Posts Tagged ‘boston marathon’

I won’t go into great detail about the party events or this thing will need binding and a publisher, but I love my imaginary internet friends so much, my heart is full to the brim and then some.

Beautiful babes from the Women’s BQ thread

Disco hummer limo to Ron’s house
Ron’s brunch with a clever idea for us to “put our balls on the table”, a favorite phrase of Paul/Zab, who sadly could not be there that afternoon due to a family commitment.

After Ron’s party, I went to the pasta dinner where I got to spend some quality time with my California gal-pals Barb and Jackie. What an incredible weekend of friendship.

Race Day Morning

Audra and I got up at 5:00am, I had a peanut butter sandwich and coffee, then we took the T with our little group to Boston Commons, meeting up with some of the guys from the sub 3:20 thread, then boarded a bus for the Athletes Village.  Once we arrived, I had another peanut butter sandwich, then went around and said hi to a couple different forum factions so the time went very quickly.   Didn’t take long before we were checking our bags and walking to our respective corrals.

The weather was perfect: 40s at the start, low 50s at the finish (the winds were crosswinds and even some tailwind in spots).  I had my small bottle which I filled up twice during the race and I carried 5 gels, though only ate 3.

Here I am with Steve (aka Gladiator) at the Athlete’s Village after I discover my throw-away pants are wet, thanks to a water bottle opening in my bag.  Oh well.

The Boston Marathon Begins

It took 12 minutes for my corral (Corral 13) to cross the mat and I got quite teary as we approached, thinking about the fact that it would be my last marathon and that I couldn’t have chosen a more awe-inspiring way to finish, but also, fear for what the day would bring.

If you’re new to this blog, I’ve been lucky to qualify for Boston with both marathons I’ve done, but both ended on an ugly note: one with a seized-up back so hunched over I couldn’t stand up and huge blood blisters on both feet, and the second one spent run/walking for nearly 8 miles.  So as I approached the start loaded with a ton of emotions, I said aloud, “Here we go, Flo” and hoped it would be a good day.

Pacing

A couple posts earlier, I showed you my paceband, which didn’t have a single pace on it, just where the hills were and how long each one was.  I ended up writing my 10 mile and 13.1 projection on the back of my hand with a sharpie, so at least I’d have a clue by the halfway point if my goal was on or not.  This worked out perfectly – a traditional pace band would have been useless to me, I didn’t even pay attention to the Garmin in the second half.

I was aiming for 7:45 average and expected some faster miles in the first half, but settled back a bit so by the time the Half came, I knew my goal of 3:24ish was gone – I was already 2 minutes over and still had the hills to contend with.  But I was so relaxed about the goal, really wanting to make this a “by feel” race, that anything under 8:00s on the non-hills was fine by me.   All I really cared about was trying to make this the first marathon where I didn’t walk and could finish in one piece.

The Hills

I was very worried about the hills since my usual running route doesn’t have any, but for this cycle I did all my Sunday long runs on a trail that has some elevation to work with.  It paid off.  I couldn’t believe how non-scary the hills were.  The first one came and it was so uneventful, I passed a bunch of people and it didn’t last very long so then I thought the next one must be way harder, but no, I took them as they came all the way through Heartbreak Hill.

I was so surprised that by 21-22 I got some extra energy and ran it a bit harder, but I realized that was pretty stupid since anything could happen before 26.2, so I made myself chill out.  Sure enough, the last few miles felt much tougher.

Body-wise, the downhills didn’t do too much to me, I had some IT band twinges in the second half, but fleeting.  My ankle was troublesome for a good while and but my feet weren’t too horrible (no blisters or bruises this time!), though I did tie my shoes tight to keep my feet from sliding on the downhills, and the right one was too tight, so I spent a few miles wondering if I should retie it, but eventually forgot about it.

Splits

7:58
7:48
7:38
7:44
7:52
7:46
7:50
7:59
7:56
8:00
8:03
7:45
7:55
8:02
8:05
7:41
8:11
8:10
7:58
8:19
8:25
7:42
7:54
7:58
8:06
7:48
1:47

No walking, no wheelchair.  Yay me!!

In the end, the course was not as difficult as I’d anticipated.  Might also be helped by having screaming people surrounding you from the start to the finish, which I found pretty entertaining as a whole but I didn’t high-five or interact with anyone.   I thought the Wellesley tunnel would be louder, wasn’t so astounding as I’d imagined, though it was pretty funny.

I was only ok on tangents because there was always a thick stream of people and with all the water stops, it seemed like going down the center of the road was often the best bet.

Final Statistics
3:28:29
66th in AG out of 1583, 1136 out of 9772 women, 6641 out of 23126 OA.

The People of Boston

I cannot believe how amazing the hundreds upon hundreds of volunteers were.  You would be shocked at how kind and happy and helpful they were, from the Expo to the pasta dinner to the race, over and over you’d hear stuff like “have a great race” and “great job”.

Then the non-volunteering Bostonians were just as supportive; you’d be walking after the race and one after another would say “congratulations!” or talk to you on the train about it.  It was like a cocoon of good feelings wherever you went.  I can’t describe it adequately.

Did I Buy A Jacket?

Sorry to disappoint, but no I didn’t.  I just didn’t care enough about it.  The color combo is too vibrant for my tastes and the fabric too thin to be very useful.  I will say though, that the race shirt is great and the only one I’ve ever gotten in a goody bag that I’ll actually wear (it fits properly, which is so rare for us small gals)

Did I Change My Mind About Quitting Marathons?

Hell no!  Around mile 7 I reconfirmed that it’s the absolute correct choice for me.  That was when my ankle had already started hurting, my feet were already feeling the pavement and I was thinking, “19 more miles of this shit?”  Not interested.

But what a way to go!

I’m leaving tomorrow via an early train for what promises to be a 3-day rolling party.  Well, there is that race on Monday morning, but the social schedule is what has me most excited.  The only cloud on the horizon is my big toe returning to its under-the-nail shenanigans, but I’m hoping with tomorrow’s day off and tiny runs today and Sunday it’ll chill out for real.

Saturday
First stop is the hotel where I’ll hookup with Audra (my roomie for a couple nights), then on to the Expo.  Later that evening a huge-ass Runners World party.

Sunday
A 3-mile shakeout run with Audra, then brunch with the beautiful BQ babes.  Incredible to believe that we are embodying what that thread was started for in the first place – to get to Boston.  While a few gals won’t be attending this weekend, the majority will be representin’.

Immediately after, thanks to Stevi being an incredible event planner, I’ll meet up with a handful of my Sub 3:20 imaginary friends for a fun limo ride to Ron/ESG’s house for an afternoon of lunch, laughs and love.  I’m already grinning ear-to-ear in anticipation of this, it’s been one big belly-laugh with those guys, so I’m dying to finally hug and speak with them for real.

Then back to town to follow Jackie/HikerGirl to the race Pasta Party.

Monday
At 6:15, meet with the Sub 3:20 crew to board a bus for Hopkinton, wait around until 10am and then…begin The Boston Marathon.

Funny, I’ve been so blase about the race from an historical perspective, but now that it’s here, I’ve got this weird sensation of, well, pride!  Not for having qualified, but that I’m doing something my non-running friends recognize and understand as something.  It’s kind of fun.  Hell, I might even buy a jacket.  Maybe.

Monday night is another large dinner with the Sub 3:20 crew and their families, then Tuesday morning, train back to Philly.  Like I said, one big 3-day party.

Tracking and Corny Sentimentality
If anyone wants to track my ass, my bib# is 13897 and you can do it live online by going to the B.A.A. site or sign up for alerts.  Looking for 3:24ish (if the weather is uneventful), but anything around that vicinity will work.

I’ll probably take my laptop so hopefully will check in afterward with a mini update but if not, expect something on Tuesday night.

I want to wish all my fellow racers Good Luck this weekend!! I hope to meet many of you somehow within that mess of humanity but if I don’t, have a strong, beautiful and wonderful race.  No regrets, no pain (well, as little as humanly possible) and memories you want to replay for a long, long time.  Or if you prefer, have a fabulous drunken weekend!!!

As for you guys and gals who read this blog and have been witness to all the trials, tribulations and whining I’ve managed to produce these last few months on the way to this particular event, I will never be able to thank you enough.  You support me, keep me honest, give me something to strive for and something to be afraid of if I fuck up. :-)  Love you guys.  You’ll be with me on the course.

Peace.

This is a paceband for a person who doesn’t give a complete shit…just part of one.
I’ve been wearing pacebands for marathons and Halfs, 10-milers and even 10Ks since I’ve been racing.  But every time, after the first few miles, I either get depressed so it hurts to keep looking at it or my brain turns into race jelly so nothing computes anymore – thus by the halfway point, it’s either ignored or forgotten.  This time I’m doing things differently.

My avg. goal pace will be 7:45s but I’m going for even effort so if I end up slower, oh well. With this freeing philosophy in mind, instead of marking 26 splits on my paceband, I’ve noted only where the hills are, whether they’re up or down, and their distance.  This way I know whether to hold back or to give it some energy and how much longer till those famous Newton Hills are done.

Faster on the downs, predictably slower on the ups…it’s not rocket science but I think it’ll work.

It’s Sunday night and I’m content. I had a couple of fine runs today and yesterday.  Mileage total for the week: 69.  All is right with the world.

Saturday
12 miles, 8:27 avg.  Soaking and gusty like hell, as most of you guys experienced, there was no waiting for a dry or calm moment, so I put on my rain jacket and braved the elements. I wanted to wear a hat (I love a billed cap in the rain to keep my eyes comfortable) but it was so windy, I knew I’d be chasing after it, so left it behind.  Instead, I brought my sunglasses with the clear frames snapped in but they just got hard to see out of, so finally, I ended up au naturel, eyes-wise.

It was oddly fun in that battling Mother Nature way except on Falls Bridge where I had a couple scary moments of thinking I’d be blown into traffic or over the rail, the wind was that crazy, but in the end, I live to write this fabulous post.

Sunday
Half road, half trail, 20 avg. 8:36/mi.  My third 20 of the cycle (I’ll have 4 total now…so much for 19s) and for some reason, I didn’t think much about it at all beforehand. I think this is due to the weather – today was a perfect overcast 52 degrees, I only had to wait till after the rain stopped at around 2pm.

It was beautiful out, I love a dark day. There was one point coming back, around mile 17 though, that I got discouraged. My feet were hurting and this is a common problem in both my marathons so far, so I was “oh shit, not so soon!”.  But then I realized the clicking noise that had been following me for some time was a big rock stuck in the tread of my shoe, so once I got that out, my foot was way better. Even so, I think tired feet will always be a problem with me when running distance. I guess we all have a weak area and that’s mine.

Fueling-wise, I carried my 20 oz. handheld and had 2 gels, one at 1:30 and one about 35 minutes later.  I think it helped that I did that.  I won’t scrimp on gels again.

Race Correction
Annoying to be sure, that 5-miler a couple weeks ago where I supposedly won 1st has been downgraded (I only know this because I saw the results in Athlinks). First off, the #1 woman won Masters, so she shows as #1 in the AG, then some other woman is now #2 by 1 second over me…1 second! So that makes me #2 or #3, but owning the First Place medal. I hate that shit – rather be awarded what I deserve even if it’s less. Oh well. Just wanted to put it out there for full disclosure’s sake.

This Week
I’m due a cutback and the timing is perfect because I’m doing the Shamrock Half Marathon this weekend down in Virginia, so this way I get a bit of a taper.  It’ll be a blast because it’s a team effort with Kat, Audra and Loren, the latter two I’ll be hitching a ride with.  It’s not a relay or anything, just an open team but it’ll be way fun.

I’m pretty unsure about what goal to shoot for.  As mentioned a zillion times, I’ve been running slower this cycle but suddenly with the weather change and also, I’m a couple lbs lighter finally (eat salad every night and buy sliced bread that is not as large as your head) I seem to be running a tad faster.  Still, I’m thinking something in the 1:35 area will be likely.

I haven’t mentioned my Boston goal lately but I’m figuring 3:22-3:25 is where it’ll play out.  I’d be cool with that.  The main thing is, I just don’t want to hurt.  I remember being a brave girl at one time or another, but now that I’ve had things go south a few times, I think about it quite a bit on my long runs.   I’m always disappointed that miles 17 and on don’t feel as easy as I’d like and every time, I do the math to confirm how many miles I’ll have left to deal with at the race.  It’s like when you bite the inside of your cheek and stupidly keep biting it to remind yourself it’s there.  An exercise in futility.

What are the choices?  Either set the bar so low the chances of pain are minimal or inch it up a tad because your training warrants it.  I’m inching, but I’m not overextending, at least I think/hope so.  Who knows?  One thing’s for sure, I’m genuinely happy right now, happy with my running and so excited to see (and finally meet!) all my friends in April.  Yes, I dread the race, but much less than before.  It’s now a low-level hum laced with that eternal question “what is this gonna feel like?”  In 5 weeks, we shall see.

Look up at your browser’s address bar.  Notice anything different?  No?  How about some missing hyphens in the URL.  Yessiree Bob, I finally got the domain name without dashes, woohoo!  That might be why, if you read this thing from a Reader, it looked like I had a million new posts over the weekend, the switchover meant changing everything from the old domain to the new.

The story of the name of this blog and the dashed domain is that I started posting on the Runners World Beginner Forum the same time I started learning to run in Feb 2007, picking Girl In Motion as my username.  So in November, when I started the blog, it made sense to use that name.  Wouldn’t you know, girlinmotion.com was already taken by a porno site, as I’m sure many of you discovered when trying to find this one.

Cut to about 2 months ago, I get a couple emails saying “girlinmotion.com is for sale for $1200″ to which my reply was “fuck you”.  I didn’t actually write it but it was mentally written the way my replies to spammers always are.

Then on Friday as I was coming home from my run (they’ve been hotbeds of ideas lately) and feeling wistful that I didn’t have that non-dashed name since I was starting all this action on the site and the dashes do leave a level of difficulty when saying the name “girl dash in dash motion dot com” and also, for searchers to find it naturally, those dashes are a hindrance.

Since a couple months had gone by since the coercion emails, I gave it a shot and put it into Godaddy to see if it was available.  YES!!!  Plus, I had a coupon, so I got two years of my brand new domain for $15 vs one year at $1200.  Happiness.

Bikini Ski

One of my readers is doing something pretty cool for charity.  Her sister-in-law suffers from Crohns Disease so to raise some dough, she’s going to ski in her bikini.  If she raises $1000, she’ll do two bikini ski runs.  Very clever and an entertaining way to help someone close to her.  So if you have a few bucks to spare, visit her blog Pedestrianrunner and throw a couple bucks her way.  Help her freeze her tush off for a great cause.

Friday’s MP Run

I finally did that 10w/8MP rearranged from last week.  It was a successful run, hit my paces without too much ado (MP miles 7:34, total avg 7:49) but I had a strange Boston thought on the cooldown mile home, that maybe I should pace someone instead of taking a chance on blowing up again.  Here’s what I posted to my friends in the sub 3:20 thread:

If the 3:20 doesn’t work (and there’s every chance that it won’t) I probably won’t be that far off my miserably gotten 3:33 so I won’t be too proud of the result anyway.  And if I make my goal easier by going for a 3:25 to begin with, again, not far enough off that crap 3:33 to matter and if that planned 3:25 goes awry, that’ll be really depressing.

So that’s what I’m thinking right now, not deciding either way but wanted to let you know what’s going on in this silly mind of mine.

A Snowy Sunday Long Run

Saturday was crazy, Philly got the 2nd biggest snowfall in its history (bumping December’s storm out) with 28.5″.  Here’s the photo I posted on Facebook, taken in the morning so there were still a few more inches to come.Yesterday was a 17 miler and while it was a bit treacherous getting to the park, they did a good enough job of clearing the paths so I was able to run without too much hopping around.  It was cold though, 22 with windchill so I wasn’t exactly feeling spry on the way home.  I think the cold keeps your muscles and tendons from being as pliable as they would be at normal temps, at least I know it’s true for tendons since that was a warning when I researched my ITBS, that it’s worse in the cold because it remains tighter so it must be so for all tendons.

And that’s it for Monday’s blahblah.   Have a great running week everybody and here’s a few smoochies for the road.

Glad to say, I’m truly happy to be training again.  I’ve been messing with the schedule, tweaking it like mad, but only by adding miles. I like the way the simple workouts look for now, so no edits for those aside from the mileage padding.  That might change as we get closer to the race because 6 or 8×800 (Yasso, hello) would probably be happier morphing into the same distances worth of 1200s or 1000s, but for now…all good.

This is what I’ve tentatively got on tap for the month of January. Here’s the original plan so you can see how it compares. I’ve entered on week 4.

What I've got planned plus what I've done up till Jan. 5th.

I took an extra day off on Sunday because it was 12 degrees windchill with 30mph winds and I was all, “screw this, training starts tomorrow!”  So that was my last day of  vacation.

Today’s run was 4 x 1/4 mi hill repeats, 9.4 miles total.  I had a great time doing them though it was cold and windy (21 windchill, admittedly not quite as bad as many of you have it).  The only crappy part was coming home and seeing the last time I did reps on that hill, I did 7 of them and was 30 seconds faster.  But it was 62 degrees that day and 3 weeks out from Philly.  Plus, I’ve been running easy for the last 6 weeks, so I’m fine with it.

I had a funny mini-freakout after I read Robert’s comment on the last post “Only three 20’s all training period?”  Suddenly, I was scrambling to add another 20, then I realized how silly it was.  There is nothing magical about a 19 vs. a 20 (if we lived in Europe, we’d be doing 30k Long Runs…18.4 miles) so for all intents and purposes, three 20s and a 19 make for 4 proper long runs.  Looks fine to me.  Besides, my lovely 22,22,24 and 20 for Philly didn’t even get put to the test since I started walking at mile 18.

More important to me is putting mid-long runs in there for general endurance.  Though ok, I penciled in a tentative extra 20 in there if the weather’s great and I feel like it, but probably not.

February at this point looks like 52 (cutback),63,69,73, then March will be 60 (cutback), 73, 54 (Shamrock Half), 74 and then April’s first week is 60, then taper.  I’ll still be messing around as it goes, but this gives you an idea of how I’ve modified the mileage.

On the Heart Rate front, it continues to be wonky, but I’ve now accepted it as a permanent part of the picture.  Instead of lamenting and comparing the past, I’m going to wear it but use the current readings as baseline.  As long as it shows natural  improvement with the passing weeks, everything’s A-OK.  The underlying quandary I’ve had has been whether to slow my runs down to make for a “better” HR.  But they’d end up being slower than last January when I was a much slower runner, so I’m using effort as the main guide and the monitor to note  trends.

That’s it for now, I’ll be back for more blather in a few days.  Have some fabulous runs!