Boston Marathon Female Finish

While reading Kara Gouchers latest post about three women who inspired this year (Desiree Davila, Jenny Simpson, Morgan Uceny), I realized I never saw the 2011 Boston Marathon female finish and set off to find it on YouTube.  These women are extremely talented and they make running fast LOOK effortless, which of course isn't true as evidenced by Kilel laying on the ground immediately after finishing and having trouble getting up.  



Happy Running!

Reflections of Boston

Brief and un-energetic would describe my first Boston race report.  Now that I've had time to reflect on the race and settle back into real life, I'd like to share my thoughts not from the stand point of making excuses but to allow me to talk through my experience and feelings about the race and post race. This is kind of a long post but has been very therapeutic.

Because I compare myself to other marathoners, generally better than me, I discounted my achievement of not only running a marathon but running the BOSTON marathon.  Being around other runners and feeling like I'm the under-achiever of the group, I forgot much of the rest of the world doesn't run and a marathon to them is something super-humans do.  When I got back to work, everyone congratulated me.  They were proud of me.  

Up to that point (well even now if I'm truthful) I wasn't proud of me.  I ran/walked the last 6 miles and was disappointed in myself. Had I not given myself permission to walk, which then allowed me to walk again and again, would I have done better.  I was very fatigued and while I didn't quit the race, I quit pushing myself.  I've done plenty of long runs where I thought of walking and saw my pace wasn't that bad after all and kept running.  I didn't even look at my pace when I decided to walk.  Should I have just slowed my pace down?  I know there is no answer to that.

One of my friends immediately after I finished texted me what happened?  My pace fell off. Why did I fall apart the last 6 miles?  Hmmm, are you a frenemy?  It happened.  I've thought about the various areas of possible reasons for hitting the wall

• Nutrition- being in a hotel and eating every meal out is challenging. I didn't carb up like I did on my last marathon.  I also only ate a bagel with peanut butter 4 hours before the race.  That probably wasn't enough food.  
• Training- I had 3 weeks of little training due to injuries in the two months prior to the race.  That affected my endurance and confidence.
• Time of day- my training runs are always early and I would be done and showered by 10:30...which on race day is the time I started running.
• Pacing- I still feel that I went out ok.  It's a race, I chose to start at my race pace, rather than work into it.  This is a different tactic for me because usually I start much slower and speed up as I go.  Changing my tactic from something that has worked very well in the past for me is something in hindsight that I shouldn't have changed.
• Mental game - leading up to the race and during the race I was fearful I would be injured. That the IT band or hamstring would act up.  I was fine and wasted a lot of energy and created stress with the worry. 
• Flat out being tired- I was tired, chose to walk and in hindsight, I wish I just slowed down my pace but kept running.

In reality, even falling apart...or being shredded as one of my friends put it.  I did fantastic.  Bottom line.  I ran a marathon and I did it under 4 hours.  If I stand back and  look at it, that is outstanding and I know many people strive to go under 4 hours and don't ever make that goal. As I mentioned, people at work and my friends are proud of me and so excited to say they know someone who ran Boston. It doesn't matter to them if my pace dropped from 8:25 at the half marathon to 8:54 at the end.  It doesn't matter.

Now for the lighter side of this post.....  I LOVED all the little kids out there.  They were so excited, jumping up and down with so much enthusiasm,  at the start yelling go go go.  Throughout the race they held out orange slices in the palm of their hand making it easy for runners to get the oranges. Popsicles in various colors were held out and was a very welcome treat.  Rows of children would hold out their hands for high 5's.  If you started down the row, other people (adults too) put out their hands to keep the high 5 chain going.  At the beginning of the race, high 5'ing is a serious energy booster. I tried to high 5 at the end hoping to get some energy but eventually I didn't have the energy to even do that.

The crowds were awesome.  I wore my name on my shirt and loved having them cheer me on.  At the end, it was very helpful and I felt like they cared and were really rooting for me.  Sorry to the guys that I rolled my eyes and gave them a 'life sucks' look.  I'm so appreciative of the crowds out there even though if I don't have many memories of those last painful miles.  

I do remember 

• at the beginning seeing the crowd of runners...covering the road...a blanket of people
• towards the end the crowds were 5 deep and the faces were a blur.
• coming up to Becky and Sonja from my track group and Becky's smiling face as she cheered me on.  we leap-frogged each other the last 2 miles. 
• seeing Becky put her hand on Sonja's back to encourage Sonja to keep running...that she was doing great even though it hurt to keep going
• encouraging another runner who was in tears saying how much it hurt.  The amazing thing to me was she kept running and didn't stop.  Because I was run/walking, I would pass and encourage her a number of times
• running behind Dana, who turned out to be Miss Canada.  I realized who she was when Miss Canada, wearing her red gown AND HEELS are the post-race party had her bib on with her name on it.
• running behind Kelsey and hearing the crowd call out her name.  I've heard some runners get tired of hearing the names or runners being called out but I didn't.  Kelsey, thanks for running by me.  
• seeing Team Hoyt on the course.  You've seen storied about Dick pushing his son Rick in marathons. It was an honor to see them on the course. Rick was very bundled up for the cold.
• seeing Achilles members and knowing the runners have overcome challenges greater than I could even imagine.
• telling a blind runner and his guide that he's looking good and having him reply back that I was looking good too. That cracked me up.
• throwing my gloves off to the side meaning to have them go to the side of the road yet over threw them many feet into someone's yard. I didn't know my own arm strength
• talking to Tall Mom around mile 11.  She said she was having a tough time and I felt bad for her that we weren't even at the half way point yet.
• seeing my friend with her union jack bandanna at mile 6 in front of me and knowing she was running a faster pace, let her go and not try and catch up...even to say hi. 
• running by Jackie Moon and telling him he looked sexy and having him tell me that I'm sexy too and he's going to draft off of me.
• seeing signs on business to encourage the runners
• the green water cups scattered on the ground blowing across the road because of the high wind (which very very fortunately was a tail wind)
• stepping on used Power Gels packs at mile 17 thinking they were slippery and someone could fall if there were too many on the ground.
• seeing leaf rakes sweep the cups off to the side
• being encouraged by the volunteers at water stations
• the lady who cried out..come on in frustration when I started walking. I suppose if the runner in front of me stopped I'd be frustrated too
• noticing the runner with the KT Tape across their legs at the beginning of the race. Wondering how tough would the race be for them.
• Feeling a blister on my arch (same place I've been getting them) starting about mile 3. In the end, I had 7 blisters with 4 being blood blisters on the tips of my toes.  Right now I still have a black toe that I wear proudly.
• being cold at the start of the race but with the sheer number of people scrunched into a small area, the wind didn't get to me and it wasn't that cold.
• the calmness yet excitement at the start of the race.
• Choking up when I had the medal around my neck and realizing that I just ran Boston, something many people strive to do and I had to qualify to even get there. 

The day I left for Boston my co-workers decorated my office.  They signed a poster board with well wishes.  One lady explained they tried to find a picture of a white woman winning a marathon and they said, all they found were Kenyans.  They don't know who Kara Goucher, Paula Radcliff and Deanna Kaster are to look for their pictures and the fact is, Kenyans make up a large portion of the elites.

I love my Boston Marathon Jacket (even if it isn't embroidered like past years).  Total strangers before the race told me good luck and afterwards for the following week total strangers asked how I did.

The latest episode (#270) of Phedipidations Steve says "The marathon humbles you, it teaches you something about yourself every time you toe the line. It's always more than just a race. The marathon is a challenge for individual glory and an opportunity for personal enlightenment. "

Consider myself humbled.

Happy Running!

Cyber Friend No Longer Virtual

Meeting Natalia in Boston was like meeting a long lost best friend.  We clicked instantly. Over the past few years we have exchanged emails and commented on each others blogs and  in person we were chatty best friends that understood each other.

At the expo

Arranging to meet at the expo could have backfired based on the sheer number of people that would be attending but we arranged to meet early.  Like a scene from a movie, we were both on our cell phones trying to locate the other person when I look up, see her on the escalator and knew instantly it was her (of course she looked like her pictures but was much prettier in person.)  For the next 2.5 hours we zig zagged our way through the expo chatting the entire time. I learned that you're supposed to toss your sports bra's after a year (mine are grey, dungy and many years old) and that Natalia is a wicked fast runnuh.  Natalia must have felt so sorry for me having old sports bra's because she later gave me a gift...a new sports bra.  Out with the old; in with the new!

Natalia finishing strong

Natalia post race

On Sunday Natalia was running the 5K, which is on a portion of the Boston Marathon course, and I headed over to cheer her on. Getting up early in Boston wasn't a problem for me because I was still waking up at 6am (3am Phoenix time) At the start line there were 5,000 plus people and I knew I wouldn't find her.  About 20 minutes before the start of the race I called her....she was just leaving the house! It would only take her 10 minutes to get there.  This is one area were we differ.  For races, I'm an anxious nervous rat arriving at the races an hour before and couldn't imagine showing up 10 minutes before the race even if I did already have my race packet and bib.  After the start of the race I climbed into the stands to watch her come through the finish.  I worried I wouldn't be able to pick her out in the crowd yet after a bit, she came through looking strong.  I waited for her to pop out the other end of the food tent and we talked about her race  and walked around until my pre-race nerves and tired feet got the best of me and we parted.

Natalia, Stuart, John and Christina

On Wednesday, Natalia wasn't sick of me yet and we met for dinner with our significant others.  3 hours later when we parted it seemed like only an hour had gone by.  Natalia originally is from South Africa and her husband is British so both of them have the coolest accent. The night passed so effortlessly I was sad to say goodbye.

Meeting Natalia was one of the highlights on my Boston trip and I look forward to meeting her again...maybe Vegas?

Boston Marathon

Leading up to Boston I watched the weather and was uber aware of each ache. Race morning was crisp, cold, windy but sunny.  The sun meant for a great race and the wind was a fortunate tail-wind which would lend to Boston being the faster marathon setting a world record time. (The course doesn't qualify for a world record)

Jason and Chrissy waiting at the Westin for the arrival of our bus

I was incredibly fortunate with an opportunity to ride in the coach bus with the Alzheimer's charity group. The bus not only had a bathroom on it, but we were allowed to stay on the bus until the last minute.  I didn't have to sit in the mud in Athlete's Village, stand in the port-a-potty lines or deal with the terribly cold wind.

Athlete's Village

The race started and I heeded (or so I thought) all the advice to go out slow.  I held myself back at the beginning and was running strong.  Around mile 11 I ran into Tall Mom and was so excited to meet her.  It was sunny and for me quite hot.  I sipped the water at most water stations and dumped the rest on my head.  Going downhill at mile 18, I no longer felt I was holding myself back and my arms were incredibly tired.  I tried to maintain for a little while but when my BQ pace slipped by, I gave myself permission to walk some.  I felt the wall hitting me, falling on me brick by brick. From mile 19 through the finish I struggled and ran/walked to the finish. I've never been so happy to finish a race.  

My final time was 3:54:45 and I finished in 14729 place, 5053 out of females and 973 in my age group. My bib number was in the 17K's and that means that I finished about 3K above compared to the people I started with. A number of people I talked to did worse that the qualifying time by 10-15 minutes so I fit right in.

While I am disappointed that I didn't finish with a 3:45, qualifying and running Boston is a great accomplishment and I will always have that.  Thanks everyone for the kind words and support. 

Relaxing on the Boston Common post marathon

Boston Marathon Alert

I sent this to friends and co-workers and now I'm posting it too for my fellow bloggy friends. What's pretty cool is how many people in the office told me they signed up for the alert and have forwarded on the email to others.  One of my friends likes being able to tell her friends she knows someone running the Boston Marathon.  The mystic of Boston is there for runners and non-runners alike.

**SPOILER ALERT**

Kara Goucher will beat me (along with 17,000 other runners)

On Monday, April 18th I’ll be participating in the 115th  Boston Marathon along with 27,000 other runners. If you’re interested you can receive a text when I cross the 10K mark ( about 6 miles), half-marathon (13 miles) , 30K (18 miles) and the finish line. You can text the word RUNNER to 345678 and you’ll receive a return text with instructions.  My  bib number is 17327.

I’m in the second wave and the gun goes off at 10:20am (EST).  My best guess is it’ll take me 10 minutes to cross the starting line and actually start running.  The first part of the course is downhill and then the hills start at mile 16. If all goes well, I’ll cross the finish line in Boston 4 hours or less later (about noon PST)

FAQ
How long is a marathon anyway?  It is 26.2 miles long. 

How did I get into Boston? To run Boston you need to qualify by running a certain time for your age group.  For the 2011 Boston I needed to run a certified marathon in three hours, fifty minutes (3:50) to qualify.  Last year I ran the 2010 IMS Arizona marathon in 3:44 and qualified to run Boston.  Boston just lowered their qualifying times making it harder to get in so it’s a good thing I’m running it this year.

How many marathons have I run?  This will be my third marathon

Will I walk? My goal is to run the whole time but a few runners use the Galloway run/walk method.

What about the wall?  Some people say it’s all in the runners head.  In my second marathon I didn’t hit a wall and felt great the entire time.  In my first marathon about mile 22 I got super tired (and grumpy) and guess you could call say I hit the wall.

What if I have to go to the bathroom? There are port-a-potties along the course but I hope that I can do all my business in the morning. This shouldn’t be a problem because I need to be at the buses at 5:45am and will have plenty of time for my body to wake up.

Do you eat along the way? Many runners use GU, a carbohydrate goo like blob that has 100 calories in it and is really sticky if you get it on your hands.  I’ll take one every 5 miles, or 45 minutes. If you’re curious on what GU tastes like, just ask my co-worker Nick.  He loves GU.

Why am I flying to Boston, spending money on a hotel, air, etc just to go running in a race where I can’t possibly win? Hey, it’s Boston.  What other explanation could there possibly be?



Happy Running!

Packing For Boston

It can be daunting choosing the perfect race outfit for a local race.  What should be packed for the Boston Marathon (or any other big marathon)?  I pulled out my excel spreadsheet with various lists on each tab to come up with the following list.

Race packet pickup (very, very important)

Running shoes

Running socks

Tank top

Short sleeve top if weather is cold

Shorts

Capri's (if weather is cold)

SKINS

Garmin

Garmin charger

Hair bands (2)

White throwaway "sweats"

Throw-away sweat shirt

Gloves

Check bag for pre-race

Bag for post race include towel to shower and change of clothes
Spi-belt

Pepto bismal tablets

Tri-glide (for chafing)

Aquafor

Chapstick

GU (4)

Ibuprofin

Sunscreen

Visor (in case it rains)

Baby wipes

Mylar blanket to spread on the ground

Tour guide books
And a partridge in a pear tree

Am I missing anything?

Boston Marathon. A Century of Blood, Sweat and Cheers

As Boston approaches, I desire to learn more about the marathon.  Not only the course but also the interesting tidbits about the famous marathon.  I've been listening to Steve Runners older episodes of the State of the Course and anxiously await the 2011 State of the Course episode.  Sitting on the bookshelf of my boyfriend is the  book 'The Boston Marathon A Century of Blood, Sweat and Cheers' published in 2003 by Tom Derderian, that  has captured my interest with snippets of Boston marathon history, the course and races.  I recommend reading the book yourself but in the meantime, here are a couple tidbits I found interesting.

• In 1924 the starting line was moved to Hopkinton from Ashland.
• Wheelchair collisions occur, much to the horror of the spectators. The collision in 1987 required changes controlling the start to prevent crashes.
• 1987 must have been a horrible start because they used a rope to prevent runners from false starting.  The starter, fired the gun without realizing the rope was still up causing runners to trip and fall.  (see there's a reason I'm not an elite at the starting line)
• The Hadleys, who live on Hopkinton Common,open their bathroom to runners; many who return year after year for their hospitality.
• An extra 12,000 vehicles go through the Hopkinton tollbooth increasing tolls collected
• It once was believed the marathon was harmful to the human body. At least until 1958 a physical was required the day of the marathon to prove the fitness of the athlete before running Boston.
• In the first Boston, each athlete had their own handler. Someone to ride along on a bicycle in case their runner needed "water, food, massage, encouragement and stimulants."
• In 1907 runners had to wait for a freight train giving Longboat the lead in front of Fowler.
• In 1927, when paving roads was still basically an experiment,  the tar melted sticking to the runners shoes.
• The largest margin of victory was 6:52 in 1897 for the men, 9:59 in 1972 for the females.  The smallest margin was 1 second for the men in 1988 and .40 seconds in 1980.

Happy Running!

Head Away From Nature West Near Ballpark Boston

With Boston less than 2 weeks away I have download past episodes of the podcast Phedippidations by Steve Runner.  Each year Steve does a State of the Course podcast about the Boston Marathon.  With 9 Boston's under his belt, he is a wealth of information. The information in this post comes from his 2009 State of the Course podcast. Hopefully he'll post his 2011 episode soon.


Steve uses a mnemonic to help remember the cities the marathon runs through.  It is 

Head Away From Nature West Near Ballpark Boston

Hopkinton

Ashland

Framingham

Natick

Wellesley

Newton

Brookline

Boston

Naturally when I was trying to remember this mnemonic, I couldn't.   If you see me walking around muttering to myself it's because I'm practicing remembering it.

I found a site where it shows the course marathon per BAA and shows his Garmin elevation.  The BAA course elevation profile is smooth as a baby behind when you can see in real life the course is a monster with jagged little teeth.

Steve Runner also had some interesting stats on the course and the hills.

61% of the course has a slope less than 1%

22% descends at a rate greater than 1%

17% climbs greater than 1%

That means that 83% of the course is downhill.  Downhill!  Sweet.  The problem are the three major hills starting at mile 16.

• Hill #1 starts in Newton,climbs from 89 ft above sea level to 157ft, has an average grade of 4.7%, is .28 miles long
• Hill #2, goes from 98 ft to 157 ft for .38 of a mile with an average grade of 2.9%.
• Hill #3 climbs from 148 ft to 236 ft with an average grade of 4.5% for .37 miles.

Steve calls the third hill, AKA as Heartbreak Hill, as a goofy little speed bump.  The elevation chart doesn't it make it look like a speed bump or goofy AT ALL.

A Runners World post by Hal Higdon breaks up the race this way.

Hopkinton to Natick (0-10 miles) - Profile: Elevation drops from 462 to 177 feet.

Natick to Wellesley Square (10-13.5 miles) - Profile: Elevation drops from 177 to 137 feet.

Wellesley Square to Lower Newton Falls (13.5-16 miles) - Profile: Elevation drops from 137 to 49 feet.

Lower Newton Falls to Cleveland Circle (16-22 miles) - Profile: Elevation rises from 49 to 236 feet, then drops to 147 feet.

Cleveland Circle to Kenmore Square (22-25 miles) - Profile: Elevation drops from 147 to 20 feet.

Kenmore Square to Finish (25-26.2 miles) -Profile: Flat with a slight incline on Hereford Street

I recommend reading the post because he also gives tips for running each section.

At track tonight someone asked me if I was "cool" about the race or "obsessed".  I'm obsessed. Definitely obsessed - thinking about it continually (and worrying too).  To keep my mind off the worry I'm weighing the option of wearing my name on my shirt and hearing it called or being anonymous.  Part of me thinks hearing my name called out may keep me motivated, especially the last miles. The other part of me thinks after hearing my name for 4 hours called out, I may never want to hear my name again.   What are your thoughts?  Name on shirt or nameless?

Happy Running!

Guest Blogger - Tips for Running Boston from Gideon

After getting great tips from Jason about running Boston, I asked my friend Gideon, who was a guest blogger last year, to also give tips for running Boston.  Thanks Gideon for the awesome information.


A few tips I learned from running Boston in 2010:

1. Be patient! - The wait to get a bus to Hopkinton was 1+ hours, the bus ride was 1.5 hours and the wait at Hopkinton was almost 2 hours.  Don't overdo drinking before the bus ride as it will make for an uncomfortable ride.
2. Bring food - Most marathons end by the time Boston starts, so you will get hungry waiting and running (especially smelling all the wonderful cook outs the residents have along the course).
3. Hope you are ok with crowds - Simple math; 26,000 runners packed on a rural street only 22 feet wide for several miles is like a school of fish in wicking clothes!  You can waste a lot of energy weaving around runners, so stay in your pace and try to avoid the weaves.
4. H20 stops are on both sides of the road; if you miss 1 on the left, 1 on then right will be up shortly.
5. The crowds are very vocal - if you want to draw attention to yourself, wear a Red Sox, Patriots or Boston College shirt (or tape your name on your shirt).  Likewise, if you like to be yelled at while racing, wear a Yankee's t-shirt...
6.  Post race food is skimpy - chips, piece of fruit, water and something else I can't recall; smarter idea is to pack something you like to eat and place it in your gear check bag.
7.Lastly, soak everything in - the crowds, historic buildings, banter with other racers, atmosphere, and nuances of the course - the left turn on Boylston to the finish line is very memorable and vivid for me; appreciate it as you earned it!!  


And it's ok to wear your medal the rest of the day :-)

Gid Oswitch
Kent, Ohio  

Guest Blogger - Tips for Running Boston from Jason

My friend Jason sent me an awesome email with all kinds of great information for running Boston.  Thanks Jason for taking me under your wing; I really appreciate it.

Enjoy the post and let me know if you have tips for running Boston, waiting around at the start or the finish.

So the past years with the 2 wave start they have had 2 colored bibs, one blue and one red. Sounds like the 3rd wave will have white this year.  They call everyone with blue bibs in wave one to head to the start.(I think it's about 9:15 or so?)  They have corrals marked off so the elites are up front, then bibs 1000-1999 in the first corral, 2000-2999 in the 2nd and so forth.  You may be several hundred yards from the starting line.  Just before the race they take down the corral roped barriers and everyone kind of surges forward, you really can't 'run' until just before the start.  I believe the cut off is 9000 per wave this year.  Once you get to the start you'll be running.  Just don't waste energy weaving in and out of folks, I've learned this the hard way, it will eventually clear out.  Make sure to go out slow, the first 2 miles are severe downhill and with a taper you'll want to scream out of there, don't do it, make a conscious effort to be aware of your pace and run smooth.  Make sure when you get to about half mile to look back up the hill at the sea of runners.  Simply awesome.   Remember to give the kids on the side some high fives too!  :)  

It's a wild scene.  It's WAAAAAY better than my first year in 2005 when they didn't have wave starts, I had bib 17,727 and didn't cross the start line for 20 minutes.  It's much better now and you'll see on the maps they send out where everything is.  My biggest Athlete's village keys are, go to the bathroom line as soon as you get there, seems like every year they have added more port-o-johns yet the lines are always long and obviously get worse close to the time you head to the start. Take an old marathon heat sheet to lay on the ground, it's typically around 45 degrees and you are just sitting around waiting. 

Time crawls until about 45 minutes before you have to head out.   Leave in plenty of time, drop your bag at the buses, make a nice, leisurely stroll to the start.  We've been caught, 2009 I think, running to the corrals and that's just not fun. Obviously I hope you'll be hanging out with the Alzheimer's group so if there are last minute items you need etc, someone will have them.  Plus we form an easy to find camp of runners.   :)

Remember to practice your meals since most of us don't run at that time of day, 10:30am is a bit different for me, I usually eat a small bagel at the Westin then something in the village.   To me that's the biggest headache of this race, leaving soooo early for the village then sitting around and having to kind of go through your race prep out there.   I've gotten a little bit better at not sweating it but it can be a difference for some people.

But hey, it's the Boston Marathon!!  

#17327 Please Take Your Place on the Starting Line

The bib numbers for Boston have been posted.  I'll have a white bib in the second wave starting at 10:20am on April 18th. It's getting closer and I'm getting excited.

13 Days to go

13 days till what you ask?

Why to register for Boston, of course

I'll be poised at the computer at 6am ready to hit submit!

Happy Running!

Guest Writer - Gideon Oswitch

My friend Gideon wrote the following story about his quest to become a Boston Qualifier.  His determination and never quit philosphy shines through as he explains it took 7 years and 15 marathons to qualify for Boston.  He says

To you fellow racers that have tried to BQ but have come up short – keep trying, find a fast course, train with other runners seeking the same goal, and don’t ever quit; Boston is not going anywhere.

Happy Running!


Finally!!

It’s Mile 23 at the 2007 Akron Marathon; the sun is out, the temps are cool – this is the perfect weather I had hoped for race morning to try and qualify for the 2008 Boston Marathon. But as I scurry down Portage Path towards West Market Street, I am calculating the math in my head that I need in order to Boston Qualify (BQ). It’s not going to happen. My legs are getting heavier with each step, cramps are nastily settling in, my blood sugar is starting to drop, and that iron clad motivation for months to try and BQ is being replaced with the struggle to try and finish without looking as rough as I feel. Several minutes later I hit the finish line in Canal Park, shake hands with race director, Jim Barnett, and look at my watch – missed it by 3 minutes – that seems so damn short, but in order to BQ, missing by 3 seconds, 3 minutes or 33 minutes puts you in the ‘not-quite-fast-enough’ boat and you need to just wait until the next marathon; and for me, since first planting the BQ seed in 2003, the next marathon became a carousel of trying and failing and trying and failing for 6 years and 12 marathons (just think, my quest to BQ started before Lebron James scored his first basket for the Cavaliers!).

I tried marathons that other runners recommended as being fast – Cleveland, Phoenix, Columbus and Chicago, but the results still came out; good race, but not good enough to grab the brass ring called Boston. I started to really obsess about nabbing the BQ – at least once a day, every day, Boston thoughts would pop in my head for years; I was getting so tired of hearing other runners talk about the greatness of the event and reading about the history and mystique of racing on Patriot’s Day. As much as I liked supporting my running pals, it was always hard on race day tracking their progress while wishing I was the one racing it. But I kept on trying and decided that in 2008, I would do something out of the ordinary for me – I would run Akron as I do each year, but purposefully would hold back and really gun for Chicago 2 weeks later as my attempt to BQ. Based on the Boston criteria and my new age group in 2009, if I ran a sub 3:21, I would land in Boston in 2009; a sub 3:31 would get me there in 2010. Akron went very well and I finished in 3:34 with plenty left in the gas tank; as soon as I finished, I ran over to my wife, Beth, and daughters, Sadie and Celia, by the dugout in Canal Park like a jumping bean yelling to them, “Bring on Chicago!” I knew I could shave a few minutes off that course even if I only had 2 weeks in-between races. Everyone knows how hot and dreadful Chicago ’07 was, well, Chicago ’08 was a far cry from perfect running conditions – the temperature hit 82 degrees a couple hours into the race, but I paced myself smartly and by mile 20 was on track for a sub 3:21. However, by mile 23, the 3:21 was gone and now I was in real peril of losing the 3:31; at that point, I totally got into a Zen state – I did not hear any crowd noise, I only focused on 1 thing – get to the finish line and get the BQ no matter what. I have no specific memories the last 5K except 1 thought popped in my head and that was – you are so close to getting this and you may not get this chance again, so buckle down, tough out these last 3 miles, and make it happen. In the near 450 races I have raced since 1992, those last 3 miles were the physically and mentally most difficult obstacle I have faced. I am not sure how I did it, but the mind games and focusing worked and when I saw the finish line, I knew I was going to be sub 3:31 and heading to Boston in 2010. Unfortunately, the dream I had rehearsed tons of times of how I would react when getting to BQ wasn’t how I finished in Chicago. I was dizzy, confused, dehydrated and kept telling myself, ‘don’t let my girls see me collapse.’ I had a few friendly aides help me through the food line and someone placed ice on my neck and then I shuffled to my family (smartest thing to do at any marathon: plan AHEAD of location where to meet!). Very slowly we went back to our hotel room so I could re-gain my senses and energy – I may have made the BQ, but I was exhausted and far from being in a celebratory mood. Yes, I had reached the BQ, but now I had 18 more months to wait and wait.

Boston 2009 was a hard day for me – I knew many runners that were racing (including a number of first timers) and I was just wishing that I could have been part of the festivities. I tracked them all, called them after the race and heard the words, “wonderful, awesome, unbelievable” so many times, that I started to get really depressed. After work, I walked around my neighborhood that night and just felt so isolated; 1 more year to wait and with my luck, something will happen in the next 365 days to not allow me to go. I was more bummed this night about not being in Boston than any other day of my life – I was close, but not close enough. The rest of 2009 was my usual docket of racing and training and now I was able to tell others and myself, that I will be heading to Boston in April and I went on with the other parts of life – work, coaching my kids in sports, doing family things and the such, but I was still feeling a tad unfulfilled. But as the seasons change and time inches closer to goals, I was able to see on my calendar that April 2010 was getting more in focus and with that came the monthly, then weekly and finally the days countdown to Boston.

1948 and 1952 Olympic gold medal winner, Harrison Dillard, said “Good things come to those who wait.” On April 17th, After 7 years of waiting and 15 marathons completed, Beth and I flew from Cleveland to Boston on a rainy and grey day. Once the plane lifted off, it was starting to sink in - I was finally heading to Boston. I must admit I was still thinking that something would pop up that would disallow the race or having me participate, but none of that happened. Instead, the weekend was as fun as we had hoped – meeting lots of other runners, going whale watching and strolling in downtown Boston and taking everything in. Race morning was surreal for me – riding on the highway on the bus to Hopkinton and seeing the exit signs for all the small towns we would be running through just seemed so distant, but was now soon to be reality. As I lined up in Hopkinton in my starting corral, and walked towards the starting line shortly after 10am, I could not help to grin; the first 2 minutes of the race were some of the happiest race moments of my life – I actually said out loud “Dreams come true” when I hit the starting mat and wasted a lot of energy high 5’ing kids, pumping my arms, waving and being so excited to finally be “running the New England.” The race itself was a lot of fun, but as was advertised is quite hard at times and running through my regular lunch hour, made me very hungry. Finishing time was irrelevant, and though I would have liked to have had more energy at the finish, I was very pleased with a 3:38. My emotions got the best of me when the volunteer placed the finisher medal around my neck – I stared at the brightly colored unicorn and ribbon of the 114th BAA Marathon and started crying - 7 years I had waited for this moment; 7 years of waiting, thinking about, reading about, hearing about, talking about, and now I was a finisher. I met Beth a few minutes later and the tears continued. We both knew how much this moment meant to me. Usually minutes after a marathon, Beth consoles me or I tell her “maybe next time,” but on April 19, 2010, this WAS next time!

So, was this race life changing as many claim it is? No, but it was pretty dang special. Was it the best marathon on the planet? Again, it was a very well oiled race, but I would say I prefer the big stage atmosphere in Chicago better. But this race was the result of years of dedication, persistence, 6 years of attempting and coming up short, but never giving up and working to making a race dream become a race reality. At times I questioned why I would put myself through all this effort to say, “I Ran Boston,” but now that I have achieved that goal, it was all worth it. So, to you fellow racers that have tried to BQ but have come up short – keep trying, find a fast course, train with other runners seeking the same goal, and don’t ever quit; Boston is not going anywhere, so you may not hit it in 2011 or 2012, but when you do, it will be a very special moment for you and can never be taken away.
-Gideon Oswitch
(April, 2010)
Brief Bio:
• Road Racing for 19 Years
• Sponsored by PowerBar for 5 Years
• American Heart Association – “Heart and Sole” award recipient – 1996
• Work in Human Resources for Saint-Gobain Corporation since 1990
• Wife: Beth, Daughters: Sadie (10) / Celia (9)
Favorite Quote: “Dream your painting…then paint your dream.”

Ramblings

I'm still on Cloud 9 over my marathon finish and qualifying for Boston. (picture by catmasuta.com)  Next up is Ragnar Relay the last weekend of February.  I'm van captain for van #1 and we get to start the race in Prescott, Arizona.  At 6pm Thursday night, Ragnar sent an email changing the requirement of 2 night vests to 4 night vests.  Basically at night they want all the team members, not just the runners, to be wearing a vest.  This new requirement will require a little bit of scrambling to get the extra two vests.

Now that I a Boston Qualifier (woo hoo!!) I changed my tag line.  I'd like to find some great running quote to put up but for now it is "Having met my quest to qualify Boston for 2011, I will now run aimlessly striving to improve my running."   What is your favorite running quote?


Hopefully the "aimlessly" part won't last for too long.  After the Ragnar race nothing is planned.  John and I have talked about Whiskey Row Half in May but we may find something else too.  After Ragnar I'll spend some time figuring it out.   Another problem with the "aimlessly" part of my training (or lack of) is my eating.  In 4 days time I have managed to eat all the chocolate, cookies and cake that I forgo the last few weeks of my training. The Girl Scout Cookies, the yummy thin mint ones that taste great right out of the freezer were consumed...make that inhaled within 3 days.   Eventually I'll get tired of chocolate, right?

Happily I'm not too sore from the race and went out for a run Thursday morning.  I guess I'm more tired and sore than I realized.  I intended to do 4 miles and revised it down to 3 because my legs are pretty tired and have various aches.   I will run on Saturday but continue to take it easy so I recover for Ragnar.  The 16 miles at Ragnar next weekend will be challenging.   Running 16 miles in one shot is probably easier than running it in 3 parts over 24 hours leaving plenty of time to get sore. That is part of the fun of the relay.  That and not sleeping (hahaha)


Have a great weekend and happy running!

IMS Arizona Marathon

Sunday, February 14th  I qualified for Boston at the IMS Arizona Marathon in Glendale, Arizona.

I knew training wise I was going into the race ready to go. all of the predictor models showed I could make a Boston Qualifying time. Not only could I hit a 3:50, but I could do between a 3:35 and 3:40.  Despite the predictor models, I wanted to be conservative. I wanted to qualify for Boston and that was more important than trying to see what I could really do. Plus I hadn't run any of my goal pace miles at those faster paces.  My plan was to run 8:45's until 20 miles and then pick it up if I felt good.

The morning was cool but the weather was supposed to warm up into the mid-70's, kind of warm for running. I arrived to the race start at 6am,  before the shuttles and was able to use the port-a-potties.  Lucky for me my body cooperated and my whole dilemma pondered in my Got Poop? post, never had to be considered. The race started on time and my friend, who is in the same age group as me, took off right in front of the 3:45 pace group. The pacer for the 3:45 group is easily recognized because he wears a red metallic wig and he runs all the Arizona races.  Because of my plan to run 8:45's I let her and the pace group go.


According to my Garmin, my first mile was 8:36.  A tad too fast based on the 8:45 goal but it didn't feel too fast.  


The first two/three miles overall my legs and body felt tired.  I could have traveled down the negative thought path but instead I told myself that it usually takes me 6 miles before I warm up and feel settled into a pace.


I try not to talk too much to other runners because I want to save my energy.  I was fortunate to have a very talkative group around me wearing capes that said I love Running and they provided my entertainment for a number of miles. One lady was yelling Happy Valentines Day to everyone, including the officers directing traffic.The flying cape group said they were going for a 4 hour marathon and we were almost at mile 5 at that point. I didn't have the heart to tell them they were going out way too fast.  They would figure that out on their own. Up to mile 5 I bounced around in the 8:40's and had a 8:39 average.


Based on the results from last year, I was really hoping to be in the top 10 females. At the beginning of the race I saw women way in front of me that I thought how can they be faster than me?  I was judging them but didn't know their abilities, age, endurance and fitness. I told myself at that point and then throughout the race is each person runs their own race and I was going to do what I could do. Later, I would reel those other women in.


Consciously I didn't make a choice to drop the pace but I did. Only at mile 16 did I have a mile that was back in the 8:40's. 

Mile 6 8:38

Mile 7 8:38

Mile 8 8:39

Mile 9 8:32

Mile 10 8:28

It was probably at this point that I decided to try and stay in the 8:35 to 8:40's. I really don't recommend this tactic because I was so early in the race and didn't know if I could maintain it.

Mile 11 8:31

Mile 12 8:37

Mile 13 8:34

Mile 14 8:32

Mile 15 8:37

Up to about mile 15 I told myself I was out for a long run. I didn't feel like the pace was fast or I was tired until now.  At this point I was feeling some fatigue overall and in my hips. I thought of my favorite Phedipidations podcast episode 27 where Steve Runner talks about the pain gauge in his head and if its pointing to GREEN, then he must be feeling good. I pretty much did the same thing and told myself that my pain meter had only moved 1/10th and I was feeling good.

Mile 16 8:42

Mile 17 8:31

Mile 18 8:27

Mile 19 8:29

Mile 20 8:28

At mile 18 I passed my friend who had stopped to walk with a pain in her leg. The day before she was saying that her knee had been bugging her but since she set off with the 3:45 group I thought the pain had went away.That's the thing with a marathon, you never know what will happen. At mile 20 I started seeing and passing the women that were way in front of me at the beginning.  I was now reeling them in with a combination of them slowing down and me speeding up. 

Mile 21 8:25

Mile 22 8:23

Mile 23 8:15

By now I had passed about 5-6 of the females that had been way in front of me at the beginning.  I was now looking for the 3:45 pacer with his metallic hair and finally I saw him and I ran for him.  I kept increasing my pace and figuring I would run with him the rest of the way.  I told him I could kiss him because I was so happy to see him and that I had finally caught him.  But I was running too strong and too fast to stay and run at the 3:45 pace.  I kept foraging ahead and dropping the pace.


Again, I don't recommend dropping the pace like I did at mile 20, the thought that I could still hit the wall fluttered through my brain.  But I only had a 5K left, even if I hit the wall, couldn't I still run a strong 5K?  I was taking a chance that I could.

Mile 24 8:09

Mile 25 8:04

I saw my coach and he asked me how I was feeling. I high fived him and yelled

BQ in the BAG!!!  

Mile 26 7:54

And that wonderful "point 2" 7:34

My parents, John and the crowd was cheering me on as I was sprinting in towards the finish line.  I passed another marathon runner and remembered to raise my hands for the finishing picture.

Official time 3:44:02

5th place female 

23rd place overall

1st in my age group

Naturally qualifying for Boston I'm ecstatic. I am very thankful for John, for all the miles he's run with me, putting up with me and attempting to subdue my worries. Here's a cute picture my dad took.

For Coach Dean and all his mental game support.  I'm happy my parents drove the hour to the finish line to see me finish.  I'm grateful for all the bloggie friends and the kind words where you believed in me when I wasn't believing in myself.

A Poem relating to the IMS Arizona Marathon on Valentines Day

Roses are Red

Violets are Blue

Sugar is Sweet

And I have a BQ

woo hoo!  I did it! 

(yeah, that doesn't rhyme with anything)

3:44:03 unofficial

race report to follow soon

Terquita

I was bound and determined to go for a run this morning. It has been 2 weeks and 3 days and darn it, it’s time to get back on the road.  First, I put a heat pack on the ankle hoping that would warm it up. Next,  I walked to the end of the street, started to jog and it was very tight and uncomfortable.  I was favoring my foot and probably looked pretty gimpy.  Because I was compensating heavily and I didn’t want to cause additional injury, I turned back around for home and grabbed the bike.  On the bike ride I realized that I didn’t give it enough time to warm up and work the kinks out.  When I got back I jogged around the block with a little more success. 

Although I am a terquita (little stubborn one), I do want to be smart and not cause additional injury.  I recognize that it will take me a bit to work out the stiffness and it won’t happen overnight, nor will it go away all by itself.  I will go out each day and bike and once its warmed up jog around the block.  Then I’ll jog around the block twice, maybe by the weekend I can run a mile or heck, even two.   If each day I keep moving it, keep working on working through the soreness and kinks (within reason), it will be no time before I’m running again. 

Besides turning off my Buckeyeoutdoors emails on my daily training schedule, I haven’t done anything with my running schedule yet.  I’m anxious to pull it out and see if I could be ready for  the PF Changs Rock N’Roll marathon in January but I know that until I can run it doesn’t make sense to try and put together the schedule yet.  If the January marathon doesn’t work, there is one in Surprise, Arizona in February but at that point the rates for Boston jump up for 2010.  I suppose I could qualify and then run in 2011 but remember I'm a terquita and I already have the room for Boston all figured out and just need to qualify.