Hard lessons

Niagara Falls taught me long runs were critical and no amount of fast 15Ks will properly prepare you for a marathon. Fredericton showed me the value of sunscreen.
RVM opened my eyes to even more marathon secrets.
My pre-race meal of a bagel and banana will stay. Next time, however, I will add a coffee. With about 15K remaining I came down with a painful headache. Was it coffee related? I'm not 100 per cent sure, but next time I am not going to risk it. There are so many other things that can go wrong in marathoning that why tempt the gods of pain?
Further I have no wish to repeat my toe and hamstring injuries.
When it comes to training, I am going to incorporate a regular diet of tempo runs and speed work. I left it way too late this time. Hopefully that will help prevent any future wall smashing at 36K.
As well, I want to continue running so I don't need to spend so much time building my base. This includes running more in lower heart rate zones.
But my race strategy worked even though I didn't BQ. I was proud how well I stuck to 4:30 min/K pace. I fully intend to implement that strategy next time. I worried about going out too slow, but that fear did not materialize.
All this new info should propel me running an even better race next time.