May 2013

Although it's been an entire month since Boston it is still hard to get to excited about racing. I have been following the victims and their recovery.  Just to see them smiling is in some strange way a relief to me.  Sometimes my catholic guilt really gets me and I wonder - why did those people have to lose a leg? why did that family have to lose their child? why didn't that happen to me?  Then, eventually, I think - if I was suppose to be the one injured I would have been. It wasn't meant to be.  I still get sad when I think about the victims,  their injuries, and the trauma they must have experienced.  I wonder about that moment when they were suddenly struck with the thought that they just lost a limb. What were the thoughts that went through their minds at that moment?  I would imagine that they were very scared.

I have been watching them on Facebook.  Looking to make sure they have happy moments. Watching them being surrounded by people who are uplifting and who have been through this kind of injury is good to see. I am grateful that there are people out there who can help these people. The trauma doctors, the injured soldiers, the heroes...

I can't believe an entire month has past since Boston.  Truth be told, time really does help. I haven't felt the urgency as much as before to view the victim's pages. I need to let them move on and I need to move on as well. It's part of the process. I still check in on them from time to time and am praying for them because I'm pretty sure they have some long roads ahead of them. I am confident and have faith that eventually they will be fine. Eventually we will all be fine.

Pre-Boston

I'm 48 years old this year and going for a PR. That's a very tall order. But I am going to go for it regardless. (does this make me an ageist?)

The excitement is building! Soon I will be surrounded by thousands of runners all lined up for the Boston Marathon in little ole Hopkinton MA.  These are the days when panicked phrases dart in and out of my head - "what have I done",  "I'm going to puke", "why am I doing this to myself", "what if I have a bad day", "what if my quads blow up".... stuff like that.   I allow those thoughts to happen and then pass.  It really is part of the process.  I've already had at least two anxiety dreams as well in which I have either forgotten my number or have gotten lost on the course even though I've run this course 5 other times.

For the next three days I will rest, eat, visualize, run a little bit and that is it. Whatever happens on Monday, happens on Monday. I hope everyone has a great Boston run.

New Bedford Race Report

Ok the boring part:  I wanted to do better than Hyannis 3 weeks ago where I did 1:36 something in the rain.  Today it was sunny and 38ish. Perfect conditions except for a little head wind at times.  I prepared carefully eating all the right foods leading up to the race, hydrating, sleeping….  I filled up on some pre-race drink just before. I ate Cliff Shots every 3 miles for the first half then 2 caffeinated GUs at 6 and 9. 

The race – I started off towards the front and when out strong.  My local competitor friends Maria, Rose, Maureen, and Debra and I all lined up together.  First mile was sub 7:00.  I felt OK but settled into a more comfortable pace of 7:05 – 7:08 for the following 6 miles.  I was instantly overdressed and had to remove my hat and gloves and tuck them into my capris.  At the middle point I noticed this woman about my age running right next to me, then slowly pulling away, then pulling up to the girl in front of me. HA! I got your number. You are picking us off. This was perfect for me as I was motivated to catch up to her and her new victim. Slowly I caught them all the while increasing my pace back to a 7:05ish.  I was able to keep my pace for the most part and felt incredibly fast actually.  That said my awesome race only got me 17^th in my division.  This race was so competitive that even an average pace of 6:30 did not get you into the top 10 in the 40-49 division! 

I  also managed to screw up big time when I thought that I was constantly checking  my lap split but in fact was staring at my average pace causing me to think I was very solidly holding my pace.  Once I realized my error I couldn't bring myself to look at my lap split rather then average pace while racing. I left the average pace as my barometer. Afraid I would be disappointed to see a slowing lap split. Somewhere along the way I managed a few 7:18s and one 7:30 on the last “hill” which reduced my overall pace to 7:14.   Final time was 1:34:29.  Two minutes faster than Hyannis 3 weeks ago.   J

I THINK the GUs gave me a stomach issue after the race. I’m going to switch to caffeinated Cliff Shots like Carrie suggested.  I got a big blister on my second largest toe on my right foot  while using Kinvaras. This also happened at Hyannis but it was raining so I thought it was due to the rain.  I will not be using Kinvaras for the marathon but I still love them for shorter distances blister and all.  Happy running! Boston is only 4 weeks away.