped!
Blaine: Yeah! I know your were just a little bit underpaced right at the half way point, so you’ve managed to carry the race plan through. What was your final time?
Jamie: 3:14:33 getting the 38th place.
Blaine: So how many times have you run this race?
Jamie: This is my 5th time running MDI. My other best time was 3:21:37, so…
Blaine: It’s a good improvement!
Jamie: Yeah! It was. Well, I’ve trained my butt off, so it’s nice when a plan comes together.
Blaine: So you have plans for early tomorrow morning then?
Jamie: Yes! Starting at 8:55, I’ll be in front of my computer, repeatedly hitting the refresh button for the Boston Marathon Registration to come up, and then just go ahead and get in the big show.
Blaine: Well, Congratulations on your PR. Nice job!
Patrick: Thank you very much!
Blaine: Cool!
MDI – Patrick Finney
Blaine: I’m here at the finish line of the Mount Desert Island Marathon with marathon maniac #2149 Patrick Finney.
Patrick: Yup!
Blaine: So congratulations!
Patrick: Thank you!
Blaine: How did you run today?
Patrick: Consistent, and 4:48:00.
Blaine: 4:48:00?
Patrick: Yeah!
Blaine: That’s pretty good! Now you’re telling me before, exactly how many marathons in a row have you done now?
Patrick: Out of the last seven weeks, this is my 10th one in seven weeks, my 33rd state this year, and 45th total marathon.
Blaine: So you’re getting quite a bit in. When did you start running your marathons?
Patrick: About 5 years ago.
Blaine: 5 years ago?
Patrick: 4 and a half years ago.
Blaine: So it’s kind of a slow build-up, and then all of a sudden you’ve decided, “this is what I’m gonna do everyday”?
Patrick: I’ve got another story for you that, but it’s a health issue thing.
Blaine: uh huh…
Patrick: Yeah! Six years ago, I wasn’t able to walk. And I’ve got MS.
Blaine: Oh… Okay!
Patrick: And I rehabbed myself back after a year, and completed a half marathon in a little more than 4 hours. And I swore to myself if I kept moving, finished a half marathon, maybe I could do a full marathon. And did it the next year, and I kept getting faster and better, and then one of my friends challenged me to run in all fifty states in January, and I said, “Okay!”
Blaine: So how many state are you gonna get in this total this year, do you think?
Patrick: 43 states.
Blaine: 43 states?
Patrick: Yup!
Blaine: So you get almost all of them in one year?!
Patrick: Yeah! Next year I can post.
Blaine: (laughs)
Patrick: I’ll be done by September a little.
Blaine: So next September you’re gonna get your 50th state, so what’s after that? Are you gonna start doing the ultras?
Patrick: No!
Blaine: No?! (laughs)
Patrick: I’ve done one ultra already this year, but I’ll go back and repeat some of my favorites, and go maybe international.
Blaine: Yeah! So which races are your favorites so far?
Patrick: Boston, Big Sur, Mount Desert Island. Those are the top 3, maybe not in that order, but definitely those are the top 3.
Blaine: Excellent!
Patrick: Yeah!
Blaine: Well, great job today! And good luck with your races coming up.
Patrick: Thanks! I appreciate it!
I volunteered at the 2010 Mount Desert Island Marathon, so I wasn’t able to catch up with everybody that I wanted to at the finish line as many had already left by the time I got there and others just never came into my line of sight when I was actually able to move over to catch them.
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