Boston '09
I went to Boston with the discouraging realization that despite the miles of training and five long-runs of over 21 miles in the previous 10 weeks, I wasn't 100% but was hoping to be close. Although I dreamed of targeting sub-3 I knew that was unrealistic on this course with me at less than 100%. So my best estimate of what a good day would mean was 3:05.
My bib number, based on my qualifying time, was 2683, good enough for the 2nd row of the first wave. I lined up with buddies Wayne Cohen, Stephen Mayor, and Garrett Rychlik. The weather was partly sunny and mid 40s, though it felt warmer. We were all talking about staying below a seven minute pace early on and my goal was really just to run seven and sub-seven for as long as I could. I never even considered trying to run negative splits, not on this course, but hoped to run a fairly flat effort. That meant that the last five miles wouldn't be any more difficult than the first five. I'm not sure I pulled it off but I came close.
We hit the starting mat about 55 seconds after the gun and shuffled with the crowd through the first mile in 7:05. Things broke up after that and we hit the downhills. We smoked miles two and three with a 6:35, which I know sounds fast, but again, I wanted to work relatively hard throughout. We wisely reined things in ever so slowly after that and mile four was a 6:49. By this time Wayne Cohen was pulling away a bit but there was no way I was going to go with him. I stationed myself right behind Garrett and Stephen.
Mile five was a 6:57 for a five mile total of 34:03. Mile six was a 6:50. With the downhills behind us that pace felt just a tiny bit faster than I needed to go so I let Stephen and Garrett drift away from me. It didn't bother me because I knew I could run exactly what felt right and would be surrounded by runners at an identical pace, no matter how fast or slow I went. Miles 7, 8, and 9 were just a few seconds under 7 flat and felt just about right. Mile 10 was a seven flat, giving me a 10 mile time of 1:08:42. I took one gel somewhere around mile eight or nine, and one of the highlights of the race occurred just after the water stop at mile eight in Natick. One of my customers at work, Precision Fitness Equipment, has a store at mile eight, right on the course. Of course they can't open that day so they set up lawn chairs, a grill, and an ice chest of beer and sodas, and watch the race. They knew I was coming and as soon as they saw me ran and grabbed a cold bottle of water with a sport top for easy delivery. They handed it to me as I went by and shouted words of encouragement. Great guys, just like all the folks in Boston on race day.
But after I passed them, and with my three buddies gone, it was time to just dig in manage my race. Mile 11 was a 6:58, mile 12 was a 7:05, and mile 13 was 7:12. I don't remember exactly why I started to creep over seven but I do know that I was taking full advantage of every water stop, even stopping for a few seconds on occasion to make sure I got the majority of the liquid in me instead of on me. Mile 14 was a 6:59 and mile 15 was a 7:03 for a 15 mile total of 1:44:00 (6:56 pace). It was also during mile 14 or 15 that I must have passed one of my buddies from earlier, though I never saw him.
Mile 16 was a nice downhill that I hammered for a 6:43 but the hills started coming in mile 17 and I posted a 7:25, and another 7:25 in mile 18. Mile 19 was a little better for me and the split was 7:09. Mile 20 was a 7:32 for a 20 mile time of 2:20:15 (7:01 pace).
Mile 21 contains the infamous Heartbreak Hill and let me tell ya, with the wind picking up and my energy winding down, I was pretty sick of hills halfway up the damned thing. Of course I slowed down but I measured how I was doing by looking at the rest of the field. A few were moving faster than me, some were at about my speed, but more runners were moving slower than me than faster so that was encouraging.
Even though I could see an overall pace of sub 7 slipping away I didn't let it get to me. I knew I was still in good shape to come in at my 3:05 goal or better and hoped to make up some ground over the next five miles where the course gives something back for all the climbs. Mile 21, containing Heartbreak, was a 7:55 but I knew that was 100% due to the hill and increasing wind so I didn't panic. It was great to be at this point in the race, with the worst over, and that feeling of unavoidable slowing nowhere to be found. In fact, mile 22 was a 7 flat, though mile 23, with the course more open to the wind, yielded a disappointing 7:19. Mile 24 was a nice 6:59 and I passed another one of my buddies from early on who was off to the side working out a cramp. Mile 25 was a 7:20, with a 25 mile time of 2:56:50.
I had been calculating the likelyhood of coming in under 3:05 ever since I finished mile 21 but with 1.2 to go and the watch showing 2:56:50 I knew it wasn't in the cards. In fact, I knew that unless I found a skateboard I wasn't going to come in under 3:05, and unless I slowed dramatically I would still come in under 3:06. So the final 1.2 was without drama, just steady as she goes. I sure was happy to make that final turn and head down the straightaway. I must have managed to stand out in the crowd because even though there were dozens of runners in the final stretch the guy on the loud speaker announced my name and hometown, which was very cool.
The finishing time was 3:05:42 and I felt reasonably good after the race - able to walk, no major soreness in the thighs or calves, and not completely spent, like, "just let me sit on the curb for awhile" tired. In fact, after the post-race shower, I hopped in the car and drove to Salem, NH to visit a customer who couldn't see me over the weekend. I'm gonna loose a couple of toenails due not to tight shoes but my toes slamming into the toebox repeatedly on all those downhills. And the lady who stepped on the worst toe last night on the plane, with her boot heel, didn't help matters. But all in all I'm in pretty good shape and may go for a few easy miles tomorrow night. I placed 2017 overall, but 100 and something in my age-group, which is just sick. It's my 4th best time of my seven marathons, but easily my best on a hilly course.
My bib number, based on my qualifying time, was 2683, good enough for the 2nd row of the first wave. I lined up with buddies Wayne Cohen, Stephen Mayor, and Garrett Rychlik. The weather was partly sunny and mid 40s, though it felt warmer. We were all talking about staying below a seven minute pace early on and my goal was really just to run seven and sub-seven for as long as I could. I never even considered trying to run negative splits, not on this course, but hoped to run a fairly flat effort. That meant that the last five miles wouldn't be any more difficult than the first five. I'm not sure I pulled it off but I came close.
We hit the starting mat about 55 seconds after the gun and shuffled with the crowd through the first mile in 7:05. Things broke up after that and we hit the downhills. We smoked miles two and three with a 6:35, which I know sounds fast, but again, I wanted to work relatively hard throughout. We wisely reined things in ever so slowly after that and mile four was a 6:49. By this time Wayne Cohen was pulling away a bit but there was no way I was going to go with him. I stationed myself right behind Garrett and Stephen.
Mile five was a 6:57 for a five mile total of 34:03. Mile six was a 6:50. With the downhills behind us that pace felt just a tiny bit faster than I needed to go so I let Stephen and Garrett drift away from me. It didn't bother me because I knew I could run exactly what felt right and would be surrounded by runners at an identical pace, no matter how fast or slow I went. Miles 7, 8, and 9 were just a few seconds under 7 flat and felt just about right. Mile 10 was a seven flat, giving me a 10 mile time of 1:08:42. I took one gel somewhere around mile eight or nine, and one of the highlights of the race occurred just after the water stop at mile eight in Natick. One of my customers at work, Precision Fitness Equipment, has a store at mile eight, right on the course. Of course they can't open that day so they set up lawn chairs, a grill, and an ice chest of beer and sodas, and watch the race. They knew I was coming and as soon as they saw me ran and grabbed a cold bottle of water with a sport top for easy delivery. They handed it to me as I went by and shouted words of encouragement. Great guys, just like all the folks in Boston on race day.
But after I passed them, and with my three buddies gone, it was time to just dig in manage my race. Mile 11 was a 6:58, mile 12 was a 7:05, and mile 13 was 7:12. I don't remember exactly why I started to creep over seven but I do know that I was taking full advantage of every water stop, even stopping for a few seconds on occasion to make sure I got the majority of the liquid in me instead of on me. Mile 14 was a 6:59 and mile 15 was a 7:03 for a 15 mile total of 1:44:00 (6:56 pace). It was also during mile 14 or 15 that I must have passed one of my buddies from earlier, though I never saw him.
Mile 16 was a nice downhill that I hammered for a 6:43 but the hills started coming in mile 17 and I posted a 7:25, and another 7:25 in mile 18. Mile 19 was a little better for me and the split was 7:09. Mile 20 was a 7:32 for a 20 mile time of 2:20:15 (7:01 pace).
Mile 21 contains the infamous Heartbreak Hill and let me tell ya, with the wind picking up and my energy winding down, I was pretty sick of hills halfway up the damned thing. Of course I slowed down but I measured how I was doing by looking at the rest of the field. A few were moving faster than me, some were at about my speed, but more runners were moving slower than me than faster so that was encouraging.
Even though I could see an overall pace of sub 7 slipping away I didn't let it get to me. I knew I was still in good shape to come in at my 3:05 goal or better and hoped to make up some ground over the next five miles where the course gives something back for all the climbs. Mile 21, containing Heartbreak, was a 7:55 but I knew that was 100% due to the hill and increasing wind so I didn't panic. It was great to be at this point in the race, with the worst over, and that feeling of unavoidable slowing nowhere to be found. In fact, mile 22 was a 7 flat, though mile 23, with the course more open to the wind, yielded a disappointing 7:19. Mile 24 was a nice 6:59 and I passed another one of my buddies from early on who was off to the side working out a cramp. Mile 25 was a 7:20, with a 25 mile time of 2:56:50.
I had been calculating the likelyhood of coming in under 3:05 ever since I finished mile 21 but with 1.2 to go and the watch showing 2:56:50 I knew it wasn't in the cards. In fact, I knew that unless I found a skateboard I wasn't going to come in under 3:05, and unless I slowed dramatically I would still come in under 3:06. So the final 1.2 was without drama, just steady as she goes. I sure was happy to make that final turn and head down the straightaway. I must have managed to stand out in the crowd because even though there were dozens of runners in the final stretch the guy on the loud speaker announced my name and hometown, which was very cool.
The finishing time was 3:05:42 and I felt reasonably good after the race - able to walk, no major soreness in the thighs or calves, and not completely spent, like, "just let me sit on the curb for awhile" tired. In fact, after the post-race shower, I hopped in the car and drove to Salem, NH to visit a customer who couldn't see me over the weekend. I'm gonna loose a couple of toenails due not to tight shoes but my toes slamming into the toebox repeatedly on all those downhills. And the lady who stepped on the worst toe last night on the plane, with her boot heel, didn't help matters. But all in all I'm in pretty good shape and may go for a few easy miles tomorrow night. I placed 2017 overall, but 100 and something in my age-group, which is just sick. It's my 4th best time of my seven marathons, but easily my best on a hilly course.
posted by Lance Collins at 6:59 PM
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