With this in mind, I first had to race to Boston on Saturday, in order to pick up my race number and packet. The expo closed at 6pm on Saturday, and we left Fredericksburg around 7:30am. Thanks to a long stop at a slow Wendy’s restaurant for lunch, we were driving into town at 5:40pm. We found the convention center and a parking lot and at 5:57pm, I raced to the expo just in time to be the last person on Saturday to pick up a number. If I had been a minute later, I would have had to drive back to Boston from my in-laws on Sunday afternoon. Now, I could relax and rest and do something none stressful on Sunday afternoon, like change the EGR valve on the car (just a little bit of stress).
April 17, 2000
Start 1:52
Unlike my last marathon when I crossed the line four seconds after the gun went off, at Boston I couldn’t even hear the gun go off. The temperature is near 50 and mostly cloudy. There is about a 15mph head wind, which I will face the whole race.Mile 1 8:46
I cross the start line, but still cannot run for about 200-300 meters. Consequently, this first mile is a little slow—a waste of the first downhill portion of the course.Mile 2 7:08
I am finally able to run without stepping on the person in front of me, although I am still bumping elbows with the runners on either side of me.Mile 3 6:59
I really don’t have a pace right not. It is more like moving down the road as one big amoebae—all 18,000 of us.Mile 4 6:47
Some people warned me about starting out too fast with the crowd, but it is difficult to hold back with the runners beside me moving this fast, and the crowd is dense and vocal.Mile 5 7:05
All of my body parts feel good, but I am numb all over, and I don’t really know why. I wonder if I might set a personal record today, even with the slow start. This was the first mile that was not downhill.Mile 6 6:53
My plan was to take it easy during the first half and really save myself for the hills during miles 16-21.Mile 7 7:06
I need to keep my splits between 7:00 and 7:15. This is a pretty comfortable pace. The course is still really crowded.Mile 8 7:11
I feel like I am running quick, but the miles aren’t sneaking up on me and surprising me. All I need to do now is maintain this pace, and I will have a new personal record.Mile 9 7:06
I cross over Lake Cochituate. It is now totally cloudy, and the wind coming off the lake is still in my face.Mile 10 7:04
Entering Natick, the crowd is still thick on both sides of the road. I don’t think that there have been really any parts of the course where there hasn’t been some crowd cheering us on.Mile 11 7:13
The water stops are run extremely well. However, I have only been taking one cup each mile and drinking it on the run. Consequently, I have not gotten a full cup. I didn’t think it would be a problem because of the cool weather, but I now feel thirsty, which is not a good sign.Mile 12 7:02
The miles keep flowing along. I wonder if I have saved enough for heartbreak hill. At this point, I begin to hear a weird sound up ahead.Mile 13 7:09
The sound is Wellesley College, an all girls school, and I think all of them are out here on the course leaning over the fence trying to high five runners. It will be a day or so before my ears stop ringing.Mile 14 7:19
This mile is actually uphill slightly, but I am now two miles from the real hills. My mouth is dry as I start to eat my Access Bar.Mile 15 7:32
I finish my Access Bar, and I am now ready to charge up these hills.Mile 16 6:49
Ten miles to go—the warm up is over. This is the start of the lower Newton hills as I am crossing the Charles River.Mile 17 7:25
I am pushing hard as I get up this hill. This first one is steeper than I expected.Mile 18 7:35
This is a struggle, but if I do nothing else, I am going to run hard up Heartbreak Hill.Mile 19 7:45
I hope I can keep these miles all under eight minutes per mile. Only another mile and a half to the top.Mile 20 7:48
These hills are steep and relentless. I now know why they call this Heartbreak Hill. The hill is made even harder by this relentless head wind.Mile 21 8:10
I have failed to maintain a sub-8 pace, but the hill is now history, and I get to find out if there is anything left in my legs.Mile 22 7:18
There is some life in my legs, but my energy is fading. I think I am low on water. I see Martha and the kids at a train stop. Amy is not looking when I run by, but Nathan sees me.Mile 23 8:14
The wall is now in front of me, but thanks to my training runs up to 36 miles, I will be able to continue, and not smack too hard into “the wall.”Mile 24 8:59
My legs are toast and so is the rest of my body. I conquered Heartbreak Hill, but do not have enough to cruise to Boylston Street.Mile 25 9:14
In spite of my physical condition, I am able to enjoy the moment. I am coming up on the Citgo sign by Fenway Park.Mile 26 8:57
The crowd is deep and loud. I am responding to the crowd, and we are feeding off each other.Mile 26.2 1:48
I am finally finished, but my struggle is just beginning. . .Final 3:18:17 official chip time, which takes off the 1:52 to cross the start line.
I was the 3,935th finisher of 15,663 finishers. This is really good considering I was seeded 5,575th! Therefore, I gained 1,640 positions on the field on a tough, blustery day. The official temperature for the race was 47 degrees, and winds from the northeast at 10-20mph.
Space Blanket-0.5 miles. After I cross the finish line, it is about a half-mile walk until I get a space blanket. Unfortunately, by this time, any body heat I had is now gone. Shortly after getting the space blanket, I get to turn in my chip timer.
Clothing Bag-0.5 miles. There were over 30 buses used to haul all of the runners’ bags of clothing to the finish. The buses are in reverse order, and mine is number 10. After I finally get to my bus, I have to stand in line for about 15 minutes to get my bag. I am freezing cold and putting on three layers of clothing does not relieve my chills.
Food Bag-0.5 miles. It is another half-mile walk to get a bag of food, which contains a small bag of pretzels and a PowerBar. They also hand me a banana and a bottle of apple juice. I guess $75 doesn’t go as far as it used to.
Family Reunion Area “D”-0.5 miles. I finally get to the reunion spot, but Martha and the kids aren’t there because their train is slow coming from the 22-mile mark. I sit down and eat the contents of my food bag, and then they arrive. Now all I have to do is walk another mile to the parking garage where our car is.
Now, we will see how well I can recover. I am scheduled to run the Pittsburgh Marathon on May 7th, and thankfully, they are limiting the field to 5,000 runners.
Never stop running (or walking after you finish the marathon),
Darin
