lessons learned from Boston 2018 (cold, wet, wind)

did anyone try the embrocation gels that euro cyclists use to ride in cold wet weather? it's supposed to create a waterproof barrier on the skin... old timey cyclists used to use vaseline right?

bleep bloop wrote:

did anyone try the embrocation gels that euro cyclists use to ride in cold wet weather? it's supposed to create a waterproof barrier on the skin... old timey cyclists used to use vaseline right?

I thought I had heard before that vaseline can clog your pores and cause you to overheat if you use it all over??

Yeah the lesson I learned is that I should have stayed in bed.

Shameless self-promotion, but I wrote a blog post about lessons learned. It's easier just to link it here:

http://wellimtryingtorun.blogspot.com/2018/05/lessons-learned-boston-marathon-2018.html

Also, even the worst forecast I'm seeing looks nothing like what we had last year, so don't get too worried.

You can never adequately prepare for once-in-a-century circumstances.

darkwave wrote:

Shameless self-promotion, but I wrote a blog post about lessons learned. It's easier just to link it here:

http://wellimtryingtorun.blogspot.com/2018/05/lessons-learned-boston-marathon-2018.html

Also, even the worst forecast I'm seeing looks nothing like what we had last year, so don't get too worried.

Thanks darkwave for this!! You should cross-post this into the RRTT as well :).

great article, thanks!

Darkwave, that's a good summary. My notes for this year:

Wait till my wave is called and change shoes close behind the school where there's pavement. I did it in the mud-sucking edge of one of the tents last year. Immediately my socks were muddy, shoes soaked.

Be more careful about timeline so that I take pre-race nutrition on time. Last year was so distracting I don't know what happened, but i went hypoglycemic from miles 6 to 12. Not good.

Mental prep. Again, the soaking rain and mud-suck while waiting for toilets were so distracting I had no time to focus and lost track of time. This year I need a better timeline to schedule and get my head into the real task of running a race.

I'd still go with full length tights if the temp stays below 45. Nike Pro's didn't suck up much water-weight and my legs never got too cold.

pre-race:

throwaway waterproof outfit - top and pants ideally. add a layer or two more than you think is necessary. some old ski gloves, with handwarmers would be good. bring a space blanket as well. bring something to sit on at the school, maybe an inflatable seat cushion. bring several garbage bags, can't have too many. bring extra socks and shoes, and don't switch them until just before you enter your corral - maybe 10 minutes before your start time.

during race:

hat, GOOD gloves, some latex gloves to go on top of your good gloves. armwarmers. singlet is still fine, but I'd go with half-tights or bun-huggers over regular shorts. wear DryMax socks. carry nutrition that you can open with your teeth.

also, I'd probably carry my phone with me if I had a repeat of 2018, just so I can contact people easier when the race is over.

Thank you darkwave for the blog post.

I too suffer from Raynauds. I can't recall for sure but it is likely that I wore vinyl exam gloves under my regular running gloves when I ran Boston in 2018. Sweat will pool inside the vinyl gloves but as long as I am generating heat the sweat will not cool off and thus will not cause my hands to get cold. In the future I may try putting a few pins holes in the vinyl gloves to allow drainage as long as it does cause a tear or I may try loose fitting gloves like those used by food worker. Chemical hand warmers have seldom worked well for me because they do not seem to put off enough heat once inside my gloves. My guess is not enough oxygen can get inside my gloves. I have not used the vinyl gloves with hand warmers so that was not the issue.

I bought my first pair of wool blend socks for Boston last year after reading the advice of others here. I bought Darn Tough brand Vertex socks. The only time my wet feet felt cold was for about 1/4 mile after accidentally stepping into a deep puddles. My feet were wet during the whole race but the additional water from puddles caused my feet to feel cold until my socks were less water logged after running 1/4 mile.

The other times I felt colder were each time the steady rain changed to a downpour. These downpours typically lasted 15 to 30 seconds. There may have been 4 to 8 of these short periods of downpours. I felt colder during each of these and for roughly a 1/4 to 1/2 mile after the downpour changed back to steady rain.

Some here in the forum recommended 1/2 length compression running tights and compression top. I wore a compression top that was a little big for me and heavier material arm warmers that fit snugly and normal split running shorts. I did not have any compression running tights or form fitting compression top to wear at the time. I now do have these. I wore my normal winter running cap. If I had compression sleeves I may have worn them too to have close fitting material and not for support. I wear full length running pants throughout winter but the ones I have would have probably hindered me once they were soaked. Have length running tights and compression sleeves would not restrict my knee movement and would not likely hold as much water.

I ran the first 10K or so at my desired pace after which due to an injury I changed my goal from a BQ time to just finishing the race. My time was about 30 minutes slower than the prior year mostly due to muscle injury. The cold may have been partially responsible for my injury.

I was in a line of buses that got lost and ended up stopped by road block at a intersection that was closed for the start of the push rim wheelchair division. Most runners in the buses got out and walked the mile to the start line. I decided due to the buses taking so long to get us to the start line rather than the runner village that there was no point in my walking to the runner village and then turning right around and walk back to the start. There was nothing I needed at he runner village. I knew it would likely be a muddy mess. There was no mud at the starting line area and no line for the portable bathrooms I found behind a building. I was able to watch the start of each division including the elites runners before I jumped into my corral for wave 2. It was one of my favorite experiences at the marathon.

Surfing gloves. Designed to stay warm while wet.

I think, like all things in running, people handle the weather differently. For whatever reason I had a good race last year for me (2:44) and definitely out-performed place-wise & time-wise. I wore half tights with shorts over them. A singlet with arm warmers. Normal light running gloves. A hat (running cap). Compression leg sleeves. Normal low cut running socks + Vaporflys. I felt fine the entire race, never got cold. Took 4-5 gels, a hot shot, and a salt tablet during the race. Water/gatorade every 5k or so. Water until halfway then went to gatorade. Probably cut off fluids after 20ish or so.

I think pros have a lot less body fat but I would never have considered the winter hats/beanies and jackets that we saw a lot of last year. That stuff causes me to overheat unless it's a true winter day. It was still 40 last year. The wind and rain made it feel colder but it wasn't 20 degrees and raw.

I think attitude has a lot to do with it. Once I saw the forecast I scrapped my time goal. I just wanted to focus on finishing the best marathon out there. I started clicking off decent splits during the first half and went through halfway basically at PR pace. The wind was bad but there were enough people around to draft with that there was enough coverage to not let that impact you too much. The race got better and better as I went, just kept passing people towards the end and up the hills. It's still the Boston Marathon so you should adjust your goals for the weather but still plan for the course. You still can't start too fast. You know that the hills come 16-21 and you need to plan on losing 10-20 seconds/mile there (minus 18-19 which is a slight downhill). You know that you need to crest Heartbreak and have legs for the last 5 miles. You still have to be strategic. If you hit it right the last 5 miles can be your best of the race. The course is forgiving towards the end.

Great recap, I'd ditch my bottle but that's where I also keep my six or so gels.

Check gear no matter how close you stay if its rainy and cold. I was staying at Hilton Back bay which is not too far off the final left turn on Boylston. I was one of many runners that went hypothermic after the race. Decided to jump into a building to try to warm up. I had to strip down to just my running shorts. Some nice people bought me coffee, covered me with coats, and gave me a cell phone to call my wife. My wife had to bring me clothes so i could get back the 1/4 mile.

Not sure I agree with the idea of checking gear if you have other options. It was madness last year and took 30-40 minutes to get your checked bag when I finished (I was in wave 1 corral 4 and finished around 3:04). It was actually really dangerous as some people waiting for checked bags were in rough shape and one guy next to me was literally turning blue. So, I would say that if you can arrange to meet someone near the finish line (like in the Public Garden somewhere) who has warm clothes for you, it will be better than checking gear, unless they've changed the gear check process this year, which I hope they have.

In terms of other lessons learned:

1. Sounds counterintuitive, but I got a bus as early as possible to make sure I could carve out a spot for myself under one of the tents. I was bundled up with lots of extra layers + space blankets to lie down on. This worked out well and while I was out there waiting for a long time, I was covered and layered properly and so I never felt too cold before the start. I honestly couldn't believe the amount of people who got on the bus out to the start with just a singlet and shorts. Don't do that. Those people looked miserable.

2. In terms of what I raced in, I had this debate in my mind the night before about whether I wanted to wear more layers and be warmer (but end up carrying more water weight) or less layers and be colder. Everyone's different and I'd rather be a little too warm than a little too cold when running, so I went with more layers. I wore an underarmour long sleeve compression shirt, a tech T shirt and a tech long sleeve. I had tights on under shorts a fleece hat and winter gloves. I was never too cold during the race (except my hands since I lost a glove along the way). But, in retrospect, the extra water weight from wearing those waterlogged layers definitely cost me in the later stages of the race. I felt fine and was on my goal pace until about 18 miles and then just started to feel heavy. Of course, if I didn't have those layers, I may have been too cold. It was basically a lose-lose. It looks like it will be warmer this year and so this calculus should be easier.

I notice a lot of people mention changing shoes. I would like to be able to take my race shoes and not wear them until just before the start, but the info says that we are only allowed to take a 1 gallon plastic bag on the bus. Are they ok with carrying an extra pair of shoes or do you conceal them in a jacket or some other way? Just curious what I can actually get away with vs what you are technically allowed to do.

sixthfastestman wrote:

Not sure I agree with the idea of checking gear if you have other options. It was madness last year and took 30-40 minutes to get your checked bag when I finished (I was in wave 1 corral 4 and finished around 3:04). It was actually really dangerous as some people waiting for checked bags were in rough shape and one guy next to me was literally turning blue. So, I would say that if you can arrange to meet someone near the finish line (like in the Public Garden somewhere) who has warm clothes for you, it will be better than checking gear, unless they've changed the gear check process this year, which I hope they have.

I agree with this. Unless they've fixed bag check by doing it by something other than bib #. My hotel was in the financial district last year, a bit over a mile away from the finish, and it took me less time to get back to my hotel than to get my bag. Plus, the changing tents were absolutely swamped for wave 1, with a long line to get into the men's tent (many of them spilled over into the women's tent).

I think that if you're staying downtown, skip bag check and just use the poncho they give you and get back to your hotel ASAP.

SRMartin wrote:

I notice a lot of people mention changing shoes. I would like to be able to take my race shoes and not wear them until just before the start, but the info says that we are only allowed to take a 1 gallon plastic bag on the bus. Are they ok with carrying an extra pair of shoes or do you conceal them in a jacket or some other way? Just curious what I can actually get away with vs what you are technically allowed to do.

They weren't enforcing the limit on stuff to the start last year. Don't know about this year.

I ran the race in 2018 and hit a 2:56. I was in shape for maybe 2:53 best case so the weather didn't impact me too much. My tipsP

1) I had to fuel a lot more than I usually do during a marathon. I think I added 2 GUs to the mix because I could feel my body needing more energy. Keeping warm burns energy so I took more and that was critical.

2) Tuck in and pay attention to where the wind is coming from. The wind was coming from head on and a little to the right. So I would run on the left side of the road and tuck in behind other people. No reason to take any wind head on, there are tons of people at most speeds.

3) I wore a lightweight rain running jacket which I would normally never race with but it worked for me and was similar to what many of the successful elites wore (Desi, Kirui).