Masters Running

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Boston 2009 - the rematch (Read 470 times)

    This is kinda long. Feel free to skim. Thanks. Prelude: Last year, my first Boston, was somewhat marred when I began coming down with the flu the night before the race. I finished, but my time of 4:27 was disappointing, and I felt miserable the whole race. 2009 was my opportunity for a do-over. Pre-race: We arrived Boston on Thursday, April 16th. I changed our hotel reservation to come in a day earlier when we found out that the Beerlings (dawndaughter1 and DH) were expecting. I wanted one full day to devote to shopping for the new arrival. Coming east on I-90, we stopped in Hopkinton to take the obligatory photos of the start. It was hard to imagine that in just a few days time, it would be a mob scene there. Friday afternoon we hit the expo, and managed to escape with our wallets intact. Sort of. We attended the Bart Yasso seminar, in which he recounted some of the stories from his book. He's an entertaining guy, and I was disappointed that so few people showed up to hear him. There were thousands wandering around the expo buying everything in sight, so I had expected to see a larger crowd. Saturday we devoted to shopping for the baby, and Sunday we attended Robin's party. It was a blast to meet up with everyone, and Robin was a real sweetie to put on this event within 24 hours of her own race. Sunday night, the Beerlings came over to our rented suite, and fixed us a simple pasta dinner in our kitchenette. We really appreciated the opportunity to have a restful evening. Race Day: Having been horribly rushed last year on the LB (lost bus), we decided to take the BAA's suggestion to use the official buses this year. We took the T one stop to the Tremont side of Boston Gardens and boarded a school bus at about 6:15. We pretty much walked right onto the bus, but the lines had built up substantially by the time we pulled away. By 7:20, we were settling into Athlete's Village, with our newspaper-stuffed garbage bags to recline on. It was cold - only about 30 degrees, but we stayed relatively warm in our toss-away sweat clothes. It was fun to people-watch, and our 2 trips to the porta-johns filled a surprising number of minutes. The line was about 20-25 minutes long just prior to the first call for wave one. WRFB took off when they called his corral and I waited around another half-hour before it was time for me to drop off my bag and head down Grove Street to the start. Once in the corral, I ditched my sweatshirt, had a Gu and a bit of water, and within 15 minutes, we were off. My Plan: I seekretly wanted to try to BQ (4:05), but I knew it would be risky. My initial qualifier was 18 months ago in Hartford, and that was my 3rd attempt. Since then I ran poorly in Boston last year, and had a ho-hum finish of 4:13 in Portland in October where I, admittedly, took it easy. But I had a good half-marathon last month, and a strong 20-mile run the weekend after that, so I was starting to think "maybe"... I used the detailed Boston pacing spreadsheet to plan out my strategy. This spreadsheet, given a prospective finish time, provides mile-by-mile paces specifically adjusted for the Boston course terrain. I plugged in 4:05 and then adjusted each mile pace downward by 5 seconds to adjust for the inevitable Garmin error. The Race: Mile 1 and 2 were supposed to be deliberately slow (9:30 and 9:24) but I couldn't quite make myself go that slow, especially on those downhills. Still my time of 9:15 or so felt very easy. After that, I tracked very very closely to the expected pace. I didn't allow myself to look at my pace on any uphills, because I know (from experience) what my max uphill effort should feel like, and pushing it harder is counterproductive (for me). I figured that if I fell behind, I'd make it up on the next downhill. I generally fly by people on the downhills and fall a bit behind on the uphills. That's just me. I felt especially relieved at mile 9, which is where I gave up on holding pace last year when I was sick. Feeling strong after that point was a psychological boost. Running by Wellesley was a thrill, and I slapped a few hands and did a lot of waving. The girls are very supportive of everyone (not just the male runners!). After Wellesley at mile 13, I began to actually look forward to the Newton hills. I knew I was still on pace, and I figured if I could hold it through the hills, I'd probably be OK. I was very excited to end each of the first three hills on pace, and I began to look for the RA/KR support crew at mile 20. I had told them not to wait around for me, but I was looking, just in case. La Tortuga came barreling out of the crowd and ran beside me for a bit. After exchanging a little hug, she sent me on my way, and I quickly met up with Heartbreak Hill. I had decided to dedicate Heartbreak to dear-old-dad who struggles every day with advanced Parkinson's disease. He is so courageous, and just never gives up. I dug in and did a steady even-effort climb to the top, with the cheering crowd carrying me up and over. Checking my watch, I saw that I was still on pace! I knew that anything can happen in the last 5 miles, but I was getting excited. I wrapped up mile 22 with an 8:12 (!) pace on my Garmin, and then focused on meeting our daughter, her Beer Bump and my local cousins at just past the Citgo sign at mile 25. When I arrived, I gave dawndaugher1 a hug and told her that I might BQ. She pushed me away and said "Go, Go! - no time for hugs!". From there, it was just an amazing cacaphony of cheering as the remaining distance fell away. Turning onto Boylston for the last 600 yards, I reminded myself to look around and savor the experience. My Garmin read under 8 minutes per mile for most of this last stretch, so I was flying. As I approached the finish line, the cheering suddenly hit a new crescendo. I figured the crowd probably wasn't really all that excited about my finish, and looking up ahead I realized that I was finishing directly behind Bill Rodgers! I trotted past him and the TV crews, feeling excited on so many levels. When I finally checked my watch, I saw that I had not only BQ'd, but PR'd (by just a few seconds)! Post-race: I found WRFB at Boylston and Berkeley and we quickly exchanged the vital information that we had both PR'd. It's always extra fun when we do well together. We found my baggage bus, and I changed into warm clothes. We made our way to the T, and then to the Cambridge Brewing Company where we met up with family and the RA/KR crew for beer and burgers. From there, we returned to our hotel with the Pro and Perchcreek and my cousins to work on the keg. Looking out the window, I saw that the rain we had feared all week was just now starting... Fashion Report: White/Blue Washington DC Cherry Blossom 10 miler short sleeve T Capri length UnderArmour tights Chocolate-brown running skirt Blue Saucony Progrid Trigon Rides (brought out of retirement for this race) Final Stats: 4:04:25 - 6 second PR AG (F 50-54): 291/707 Female: 5965/9302 Overall: 16541/22849

    aka Mrs. WillRunForBeer, MD, USA

    Marathoning, the triumph of desire over reason

      Good job, PDR. You sure showed Boston how to do it in your rematch. It's great the way you followed your plan and came through with a PR and BQ. The family support was a real bonus. Congratulations. TomS
        Wonderful, superb, fantastic race! I am in awe. I remember you encouraging me back on CR when I made the switch from after school to early morning running the first year I started running. Thanks for sharing your story of perserverence and dedication. And equally wonderful RR. When I got to the part about dear-old-dad, I shed my first Boston RR tears of 2009. Thanks for taking the time to share your story so eloquently and with so many personal details. You and Lou are going to be rockin' grand-running-parents! Eliz

        flomotioncoaching.com

          Fantastic PDR! I am sitting here with coffee cup in hand after an on-line tour of the newspapers---saving up quiet minutes to truly absorb the Boston RRs. Mr. CNYrunner just looked over at me and asked why I have a huge grin on my face. You ran such a smart race and I could feel the excitement as you saw that you were going to do it. I fist pumped as I read along. That you could celebrate with friends and family was even better. Way to go! Karin
            Congrats PDR !!! Very well done. Yor training sure came through for you especially late in the race. Thanks for the great report Larry

            Chumbawamba: I get knocked down But I get up again You're never going to keep me down

            TheProFromDover


            TheProFromDover

              Nice report PDR! No need of a do over there. Congrats on a well run race. Thanks for supporting the support crew too! Craig

              -Craig - "TPFD53 at gmail dot com"

                Congratulations, PDR, on the PR and another BQ! Very nice. And congrats on the new grandbeerbump. Good report.
                Quit being so damn serious! When we change the way we look at things, the things we look at change. "Ya just gotta let it go." OM
                  Wow you planned your day and paces nicely and followed the plan. What a feeling that must have been to crest Heartbreak Hill and see that you were still on pace! I am happy that you were able to spend time with BeerDD and BeerBump (too funny!). You're going back next year ... right? Wink Bill

                  "Some are the strong, silent type. You can't put your finger on exactly what it is they bring to the table until you run without them and then you realize that their steadiness fills a hole that leaks energy in their absence." - Kristin Armstrong


                  Renee the dog

                    HOLY COW!!!!!! PDR, what a joyous race in Boston! Thanks for taking us along via your report. Congratulations on a job done very, very well.

                    GOALS 2012: UNDECIDED

                    GOALS 2011: LIVE!!!

                      Congratulations to you, Harriet! A PR at Boston is remarkable...I've been impressed with your approach and you should know that I'm quite proud of you and your accomplishment. It sounds like the wind was very difficult but it didn't affect your splits very much at all, so I'm sure you had trained well enough to handle the late pace push. A very fine day for the beers!! Rest up now, girl and let this one sit a while-feel and relive the moment ...an then choose another race to conquer.
                        A truly amazing race - you looked strong at mile 20 and ready to finish the course. It was exciting to read what you ran before and after we saw you. Boston 2010 - yipee!!!

                        Kirsten

                         

                        Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read.

                        Groucho Marx

                        huskydon


                          Very nice! Congratulations! You had me in suspense throughout, but the ending was great!
                          coastwalker


                            Well, that was just outstanding!! What a fantastic comeback after your disappointing '08 race. Congratulations on running superb race; on your PR and BQ; on making sure to savor the entire experience; and on DD1's forthcoming baby!! Jay

                            Without ice cream there would be darkness and chaos.

                              Standing O!!!!!!!! And congrats on the happy news, too! grins, A
                              Masters 2000 miles
                              Mariposai


                                Standing ovation to the flying PDR. To PR in Boston is difficult...to PR and to BQ in Boston is just mind boggling to me. You are one dedicated runner and your hard efforts sure payed off. Congratulations! You are an inspiration to me dear sistahh.

                                "Champions are everywhereall you need is to train them properly..." ~Arthur Lydiard

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