Boston Marathon - RunMarathon


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Boston, Massachusetts
United States
Boston Athletic Association
65F / 18C
Sunny
Total Time = 4h 17m 24s
Overall Rank = 20089/27487
Age Group = F45-49
Age Group Rank = 1366/1952
Pre-race routine:

Zoe to pet sitter on Friday night. Fly to Boston on Saturday. Expo on Saturday. Bus tour (Boston Duck) and generally chillax on Sunday. Race Monday.

The Saturday before the race we traveled to Boston after a short morning run. We had lunch at DeLuca's Market on Newbury and then hit the Expo. Getting my number was super easy and organized. The rest of the Expo was good but super crowded. I got a jacket (of course).

On Sunday, we had breakfast at the hotel and then chillaxed, Duck Tour, Skywalk viewing thing, pizza at a Red Sox themed neighborhood pizza joint (Steve's). Early to bed...

I was on the bus chartered by my gym's run club (Lifetime Fitness). The bus pulled out at 6am for my 10:50am start. This allowed for lots of "transition time." I decided to think of it as when you go to a triathlon and set up your transition space at o'dark thirty and then watch other events start and then watch other swim waves start and then it's your turn.

Anyway, I got up just before 5 to leave the hotel by 5:30 to get to the bus by 6. I got dressed, lubed liberally, drank some water with electrolytes and had some oatmeal. I had a bagel with PB and a banana closer to 7:30 and sipped on water.
Event warmup:

Walk to bus. Walk to start area. Multiple port-o-john stops. Dynamic stretching. It was in the mid 60s when my wave started.

I was in Wave 3, Corral 8.
Run
  • 00m
  • 26.2 miles
  •  min/mile
Comments:

Monday, up before 5am for my 10:50 start! First breakfast, walk to bus (1 mile), bus to Hopkinton, talk to runners and wait...

It was warm for a marathon with the temperature in the mid 60s at the start. For the first few miles I regretted my decision to run in short sleeves instead of a racerback tank. I knew that the first half was "easier" than the second half and I started off right at my target pace.

I held that for a bit longer than the first 10k. At about the 8 mile mark, a strong headwind started (now I was happy that I had gone with short sleeves!). The flags were staright out and whipping so 15 mph headwind (confirmed by local weather). The course was still super crowed but starting to thin out a bit. At the 10.5 mile mark, some kind of flying insect bit me. It hurt. I worried that it would swell up but nothing bad happened and by mile 12, it was no longer a distraction. By 12.5 I could hear the howl. I had been told it would sound like a train. WOOOOOOO WOOOOOO. The Wellesley Girls! And they were still a half mile away! The crowds had been constant up until this point but from Wellesley on, it was packed and seemed to be at least two-three people deep on both sides of the road (except if there were train tracks or a cemetery to keep people away. Then we approached Newton, home of the famous Newton Hills. Those hills are no joke. By now, I knew that my goal time was out the window and that maybe it hadn't been realistic anyway. As one person on my bus to Hopkinton said, "There are a lot of marathons but only one Boston. Enjoy the day." After reaching the top of Heartbreak Hill, I kept on telling myself things like, 45 minutes. In 45 minutes you'll be done. I tried to keep it together and look reasonably good when I passed Kevin and my parents. The crowds were such that I didn't see them. (Kevin was near Kenmore Square and my parents were somewhere on Commonwealth but I didn't know that until after.) It was amazing when I turned onto Boylston and saw the finish. I almost cried. I felt like I was moving in slow motion (probably was!)

Even after finishing, the crowds were intense. The hand you a bottle of water, medal, and then one of those silver cape things and you just keep on walking and walking. Gatorade, "hot bananas" (they'd been sitting in the sun), more walking. I had to sit down on the curb twice but had enough sense to sit next to a fire hydrant so that I could pull myself back up. They asked if I wanted a wheelchair (I wasn't THAT bad). More walking. Photo op. Finally, out of the athletes only area and off to find Kevin at our designated meeting place.

Not in my wildest dreams did I ever think that I'd qualify for and run in Boston. What a special experience.
Post race
Warm down:

Walk and walk and walk through the finisher chute. Stop and have my photo taken. Walk some more. Leave the area blocked off for runners and locate Kevin. Go to pick up my gear and walk back to the hotel.

One of the best signs from the race: "Run like a millennial from a commitment." Another good one was "May the course be with you."

Also an oldie but goodie -" Worst parade ever!"

Event comments:

This was my first, but hopefully not last, Boston marathon. It lives up to its reputation.


Profile Album


Last updated: 2015-09-21 12:00 AM
Running
00:00:00 | 26.2 miles |  min/mile
Age Group: 0/1952
Overall: 0/27487
Performance:
Course: Run from Hopkington to Boston. Lots of ups and downs.
Keeping cool Average Drinking Not enough
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 2
Physical exertion [1-5]
Good race? Ok
Evaluation
Course challenge
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 5