2018 Boston Marathon Thread (Read 554 times)

darkwave


Mother of Cats

    This was my first time running it, and part of it is that I wanted to see what all the hype was about.  Honestly, for reasons independent of the weather, I'm not crazy about racing it next year.  I just hate having to start that late and wait around that long in athlete's village.  And between hotels and flights, it's so expensive.  I'd rather just do Chicago.

     

    I also had hand issues, despite wearing plastic gloves under heavy combination glove/mittens, with handwarmers.  I had the race under control until I bonked at around 23, which I attribute to not being able to take any gels after mile 19.

    Everyone's gotta running blog; I'm the only one with a POOL-RUNNING blog.

     

    And...if you want a running Instagram where all the pictures are of cats, I've got you covered.

    Seattle prattle


       

      I'm having a similar feeling about not wanting to run it next year.  It's a similar feeling to how I felt after 2012.  (Which I still think was worse than Monday's race.)  A race like that can take something out of you mentally.  For me, when I get through something tough like that, I don't really want to go through it again.  But, having gone back after 2012, I know I can feel differently about the race because I have enjoyed other years.  In fact, I enjoyed last year so much that it felt like the first time I'd every run it.  So, I'm going to put a pin in the decision and see how I feel later in the summer.  Can't wait too long to decide since hotels fill up so quickly.  Wink

       

      Wow! You enjoyed the hot temperatures last year? I ran it in 2016 and it was a few degrees cooler than last year, and it totally trashed me. I really actually suffered much worse through the heat than the cold/wet/wind of this year. But i should say, the hot of 2016 was much faster time for me than this year  - by 20 minutes in fact.

      My favorite year was 2015, when it was like this year, just not as bad.

      Anyway, i've just had too many less than ideal weather years, and need to sit next one out. And since i only will go when my teammates go, next year is probably too soon for them (i only went this year because they did as well, though they all sat out 2016).

      Hotels - you can always reserve it early and cancel if you decide not to go after all.

      Seattle prattle


        This was my first time running it, and part of it is that I wanted to see what all the hype was about.  Honestly, for reasons independent of the weather, I'm not crazy about racing it next year.  I just hate having to start that late and wait around that long in athlete's village.  And between hotels and flights, it's so expensive.  I'd rather just do Chicago.

         

        I also had hand issues, despite wearing plastic gloves under heavy combination glove/mittens, with handwarmers.  I had the race under control until I bonked at around 23, which I attribute to not being able to take any gels after mile 19.

         

        what i did was put thin vinyl gloves OVER the glove/mittens so that the whole thing stayed relatively dry. I set three of my teammates up with this combination and several thanked me afterwards telling me how it saved the day for them.

        The other thing i did was use some fairly heavy gardening gloves for my gloves (under the vinyl gloves). They are not super warm, but they tend to be partially waterproof. One of my vinyl outer gloves actually fell off mid-race when i was fumbling for gels, and that hand did just as well as the other.

        All in all, my gear worked out perfectly. I run in conditions like this all winter.

        EDIT: i remember now that the reason i wore the gardening gloves as the base was because i thought i would pitch them mid-race, and i didn't want to cast off anything of value.

        bhearn


          This was my first time running it, and part of it is that I wanted to see what all the hype was about.  Honestly, for reasons independent of the weather, I'm not crazy about racing it next year.  I just hate having to start that late and wait around that long in athlete's village.  And between hotels and flights, it's so expensive.  I'd rather just do Chicago.

           

          Coming from the west coast, the start time is plenty early for me. Be glad you weren't running it prior to 2007 -- noon was the traditional start forever. Ironically they changed it then because there had been too many hot years, and an earlier start would miss the heat of the day. But then they almost had to cancel 2007 as a nor'easter vacated just barely in time in the morning, and the weather sucked, similar to this year, but not quite as cold, wet, or windy.

           

          You don't have to wait around forever in Athlete's village if you time it right. But being there at all is more inconvenient now with all the extra security since the bombing. Used to be you could take your gear bag with you; you would drop it in a bus when you walked to the start.

           

          I'm not sure whether I will be back next year either though. In my case, I've run it 12 times, and for years Boston was the focus of the entire year. But now I mostly run ultras, and it is hard to justify all the expense and inconvenience. It is mostly a chance to see people, but most of my get togethers this year fell apart for various reasons. OTOH as a result of missing people at the bar they were supposed to be at after the race, a table full of women invited me to join them, and treated me to lots of drinks and food.

          joescott


            I agree with what you folks are saying.  Athletes' Village is pretty terrible, especially if you get there too early and have to wait around on a day like Monday.  The logistics are tough.  The total cost is high if you're traveling from out of town.  All around it's not worth it, really.  Still, I love that race, and I think I'll always love it, even though now it is more like that feeling where you love your wife you've been married to for many years rather than those feelings you had when you first fell in love with her.

             

            I got in town much earlier than usual this year for the race because I was working the expo for my employer.  I met my co-workers for dinner on Thursday night proudly wearing my 2006 jacket because, of course, that's what you do in Boston on marathon weekend.  Anyway, a lady came up to me at our table and put her arm around my shoulders and said something like, "It's good to see all you skinny runners showing up in Boston again this time of year."  My co-workers were somewhat surprised by all that, but I explained that sort of thing seems to happen all over Boston on marathon weekend.  And where else does that happen?  I don't know.  I've run some big city races (though not Chicago or NY) and I've never experienced anything like that anywhere else.

             

            To me, Boston is the runner's run.  Nowhere seems to celebrate the runner like Boston does.  I like all that.  And I like the race itself -- at least once it gets going and I'm not stuck in Athletes' Village!  Boston was a puzzle to me the first couple times I ran it.  Now, I feel like I have solved the puzzle, but even so I still enjoy the challenge of breaking down that race to try to give it my best effort on the given day.  If money were never an issue I would run it every year, for sure.

            - Joe

            We are fragile creatures on collision with our judgment day.

              I agree with what you folks are saying.  Athletes' Village is pretty terrible, especially if you get there too

              I got in town much earlier than usual this year for the race because I was working the expo for my employer.  I met my co-workers for dinner on Thursday night proudly wearing my 2006 jacket because, of course, that's what you do in Boston on marathon weekend.  Anyway, a lady came up to me at our table and put her arm around my shoulders and said something like, "It's good to see all you skinny runners showing up in Boston again this time of year."  My co-workers were somewhat surprised by all that, but I explained that sort of thing seems to happen all over Boston on marathon weekend.  And where else does that happen?  I don't know.  I've run some big city races (though not Chicago or NY) and I've never experienced anything like that anywhere else.

               

              To me, Boston is the runner's run.  Nowhere seems to celebrate the runner like Boston does.  I like all that.  

               

              Stories like this are why I cannot wait to finally run this thing. In 2019, if all goes well.

              Dave

              Joann Y


                 

                Stories like this are why I cannot wait to finally run this thing. In 2019, if all goes well.

                 

                High five!

                LedLincoln


                not bad for mile 25

                  I agree with what you folks are saying.  Athletes' Village is pretty terrible, especially if you get there too early and have to wait around on a day like Monday.  The logistics are tough.  The total cost is high if you're traveling from out of town.  All around it's not worth it, really.  Still, I love that race, and I think I'll always love it, even though now it is more like that feeling where you love your wife you've been married to for many years rather than those feelings you had when you first fell in love with her.

                   

                  I got in town much earlier than usual this year for the race because I was working the expo for my employer.  I met my co-workers for dinner on Thursday night proudly wearing my 2006 jacket because, of course, that's what you do in Boston on marathon weekend.  Anyway, a lady came up to me at our table and put her arm around my shoulders and said something like, "It's good to see all you skinny runners showing up in Boston again this time of year."  My co-workers were somewhat surprised by all that, but I explained that sort of thing seems to happen all over Boston on marathon weekend.  And where else does that happen?  I don't know.  I've run some big city races (though not Chicago or NY) and I've never experienced anything like that anywhere else.

                   

                  To me, Boston is the runner's run.  Nowhere seems to celebrate the runner like Boston does.  I like all that.  And I like the race itself -- at least once it gets going and I'm not stuck in Athletes' Village!  Boston was a puzzle to me the first couple times I ran it.  Now, I feel like I have solved the puzzle, but even so I still enjoy the challenge of breaking down that race to try to give it my best effort on the given day.  If money were never an issue I would run it every year, for sure.

                   

                  Not sure I would dare metaphorically compare my wife to a cold, wet, miserable race, but I agree, there is no marathon quite like Boston, and it's because of the people's warmth and pride in their race. I would love to go every year if it were feasible. In other words, DavePNW & Joann, it's gonna be awesome!

                  Joann Y


                    When is the right time to book a hotel? And which one?

                      When is the right time to book a hotel? And which one?

                       

                      They are all either (1) fully booked, (2) not yet open for booking, or (3) $500+ per night. I am checking every day.

                      Dave

                      FSBD


                        When is the right time to book a hotel? And which one?

                         

                        I would suggest getting on the Marathon Tours email list and book as soon as they open up for next year.  It will probably be in a few weeks.  I booked my hotel on May 2nd.  I stayed at the Marriott Copley the last two years and it worked out well.  The first year I stayed at the Omni.  I liked that hotel better and it is convenient for the busses in the morning but a further walk from the finish line.

                        We are the music makers,

                            And we are the dreamers of dreams,

                        Wandering by lone sea-breakers,

                            And sitting by desolate streams; 

                        World-losers and world-forsakers,

                            On whom the pale moon gleams:

                        Yet we are the movers and shakers

                            Of the world for ever, it seems.

                           

                          I would suggest getting on the Marathon Tours email list and book as soon as they open up for next year.  It will probably be in a few weeks.  

                           

                          May 3rd.

                           

                          Seems like a good option to book something there and continue looking for a better deal. There is only a $20 cancellation fee through Jan 1, then it ramps up after that.

                           

                          Another question - is it better to target proximity to the buses, or the finish? On a day like the one we just had, I imagine the latter.

                          Dave

                          Julia1971


                             

                            Wow! You enjoyed the hot temperatures last year? I ran it in 2016 and it was a few degrees cooler than last year, and it totally trashed me. I really actually suffered much worse through the heat than the cold/wet/wind of this year. But i should say, the hot of 2016 was much faster time for me than this year  - by 20 minutes in fact.

                            My favorite year was 2015, when it was like this year, just not as bad.

                            Anyway, i've just had too many less than ideal weather years, and need to sit next one out. And since i only will go when my teammates go, next year is probably too soon for them (i only went this year because they did as well, though they all sat out 2016).

                            Hotels - you can always reserve it early and cancel if you decide not to go after all.

                             

                            I think I enjoyed it because it wasn't a goal race, so the pressure was off.  (My goal race was Eugene which is in May.)  I haven't run well in Boston - in part because of the unpredictable weather - so haven't been putting all my eggs in the Boston basket.

                            npaden


                               

                              The official results don't show a start time for me or a 5k split. The race updates had me starting 25 minutes before I actually did, which screwed up my official time completely. I also put in a request for a change of result. It's frustrating, because I got a 10 minute PR and I want that to be official, not just on my GPS.

                               

                              I've been stressing over the fact that I'm still not in the official results and have been trying to figure out the crazy splits and have finally come up with a somewhat reasonable explanation.  A runner from wave 1 had the same timing chip ID as I did and they ran really slow.

                               

                              Here's my splits from the live tracking.

                              Splits

                              Split Time Of Day Time Diff Min/mile Miles/h
                              5K - - - - -
                              10K 10:57:45AM 00:31:45 - - -
                              15K 11:27:35AM 01:01:36 29:51 09:37 6.25
                              20K 12:01:58PM 01:35:59 34:23 11:04 5.42
                              HALF 12:09:08PM 01:43:08 07:10 10:31 5.71
                              25K 12:28:11PM 02:02:12 19:04 07:52 7.64
                              30K 12:53:50PM 02:27:51 25:40 08:16 7.27
                              20 Miles 01:04:34PM 02:38:35 10:44 07:54 7.60
                              21 Miles 01:12:56PM 02:46:57 08:23 08:23 7.17
                              35K 01:18:34PM 02:52:35 05:38 07:32 7.98
                              40K 01:43:14PM 03:17:15 24:41 07:57 7.56
                              25.2 Miles 01:46:21PM 03:20:22 03:08 09:03 6.64
                              Finish Net 01:54:15PM 03:28:16 07:54 07:45 7.74

                               

                              I think my start time is correct.  It shows I started at 10:26:00 which would be 1 minute after the gun for wave 2.  Seems reasonable although I don't really remember what the clock said as I crossed the line.

                               

                              At one point it showed a 5K split of 4 minutes but now that doesn't show up.  That would make sense with my theory of a wave 1 runner that started at 10:00 and crossed the 5K timing mat 30 minutes later for something around a 10:00 pace.  Same with the 10K, 15K and 20K timing mats.  Someone from wave 1 running pretty slow.  No idea why someone from wave 1 would be running that slow but it still makes the most sense. 

                               

                              Starting with the halfway mark would have been where I would have caught up to them and passed them and then the splits are based on my timing chip on my bib.  Those all match up almost perfectly with my split times from my GPS track.  Not sure on the 9:03 pace for the 25.2 split but that was just a 3:08 interval so maybe I just had an unusually slow spot there for some reason.

                               

                              I'm really curious how this could have happened with duplicate tracking chip id's and also curious how widespread it was if both GinnyPA and myself had the issue out of the 25 or so of us who signed up on this thread.

                               

                              I do have hope that they will be able to get it figured out and get my correct splits adjusted and that I will eventually get an official time.

                               

                              Oh well.  Kind of puts a little downer on the race for me having to deal with timing issues.

                               

                              EDIT - I just sent another timing adjustment request to update them on what I think happened and I was assigned change request #318.  My original one was change request #110 so I guess we aren't talking about 1,000's of runners who had this issue.  Evidently GinnyPA and I just have bad luck! 

                              Age: 50 Weight: 224 Height: 6'3" (Goal weight 195)

                              Current PR's:  Mara 3:14:36* (2017); HM 1:36:13 (2017); 10K 43:59 (2014); 5K 21:12 (2016)

                              npaden


                                Thinking back through the whole experience after describing it to coworkers and friends several times over the last few days one of the most memorable things about it to me was after the finish.

                                 

                                I was staying at the Boston Park Plaza and after the race met up with my family and then walked back to the hotel.  As we came into the lobby there was a line of hotel employees on each side of the entry way cheering and clapping very loudly.  They were screaming like I had just crossed the finish line.  They were doing this for each runner as they came back in the hotel wet, cold and tired.  It was really neat and very unexpected.  (now I've ruined it if someone else stays there and comes in after the race).

                                 

                                As far as hotels to stay at, I really did like staying there and felt like it was a great location.  It did cost $500ish per night booked on hotwire back in August or September.  It was about 1/4 mile from where we loaded the buses that morning and it was 4/10 of a mile from the finish line.  In retrospect it would have been easier to just meet my family at the hotel after the finish line instead of going to met them at the designated meeting area for our last name.  I think the way to the meeting area was almost the same distance as it would have been to get to the hotel the way you had to go back and around to the meeting area.

                                 

                                On my destination races, I haven't ever really wanted to do the same race more than once, but I do want to do this again and will hope for a more spectator friendly day because everyone kept talking about how extremely thin the crowds were this year (and I don't blame them, I wouldn't have wanted to stand out there in the wind and rain either).  From what people were saying it is a very different race when the weather is good and the spectators are out in full force.

                                 

                                I would like to experience that.

                                 

                                My 2 cents.  Nathan

                                Age: 50 Weight: 224 Height: 6'3" (Goal weight 195)

                                Current PR's:  Mara 3:14:36* (2017); HM 1:36:13 (2017); 10K 43:59 (2014); 5K 21:12 (2016)