Boston Marathon - RunMarathon

Started off in shorts, short sleeve shirt, arm sleeves, beanie and gloves. Ditched the gloves in the first few miles and then lost the cap around mile 10.

I was passed right at the start by a guy running barefoot...yep, you read that right. I also had three japanese guys running near me for nearly the whole race dressed up in costumes. One was a chicken, one a ninja (in full getup...only thing not covered were his eyes) and the third was dressed as Minnie Mouse. So for 2+ hours, all I heard from the crowd was "go ninja, chicken, minnie mouse". It was pretty funny.

Miles 1-5 were a blur due to the adrenaline and crowds. With it being predominantly downhill, it's a nice way to ease into the race. I tried to keep the turnover high and not put too much wear and tear on the quads.

I tried to run miles 6-15 as easy and relaxed as possible in order to avoid going out too fast and blowing up on the Newton hills. I could already feel my quads and calf muscles (too much walking around on the weekend) getting a little bit sore towards the halfway mark, but never had any issues with cramping.

Miles 16-21 are the meat and potatoes of Boston, with all four Newton hills located in this section. When we drove the course on Saturday, the hills didn't seem too crazy, but I knew their location in the race was the big issue. I think I did a decent job pacing in the first half and was able to make up some ground on this section. It was surprising to see how many people were simply peeling off to the side of the road and walking. By the time we got to Heratbreak Hill, I was holding a 7:30ish pace going up it, but felt like I was flying relative to the speed of some others.

Things got a bit more uncomfortable after mile 21, with the cumulative fatigue of the miles and hills taking it's toll. I tried to pick it up at this point, but just didn't quite have the energy. However, I was able to keep from slowing down to much. By mile 24, things weren't too enjoyable anymore and all I could think about was getting to the finish.

As we turned down Boylston, the cheering was quite impressive. I was able to find my wife in the crowd which was pretty nice as well. That last section seemed like a mile, but I could tell I was going to achieve my goal of sub 3:00, so it was a pretty sweet ending.

Not enter two marathons 13 weeks apart. I got a little burned out while training for Boston after having done Houston in January.

Walked the few blocks between the finish line and runner exit and met up with the family. Took a long ride back on the T to my cousins house and proceeded to ingest a couple beers and two lobsters...not a bad way to end the day.


Overall, a pretty sweet experience. I couldn't help but think that Houston is almost as good of a race. The crowd support at Houston equals that of Boston, but the Boston course is legendary and quite scenic as well. I think I'm going to have to do this one again if the opportunity presents itself!