Boston: Baaaahston!!!! 2012

So, let me just start out this post with a HUGE shout-out to all of my peeps in Hopkinton, Ashland, Natick, Wellesley, Newton, Brookline and Boston, because without them, I would not have made it through this race. They really kicked it up a notch or two with their support in the form of sprinklers, hoses, "splash"es, busted fire hydrants... you name it! The good it did is truly immeasurable!


This morning started off quite early. With only a few hours of sleep (not sure exactly why), but I woke up and was  up an out the door by 4:50 a.m.

Shuttle Ride to the Boston Common

Bus ride out to Hopkinton!

We caught a hotel shuttle to the Boston Common and then a got on a bus. We were early enough to have our pick of the buses, so lucky #2 it was! After a short time, we were on our way to Hopkinton. Everything went off like clockwork. Which, I have learned about this race, it is like clockwork. They have done this for 116 YEARS, so they know how it goes and it is boom boom boom.


Anyways, we got to Hopkinton and entered the famed Athlete's Village, which was really nothing more other than some tents for people to camp underneath on and a bunch of food and beverages provided by the sponsors. Good enough for me. It was there we hooked up with Louis, Andrew and Bill (who caught a different hotel shuttle and bus). We all spread out our blankets, popped a squat, as the race was still 3+ hours away! I had never had a race where I had to wait that long, but time went by quickly with friends and we relished in the atmosphere reminding each other that the long wait was part of the "Boston experience".

 

Our little pre-race picnic. Notice all the room around us? Being type-a triathletes,
we all were on the first 2 buses out to Hopkinton. We told ourselves we just wanted the
"full Boston experience".

Heather educating us all on the benefits of Peanut Butter Gu

By this time, everyone was there.

No room in the tent now!

Lines for porta-potties.

After awhile, it was time for Andrew and Louis to head to their corrals (they started 20 minutes ahead of me, Heather and Bill), so they were off.

Our little 26.2 crew.

 Then it was the three of us to get ready to go, and off we went.

I wanted people to cheer for me. Wasn't effective. Next time use black.

Wave 2 buddies -- Holla!!!

Again, like clockwork. Dropping our bags, hitting the porta-potties (Boston Tip: there are porta-potties without lines by the bag drop and the start, don't waste your time in the village with these lines!) and off to our corrals to start the race.

Second wave - sixth corral. That's me!

 I think this is the first time I REALLY noticed the heat. Up until then, we had been in the shade and it hadn't really effected me, but now being in the sun - it was HOT!

 Now, if you have been following any of the coverage on Boston this year, you will know that the big news was the heat. Evidently in 2004, they had a race in the 80s and over 2,000 people ended up in the medical tent. They didn't want that happening again. Over the week, we received many emails from the B.A.A. pertaining to the weather and as the forecast got worse, so did the urges from the B.A.A. to run smart, run slow, possibly NOT run, to the point where they were offering deferments into next year's race. Crazy! My parents assured me that if I wanted to defer, they would not be let down and they would gladly come back to support me next year. I told them I wasn't contemplating that deferment was never an option for me, I was running this marathon and running it THIS YEAR.

Anyways, back to the race.

Heather and I ready to start in the corral!

The race started for us and off we went. Although Heather and I started together, I told her I didn't want the pressure of keeping up with her, so I just let her go and run off. And, I will be honest, I felt like CRUD. I don't know what it is, but I just did not fell like I had it in me today, but I was determined to finish. So I found a pace I knew I could keep for awhile. A loooong while. It wasn't fast, but it would do.

Now I will be the first to say I HATE running wet. I hate pouring water over my head because (a) it usually makes the salt (from sweat) go into my eyes and (b) I am terrified of blistering on my feet with so much moisture dripping to my shoes. After thinking, I decided that if I got wet right away, and kept myself showered with water to regulate my temperature, I didn't think I would get salt in my eyes BUT I would still be risking getting blisters. I decided to take the gamble and go with it. I think I saw my first aid station somewhere around 2.5 miles and was more than ready to pour water on my head. And did so.

As I went on, I continued to keep hydrated and cooled by pouring water on my head. A volunteer handed me two water cups and told me, "drink one, wear one". I quickly adopted that as my mantra for the day. At times it was "drink one, wear two". Or three. Or four.

The race starts in Hopkinton and travels down a pretty narrow road through a number of small towns all the way into Boston. The very cool thing about this is the amazing support along the route. I have run races through small towns a lot in my past and you generally see some support, but definitely not the amount that was along this route. And what was the coolest about this was that the residents were setting up their own aid stations along the route, setting out sprinklers, getting out their water hoses, cutting oranges, etc. My favorite were the kids with buckets of water that were offering "splashes", I was all over that one - oh, it felt so good! Whenever I could, I would tell the person with the hose, sprinkler, etc. "Thank you, you don't know how much this helps". I know, I know, you will say "I've seen that before", and I have too. But definitely NOT to the point that this race had. I will see a half dozen or so home-made aid stations along the way on a race, but here you had it continually for 26.2 miles - more in some towns, less in others - but you could count on getting water before the next aid station, if need be.

Makeshift aid and misting station set up by ambitious pre-teens. Awesome.

Kid handing out water: artistic interpretation or water-logged camera? You decide.

I'd like to say the miles ticked by quickly, but they didn't. It was hot and I was miserable for awhile. And then somewhere around mile 7, things all changed. I am not sure what did it. But I found my happy place, or as a banner for Gatorade said "find your happy pace", to me, they were the same. I'd like to say it was this that helped put me there:

That's a freeze pop handed to me by a little girl and it was HEAVEN.

So after that, I was all good. At least mentally, and that is when the miles really did just start ticking by. Soon I was at 10. Then 12. Then was Wellesley College, where the girls lined the course and for a long while you just heard some screeching, but it was still encouraging. All the girls had signs saying "Kiss me! I'm a senior!, "Kiss me- I'm a redhead", "Kiss me, I'm from Wiscoooooonsin", "I kiss girls, too", etc. I looked and I looked and I found one who was kissable--

But, considering I was married, I passed him by.

Runners coming through Wellesley.

Favorite shot because it has the steeple in the background, which to me is "New England".

I was almost to halfway and thought, "Man, it would be nice to see my family right about now", I thought they would be at mile 15.5 miles, but guess what --  THEY WERE THERE!!!

I was SOOO happy to see them!

Kisses and hugs to/from everyone -- they even love me when I am sweaty!

Close-up of how incredibly drenched I am in water, sweat, you name it!

As I left they got a shot of me, yet again, chasing a sprinkler.

Tip: throw your arms in the air to show you want the water and they spray you every time!

Then it was plug, plug, plug along. I was still feeling good and wondered when it was gonna hit. I was ticking down (or up) the miles and one just seamed to come after another. I knew that miles 16-22 the course went up, so I wondered if that is when I would really start slowing.

I hit mile 16 and nothing seemed to happen. I was still moving. Maybe 10 seconds or so slower per mile, but not too bad. I did start to notice people walking. Lots of people. But I tried not to think about them. People were talking about how slow they were going and how they hoped to finish in 5 hours. Really? We were on pace for a 4 hour marathon and I was only anticipating going faster. I guess not everyone was feeling the same way.

I wondered how many "hills" I was going to do. The course was going up, but I wasn't really sure... All of a sudden, I was somewhere around 20 and a spectator said "last hill!". I looked at him and said, "Really? This is Heartbreak?". He assured me it was and I was happy. I was running this bad boy.

Popsicles make me happy, so I took one as I was heading up.

All the runners - and the inspirational chalkings on the ground - on Heartbreak Hill.

HAPPY to be running it. The way the race started, I thought I might be crawling by now...

I think the top was around 21 miles. I knew I had another mile of up till I hit the "down" of 22. And that I did. Happy to be running on a downgrade for awhile, I just cruised. At 24, it turned flat and all the "down" momentum was gone. I felt like I was pushing so hard, but going soooo slow. But then, all I really had to do was look around me and there were people going much slower and loads walking, so I reminded myself I was doing "good".

Where was the end??? Between running in and out of of sprinklers and across the streets to get water, aid, etc. I had added a good 1/2 mile to my distance and wasn't sure when the end was going to be, BUT I knew there is a huge Citgo sign exactly 1 mile from the end, so I had that in my sites. When I hit the 1-mile-to-go point, I looked at my watch and knew I had to do an 8:50 mile to make a 4-hour marathon. So, off I went, mind over matter.

I got about 3/4 of the way through my last mile when I turned onto Boylson. Yay!!!! Until I saw that I had 3 minutes to make it to the end.

ALLL the way down there. Ugh. Yikes. Not sure if I will make it.

I didn't think I could make it, but I kept running. AND, I didn't want to miss out on this, either so, I whipped out my camera and started snapping pictures.

Almost there!

It was then my family spotted an arm reaching up in the air with a camera and knew it had to be me (evidently no one else was taking pictures at this point???) and I heard them yell my name and got to see them!!!! And then off to the finish line - would I make it???

YEP!!!!

Feeling good, and happy. I crossed in just under 4 hours (3:59:10). A far stretch from an ideal time goal, but considering the extreme conditions, it felt awesome! And that meant: Boston 2012 = success!

To top it off, after getting into the shoot, I turned around to see Heather. We had seen each other briefly at mile 7, but other than that, not till now, and I was ecstatic to end the race with the friend I started it with.

Yes, those are mylar blankets at 89 degrees.

It was a doozy of a day, but I loved every moment of it. The first 7 miles were not my favorite, but every race has a low point, and I am happy mine happened at the beginning and not the end.

On top of everything, I had the support of my family behind me, my friends, everyone watching online and I feel like the support of everyone who has encouraged me over the years. I really do look at the journey of getting to this finish line as starting when I ran my first marathon 10 years ago, not when I toed the line up in Hopkinton, and that made this 26.2 miles not the fastest, but the sweetest, I ever ran.

Thanks, especially, to my family who traveled to Boston with me. They are the reason I am here. I wanted to make this race not just about me, but experience it with them.

Freedom Trail (minus Ross)

Fenway (minus Mom)

Boston: Getting Settled...

We got to Boston on Thursday night. Safe and sound. It was a long day of traveling, but that's what you expect when you are going cross country.

Anyways, I wanted to make this trip about the race, but also about family and visiting Boston. Too many times they come to see me race and that's it. And, since I wouldn't be in Boston without them, I wanted to have them there and make this fun for them, too.

So, Friday morning, my parents came and met us in Boston.

My mom and dad with the kids outside of the aquarium.

 After a morning of fishies, penguins and seals -- not to mention our favorite stingray Lincoln named Pancake-- we headed to Quincy market for some lunch.

Lobster roll and clam chowda - yum!

And then it was all about checking in at the expo.

YES!It's official- I'm running!

Hmmmm... will I be accepted into "Pure Running Heaven"?

 Night time was a low-key dinner and off to bed for me and the little folks. What I realized was that I needed to keep off my feet. Walking around the aquarium, the markets and the expo was kind of taxing.

So, we planned a more relaxing day for Saturday. Kicking it off with a sightseeing tour on a duck where the driver, bless his soul, even let the kids drive for awhile.

Linc ready too duck it up - quack! quack!

Hunter at the helm - help us!

Then it was another lunch and off to the finish line. I know that race day will be crazy, crazy with people and I wanted to see it and soak it all in before the big day.

Me and my monkeys

Lincoln scoping out his spot on the grandstands.

Me, Hunter and the finish line

I had to explain to the boys that they wouldn't be able to run with me to the finish line on race day, which was a big bummer to them (some races let the kids in). So, instead, we had out own finish line racing going on.

Me and my pop - the man who introduced me to running by running himself.

 Now that all the finish line fun was done, time for more relaxing... off to the Boston Common.

The swan for our swan boat ride

Yes, first duck boat tours, now swan boat tours.

 And being right around happy hour, we headed over to a pub where we knew everybody'd know our names for a drink.

Can you spot the special marathon brew?

 I love how the whole city gets behind this race. Thank you, Sam Adams.

Dinner = lobster dinner

 Count down to race day = 36 hours...

Boston: Let the Saga Begin!!!

Actually, maybe the saga began 10 years ago when I ran my first marathon.

I have dropped 1 hour 47 minutes and 20 lbs since that marathon...

Or maybe it is all the races I have run since then.

What I found when I was looking for picture above

Or maybe it was when I actually DID qualify last year.


Any way you look at it -- Boston is only a few days away!!!!
Next Monday, to be exact. Patriot's Day which has a whole different meaning to marathon runners.

While to many accomplished runners, this may be just another race, it is not to me. Boston is something I have worked hard for and I want to enjoy it as best I can. Finish strong and with a smile on my face! While elite runners run it to win it, I am running it for the experience of it - from start to finish.

That being said, I made it a point to get to run club this week for the Boston send off, and I am glad I did.

Some of you may have noticed I have been sparse on my photos lately and, even more so, when I am racing. I don't intend to be this time around, so I had to try out my new belt that will house my camera while I run on Monday.

The actual run part of this run served two-purpose:
(1) Run out the nerves with Heather.
(2) Practice my running/picture-taking abilities with my new belt.

Not there yet, needs work.

Much better.

 After that it was water, wine and cake for the post run. I caught up with some friends, heard about kid's graduating soon, new job opportunities and even a new arrival(!!!!) and thought to myself "where have I been"? Oh, that's right off training for an IM. Unfortunately, my bike has taken me away from my diehard run peeps. That's ok, it won't be long before I am back.

Back to the story, then it was time for the Boston send off.  I am so happy to be part of the Runner's Roost community cuz they get it and the fact that all of us had worked hard and they wanted to appreciate it, so we all ventured downstairs.

Roost Run Club and Race Team - Boston Crew 2012

 Along with more wine and cake, we went over some Boston and race day logistics and then got a special treat. Nike had brought us all shirts and a machine to customize whatever we wanted. How AWESOME!!!  I definitely wanted to make a shirt to remember this run and this race by...

 

What a great way to end the evening and... considering that I am leaving this morning, this was the perfect topper!

So, after months of planning, my bags are packed, the kids are juiced (more for the trip than my race, but I will take whatever excitement I can get out of them) and we are off to the airport in 2 hours time.

I CAN'T WAIT!!!!