Boston Marathon is a Downhill Battle (Read 1113 times)

Nothing wrong with the article. Does not mean Boston is the easiest course - People do not flock their to try and set world records.

Nothing wrong with the article. Does not mean Boston is the easiest course - People do not flock their to try and set world records.

Probably because you CAN'T set a world record there, by definition. I'm wondering if elites at Boston pretty much run to win the race - meaning a tactical race not meant to produce a blistering time?

I have not run a marathon, so my experience may not apply, but I find a rolling/hilly course much easier mentally than a flat course. May not be faster but a hilly course gives me some mini targets like get up to the top of this hill and you can coast for a while.

Back in the day when I ran Boston my coach had us do downhill intervals to prepare. Long downhills were not easy to find in Dallas, and we had to drive north to find a suitable place. We would run the downhills and walk or jog back up. This helped prepare because the downhill in Boston really do tear your legs up. Same with St. George, Utah.

That's not much of an article, and there's not much to disagree with. It is a net downhill course. And it is point-to-point. It's not a fast course though--elites would gladly grab the bonus for a coure record if they could. The fact that it's not WR eligible doesn't mean people aren't running it as fast as they can most years. And while the point-to-point nature of the course meas you can get a tailwind, it means you can also get a 26 mile headwind like we had this year. Good times indeed.

6 successive world records were set at Boston between 1989-95.

In what event?

The first 6-7 miles of the BM course are a gentle downhill. However, if your legs aren't ready for that much downhill or if you go out too fast, as others have said, you quads will feel like rocks by the time you get to the uphills. Jay