Notes
My right quad was still tight the morning of the race, but what the heck, it's always something! settled in to a comfortable pace once we got on Bay St. -- I love the scenery, and am grateful that I chose to run this marathon a 2nd time.
From mile 12 to the turnaround, there was enough wind to wish I could tuck myself in behind someone (which never works for me, as I dislike running close to people). After the turnaround there were lots of friends to greet, which gave me an unexpected boost (mile 16). Unfortunately, running WITH the wind on miles 16-19 meant dead air around me. Thank goodness it was only 60 degrees; with the dead air around me, it could have been terribly hot. I began thinking "Delay the Fade" -- knowing that soon, I would start to fade and my pace would slow down....
I managed to keep the pace up until mile 23; HOORAY! And miles 23 and 24 really weren't terribly slow. At that point I was breathing heavily, sure that my HR was in the 180's, but it wasn't....in essence, I was huffing and puffing, yet slowing down to a crawl. I walked in the last mile, several times....can't imagine going any faster; this was a 100% effort.