Boston Marathon - RunMarathon


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Boston, Massachusetts
United States
Boston Athletic Association
50F / 10C
Sunny
Total Time = 3h 48m 42s
Overall Rank = 12549/22588
Age Group = 45-49
Age Group Rank = 0/
Pre-race routine:

Met Amby Burfoot and Katherine Switzer at the sports expo on Sat. and got pictures. Took a bus tour of the marthon route and the athlete's village at Hopkinton on Sunday. The race participant t shirts are amazingly comfy and look awesome! It was great. Woke up at 4:15 thinking "I'm running in the Boston Marathon in 2 weeks, uh...oh my god..I am running it today!
Ate a bannana, and toast with almond butter and raisins.
Took the shuttle from hotel at 6:15 to downtown Boston to wait in line for the school buses to Hopkinotn. Got on a bus at 7 and arrived in Hopkinton at 8:30. When driving a point to point marathon course, it seems very very far!
Event warmup:

Met a nice woman on the bus and we hung out in the Athlete's village until the start. We ate, drank water, used porta-potties, stretched, put our bag (it had a sticker with my bib # on the school bus that had the matching # series on the windows of the bus) A person on the bus pulled my bag through the window and then we were off to the corrals at 9:50 for a 10:30 start of wave 2.
Run
  • 3h 48m 42s
  • 26.2 miles
  • 08m 44s  min/mile
Comments:

After driving the course on the bus, reading about it and hearing about it, I decided I needed to run conservatively through the race with an even pace. I wanted to enjoy the Boston Marathon, run good, and feel good at the end of the race. When the gun went off, it took me about 3 and 1/2 min. to cross the start line. The first 4 miles are a lot downhill and my goal was just not to run too fast. After mile 4 I wanted to keep at an even pace so I would be strong when I got to the hills of Newton from mile 16 to 21. There were so many fans along this course, they treated the runners in Boston like royalty. It was a big giant party. Getting into Wellesley, the girls were screaming loud and so cute. They had signs like "Kiss me I'm a Freshman" or "I major in kissing". They were awesome and I high fived some as I ran through and recieved some motivation. I took gels at mile 9, 15 and 18. I drank Gatorade and water as often as I could. At mile 16 we arrived in Newton and the first hill began, ok, not bad, longer than I thougt though. Second hill was steeper, then some flat ground before the 3rd steep hill. Ok, I thought, the famous Heartbreak Hill is next and I am ready right? I run in the hills of Western Maryland so this should not be bad. I started up Heartbreak and I was passing a wheel chair runner being pushed by another runner with his head way down looking at the ground with 3 support people around them. I realize this was Team Hoyt, Dick and Rick Hoyt! I was running up Heartbreak Hill and passing 2 people who I have known about and been inspired by ....wow! I looked over at them and told them they are awesome. The fans were going crazy, I had the biggest smile I ever had as I climbed Heartbreak Hill. I knew that I was going to finish this race and feel good about it. Around mile 22 we ran through Boston College and they were much roudier than Wellesley. I had police motorcycles on my right with sirens on for a mile to keep the rowdy drunk students off of the course. I high fived many students here and received more motivation. Around mile 23 I saw the Citgo sign. We descended into Boston turned at the sign, and passed Fenway Park. The fans were insane. When we made the final turn onto Boylston street and I could see the finish line, I became so happy. I was about to finish the Boston Marathon! I never dreamed I would be running this. This was one of the best experiences of my life and I feel very blessed: )
What would you do differently?:

Run faster before the hills.
Post race
Warm down:

Got my blanket, medal and a kiss from the nice BAA volunteer, food bag, Gatorade, retrieved race bag from the school bus. Found my husband.
I told hubby that I did not want to sit down, I said I needed to keep moving. We started walking and met some nice Boston people. I walked the 3, yes 3 more miles, back to our hotel. Took an ice bath and went out to dinner.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

None, the best race experience is Boston!

Event comments:

The Boston Athletic Association has this race organized to a T. It is amazing how well...from the school buses shipping runners to Hopkinton, to all of the volunteers, and the finish line. I am very impressed with the quality of this race. I can't wait for next year!




Last updated: 2009-11-11 12:00 AM
Running
03:48:42 | 26.2 miles | 08m 44s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 12549/22588
Performance: Good
Course: Boston is a point to point course. Runners start in Hopkinton MA and finish 26.2 miles away in downtown Boston.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 5