If you ran 2010 Boston Share Your Experiences Here

Wasn't sure if a recap applies here but thought I'd post anyway. I put it together for some kids who I coached and asked what it was like. I'm sure my modest sub 3 goal is laughable to many of the speed demons on this site but at 47 with limited talent, it hurt like hell. Hope you find it entertaining.

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Well, I did NOT plan to run the race this way. I was in the 5th corral and it took over 3 minutes to cross the start. Obviously, that didn't mean we started running right away. I also had to take a pitstop in the 1st mile which I hit in about 7:30. The traffic was very bad thru 5 miles. It still was after that but at least I was with like paced runners. I used a Garmin GPS tracking my splits by mile as the stationary clocks would be guntime. The problem with a GPS is it follows me and not the tangents. At the end of the race it had me at 26.52 miles! Guess I need to learn to cut those corners better! Anyway, I kept clicking off miles as low as 6:33 and nothing over 6:50. The FIRST time I realized I was in trouble was the half split, 1:30:04 ! I thought, OH CRAP! I tried not to panic as I was still fairly comfortable. I gradually tried to pick it up and really didn't start feeling any distress till the third hill in Newton. Heartbreak hit me exceptionally hard. Just over Heartbreak at 21 miles, I did the math and saw I was close to a minute over my goal of sub 3 hours. I thought of all the work and sacrifice I had done for this particular race and realized there was no way I could save it for the last few miles. If I was going to close the gap, I had to do over the last 5 miles. At that moment, I dropped it down 2 gears and started really motoring. I started blowing by people left and right for about a mile and then throttled back thinking I didn't need to (nor should try to) do this all at once. Just as I got in a groove (still passing people) a girl pulled up and went by me. The 2 of us were the only ones at this point going by people. It was probably around 6:40 pace and we just started working together. I did a quick calculation at 24 miles and saw I had made up most of the time but had no plans to let up. Then at ~24.5 I got a MAJOR cramp in my shin muscle. It forced me to stop. As I lifted my right foot, the spasm torqued it up to the side. This is the weird part. There was a spectator standing there at just that moment who shouted "PUNCH IT!" I don't even know if he was talking to me or not but I made a fist and hit the cramp as hard as I could and it relaxed it! I started jogging lightly and 50 yard later I was back on pace but had lost critical time. I missed the split at 25 but then saw the "One Mile To Go" mark and I was at 2:53:07. I had to run a 6:52. I really didn't know if I had it in me. I was in agony. While it wasn't the fastest mile I have ever run, I can unoquivacably say I have never run harder or hurt more. I'd like to say I was confident and determined but in truth, I was terrified. I lost all sight of the fact this was just a race. No one was going to die if I didn't meet my goal. Still, I got primal. As I turned on to Hereford Street I kept thinking, you have to live with this. Do you have another gear? Either way, it's all over in 3 minutes. My legs were maxed out but then it occurred to me I still had my arms. I started pumping my arms furiously. My legs were dead but had no option but to respond. Shortly after turning on to the home stretch I kept going back and forth if I wanted to expend the energy to look at my watch. How much would that cost me? By now I almost felt like a spectator myself, curious as to how this thing was going to end. With less than 300 yards to go I glanced at my watch and saw it read 2:59:00. I looked at the awning marking the finish but by now could not gauge if I could cover the ground in :59. I'm curious if there is a video of me finishing because I don't think I have ever put anything more into running as I did down that straight. I'm sure it wasn't pretty. I ended up with a 2:59:39, my last mile in 6:31 with a negative split for the race.

It's funny. Before the race I thought, I can't win here. If I don't break my conservative 3 hour goal, I'll be miserable. If I do break it but run a 2:59 when I could have 5 minutes faster, I'll be happy but left wondering and annoyed I didn't take a chance or work hard enough. I didn't see an upside to a 2:59. Quite happy to say I was wrong. While you alway try your best, I think a person has only so many of these races in their life. I'm pretty lucky I found one of mine in Boston yesterday.

Wind was def a cross wind. There were times when you felt it at your back...but it was at your face just as often. I will say I thought it was less windy than last year.

Also: went from pretty cool pre race...to kind of warm for a few miles...them cool again. All things considered though? Pretty ideal across the board.

Do really enjoy the course. Negative split for the second year. I don't like the first half at all...but the Newton hills are pretty fun and will help you out if you run smart.

deriba merger and kenyans partying after the 2010 boston marathon . so funny http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JaF1xdfX9XM

Old n Slow, I greatly enjoyed your race report. What a great finish, wow!

old and slow-- GREAT JOB... good to read stories of regular runners getting the most out of what they have, going after a goal, and achieving it.. well done.

Great

Old n Slow wrote:

Wasn't sure if a recap applies here but thought I'd post anyway...

Great recap. Regardless of speed, all runners have had an experience like this in some race.

Making that left turn off of Hereford and kicking down Boylston was one of the greatest moments of my running life, and a shared experience among many marathoners. Your post got me pumped for Boston 2011!

The kids you coach must be proud. Enjoy your well-deserved recovery.

I'll "share my experience"...

This was my first Boston and I found the conditions to be ideal. The temperature was perfect - I wore arm sleeves but ditched them halfway through.

I started in Corral 3 and therefore had to run the first 5k much slower than I would have liked, but this turned out to be a blessing in disguise as it forced me to rein it in...it also felt good because I started farther back and was therefore passing slower runners. Nobody passed me from mile 5 to mile 20.

Miles 1-10 were 62:05 and 11-20 were 60:43...so I was basically getting faster as the race went on. My fastest mile was actually mile 19 (5:52). The last 3-4 miles were pretty rough down Beacon St, and the damn Citgo sign never seemed to get any closer.

For a second-time marathoner and first-time Boston runner, I could not have run the race more perfectly. If you don't get carried away and make sure you save your energy for the right parts of the course, it is possible to run a good time. I don't know if I would run much faster on a flat course.

In total, I probably passed over 2,500 people as I finished in the top 300 with a 2:43 (19-minute PR!)

You FAIL

transmara wrote:

deriba merger and kenyans partying after the 2010 boston marathon . so funny

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JaF1xdfX9XM

Conditions were good, no doubt but the wind was mostly a headwind. All through Ashland, Framingham, Natick and Wellesley I was constantly trying to duck behind people to get out of it. In the hills there wasn't much wind at all, one way or the other. Coming down the Haunted Mile and Beacon St though the headwind resumed. Fortunately it was lessened by the buildings.

This was the first time I've ever run Boston in which trained well, did not have a hot day, and did not run stupidly. I've often had two of those three factors at a Boston Marathon but never three. Managed a course PR.

Average_Joe wrote:

but the wind was mostly a headwind.

BS

Fucking drama queen underachiever.

Nutella1 wrote:

Average_Joe wrote:

but the wind was mostly a headwind.

BS

I'm sorry that it contradicts your desire to discount Cheruiyot's performance, but I didn't imagine having to hide behind other runners for so many miles.

The bowels of the bridge yields up yet another fetid troll.

Lets Whine w/disgusted

Awww, did that put sand in your vag? I thought stories of barely breaking 3:00 were fodder for crap sites like RW. If you're 60+ or a masters female then it would take on a level of respectability. Otherwise, whatever. I guess I should keep in mind that Boston has become the hobbyjogger Olympics. Hope you got a purdy jacket to strut around in.

Old n Slow wrote:

I kept clicking off miles as low as 6:33 and nothing over 6:50. The FIRST time I realized I was in trouble was the half split, 1:30:04 ! I thought, OH CRAP!

Something doesn't compute. If you were running between 6:33 and 6:50 how the hell were you 1:30 at 13.1? Even if you ran every mile of the first half at 6:50 you'd be 1:29 and change.

Still...congrats on getting your sub-3.

Is it okay to hit a woman if she tells you how many grams of protein there are in the recovery drink she forces into your hand at the end of the marathon?

Besides that one complaint I had a really good experience at Boston and look forward to improving my time there in the future.

Anyone who thinks that the hotels were too expensive in Boston doesn't know how to use the internet properly. $100 a night for a 4-star baby!

That was the problem. I was looking at my times based on my Garmin. I ended up running over 26.5 miles since I didn't run the tangents well, swerved around runners, ran across the road for water, etc. Hypothetically, my GPS had me at the half at 13.26 miles. I was told afterwards I should have shut off the GPS piece and just used it as a stopwatch. Wish I had known. It was a bitch trying to do the math the last 10K.

great posts by OldnSlow and First Timer.

captured the spirit of the event and personal challenges.