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SRRC Race Reports
Boston Marathon : Boston, MA--April 17, 2006
by Phil Holt
All over the world, athletes strive for a chance to test themselves against the demands of both their sport and its best competitors. It's an impulse that inspires the Olympics as well as a handful of sporting events that have become part of our national vocabulary—the Super Bowl, the World Series, the U.S. Open, the Indianapolis 500, and the Boston Marathon. For a runner, an opportunity to participate in the Boston Marathon represents a milestone. In a world of gently reinforced self-esteem, where simply trying is good enough, and a golf handicap can level the playing field, the rewards of marathoning come only from sweat and effort. The race organizers are keenly aware that running Boston is a privilege, and the only way to earn the privilege is to train well enough to qualify.
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| Boston: Marathoner's Destination . . . |
On April 17, 2006, I finally joined the ranks of those who have crossed the Boston Marathon finish line. This truly was a memorable experience and one that every runner should include somewhere among his or her athletic goals, even if it's a vague aspiration. Eventually the bug will bite, and you'll be on your way. The race is 26.2 miles, just like any other marathon, and you'll get a nice finisher's medal, again, just like most other races. So what exactly is it about Boston?
Qualifying: The Only Way Around is Through
I'm not a particularly fast runner. While I can maintain a brisk and reasonable pace for very long distances, my focus for a long time has been to cultivate the healthy, injury-free endurance that would let me pursue my 50-States and ultra-running goals. Running fast requires a different kind of training, and brings with it increased risk of injury, especially for a middle-aged guy. In fact, that's exactly what happened to me in 2004 as I was training to make my first qualifying attempt. I felt the goal slip away when I pulled a hamstring while running the DC 20-Miler. I finished my remaining races for the year but had to restart my training in 2005.
When I finally qualified for Boston last fall, it was an exhilarating moment. Those occasionally difficult-to-face mornings seemed like happy memories. As I lay on the ground after the race at Portland, nibbling an ice-cream sandwich, the reality began to sink in. I had cruised across the finish line with just a couple of minutes to spare. Running the Boston Marathon meant that I would be joining some of the fastest and most competitive runners in the world, and I would be joining them at the back of the pack! I had just started the journey.
Preparing: Small Efforts, Repeated
By the time I had finished my other races last year, I had about 90 days to recover and prepare to run Boston. My first step in preparation was to acknowledge that I would not have time to affect any dramatic changes in my results. I might be able to pick up a little bit of speed, but concentrating on that could interfere with other important training goals for a year that already included at least half a dozen other races, more than one of which needed much more focus on endurance. The plan, then, was to train carefully so that whatever pace I chose I could sustain consistently through Boston's notoriously tricky course. I had time to work on conditioning, which included plenty of running on hills at a doggedly persistent pace, especially on the downhills. I had been warned that the amount of downhill running at Boston caught many runners by surprise when they found themselves cramping and faltering about half-way through the race.
Training wasn't the only preparation. Plane tickets and hotel reservations needed to be made. I also managed to get a seat on one of the Cambridge Sports Union coaches that run from MIT to the start in Hopkinton. That presented the advantage of a place to wait before the start that would be out of the weather as well as including a toilet on the bus, so we wouldn't have to stand in long lines.
The Event
This was probably the most organized event I've ever seen. The pre-race expo was huge, larger than some trade-shows I've attended. The major manufacturers were represented in sprawling booths populated with fittest and best looking athletic specimens they could find. Of course, marathon logo merchandise was abundant, and people crowded to buy official race clothing. (Me too.) Every possible dietary supplement and all manner of training goops and glops were available to sample. Since I hadn't eaten lunch, I just made a point of tasting various tidbits to satisfy my hunger. These products seem to come in two varieties—candy (sweet confection) and crud (icky and loathsome). I tried a lot of them and only spit a few of them out.
Race Day
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| Runner's Aid . . . |
The race day forecast was exceptional—mostly cloudy, highs in the mid-fifties. These would be the best conditions that Boston had seen for a race in years. Our morning went off like clockwork, with a quick ride on the subway over to MIT and a relaxed side trip to Starbucks before we boarded the buses for an 8:45 departure. As we trundled toward Hopkinton, we passed some of the fleet of school buses carrying runners from downtown Boston out to the start. Ours was definitely a more luxurious ride. After a little while, however, we noticed how long it was taking to get to our destination. It was a pre-race reminder of just how far the run back to Boston really is.
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| The Start |
The race now starts in two waves—one at noon (runners up to 3:30) and one at 12:30 (runners at 3:30 and above). I was in the second wave. One example of the superior organization is that the bag check for each wave is right along the route to the starting line and is organized by bib number, so you can simply jettison extra clothing and accessories at the last minute without long lines. Because of the crowd, I had to jog for about a quarter of a mile to get to my starting corral. I stepped into the line, and the gun went off. We surged forward past the whistling of the computerized chip-timing sensors and spilled out onto the course between huge screaming crowds and scattered television cameras. So here I was, wearing bib number 12043 in the 110th running of the Boston Marathon.
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| Race elevation . . . |
Unlike other large races, the field at Boston seemed to spread out very quickly. Mile one is marked near a statue honoring famous marathon champions. By the end of the second mile I seemed pretty firmly established at my pace. My plan was to heed Coach Al and respect the course, trying to maintain a pace between 8:15 and 8:30 no matter what. That meant taking it easy on the downhill stretches even as people passed, and persisting on the uphill stretches, even if I had to weave in and out a little bit. I was concerned about going out too fast, but I did allow the initial downhill to take some of that pressure off. The first few miles were relatively easy.
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| Past Champions . . . |
The Boston Marathon follows a point-to-point course from Hopkinton to Copley Square in downtown Boston. The course passes through Ashland, Natick, Wellesley, and Newton undulating gradually downhill to about mile sixteen, where the famous Heartbreak Hill begins. Aid stations were plentiful, and the crowds were probably the largest and most enthusiastic I have ever seen. Wherever we went, people were yelling and cheering themselves hoarse. While we were running, Fenway Park was also packed with baseball fans as the Red Sox battled the Mariners. At regular intervals, spectators would hold up signs with the most current score. At the half-way point, the course runs past Wellesley College. So many students and neighbors crowd the route to watch the race that you can hear the cheering from more than half a mile away. I even got kissed a couple of times along that stretch, but lacking the strength and discipline of Ulysses, I kept running lest I get too distracted.
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| Aftermath . . . |
At mile sixteen, runners begin the five mile ascent to the top of Heartbreak Hill. Fortunately, it's really more like a few gradual hills than one soul-crushing climb. It isn't very steep by Loudoun County standards, but it is very, very long and really requires patience. Just like everywhere else on the course the crowds are massive, and you have no question about whether or not the hill is behind you because the crowd screams its approval and encouragement as you reach the crest. From the top of Heartbreak Hill, the course begins a long undulating downhill sweep toward the finish. By this point, I could feel the punishment of all the downhill running in my quads, which were starting to get tender. I could see it as well in the number of runners who were walking, thrashed by the previous deceptively brutal 21 miles. By mile 23, my quads started to cramp, and I had to walk for a couple of minutes. Gradually, the muscles relaxed and released, and I began to run again, picking up speed and striving to get back on pace.
By this point, we were running into downtown Boston, and the streets were narrowing. I had to dodge and weave a little to keep up my momentum, still having enough energy on reserve to keep pushing toward the finish. By this point the crowds were deafening, and as we turned onto Boylston Street, the course widens abruptly, and the huge blue and yellow arch over the finish line leapt into view only about a quarter of a mile away. I picked up the pace, of course—the goal was in sight. I was no longer just a marathon runner, I was a Boston Marathon finisher.
What is it About Boston?
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| Finisher . . . |
Even the finish area was the picture of organization, and smiling volunteers helped runners remove the timing chips before draping the finishers' medal around our necks and swaddling us in foil space blankets to keep us warm in the chilly late afternoon. The baggage buses were parked right at the finish, and picking up any checked items was a breeze. A steak dinner, a good night's sleep, and a plane ride later, I was home again wondering how I would explain the experience and answer the question: what is it about Boston? Here's the best I can do.
The Boston Marathon confirms for every runner that working really hard to achieve a goal makes a difference. No one is running Boston because their name came up in the lottery or because they thought it would be fun to try a marathon. Every runner on the course had to run a qualifying time at another race just to be there. From those first few steps in Hopkinton to the end, you are surrounded by other runners who have worked just as hard as you have. So while it isn't necessarily a small club, it is an exclusive one, where admission is based on objective merit. The Boston Marathon is a reward, a confirmation, and yet another test all wrapped into one race.
For me, that takes care of Massachusetts. Only thirty-some-odd states to go!
April 2006
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