Results: Boston Results 2024
Did you know that the first Boston Marathon in 1897 was only about 24 miles long? It has always been my opinion that a marathon is far too long. Granted, 24 miles is also too long, but it would be better than 26.2. I think 18 miles would be the perfect distance for a marathon because it's around 16-17 that I begin to desperately wish for the race to end. Pheidippides apparently ran around 150 miles in two days, so we could have it much, much worse. The 26.2 mile distance was inspired by another Greek runner who simply ran from Marathon to Athens to deliver the message of victory over Persia. This was an important message, but I hardly think it was worth dying over. Renee's moral of the story: marathon clout is not worth dying over.
I committed to running the Boston Marathon 2024 last September during the official registration period. Many of my friends and teammates were running, including Alissa, who had booked us a room in April and Amanda, my training partner. I was badly injured with tendonitis in my feet, ankles and right hamstring at the time, and not running at all, but April 15th was a long ways away. January comes a lot sooner than April and by then, I really needed to start training. Problem was, I was still injured. I tried coming back to training in October and struggled through a few weeks before pulling the plug and waiting to try again in late December. My specific injuries at this point were post-tib tendonitis in both ankles, Achilles tendonitis in my left ankle and plantar fasciitis in both feet. It lingered all through way through training but did improve slightly once I started a regimen of ankle-strengthening exercises. I now spend about two hours a week doing plyometrics with bands in order to never experience these injuries again.
I arrived in Boston on Saturday and the travel was seamless. No problems with my flights and the Ubers were plentiful at the Logan International Airport.
Very cool geographical side-note: the east coast cities were mostly wetlands before they were converted to concrete blocks. When you fly over New York city and Newark, you can tell that the area is a converted tidal marsh. The airports are just feet above the sea and would be under water if not for the concrete. I hope I'm alive long enough to see how we address the rising sea water. Will we give over the coasts to the Atlantic or fight it by building up with more concrete?
I finally met up with Amanda at the expo on Sunday and that was the only time we saw each other that weekend. I was so overwhelmed by the amount of people that my advice is to not plan to see anyone and if you run into people you know, it's a bonus! We got our pic together after getting her bib and waiting in line (of course!) for 30 minutes.
Alissa and I planned to go to bed very early Sunday night and there's no way to eat at one of the restaurants without flexible reservations, so I got a delicious meal from the grocery store hot bar. This was the best meal I'd had so far and if I ever go back, I will definitely rely on that hot bar. Alissa left to get on the buses before I did, so I was on my own getting down to Boston Commons. I did not have a drop bag because our hotel was so close to the finish line but I had a hotel room card tucked in my Nike bike shorts. I reached down and felt for that dozens of times to make sure I still had it because I spent hours longing for a hot bath and wanted nothing in the way of receiving it.
I couldn't find Amanda at Boston Commons and ended up being herded into line with the other white bibs. We boarded the buses after about a 20 minute wait and it took about 45 minutes to get to Hopkinton. As we drove, I realized I was going to have to run this distance back to Boston. I was minimally prepared for running 26.2 miles with just three 20 milers that felt way too hard and an average mileage of 35 miles per week.
Once we got to the athlete's village, I stood in line for a porta-potty for another 45 minutes (I was well-hydrated) and somehow I was able to find Alissa in one of the tents. They began calling for the white bibs to go to the starting line soon after I sat down and we began the mile-long march to the starting line. The bus ride, the athlete's village and the walk to the starting line were experiences that are unique to Boston and I knew I was part of something special. Because Boston is primarily a qualifying race, there are thousands and thousands of accomplished runners from all over the world. I loved the feeling of personal insignificance that this brought, as if I was just a small part of an important whole.
Alissa, Holly and I separated into our respective corrals and I gave up on looking for Amanda. Within a few minutes, the gun went off and we shuffled to the starting line. The starting line was the first time I got chills. The announcer was hyping up the runners and spectators, the music was booming, the runners were whooping as they started their watches and there was a long downhill ahead.
The Race Report
I didn't pay any attention to my watch and just started running with the people around me. I didn't have any time goals but I thought I would be around 3:30 on a perfect day. It was not a perfect day with the temperatures reaching 75 during my race and the full sun beaming down on me. I was covered in sunscreen and it felt like a hot blanket of goop was covering me. The miles clicked by somewhat uncomfortably and by 10k I said out loud: "I can't run anymore downhill." Then I laughed at myself. I had about 20 more miles of downhill left! Because here's the thing: there are hills half-way through the race but even when you're running up a hill, you're still losing elevation because you are literally hurtling downhill until you hit the ocean.
At about 15k, I started seeing people pulled off to the side of the course or walking. Many of them had red bibs (the first wave) but some of them were white bibs who had already overheated. I didn't feel that bad, but it made me be more cautious about slowing my effort and hitting all the aid stations and taking my Maurten gels. Wellesley College was the second time I got chills. The screams were so loud that you could hear them a mile away and the girls were so hyped for us with signs and high fives. I kissed a few of the girls on the cheeks and high fived at least half of them. This was by far my favorite stretch of the race. Female power out in force!
I desperately had to pee for most of the first half of the race, so I pulled off the course at about 14 and used the porta-potty. It was like an oven in there and my sweat started pouring off me. I only took a couple minutes but by the time I re-entered the course my core temperature had spiked. I walked through that aid station and told myself that if I needed to, I could walk through the rest of the aid stations. The hills were coming up! Except that the Newton Hills are not much of anything compared to the Silvercreek hills of Wadsworth. I kept asking people, "Is this one of the hills?" and when they answered yes, I couldn't believe it. They were just petite bumps. Heartbreak Hill was only about half a mile long and not that steep. I run up a steeper hill several times during every long run. So it turns out that the downhill will do you in long before any uphill will at the Boston Marathon. Speaking of downhill, my quads were trashed. Yes, the downhill after mile 21 was helpful to keep me running forward, but my legs were trembling with muscle damage and threatened to give out if I did anything different. I stopped walking through the aid stations at about mile 18 because I felt like I was being lazy and just doing what everyone else was doing. The last 10k was actually quite strong for me and I didn't stop the whole time.
Starting at about mile 23, the crowd was lined 10 deep along the course and the pure volume was enough to carry you to the finish. I was too tired to wave and smile but I took it all in and it's something I'll never forget. The spectator element is the only reason I'll do another world marathon major. The density of the crowd is the attraction, because you don't feel obligated to respond; you just take it in and use it as fuel to finish. By the time we turned right on Hereford, I was fully alert and ready to take in the finish line experience. The buildings worked like an echo chamber with the music, announcements and screams reverberating around us. Left on Boylston and the finish line looked so far away. I tried to speed up a bit but Adam, who was watching the live feed, said I looked rough coming into the finish. I looked at my watch for the first time and realized I was under 3:40. Believe me, that was an accomplishment on this day. I launched myself over the finish line and tried to sit down right beyond it but the volunteers have strict instructions not to allow that to happen and I was escorted towards the medals. I normally turn down the medal, but I accepted one today!
My one and only thought after this point was to get back to the hotel room and take a bath. I was soaked in sweat, water, Gatorade and melted sunscreen and I was overstimulated past any point of tolerance. I did look for Amanda, Alissa, Holly, my teammates and anyone else I might know but I didn't see anyone until I spotted Diane in the family area. She and I shared a traumatic (to me) moment as we were crushed up against a fence in the exit area because family members were trying to come in the exit. I started crying because dying in a human crush is my worst fear. I could have done without that experience! I made it out the exit and walked back to my hotel room, room key clamped in my hand, Mylar blanket wrapped around me and my Boston medal swinging from my neck.
