Number 26 - Boston Marathon, Boston, Mass.
If you are going to repeat a marathon, this is the one. No where is there more excitement leading up to or during a race than here. The enthusiasm of the crowd is beyond compare. The streets are lined from beginning to end with spectators. If I lived closer and qualified, it would be hard to not sign up each year. This year, unlike in 2004 when it was 86 degrees, the conditions were near perfect, with temperatures in the low 50’s, partly cloudy and a cross wind of 15 mph.
My two sisters came over from New York to support me for this race. We had a good time, although short visit. I tried to arrange a nice pasta dinner at a nearby new restaurant, only to find it closed when the cab dropped us off. Of course, then is when it started to rain. We took shelter a few blocks away in a coffee bar where we settled on a late lunch. Later in the day we strolled through the marathon expo sharing some of the craziness around us runners with my sisters before finding a small book store/restaurant on Newberry Street to eat dinner. On race day they met me on the first long hill on the course, mile 16, and again near the finish. It is amazing with all the people and logistics getting from one place to another that we were able to meet up.
I received a great deal of encouragement during the race, wearing my orange colors for MS and my request for prayers for my daughter on the back of my shirt. At least a dozen people offered prayers for her during the race, including one in particular that really touched my heart. A fellow runner came up to me and we spoke for a few minutes and he said his brother, a priest, had died recently. We were coming up to a church in the town of Natick and he said as he passed the church he would talk to his brother about my daughter because he knew he had good connections with the Lord. It was moving. I am sure many others prayed that did not say anything and for all these prayers I am thankful. As I have said before, I am always looking for that righteous man/woman who can turn the tide for my daughter in her battle with MS.
My qualifying time placed me in the second wave of runners starting at 10:30 compared to the previous noon start for everyone, which took 20 plus minutes to just reach the starting line. This time the delay was only three and a half minutes. I started off down the hills in Hopkington clicking off the miles at a little faster pace than planned and eventually accumulated about a one to two minute cushion before reaching the hills in Newton. I thought I was doing ok, but for some reason thought I had climbed the last hill only to realize that the last and most severe hill was ahead of me. This is where I started loosing my cushion. I started checking my watch and calculating how to hit my 3:59 time goal. Just maintain a 9:30 pace and I’ll make, I kept telling myself. That was not easy and while the miles for the first half of the course passed by quickly the last 5 took forever. With a mile to go and the crowd’s encouragement I was able to pick up the pace and finished in 3:59:27, ten minutes faster than my 2004 time.
I was pretty stiff and sore, but after a shower and short nap took off to check out the restaurant we missed the day before. I convinced myself the mile or so walk was good and was pleasantly surprised to get a seat right away and enjoyed a great meal before setting off to find the home made ice cream shop we saw the day before. This time I indulged with no limits and thought about my next stop, Anchorage, Alaska in June.