Another 5K, With Some Mishaps

I ran the Lawyer's Have Heart 5K over the weekend in Washington DC. Even though I have run Lawyer's Have heart many times in the past, this experience was entirely different.

Historically, this race had been a 10K, occurred in the middle of June, and was located in Georgetown. This race was my first 10K back in 2005 and my first large road race ever! I proceeded to run it every year from 2005 to 2012, and then stopped in 2013 because I was on vacation. Around that time, I decided to stop running summertime 10Ks because I would suffer from heat exhaustion and kill my immune system. 5K became my summertime distance limit. In 2017 they introduced the 5K distance in addition to the 10K, so I started doing that. 

Last year, the race moved from Georgetown to Hains Point and the date switched from June to May. I didn't participate last year, so I didn't know what to expect. Even though the Georgetown course was challenging, it was a tradition for me, so I was a little sad about the move. 

Before the Race
I decided to go with my adidas Adios Pro shoes for this race. I have determined that they are more responsive than the ASICS that I wore in Boston and the Greenway 5K two weeks ago. The ASICS shoes are fun and bouncy, but also a bit squishy. For really fast running, I like to feel more connected with the ground. I think the plush cushion is great for longer distances, but I've decided to stick with adidas for shorter ones. Even though they are unisex and not specifically women's running shoes, they have a streamlined, locked-in fit. 

Greg and I tried to park in our normal spot for Hains Point races, but the road was blocked off so we parked at the Kennedy center, as the website had suggested. In the parking garage, I saw my friend Chad, whose law firm always participates in this race. Chad and I ran to the start, which was just over a mile away and Greg walked. 

It was raining steadily, but it wasn't the torrential downpour that my weather app had called for. At 61 degrees and humid, I was thankful for the rain. On my personal race weather scale, this race gets a 6 out of 10. Not great weather, but also not horrible. If the rain had been heavier, I would have downgraded it to a 5 or 4. If there had been no rain at all but still humid, also a downgrade. Any time the temp is above 55, I would rather have rain than not. 

During my warmup with Chad, I told him about my lack of sleep over the past two nights. I had only gotten 5 hours of sleep each night because my mind was quite activated. Even with poor sleep I can usually race well, so I didn't let that get in my head. But the thing that was keeping me up was occupying so much of my mind, that I wasn't really focused on the race at all. I wasn't sure if I was mentally ready to run really hard when my focus was elsewhere. 

I had an A, B, and C goal. "A" goal was to run under 20 minutes. "B" goal was to beat my Easter Classic time of 20:14 from seven weeks prior, and my "C" goal was to beat my 5K from two weeks ago (20:40). 

We arrived at the race start and I retrieved my bib and pinned it on. Then I looked around for Greg and found him. He said he was going to walk up to the bridge where he would be taking a video of me about a quarter mile in. I decided to run a bit past there and turn around to continue my warm up.

When I saw him at the bridge I stopped and said "let's do a video of me warming up here." His response "It's 7:41. Don't you start in 4 minutes?" OH SHIT!!!

The race started at 7:45, and I knew that, but for some reason I had it in my head that it started at 8:00. I hadn't yet had my gel, and the start line was not visible. How could I have messed this up so badly!?

Well, strides are normally part of my warm up, so I did a long stride at a sub 7:00 pace to bolt back to the start line. It was about a quarter of a mile away. At least if they could see me running towards it maybe the would wait a few seconds for me to get behind the line. The minute I got there I gulped down my Maurten caffeinated gel. It wouldn't do me much good. It takes about 15 minutes for the caffeine to kick in. Oh well. This probably goes back to what I said above - I was focused on something else so I didn't remember that the start time was 7:45, and not 8:00.

I lined up towards the front and didn't even have an opportunity to see who else was there, who the competition might be. I was still trying to catch my breath from my sprint to the start.

I think I stood there for maybe 60 seconds tops and then the race started.

Mile 1
Now that the race had started and I knew I wasn't going to miss it, I could relax. So I went out at a more
conservative pace. I needed to calm down and switch gears from "get to the start" to "run a fast 5K". It wasn't long before I saw Greg and yelled out to him "That was very close!" I still wasn't aware of how many women were ahead of me, and I usually try to have an idea of that when I run a local race.

The course wasn't the traditional Hains Point course. And I had only discovered this a few days prior when my physical therapist pointed it out to me (he was running the 10K). This meant that it wouldn't be pancake flat and there would be more turns. I welcomed this, though, because I have run on Hains Point a lot lately and thought a change of scenery would be good.

I ran with Chad for a little bit and then pulled ahead about half a mile in. Because I started a little slower than originally planned, I was now passing runners, which was challenging with the course being narrow. We were all running in the bike lane. We probably didn't have to be crammed in there, but I didn't want to be the only person not in the bike lane. This mile clocked in at 6:33. This put me on track for my C goal and I would need to speed up if I wanted my B goal of sub 20:14.

Mile 2
Lots of uneven pavement here and potholes which meant puddles. I didn't want to focus too much on dodging puddles, but I also didn't want my feet to be soaked. Ultimately there was no avoiding it. My feet got soaked which meant that heavy feet feeling. I was racing really close to one guy for this whole mile. Every time he started to get ahead I would make sure he wouldn't. This mile also had a steeper hill than I was expecting as we got onto the Memorial Bridge. It took the wind out of me so this mile clocked in at 6:38. UGH - not what I wanted, but it was the best I could do. I saw Greg again (he took a shortcut to another spectating point) and he yelled out that I was the 3rd place female.

Mile 3
I was really hoping the magical 5K gods would smile down on me and give me this amazing burst of energy to close the race in a sub 6:20 pace, but that was not happening. There was a hairpin turn and I felt like that stole any momentum I had. My main motivation at this point was to retain my spot at the third female. I didn't want any women passing me. This mile clocked in at 6:33, my fastest mile of the race, but not as fast as I would have liked.

The finish and beyond
According to my Garmin, I ran the final 0.15 mile at a pace of 5:51, so I had a good burst of energy. When I ran the Greenway 5K two weeks ago, I had no final kick whatsoever; my legs had been totally dead. 

My official time was 20:37, which means I got my "C" goal of beating my Greenway time by 3 seconds. Phew. 

I found Greg who told me that I was actually the 4th female finisher-- he had miscounted. On the plus side, that meant I didn't need to stay for the awards and hang out in the rain. We found Chad and we traded race stories, and then he went back to cheer on his law firm colleagues. 

Final Thoughts and Key Takeaways
There are two ways to look at this race: the positive way and the negative way. Of course I will ultimately view it the positive way, but it's good to articulate some negative thoughts that are only natural when you miss you A and B goals.

Negative way: It was only 7 weeks ago that I ran a 20:14 5K on a hilly course and it didn't feel all that hard. I've done plenty of fast workouts in between, and taking one week off post marathon shouldn't cause me to loose THAT much fitness. I should have at least been able to go under that time. This course was faster than the Greenway from two weeks ago so I should have been able to beat that time by more than 3 seconds. 

Positive way: I started the race recovering from a quarter mile sprint to the start and the anxiety of not getting there in time. I didn't take my gel in time for the caffeine to kick in. It was pouring rain and there were puddles everywhere + uneven pavement. I averaged 5 hours of sleep for the two nights before the race and my focus was elsewhere. These are not conditions for an amazing performance. And even though the Greenway course had more elevation gain, there were no turns, uneven pavement, or puddles to dodge. The March race got a 10/10 on the weather scale, so it's not a fair comparison.

Out of 443 women, I finished in 4th place, which I am pleased with.  The last time I ran this race (2022) I was the 9th female finisher out of 582, so that's a nice improvement too.

It was great to get out there in the rain, to see my friend Chad, and to work hard!

Run the Greenway 5K

Yesterday morning I ran the "Run The Greenway" 5K in Dulles, VA. They close down the Dulles Greenway (which is a major highway) so runners can run a 5K or 10K. This race is relatively new; last year was the inaugural event. It was on my radar last year but I was injured, so I was excited to do it this year.

Post-Covid Heart Issues
As I discussed in my last post, my heart rate has consistently been 10 beats per minute higher on all of my runs, but without any difference in effort. For example, a 7:00 mile still feels like a 7:00 mile, but my heart rate is 10 BPM faster. 

I saw a cardiologist and he explained that this was not a heart issue, rather an issue with the autonomic nervous system. This article explains it in depth. He said that I was in no danger of heart issues if I ran at 100% effort. And he advised me to train as usual and run 5K races to "train" my autonomic nervous system back to where it was pre-Covid. He advised that I run the first 5K at 85-90% effort and based on that, I could try to go 100% at the next one. 

My legs recovered relatively quickly from Boston, so I was able to jump into speed work just 10 days later. My first workout was 8 x 1 minute hard, 1 minute easy. I was surprised at how fast I was running by the end of the workout and I definitely got my heart rate up! My next workout (this past Tuesday) was 8 x 400m with 200m recovery jogs. With only 200m to recover, there isn't a ton of time for the heart rate to come down. I ran those at around 1:32-1:33 and definitely could have pushed harder. Once again, I was surprised at my speed because I had believed myself to be out of shape. 

Race Morning Logistics
Greg's marathon is in three weeks, so he had a 22-miler on the schedule. (I am his coach!). I assumed I would be on my own for this race. But last night we talked through multiple scenarios. I definitely did not want to wake him up because he needs all the sleep he can get right now. Thankfully the race was only a 15 minute drive from our house. So, the scenarios were:

1.  He wakes up early enough to leave the house with me at 6:30. Watches me race, and then runs 22 miles back home. 
2.  He wakes up early enough to leave the house by 7:15. Dives to the race in a separate car, in time to see me finish, and then runs the 22 miles from the race back home
3. He doesn't wake up in time to leave the house by 7:15 and he runs the 22 miles starting from our house.

I woke up naturally at 4:00am and couldn't fall back asleep. I had a banana and some almond butter pretzels at 5:30. I got ready for the race and left the house at 6:30. Greg was still asleep when I left, so I doubted I would be seeing him. 

I arrived to the race, parked the car and sat in it for about 10 minutes. No text messages from Greg, so I was fairly certain he would not be coming to the race.

Weather
It was pouring down rain, 50 degrees, and windy. Brrrr! I decided it would be best to wear long compression shorts, arm warmers and gloves. When it's 50 and sunny (like it was in Boston) I am in a crop top, short shorts, no arm sleeves or gloves. Rain and wind make a huge difference. On my race weather scale this gets a 4/10. Most people would probably give it a 1/10 because the rain was so heavy. I actually preferred this weather to something like 60 degrees and 100% humidity. It was miserable before and after the race, but during the race, I appreciated the cool temps. 

I ran a rainy 5K on New Year's Day that was 55 degrees. Yes, my New Year's Day race was WARMER than a race in May! How odd!

Before the Race
I ran around the start area (you couldn't get on the course) for 1.8 miles, pausing to re-tie my shoes and go to the bathroom. I had a rain jacket on for the warmup that I planned to put in the gear check area while running. I would have just stashed it in my car, but I needed a place to put the car key, so gear check it was!

Someone commented on how they liked my shoes: the ASICS Metaspeed Edge. I had just received these shoes from Road Runner Sports on Tuesday, and I had only done 1 test run in them for half a mile. So, this race would be the true test run. I heard about these shoes from Cris, did some research, and realized they would be a great 5K shoe:

• I like to feel the road beneath my feet in a 5K, and other carbon fiber plate shoes are too cushy for that; I wanted something firmer. The ASICS Metaspeed Edge is firmer than most carbon fiber plate shoes.
• This shoe is designed for people with a naturally high cadence; it's supposed to increase your stride length as you speed up. I have an insanely high cadence and an insanely short stride length, so this seemed like a perfect match.
• There is more traction on this shoe than the adidas Adios Pro, which was essential in a rainy race.

About 15 minutes before the start, I put my rain jacket in a plastic bag and left it at gear check. And I had a caffeinated Maruten gel. It was COLD without that jacket and I probably could have gone another 5 minutes before ditching it. 

I made my way to the start where people were gathered under an overpass to stay as dry as possible. The rain was coming down in buckets. 

Mile 1: 6:44
The race started and a few women bolted out ahead of me. My plan was take it relatively easy during the first half of the race with the headwind and then speed up during the second half with the tailwind. I was running a relaxed and controlled effort and about halfway through the first mile I had passed all the women who had bolted out ahead of me. At this point I felt like I was running somewhere between 10K and 10 mile race effort. This mile was flat and there were no turns and the biggest challenge was the headwind (about 10-12 mph).

Mile 2: 6:55

I increased the effort slightly but due to some inclines my pace slowed. Also, at the turnaround I noticedthat there was at least 20 seconds between me and the 2nd place female so I wasn't entirely motivated to kick it into a high gear. I was feeling good and was now running at about 80% effort so I kept at it. The great thing about turning around was seeing all of the other people on the way out. This race had over 1,000 runners in the 5K and 10K and so many people were cheering for me, and telling me I was the first female. Normally when people cheer for me in races I don't have the energy to wave or acknowledge it, but this time I totally did.

Mile 3: 6:20

Somewhere around the third mile marker I passed a guy who I had been running directly behind for most of the race. I decided it was "go time" with just 1 mile left and the wind at my back. I would have guessed I was running around a 6:30 pace so I was surprised at how much I was able to pick it up. The outbound running group kept cheering for me and it felt like the final stretch of the Boston Marathon. I focused on enjoying my moment, remembering that this is the best part of running. This moment is what all that training is for! I was now running at about 90% effort; I still didn't feel like I was dying as I typically do at the end of a 5K. 

The final 0.12: 6:01 pace
As I approached the finish, I saw Greg's bright blue jacket, which I knew he'd be wearing. And I was waiting for finish line tape to appear, but it never did! I wanted to yell at them to get that tape up, but alas-- no tape! Greg took some great finish line photos, but they are no different from other finisher photos when I am not the winner. 

My official time was 20:43, which was about what I expected going into this race. I expected I would have had to work harder for it though. If I didn't have a Garmin and I had to guess my time, I would have tacked on about 20-30 seconds. So it means I am fitter than I thought, or that the shoes are really magical!

There were 458 women in the 5K, which means this is the largest race I have ever won!

First Place! Where's the tape!?

After the Race
I cooled down by running to my car with Greg. He put the camera away and we returned to the race area to get my award. As we were getting back to the race, we noticed that the 10K female winner got to break tape! 

I asked a race official when the awards ceremony would be, and they said it was going to be at 8:45. I asked if I could get my award sooner so I wouldn't have to wait that long, but they told me I needed to wait. I also asked about the finish line tape and they were surprised that there was none. "You didn't get tape?" they asked. So then they offered to hold up the tape while someone took photos. But I couldn't find Greg at this point (he was running around the parking lot as part of his long run). So the announcer took a video of me running through the tape, but there are loads of walkers in the background. . . so it definitely looks fake. But later I found the photos that the race photographer took of the staged breaking and they are pretty good:

Even though it was disappointing to not break tape, I didn't want that to overshadow the joy of winning such a large race. Many of my Instagram followers were outraged by this, and I agree that it definitely was a big oversight on the part of the race. I don't think it was intentional- I just think the tape holders didn't realize that they needed to be on the lookout for the first female, and then they corrected themselves for the 10K. But as I said. . . I wasn't going to let the lack of tape ruin my "high" of winning. I chose not to focus on it too much and I ended up photoshopping tape onto the picture I posted to my Instagram!

I found Greg after the staged tape breaking and he was worried that we wouldn't be able to leave his car in the parking lot for the duration of his run. So we both got into our cars and drove to a parking lot nearby. He parked his car, gave me the key, and began his 22-mile run home. I drove back to the race so I could get my award. 

I parked the car, left my phone in the car, and started walking to the awards area. I realized, though, that I was extremely cold so I should probably run there even though it was a very short distance- only a quarter of a mile. 

When I arrived to the site of the awards ceremony, I stopped running and asked someone for the time. She said it was 8:41. I knew the ceremony was going to start at 8:45 and somehow I felt like it would be impossible for me to wait until 8:45. I started to tell her that I needed my award now, even though she was a runner and not involved in race management. I wanted to explain to her that it was urgent that I get my award ASAP because I couldn't stand the cold any longer. That's when I stopped being able to talk. I wanted to talk, but no words would come out. 

Suddenly a bunch of people were all around me calling "medical!" and I was really embarrassed. I didn't want medical - I wanted my award so I could leave. But I wasn't able to talk so I couldn't communicate to any one. They tried sitting me down on a chair, which I later realized was a blanket on the ground. And then things got hazy, and then I was in the back of an ambulance. The entire time, I was hoping I would be able to get my award.

I was unable to talk and when I finally was able to get words out, I sounded like a mentally disabled person. I could only do one syllable at a time. It turns out I had hypothermia and the EMTs were taking my vitals and trying to determine how severe it was. They wanted to take me to the hospital but I refused. I knew I would be fine once I warmed up. 

This had happened to me twice before: at the NJ marathon in 2009 and the Sugarloaf marathon in 2019. In New Jersey, the medical people pulled me out of the finish line chute, sat me down in a wheelchair and rolled me off. The entire time I wanted to ask them why, but I couldn't talk. Apparently I looked hypothermic when crossing the finish line.

I was in the back of the ambulance for what seemed like forever. My blood oxygen was low and they couldn't get a read on my body temperature, despite trying multiple times in multiple locations. I kept refusing the hospital, and once I was able to talk more normally they were okay with my decision. Then I started shivering pretty violently, which was apparently a good thing because when you have severe hypothermia, you lose your ability to shiver. So I was shivering with blue hands and blue lips, but feeling better nonetheless. 

As for my award, the EMTs asked around, but couldn't find anyone who knew where it was. I had of course missed the awards ceremony and the EMTs were too busy treating me to get it during the ceremony. Oh well- I think they will mail it to me. I don't even know what it is, but I want it! I can't believe I got hypothermia and went through that whole experience, just for an award that is going to be mailed home anyway. 

After a while, I started feeling normal and the EMTs were okay letting me drive home once they saw me stand and walk normally. They drove me to my car, and I felt much better. I turned the heat up to 76 degrees and drove 15 minutes home. I promptly got into a warm bathtub, which felt like heaven. 

A few hours later, Greg returned home from his 22-miler and we had some interesting stories to exchange! (We later drove back to get his car. . . what a day!)

Final Thoughts and Key Takeaways
What a high to win a large 5K like that! But it was a quick comedown with no tape to break, no award and 30 minutes in the back of an ambulance. As for the race itself, it was a fast course, well-organized and lots of fun.

I didn't run at 100% effort. Miles 1-2 were 75-80% effort, and the last mile was about 90% effort. My average heart rate for the last mile at a pace of 6:20 was 176. In Boston, I was running a pace of 7:45 and I was at 176. So maybe I have started to normalize my heart rate. Or maybe the cold rain prevented the monitor from getting an accurate reading. It felt like my heart rate should have averaged in the high 170's, let's say 178, for the last mile. For the final 0.12 it averaged 175, and I would have expected that to be in the low 180s. Interesting, I am not sure what to make of all this. 

The good news is, I ran a 20:43 5K, won the race, and was definitely not running at 5K effort! I'm also really encouraged by how smooth and controlled that last 6:20 mile felt. It wasn't even a downhill mile- it was only aided by a tailwind. 

There was a timing mat at the turnaround, and my splits were 10:40 for the first half (6:52 pace) and 10:04 for the second half (6:29 pace). That's a 36- second difference! HUGE for a 5K. I have mixed feelings about this. Part of me wishes I had pushed a little hard in the first half, but the other part of me knows I ran the effort that my doctor had suggested and I executed as planned. I guess it just leaves me wondering what I could have done. And as I said earlier, both sections were equal elevation-wise; the big difference was the headwind and tailwind. 

I used Photoshop to add the tape!

I'll plan to run my next 5K harder, but chances are that the heat and humidity will begin to creep in and impact things. Even though today's weather was nasty, I don't think it slowed me down too much. Carrying extra water weight in my shoes and having a headwind maybe added a few extra seconds, but because I run so much faster in the cold, it was a net positive. I can see myself struggling more in a 60-degree humid race.

I don't think I would have gotten hypothermia if I had driven home immediately after my cool down. It was all the waiting around in wet clothes that did me in. If I had known I was going to wait so long post-race, I would have brought a warm, dry change of clothes and immediately shedded the wet running gear. Lessons Learned! 

I'm super optimistic about this result and more energized than ever to run another 5K! 

The Sugarloaf Marathon: Wet and Wild!

Oh wow. That was a crazy experience.

Start line

I ran the Sugarloaf Marathon this morning in Maine with Greg and our friend Chad. We had registered for this race back in October, at which point I was targeting it as my spring goal marathon. But then, my plans changed (because I thought Sugarloaf might be too warm), and I decided to optimize my training for Shamrock instead, with Sugarloaf being "just for fun." But about three weeks out from Sugarloaf, I decided I wanted to actually race it, so my coach made some tweaks to my training.

Since my training wasn't optimized for Sugarloaf, I thought a PR would be a stretch, but not impossible due to the net downhill nature of the course. Also, my 3:15 PR is really solid, and I think I need to be very specifically trained in order to beat that. I hadn't done much hill training either, so I was at a bit of a disadvantage. All of this being taken into account, I figured a sub-3:20 would be a great accomplishment, and if not that, then simply adding another BQ to my name would be fulfilling.

I wasn't giving myself an "out" or setting the bar low, but rather being realistic about what I thought I might run. I was still planning to race it at 100% effort. If I've learned anything from running over the past 10 years, it's that a race doesn't need to be a PR to be a success.

Sugarloaf Marathon Elevation

Before the race: Friday
I'll try to keep this section short, even though I could probably write a short novel on it. Chad, Greg, and I flew from DCA into Bangor, Maine on Friday. And that's when all the craziness started. It took 20 minutes for the Uber driver to arrive, and when he did, he managed to turn a 36-minute ETA into nearly an hour. At airport security, they were training a TSA agent on bag scanning, so our line was moving five times slower than the other lines. Every bag was inspected for what seemed like an eternity. But, finally, we reached out gate with enough time to grab food and water.

Because Bangor is an international airport, I assumed it would be large. Nope! It was tiny. We reserved an Enterprise rental car and every other rental car company had a kiosk in the airport except ours. We waited about 15 minutes for our shuttle to arrive to drive us to the rental car place.

Once we had the car, we decided to explore downtown Bangor, which was actually a very small town. I wouldn't classify it as a city, although I guess it technically is. It was a delightful little place and we got sandwiches at a small deli. Then, we went to the supermarket, assuming it would be the last one we'd see for a while, and stocked up on bagels, pretzels, water, bananas, and sliced turkey meat. I knew the pasta dinner we paid for didn't have a "chicken + pasta" option (and I don't eat beef or pork), so the turkey was going to be the protein for my dinner.

Then, we made the two-hour drive to Sugarloaf Mountain Resort, where we had reserved a condo. The resort was located at around mile 10 of the race, which meant we drove the last 16 miles of the course backward to get there. The hills didn't look too steep-- just really long. We drove past the resort so that we could get a sense of the monster hill at miles 8-10. And that was definitely a huge hill.

Once we got settled in the condo, we researched a place to have dinner nearby called Tufulio's. Most of the resort restaurants and shops were closed because it's no longer skiing season. Tufulio's was so good and reasonably priced, that we half-heartedly joked about eating there the on Saturday night too, instead of the pasta dinner we paid for.

Before the race: Saturday
On Saturday morning, Greg and I did a shakeout run of about two miles. I felt "blah" during it, and then felt super tired for the next few hours. We ate breakfast at a delicious place called The Kingfield Woodsman, which is where most of the carb loading happened. I had a massive banana pancake with warm Maine syrup. Plus a few slices of freshly baked cinnamon bread. Afterwards, I found myself in

Shakeout run at the Sugarloaf resort

a carb coma of sorts and fell asleep in the car, followed by a nap back at the condo. All of this sluggishness did not bode well for the race, but I put it out of my head.

We spent the day playing Yahtzee. To play a full 6-game card of Yahtzee with three people takes several hours, so it was a good way to pass the time. Chad had an "all or nothing" approach to the game, which is similar to his style of marathon running. Throughout the day, the race forecast kept changing. It was supposed to rain, but when it would start and how much was a mystery. One minute we'd be excited because the rain was going to hold off. And then, the next time we checked, the rain was forecast to begin at the start of the race and be quite heavy. I kept debating over which of my 4 pairs of gloves to wear, and which of my 3 pairs of arm warmers!

Finally, it was time to get our race packets. The packet pickup was only open from 3:00-7:00pm on Saturday. A very short 4-hour window. I had never heard of a race having such a small window for bib pickup, but this race also offered race morning pickup. We waited in line outside in the cold for about 25-30 minutes. As I expected, there was no "expo" or any running items for purchase. Just the bib and the t-shirt.

When packing for this race, I intentionally over-packed for every single scenario. I thought about bringing a bag for gear check but decided against it because races always give you a back that can be used for gear check, right? Wrong. The bag they gave us with our bib was tiny and would not fit more than a t-shirt or two. I asked them what bag we were supposed to use and they said "any bag you want." Not having a bag, Greg and I decided to use a trash bag from the condo. Chad used the race bag, but only brought a few small items.

Normally I don't even use gear check service at races. But for a point-to-point race with cold rain that requires a shuttle back to the condo, I knew I would want to get out of the wet clothes and into warm dry ones immediately. I had a hoodie, gloves, a poncho, and pants to check. The trash bag fit it all, plus Greg's stuff.

Onto the pasta dinner. The pasta dinner was $27/person, so I expected it to be pretty good. I knew that I wouldn't be having a protein with my meal, and I was fine with that (because I had gotten the turkey). Once again, we waited in a long line and finally got our dinner. The plain marinara sauce for my pasta was very spicy, which meant I couldn't tolerate it. So, I ended up having a bagel with almond butter back at the condo. If I do this race again (doubtful) I will eat at Tufulio's and not opt for the pasta dinner. We played our final round of Yahtzee and then went to sleep.

Before the race: Sunday
I slept pretty well, and my 4:30 alarm actually woke me up. I almost never need an alarm to wake me up on race morning! I had set the alarm for 4:30 because the shuttle buses to the start line were scheduled for 5:45. I quickly ate my bagel and peanut butter (same breakfast as last night's dinner!), got dressed and packed the gear bag. I wore a tank, shorts, gloves, a hat, and disposable arm warmers ($2 knee high socks with the toes cut out). Greg and I donned Ponchos over our clothes and headed out.

The trash bag that we were using for gear check had a huge hole in it, so I had to get another trash bag from the hotel lobby. I am probably abnormally irked by the lack of a good gear check bag, and that's because I thought to pack my own but intentionally did not!

Waiting in line for the busses

We arrived at the shuttle bus pickup location (a very short distance from our condo) at 5:45. Once again, there was a huge line of people and no busses. We waited, and waited, and waited. Thankfully there was a bathroom inside the building we were waiting in front of. Busses kept arriving to transport runners to the 15K, which was closer and started later, but marathon busses were nowhere in sight. With a 7:00am start, we were all getting antsy.

Finally, at 6:30, several busses arrived. We all breathed a sigh of relief. Standing in line for 45 minutes in the cold isn't ideal right before a marathon, but I stood in Boston's athlete's village for longer and survived. In the rain, nonetheless. On the bus, I drank my Generation UCAN.

At 6:51, our shuttle bus arrived at the start area, which was a camp ground. Greg hurried to check our bag while I used a porta potty- with just 3 minutes to spare! They ended up starting the race 10 minutes late due to the shuttle bus debacle. This race has been running for over 30 years, so I didn't understand why lines were so long and how the shuttles got messed up.

I don't like to be so negative about a race on my blog, but I was really annoyed with all of these issues. I knew I needed to go into the race with a positive mindset, so I let go of the negative emotions at the start line and started to get excited. It was in the low 40's with very light drizzle. The heavier rain was forecast to start about halfway in. They had an actual shotgun at the start line, and at 7:10, it went off.

Miles 1-7
I had studied the course profile so I knew exactly what to expect. These first 7 miles would offer gently rolling hills. My plan was to be in the 7:35-7:40 range. I figured, if the second half is really that fast with all the downhill, I could run 7:10-7:15 and PR that way. But I definitely didn't want to go out at my PR pace and risk trashing my legs. This 7:35-7:40 pace was comfortable for me and it felt like an easy run for the first 7 miles.

I knew that Chad was going to start out at BQ pace for him (7:15) with his all-or-nothing racing strategy. Greg was planning to start out slightly slower than me. Chad bolted out and was out of site immediately, while Greg and I stuck around each other for almost a mile until I got ahead.

I tossed off my throwaway arm warmers at mile 3 because the temperature was ideal at that point and it wasn't raining. A few miles later, I removed my gloves and tucked them in my sports bra. Throughout these early miles, the road was closed to traffic and the crowd was thick for such a small race.

I was running with a group of about 4 women. I think they were running together because they stayed together as a group for a long time. Usually I am surrounded by men in races so it was nice to have a pack of women. I decided I would remember their outfits and keep track of them during the race to fuel my competitive mindset and keep me on my toes.

Mile 1: 7:40
Mile 2: 7:37
Mile 3: 7:38
Mile 4: 7:38
Mile 5: 7:38
Mile 6: 7:32
Mile 7: 7:31

Miles 8-10
Up the big hill! My left foot went numb. I have no idea why, but this happened to me in a 10-miler last fall and it eventually went away so I decided to ignore it. There was really nothing to be done. It was annoying, but I lived with it for the full mile until the numbness gradually went away.

I noticed that the road was no longer closed off to traffic. We were running in the right hand lane, and traffic was going in the left hand lane, but going in the same direction as us. Most of the vehicles seemed to be associated with the race. I didn't love running right next to cars, vans, and trucks, but I knew I needed to get used to it. It also started raining more heavily now, which didn't help matters.

This hill was very long and very steep. It just kept going and going. You can see it in the elevation profile above. I purposely did not try to run quickly up the hill. I told myself to just relax and climb it at a comfortable pace so that my legs would be ready to attack the downhills.

Lots of people passed me. Including that group of women. I told myself I would pass them on the downhills. I tried to ignore all the people passing me and just focus on my own plan. As I said earlier, I hadn't been training on hills for this race, but I am naturally a strong downhill runner. I was expecting Greg to pass me. He's stronger on hills than I am and my average race pace had slowed to 7:48.

Mile 8: 7:45
Mile 9: 8:45
Mile 10: 8:05

Miles 11-16
I was so relieved once we got to the top of the big huge hill! Finally it was time for the fast downhill race start. At the top of the hill, I took my Generation UCAN gel so that I could focus all my effort on powering down the hill. I might have been more aggressive on dry pavement, but I was a little cautious going down the first steep hill. My coach told me not to put the brakes on, but to roll down the hill. That would preserve my quads. I did not fly down the hill as fast as I had expected (I was thinking 7:10 or faster) but it was still fast, and quite a relief from the uphill.

Another issue with the pavement was that it was uneven all over the place. Many spots were heavily slanted/angled, and the pavement in general was torn up. If we had been able to run straight down the middle of the road, it would have been better. But now, BOTH lanes were open to traffic! So we were relegated to the shoulder. At times, I would come off of the shoulder and run in the middle of the road, but then a car would drive up behind me, forcing me to move back over. This was rough on my lower calf area.

I felt strong running down these hills but it wouldn't be fast enough for a PR. At mile 15, I realized that it felt harder than it should, so I figured I would probably be slowing down at some point. At mile 15, if I am having a great race, the hurt should be minimal and I should feel like that pace is definitely sustainable for many more miles to come. But I could already feel my legs complaining and I knew that the only reason my pace was so fast was because I was going downhill.

Mile 11: 7:41
Mile 12: 7:24
Mile 13: 7:36
Mile 14: 7:33
Mile 15: 7:28
Mile 16: 7:32

Miles 17-21
As is typical in a marathon, these miles featured the transition from feeling good to hurting a lot and wanting the race to be over. The rain was coming down harder now and the cars were more frequent.
The noise was jarring. I was trying to enjoy the beautiful scenic course, but all the large vehicles around me made that challenging. I tried to ignore the traffic, but you really can't do that when it's forcing you onto the shoulder with the crazy broken up pavement. I knew I was working really hard to stabilize myself on the slippery, bumpy pavement, and that's not something you want to have to deal with in a marathon.

I knew that mile 20 would be difficult because it was the first non-downhill mile. There were a few notable up-hills and I missed the leisurely downhill jaunt. Running uphill at this point was extremely difficult. After the race, Greg mentioned that he didn't have any issue with running up hill at the end of the race, but that the downhills were challenging. I still wanted to be going downhill because my uphill pace made me feel like a snail. I had my Honey Stinger chews during mile 20 and they seemed to keep me going through the rest of the race.

I kept expecting Greg to catch up with me because I was slowing down significantly, but he didn't. I also thought there was a chance I might see Chad, because he admittedly goes out too fast. But our order stayed the same. Nobody passed anybody.

Mile 17: 7:18
Mile 18: 7:52
Mile 19: 7:53
Mile 20: 8:33
Mile 21: 8:16

Miles 22-Finish
I needed something to motivate me. I was struggling and the urge to walk was strong. I started to calculate what I needed to do to get a BQ. I already have my 3:15 BQ for 2020, but to me, any BQ time is a huge accomplishment. As a 40-year-old, I need 3:40 to qualify for Boston. So when I looked at my watch and it read 3:05, I told myself that I had 25 minutes to finish. Of course, that math is totally wrong, but I stuck with it for the rest of the race. When I was at 3:15, I told myself I only had 15 minutes left to BQ, when in reality I had 25. My math skills were completely gone.

BUT. . . this served me well because it forced me to stay in the game for the last four miles. These miles were painful and felt like an eternity. I kept reminding myself it was all mental. I knew my body could get to the finish line without stopping, so I had to just will myself to do it. "All you have to do is keep going, and no matter what, don't stop!"

At this point, the average race pace on my Garmin was 7:51. But I knew that a 3:40 pace was 8:23. And yet, I thought I was on the verge of not BQing. I thought to myself "It's crazy that someone with a pace of 7:51 this late in the race has to keep running in the 8's just to finish at a pace of 8:23". But it never dawned on me that my math was all wrong. All the while, I was still on the lookout for Chad ahead of me and Greg coming up from behind. Lots of people were passing me, but I tried not to let that bother me. I was doing great!

Slippery Finish

With 1 mile to go, I realized- HEY! I have 10 extra minutes!!! And I could go sub-3:30! That whole time I was projecting my finish time to be around 3:38-3:39. But suddenly I realized I was on track to break 3:30, which was an amazing thought. I was doing so much better than I had realized! With that in mind, I looked at the runner next to me and said "let's do this together". So we both encouraged each other to run the last mile in fast. As I approached the finish line, it was looking like I would be on the border of 3:28 and 3:29 so I gunned it really hard to ensure a 3:28 finish time. I was elated that the clock read 3:28:xx as I crossed.

Mile 22: 8:32
Mile 23: 8:49
Mile 24: 8:37
Mile 25: 8:51
Mile 26: 8:45
Last 0.31: 7:31 pace according to Garmin.

After the Race
Shortly after crossing, I found Chad, who had finished in 3:23. I was offered Gatorade and surprisingly I wanted it and was able to drink it. Normally my stomach is way too upset after a marathon or half marathon to take in any fluids. But I welcomed this Gatorade- odd! Thankfully, we didn't have to wait too long for Greg, who finished in 3:34.

Chad and Greg went to get our checked bags while I waited under a tent. Pretty soon, the medical people approached me and said I needed a blanket and to go into a warm van. They said I didn't look good and I had to get warm immediately. I didn't think I was any worse off than anyone else, but I guess when you have hypothermia, you don't think clearly. And I was acting like I was drunk. I was also screaming in pain. Literally screaming, because everything hurt.

Chad and Greg held up a heat sheet for me to be able to remove my wet tank top and sports bra. I then put on my hoodie and a pair of dry gloves with hot hands. The medical guy wrapped a warm blanket around me and helped me into a warm van, where 3 other runners were being warmed. I felt guilty leaving Greg and Chad out in the rain. . . was I really worse off than them? I guess so. I stayed in the van for about 15-20 minutes, and Greg brought me hot soup from the food tent.

Even though I have a lot of negative things to say about this race's organization, the medical people were really good and the warm van was a lifesaver.

Finally, I was warm enough to leave the van. Greg handed me a fresh poncho from our checked trash bag and it was time to find the shuttle busses back. That was not easy. We had to walk through muddy wet grass and uneven surfaces (not easy post-marathon) and the busses were not readily visible. I was rapidly getting cold again and the effects of that warming van were wearing off quickly. We found a sign that said "Sugarloaf Marathon Shuttle Bus Stop" and waited there for a bit, until we realized that the shuttle buses were even further away. Sigh. I was cold and in pain and overall so miserable.

Once we boarded a bus, it didn't take long for it to fill up and we were off. The ride back to the resort was about 25 minutes, and when we got to our condo, the shower felt like heaven.

When I finally got around to looking at my phone, I saw a race text message that had my official finish time of 3:28:51, and said that I placed 4th in my age group. I'm kind of bummed that I didn't get a top 3 age group placement, but I guess it was a competitive field. And I did sort of bonk a little. I later looked up the race results and found that the 3rd place female in my age group was 3:28:43. She beat me by 8 seconds! Bummer.

Final thoughts and takeaways
I'm not going to analyze this one too much. I think I raced really well all things considered: the crappy weather, the lack of marathon-specific training, the lack of hill training, the uneven pavement and having to run on the shoulder of the road.

My coach summed it up well: It seems like you can BQ on any day of the week now! It does look like it got harder over the last 6 miles but that's just down to the non marathon specific nature of the training you did. That's always going to be the tough part of the race without that. I'm so proud of you for getting yourself to a position where this kind of effort is something you just do and have no doubts about.

Even though I was hoping for a faster time as I entered the race, my 3:28 felt like a dream when I thought I would be running 3:38 due to marathon brain. It's all about perspective. Considering it took me seven years to qualify for Boston, and now I can qualify with 11 minutes cushion without a proper training cycle. . . I'll take it!

Do I recommend this race? It depends. I liked the course, but I didn't like running alongside all that traffic and on the bumpy wet pavement. Avoid the pasta dinner (eat at Tufulio's), bring your own gear check bag, and find a way to the start line that doesn't involve a race shuttle. And know that if you need medical attention at the finish- they have staff for that. Be sure to train on hills.

Although a painful and at times torturous experience (after the race was much more painful than during the race), I'm glad I did this marathon. It was a great way to cap off the spring racing season before taking some down time.

Pancake Run 10K in Phoenix, AZ

What could be better than a race that’s pancake flat with free pancakes afterwards? That was my thinking when I registered for the Runner’s Den Pancake Run 10K. I’m in Phoenix for business, so I figured it would be fun to check out a local race. Plus, I hadn't run a 10K in over two years! The last 10K I ran was my PR of 41:51.

I flew from Washington, DC to Phoenix yesterday afternoon. The flight was over five hours, which I know isn’t ideal the day before a race. But I wasn’t going to come in early for a 10K and pay for an extra night of hotel. Instead, I focused on drinking plenty of water and using UCAN Hydrate to ensure my electrolytes stayed balanced. I think I did a decent job of this, as my urine was a very light shade of yellow; not dark and concentrated like it would be if I were dehydrated.

We ran for pancakes.

I can’t explain it, but I had a sense of “doom and gloom” about this race. It was weird. I was super excited about this race, and I wasn’t being negative. But I had this strange premonition that it wouldn’t go well. Maybe it was because the last time I ran a race in Phoenix I bonked. Maybe it was because my legs had been feeling heavy due to treadmill running. Maybe it was because I had just been feeling out of my training “groove” for a while due to weather disruptions and random bouts of fatigue. But whatever it was, I just wasn’t feeling the good mojo around this race.

I arrived in Phoenix, relaxed in my hotel room for about an hour, and then went out to an Italian restaurant with a co-worker. I had a pretty standard meal: linguine with marinara sauce and chicken. And I continued to drink water. And then I was in bed by 7:00 (9:00pm eastern time) and I fell asleep almost immediately.

I usually don’t sleep well in hotels the night after a long flight, but last night I slept well. The bed and pillows were comfortable and I only woke up once in the middle of the night for a short period. Everything seemed to be in order. Hydration was good, sleep was good, and I had packed my standard English muffin and peanut butter to eat. As for the weather, I was worried it would be on the warm and humid side at 58 degrees with rain. But if it’s going to be 58, then rain is actually preferred to sunny skies.

Before the Race
The race was about 15 miles away from my hotel, so my plan was to take an Uber. But when I hailed an Uber, the closest one was 8 minutes away. And there were cabs waiting right outside the hotel. I didn’t want to be late to meet my friend Alyssa, so I cancelled my Uber request and hopped into a cab. Shortly after getting into the cab, I regretted it. The meter was going up like 2 dollars a minute. I started freaking out, thinking that this would be a $60 cab ride.

I asked the cab driver why the meter was going up so quickly and he said it was $3 per mile. WOW. This cab fare would cost me more than the race registration fee! This would be 2-3 times the price of Uber. The cab driver offered to exit the highway and drop me off so I could hail an Uber. But it was dark, I was alone, and in an unknown area. No thank you!!!

The race started and finished at a shopping mall. After paying $55, I got out of the cab and proceeded to pick up my bib. I got my bib and shirt (gender-specific Brooks t-shirt!) and found a covered area to pin on the bib so I wouldn’t get wet. The rain was medium-light at this point. Not a huge deal, but I did want a dry location for the bib pinning process. I texted Alyssa and told her where I was, and she arrived shortly after. I had met Alyssa on Instagram, and she was a fan of my book. She told me that she records all of her marathon times on the book’s inside cover!

Alyssa’s mom was with her, and just like her daughter, was super sweet. We hung out in the dry car for about five minutes, and then started our warm-up. Alyssa was truly a lifesaver for letting me stash my phone and warm-up shirt in her car. We ran around the mall twice, which yielded just over 2 miles. During this run, I drank my Generation UCAN and we chatted the time away.

Alyssa and I have almost the exact same PR’s for the 10K and the half marathon. She had run a 14-miler the day before and was thinking this would be a tempo for her. By contrast, I had tapered for this run and had only run 4 miles the day before. I was planning to run it at race effort. Alyssa said she might do that too, just depending on how things felt.

After the warm up, we used the porta-potties and then headed back to her car to ditch our outer layers. I did a few strides while she stretched, and then we lined up at the start line. It was there that I saw my friend Carlos, who I had met last summer at a local race in Virginia. Such a small world that we were both in Phoenix!

My plan was to go out at a pace of around 6:42 (my PR pace) and then speed up from there if I was feeling good. I didn’t study the course map or elevation. I knew it was one big square and it was flat. What else was there to know?

Mile 1
The race started and I felt okay. About 2-3 minutes in, I looked down at my wrist and saw I was running a pace of 7:10. That was a surprise, so I started pushing harder. This first mile felt like the first mile of a 5K, but I didn’t judge it too much and I didn’t speculate on what it would mean for the rest of the race. I’ve learned that the first mile is often NOT a good indicator of what’s to come. I later learned that the first mile was slightly inclined, so perhaps the best starting pace would have been closer to 6:50. But I ran a 6:40. So this was probably a mistake, but starting out 10 seconds per mile faster than goal pace in a 10K shouldn’t spell disaster. Plus, I was hoping my race pace would be around 6:37.

Mile 2
This is when things started to fall apart. My “don’t judge it by the first mile” mentality was gone because I was running very, very hard, yet my pace was getting slower and slower. Alyssa passed me early in this mile and pulled ahead quickly. She was with another woman who looked like she could be in my age group. Crap! My split was 6:55. 

Miles 3-4
I was in full-on “bonk” mode after having run just two miles. Yikes. I felt like I was running through molasses. My energy level was decent, but it was my legs that seemed to be the limiting factor. I simply couldn’t get them to go. They were heavy with zero pep. I kept trying to inject the pep into them by surging, but the surge would only last for about 15 seconds, and then I would slow down again. I tried to focus on the positive. I was running a new race in a new place and I could probably still win an age group award. That’s one of the perks of being 40! My splits were 7:18 and 7:13. I was now running slower than half marathon pace and creeping up on marathon pace. In a 10K. But I didn’t get emotional, I just ran. What else was there to do? That was the fastest way to get the darn thing over with.

Miles 5-6
This was weird. I felt like I had energy to give, but I couldn’t access it. You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink. And my legs were the horse. My upper body felt good and I wasn’t “hurting” like how I normally hurt when pushing to my max. This is why I was able to surge from time to time, but after surging, my legs would give out and I couldn’t maintain it. I was motivated by the idea of still winning an age group award, and not wanting any women to pass me. I was also motivated by the idea of Alyssa starting to worry about what happened to me after the race. I didn’t want her to worry. And I didn’t want Greg to worry, since he was tracking me from home. These little things helped me stay strong during these tough miles. Splits were 7:18 and 7:21.

The Finish
My “sprint” to the finish was a 6:56 pace. Yikes! I couldn’t run any faster than that for 0.25 miles. As I said, it was like running through molasses. Or, pancake syrup! At this race, you can see the finish line from half a mile away. And as I saw runners finish ahead of me, the announcer would say their name, and where they were from, and that made me super excited to cross. As I got closer, the announcer started promoting the events that were happening later in the morning. So my name wasn’t announced as I crossed. Kind of a bummer.

Alyssa was waiting for me. She ran within about 20-30 seconds of her PR! The day after a 14-miler. I was super impressed with her performance.

After the Race
Alyssa and I went to the results tent and looked up our official times. She was the 8th overall female and won 2nd place in her age group. I was the 14th overall female, and won 3rd place in my age group. As I said, there are benefits to being 40 years old. My official time was 44:29. My slowest 10K in over four years. Ah well, this race is in no way an indication of my current fitness.

Alyssa and I with the big pancake!

There was no awards ceremony so we went to collect our awards from the awards tent. Alyssa got her silver medal, but I wasn’t able to get mine because they were still waiting to receive the results of the later finishers. And the salt-in-the-wound was that we kept going back there to get my award, and they still hadn’t received my result. I wasn’t THAT slow!

Alyssa and I cooled down by running one lap around the mall (1.1 miles) and then it was finally time to enjoy the pancakes. And they had crepes too. These were delicious and just what I wanted to warm me up after running in the rain. Finally my results were delivered to the awards tent and I was able to get my bronze pancake medal.

Alyssa then offered to drive me back to my hotel, which was super helpful. It also allowed us to spend more time together and talk about our races.

Final Thoughts
In the grand scheme of things, this is just one race that didn’t go my way, so I am not going to analyze it too much. (I know—SO UNLIKE ME!) Here are just a few things I learned and a few reasons why I think this race didn’t go well:

Always check the elevation. If there is no elevation chart, find someone on Strava who ran last year’s race to see the net elevation gain/decline. Yes, this race was flat, but knowing that it was a little uphill in the beginning would have prevented me from running harder than I needed to.

Don’t take a long flight the day before the race. I think a 2-3 hour flight is probably ok, but any longer and I should probably fly out earlier. I had been considering California International Marathon (CIM) in December, so I will have to think long and hard about that.

Focus on having fun. This truly was an “experience” race, and I enjoyed the new scenery and course. It was also cool to meet up with Alyssa after having gotten to know her a little on Instagram.

I regret tapering. I ran 4.3 miles on Friday and 3.9 miles yesterday. That’s a big cutback for me. Clearly, my legs weren’t fresh, and I think I could have run this time even if I had run 10 miles yesterday! My total mileage for the week was only 51, and that's low for me. And my weekly mileage had been on the lower side in January due to vacation and illness. Anyway, I sacrificed even more mileage for Shamrock marathon training and it didn’t even help my race. But of course, hindsight is 20/20.

I do not think the weather was a factor here. This was a flat course in pretty good conditions: 58 degrees, light rain, and light winds at 8-10 mph.

I had fun and this was a good workout and a new experience. Now it’s time to focus on getting marathon ready!

Run! Geek! Run! 5K Race Report

After having run three races as training runs this summer, I was itching to race something full-out. Since getting sick for six weeks last June (combined with my history of summer illness) my new rule is to not fully exert myself in warm and humid weather. But today it was finally cool enough to race!

This race has been on my schedule since July. I knew I would want a "comeback" 5K once the weather got cooler, basically just to practice racing again, so this was it. This race used to be an 8K in

Washington DC. Now it's a 5K in Alexandria, VA. I ran the 8K back in 2011 and really enjoyed it, so I figured I would check out the 5K.

On Monday of this week, the weather for the race was looking iffy. The forecast called for 70 degrees with 95% humidity. I briefly contemplated bailing out, but decided I wouldn't make any decisions until the forecast solidified. As the week progressed, the temperatures dropped, and rain crept its way in.

In terms of goals, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. On the one hand, I hadn't been doing any 5K-specific workouts. I had two hill sprint sessions under my belt and a few short fartlek sessions (timed road intervals). But that was it. My hard workouts had been primarily focused on building lactate threshold, running between marathon pace and half marathon pace. None of these workouts were good race predictors, particularly at the 5K distance. My best-case-scenario goal was to be very close to my PR (20:17), but realistically I expected somewhere around 20:30. I definitely wanted to be sub 20:45, and probably would have been disappointed if I didn't hit that goal.

Before the Race
Race morning arrived, and I had everything set out as usual. I ate my typical english muffin with peanut butter, and mixed my UCAN with water to take 30 minutes before race start. Greg decided not to run this race, so he went as my cheerleader and photographer. When we were about 10 minutes

Warming up

into the drive, I realized I had left my UCAN on the kitchen counter. I had had it in my hand, but had briefly set it down and didn't pick it back up again. I was really frustrated with myself for this because I literally had the bottle in my hand right before we were about to leave. Oh well, I had run plenty of 5K races without UCAN before, and at least I had eaten my breakfast.

It was raining pretty heavily when we arrived. I didn't bring a top layer to warm up in and I was soaked waiting to get my bib. I pinned it on inside the car and soon it was time to warm up. Once I started running, I literally warmed up. It was about 62 degrees with a slight breeze. The rain let up slightly during my warm up and I hoped it would remain light throughout the race and not be coming down in buckets. I've raced two 5Ks in pouring rain and it definitely added an extra layer of challenge. I've also raced half marathons and full marathons in pouring rain, and I think it posed less of a challenge at those distances, because you're not going so fast that you worry about slipping on something.

I warmed up for 2.5 miles, which included some strides and drills. I then met up with my friend Cheryl, who was running, and Allison, who was spectating. We headed to the start line and started scoping out the field. Cheryl and I were the only two women up front, but we were soon joined by a woman in a Boston Marathon shirt.

Mile 1: 6:34
The race started and things felt pretty good. The course is mainly flat, with the first mile being a slight decline of 14 feet, according to Strava. I didn't have my normal "pep" off of the starting mat, so I

Mile 1

figured I would ease into my pace and just focus on staying relaxed. The woman in the Boston shirt shot out ahead and was probably about 10 seconds ahead of me. I didn't realize it at the time, but looking at the photos, I learned that I was running alongside another woman. About half a mile in, I realized that the Boston-shirted woman was running about my same pace, and wasn't widening the gap any further. When my Garmin beeped a 6:34 mile, I didn't really have any emotional reaction. Initially I had planned to go out at a pace of 6:28-6:30, but things felt hard enough.

Mile 2: 6:39
It was during this mile that I realized that I didn't have a lot of pep. I had a positive mindset and I was telling myself to push and reminding myself that I could run faster, but my body was locked in at the pace it was going, and I couldn't convince it to move any quicker. This course is an out-and-back and I slowed almost to a walk at the hairpin turn, due to the pavement being wet. Thankfully, the rain was pretty light, and not the downpour I had feared. I remained in second place throughout the mile and believed that my position was locked in.

Mile 3: 6:36

Heading toward the finish

Shortly after the second mile marker, the Boston-shirted girl ahead of me stopped running. She pulled off to the side for some reason. I continued on at my steady pace, still not able to convince myself to push any harder, and she resumed running about five seconds later. The gap between us was now a lot smaller-- probably 4-5 seconds. Still, I doubted I could catch her because I felt like I couldn't go any faster. I really wanted to catch her, but I didn't think it possible. But about half a mile later (about 2.5 miles into the race) she stopped again. I hated to be opportunistic since she was obviously hurting, but I figured since I was going to pass her, I might as well do it so quickly that if she were to start up again, she wouldn't believe that she could catch me. I somehow found another gear and pushed harder and ran faster as I passed her. She said something encouraging to me and I grunted back, as that's all the energy I had for communication.

I held a steady pace until about a quarter mile from the finish line. At that point, a spectator yelled that another woman was right behind me. Shoot! That meant I had to push harder, I simply had to! I wasn't going to lose the win in the last quarter mile. So, I somehow found it in me to rally more energy, which had previously been lacking, and I sprinted my way to a win in 20:34. I later learned that the second place female finished 8 seconds after me, and was not the woman in the Boston shirt who had stopped. According to my Garmin, I ran the last 0.13 at a pace of 5:52.

After the Race
I watched Cheryl finish about 30 seconds after me and then re-united with Greg and Allison. I then approached the Boston-shirted woman and asked her if she was okay. She said that she had just run the Berlin Marathon the previous weekend and was fighting an illness. She ended up placing third, which is a huge accomplishment considering she had to stop!

I then cooled down for two miles with Cheryl. We proceeded to collect our awards and then headed

Podium finish

for brunch. I won a bobble-head trophy and a gift certificate to a local restaurant.

Final Thoughts and Takeaways
I really wish I hadn't left my UCAN fuel at home. I lacked "pep" in this race, despite a significant taper and I think that's the culprit. However, I don't know for sure, and my result could have been the exact same if I had taken the UCAN.

I think that unless I am training specifically for a 5K, then I don't have the ability to shift into a really high gear- both mentally and physically. If this had been a four-mile race, I think my average pace would have been exactly the same. I felt like I could have continued on at that pace for quite some time, but I just couldn't bring myself to go much faster. I often feel this way in 5Ks when I am not training specifically for them. According to the McMillan calculator, this race predicts a 1:11:23 10-miler, but I'm pretty confident in my ability to run sub-1:10:00 in two weeks.

I don't have any training runs or races that indicate a sub-1:10:00 is possible, but my gut tells me I am in better shape now than when I ran my 1:10 PR in the spring of 2017. The 10-miler is also my sweet spot and the distance that I think I race the best.

It was a really nice pick-me-up to get a win and to break tape. Particularly after having taken so much time off this summer. But I'm still hungry. I'm hungry for 60+ mile weeks and PRs and the cool weather that makes those possible. I feel like I've been on the verge of being back in full swing for a while now, and I'm anxious to actually BE back in full swing.

Boston Marathon 2018: Soaking It All In

Yesterday’s Boston Marathon brought an entirely new meaning to the expression “soaking it all in.” The trifecta of cold temperatures (upper 30s), a strong sustained headwind (25 mph) with heavier gusts, and pouring rain made the experience simultaneously miserable and thrilling.

Race Weekend
I was planning on writing an entirely separate post on all the festivities that I took part in Friday-Sunday, but instead I spent that time figuring out my wardrobe strategy. I’ll provide the Cliff’s Notes version instead. I went on a shopping spree at the expo, I cheered for Greg as he ran the 5K on Saturday morning, I met up with some friends who I knew from Instagram, I attended a pre-race clinic with Greg McMillan, I had two book signings, and I spent several hours trying on different variations of a race outfit.

The big topic for discussion over the weekend was wardrobe. When I finalized my packing on Friday morning, the forecast was calling for temperatures in the high 40’s to low 50’s. I had a pretty good idea of what I was going to wear and I wasn’t stressing about it. But as the weekend progressed, the forecast became more severe. Every time I opened my weather app, the temperature had dropped a few degrees, the rainfall totals increased, and the headwind became stronger.

Everyone was scrambling to purchase extra “supplies” for Athlete’s village and modifying their originally planned race attire.

What I wore 
For better or worse, I have experience in running in similar conditions so I was able to rely on that to inform my decisions. I suffered from hypothermia back in 2009 when I ran a marathon in pouring rain. It was in the high 40’s that day, but I was wearing a tank top, a skirt, and no gloves or arm warmers. I was rushed to the medical tent by finish line staff and I had no clue what was going on. It was a scary experience. At the Shamrock half marathon in 2016, the weather as almost as bad as predicted for Boston, and my arm warmers + short-sleeved shirt worked well. However, being out there for 5+ hours (including waiting for the race to start) is entirely different from a 93-minute half marathon.

Race outfit:

• Smart Wool socks with lots of body glide on the feet 
  
• Nike LunarGlide shoes 
• Lightweight capri tights, which I purchased at the expo
• Sports bra 
• Tight fitting, long singlet 
• Short sleeve shirt 
• Thick arm warmers made of a wool-like material 
• Very thin/light water-repelling rain jacket 
• Mizuno Breath Thermo gloves 
• Convertible mittens over the gloves 
• One pair of hand warmers in each mitten (front and back of fingers) 
• Shower cap 
• Hat 
• Vaseline on my face to keep the water off and protect against the wind 
• Waist pack to hold my Generation UCAN gel 

Over-layers for Athlete’s Village:

• Mid-weight rain jacket 
• Poncho 
• Sweatpants 
• Throwaway socks 
• Throwaway shoes with toe warmers inside

I wrapped my race shoes in shower caps and tied them around my waist and kept them under my poncho until it was time to walk to the start line. Another challenge was figuring out where to pin the bib. I wanted the option of throwing off the lightweight rain jacket, so I didn’t want to pin my bib to it. But I needed to wear my bib on the outermost layer so that the chip would register and I would be identifiable in photos. I ended up pinning the bib to the very bottom of my long singlet, and making the short-sleeved shirt shorter with safety pins. I spent my Sunday afternoon figuring all of this out instead of blogging.

Bus & Athlete’s Village
My friend Lisa met me at my hotel and then we went to meet some of my other friends to all board the bus together. There were 9 of us total. It was already raining steadily as we approached the buses

Before boarding the buses; I'm in the dark blue

and the gusts were blowing my poncho around like crazy. Greg was there to see me off and I gave him my final wet hug. We decided that it would be best for him to simply track me from the comfort of the hotel room instead of getting drenched himself. Last time, he went to mile 20 and I didn’t even see him. Our plan this year was to meet at a spot shortly after the finish line chute.

Once we boarded the bus, I got hot and didn’t want to sweat, so I undid my layers to the best of my ability. The bus ride took about 50 minutes (longer than I remember it taking two years ago) and I ate a bagel with peanut butter on the ride while chatting away with Lisa.

Another challenge that this weather presented was that I wouldn’t be able to carry a water bottle. Typically I carry a bottle for the first 15 miles of a marathon so I can drink enough water when I want it. However, I suffer from Reynaud’s syndrome and so my hands were a huge concern. Carrying something cold and wet would not be ideal, so I decided to drink water from the aid stations.

We were not surprised that Athlete’s village was a mud pit. The mud was thick, cold and slippery and every step was more unpleasant than the one before it. My toe warmers were my savior, as well as the fact that I would be changing my shoes before the race. We waited in line for the porta-potties as ice pellets fell steadily upon us. There was slush on the ground in some places, and I witnessed several people slip and fall. Once inside the porta-potty, I had to remove my glove/mitten/hand-warmer ensemble and then wade through all of the aforementioned layers to be able to go to the bathroom. I likened it to being a bride and having to use the bathroom in my wedding dress.

Afterwards, Lisa and I approached the tented area, and it was jam-packed full of runners. I found a small corner to stand in and decided I did not want to sit on the muddy ground. If you add the walk to the porta-potty, the wait to use it, standing in the tent, and then walking to the start, I was on my feet for over an hour before I started running. Not ideal, but that’s Boston for you. It’s a logistical challenge even in the best of weather conditions.

When they called wave 2, I exited the tent and headed for the corral. There was a little hill to climb up before exiting the grassy area, and it was so muddy and slippery that I couldn’t get up it without falling. The fall caused my gloves and the plastic bag I was carrying to get muddy and it was not pleasant, but I cleaned it off quickly.

The next step would be to find a good area to change my shoes. As I walked toward the corral, there was a group of three runners standing in a covered alcove of a building entrance. I asked them if I could duck in to change my shoes. And these three people were so remarkably helpful. One of them held my bag, another one held my gloves, and another one helped me keep my balance as I made the switch. I had to un-tie the shoes from around my waist and then take them out of their shower caps to put on my feet. I use Yankz laces, so thankfully I didn’t have to worry about lacing the shoes— I just put my foot in and I was set.

The walk to the corral felt long and by the time I got into my assigned corral #5, there was only 10 minutes until race start. In 2016, people were offering sunscreen and cold towels along the walk. Yesterday they offered Vaseline. Same event, but under entirely different circumstances from the heat wave of two years ago.

Mindset and Strategy 
Before I get into the race itself (see. . . you have to wait awhile just like I did) I want to share my mental approach to this race. I was basically a mixed bag of emotions, but at the same time neutral accepting of the circumstances as I knew I couldn’t control them. Nobody runs Boston for its good weather. The race has a history of extreme weather (hot and cold) and according to one report, this was the coldest Boston Marathon in 30 years.

I went into this cycle with the attitude that my training would build me as an athlete, take me to the next level, and prepare me to run fast at a fall marathon. As I logged the 75+ mile weeks, I wasn’t doing so with the expectation of a PR in Boston. The focus was pushing myself as an athlete, working hard, and seeing what I could handle.

My attitude toward the race was, in many ways, completely divorced from the training cycle. I knew I was really prepared to run 26.2 miles physically, so I didn’t worry about my fitness level. Instead, I focused on staying positive, “soaking it all in,” and sticking to my race plan.

I attended a pre-race clinic with Greg McMillan on Sunday, and he walked his athletes through a

Greg McMillan and me

strategy that he had seen work really well in Boston: The first 16 miles should be at “cruise” effort, and if you feel like you are having to push into the wind, then you need to back off the pace. At no point should you be straining. When you get to the hills, you need to “engage” and work harder than you have been for the last 16 miles of cruising. Once you get over the hills at mile 21, then you rely on your determination to get you through to the finish.

To clarify, my coach is Andrew Lemoncello, who works with Greg McMillan. Andrew had given me a similar race strategy earlier in the week before we realized how bad the wind would be. Hearing it frm Greg was just the reinforcement I needed.

In short, my goal yesterday was to finish strong and to NOT regret my starting pace. I knew that if I bonked like I did in Indianapolis, my chances of hypothermia would increase significantly and the fastest way to warmth was to run the whole way. The idea of feeling like crap physically while also having to endure the punishing winds and rain was so unappealing that I decided to start conservatively, about 20-25 seconds per mile slower than the “marathon pace” I used in training.

In 2016 I underestimated the impact the heat would have on my race and I didn’t want to make the same mistake again. Particularly not at Boston. The goal was to have a strong Boston. My #1 goal was a safe, strong finish and that meant a ridiculously easy feeling start.

Miles 1-4: Hopkinton and Ashland
I ditched my poncho and mid-weight raincoat about 100 feet before the start line and it felt amazing to finally be running. Athlete’s village was the worst part of the day and as we started running, one guy even said to me, “if we got through Athlete’s Village, we can get through this.” He was right. Running and doing what I love most was so easy compared to standing in that wet mud in 5 layers of clothing.

I qualified last spring with a time of 3:21:54, which is a pace of about 7:40. The runners in my corral all qualified within a few minutes of that time, but most of them shot out so fast and I was getting passed like crazy. But I remembered what Greg McMillan had said: let everyone pass you at first, and then you pass them later in the race.

It was raining steadily during these miles but it wasn’t long before I got into a groove, my feet became un-numb, and I settled into the reality of a very wet, cold and windy journey into Boston. 

Mile 1: 8:07 (-108 ft)
Mile 2: 7:47 (-52 ft)
Mile 3: 7:44 (-55 ft)
Mile 4: 7:43 (-66 ft)

Miles 5-8: Framingham 
It was during the 5th mile that I realized my hand warmers were soaked through and no longer providing warmth. Instead, they were like heavy bricks inside my mittens over my wool gloves. I debated tossing them, but I am glad I did not. Even though they weren’t providing warmth, it was an extra layer of insulation. My hands went numb very quickly, and I decided to simply ignore it because there was nothing I could do to change it.

I knew from experience that I didn’t need to drink much water in cold temperatures. I was well hydrated going into the race and I figured that stopping every 5-6 miles for a substantial drink would suffice. At mile 5, I grabbed a cup of water with two hands from a volunteer, jogged to the side of the course, stopped and drank. Since I wouldn’t be drinking often, I figured I should make sure I got enough water when I did drink instead of running with it and spilling it all over my face. My hands were numb so I had to be careful about it, and I figured it was worth the 10-second stop to get proper hydration.

The wind was not too bad during this part of the course. The crowd was still thick and it was protecting me from the headwind. However, the occasional gust would come slap me in the face, and I just had to laugh if off. Everyone was in good spirits and the runners seemed to be helping each other out more than usual. We were all in it together and shared an unspoken bond that made us all a little nicer and more compassionate.

Mile 5: 7:46 (+15 ft)
Mile 6: 7:35 (-18 ft)
Mile 7: 7:39 (-12 ft)
Mile 8: 7:38 (+1 ft)

Miles 9-12: Natick
These miles flew by and it was more of the same. Portions of the course were completely puddle-ridden and there was no avoiding getting my feet completely soaked. My socks did an excellent job of not holding the moisture so I became comfortably with puddle running, knowing that my shoes wouldn’t feel soaked for longer than a few minutes post-puddle. The pack of runners was just as thick as it had been at the beginning and I was grateful that I was mostly shielded from the headwind.

My plan was to take my UCAN Gell at mile marker 11 and then drink water at the station located shortly after. I could not unzip the waist pouch because my hands were numb. After multiple attempts to unzip the pouch, I used my teeth, which worked. The gel itself was easy to open after I got it out of the waist pocket, and thankfully it went down well without being accompanied by the usual water. I finished it just in time for 11.2 where I stopped and had a cup of water. After that, I threw the waist pouch off of my body as it had been annoying me for 11 miles and interfering with my bib.

By mile 12 I began to wonder if I had sold myself short. I felt like I was out for an easy run. I didn’t feel like I was exerting marathon pace effort. I wasn’t straining and I was very relaxed. I felt my way through the course by cruising, but also keeping my pace in check. Up until this point, I didn’t want to go below 7:35, but I started to wonder if I should up the effort a bit.

Mile 9: 7:35 (-16 ft)
Mile 10: 7:35 (+19 ft)
Mile 11: 7:44 (+26 ft)
Mile 12: 7:37 (-52 ft)

Miles 13-16: Wellesley
The Wellesley scream tunnel was just as loud as I remembered, only the woman who was essentially naked last time wearing only a sign wasn’t there. I usually don’t care all that much about crowd support in races and sometimes prefer less noise so I can focus. But in this case, I fed off of the energy of the crowd. I needed as much positivity as possible.

At the halfway point, I wondered if I could negative split. I had never felt so great at the halfway point in marathon in all the 22 I have run. I still felt like I was out for an easy run! I allowed myself to speed up a little bit, but once again, I made sure I wasn’t straining into the wind.

For the majority of the race, the rain was a steady pour, but there were a few times when it came down in buckets. When that happened people would clap and relish in it. What else could you do? The roads were getting flooded and I was now accustomed to running in water and having other runners kick water onto me.

I did notice that my quads were a little sore despite the easy pace, but I guess that was to be expected in Boston with all the downhill. I didn’t let it bother me and I knew I was much better positioned for success at mile 16 this year than I was in 2016. I took another cup of water at mile 16 because I knew I would not want to stop on the Newton hills.

Mile 13: 7:31 (0 ft)
Mile 14: 7:37 (-6 ft)
Mile 15: 7:36 (+25 ft)
Mile 16: 7:30 (-121 ft)

Miles 17-21: Newton Hills
At the bottom of the first hill, I kept remembering what Greg McMillan had said the day before about engaging on the hills. The goal wasn't to kill myself, but I felt like I had plenty of gas in the tank to up the effort. This is where I fell apart in 2016 and I was thrilled to be feeling so much stronger.

My general strategy for hills is to focus on my form, and to not look up to the top of the hill, but rather about 25 feet ahead, get to that point, and then look another 25 feet ahead, so I am doing it in manageable chunks. I also remembered all the hills I had run on my long runs and got a nice boost of confidence. I ran over the first 3 without too much strain. After the first hill, I was at mile 18 and I told myself I had three hard miles ahead and one easy (19 is downhill). And I that's all I had to do and I would be done with the hills.

This mental approach worked and finally I came upon Heartbreak Hill. It wasn't "labeled" like it was in 2016, and if it was, I didn't see it. But I knew where I was and I knew this was the defining moment of the race. If I could get to the top in one piece the rest of the race I would simply fly home. Heartbreak hill felt very, very long. But I was determined to run up it at a good clip. I knew I had gas left in the tank and I used it here.

Mile 17: 7:44 (+74 ft)
Mile 18: 7:38 (+50 ft)
Mile 19: 7:29 (-34 ft)
Mile 20: 7:42 (+ 22 ft)
Mile 21: 8:07 (+86 ft)

Miles 22-25: Brookline and Boston

Feeling strong

I was elated to be in the home stretch and still feeling strong. I knew that it was technically time to take my chews, but my hands were completely useless so I wasn't able to get to them in my pocket. In hindsight, I should have waited a little longer to take my UCAN gel because that would have helped me more in the later miles without the additional chews. Mile 22 was a downhill breeze and I remembered how much pain I had been in two year ago during this section. It felt great to fly down the hill and be so close to finishing.

Mile 23 also felt strong but I noticed my pace started to slip. The field of runners was spreading out across the wider course and the wind seemed to be picking up. I was still able to power through it feeling good, so I didn't concern myself with my pace too much. I remembered Greg McMillan saying that the last few miles are all about determination and that is what I was going to channel. Plus, I was passing a lot of people. I was loving the fact that I felt so strong this late in the race and was still energized enough to be passing through the crowd of runners.

That didn't last long; mile 24 was the first mile that felt hard. My quads were aching and the pain was getting difficult to ignore. The wind was whipping around in all directions and water was splashing into my face. I was also annoyed at any uphill I came upon. The last 5 miles are supposed to be "all downhill" but there are a few pesky uphill portions that slowed me down. I realized I would not be negative splitting, but that I could still run a really respectable time.

Waving to the photographer

In the 25th mile, I felt that familiar marathon pain. I was now working as hard as I could and I was tired. I wished I had taken my chews but I still couldn't get them and it was too late now. I was running out of steam and I lacked the energy to push against the strengthening headwind. I was tempted to walk up some of the hills, and to prevent myself from doing so I said aloud, do not walk! I knew that walking would only prolong the experience and make things worse so I kept plugging away at a pace that was much slower than all the previous miles.

In many ways, this was a good thing. If I felt like a million dollars crossing the finish line then I would have regretted not running harder. But given the way I felt during mile 25, I knew I had run my best possible race because I was quickly fading. Throughout all of this, I always remembered to soak it all in and have fun. I worked hard to be here, and had spent loads of time preparing. This was my moment!

I realized that I should be seeing a Citgo sign and looked up and made out a faint image of the sign in the distance. The air was so cloudy and rainy that the sign wasn't very visible. In fact, if I hadn't made it a point to look, I probably wouldn't have seen it until I was practically at the sign.

Mile 22: 7:36 (-72)
Mile 23: 7:57 (-55)
Mile 24: 8:10 (-45)
Mile 25: 8:29 (-41)

Mile 26 and the Finish: Hereford and Boylston
Before making the final turn onto Boylston, I noticed the road was littered with ponchos and jackets. I later realized that people were shedding their outer layers for good finish line photos. It felt like this mile went on and on. Of course, I ended up running about 26.5 miles according to my Garmin due to not running the tangents and trying to draft off of various runners. I wasn't surprised by this and my focus yesterday wasn't running the tangents, it was running where I was most protected from the wind.

Shortly after making the final turn onto Boylston I looked at the total elapsed time on my watch, which I hadn't done in several miles. I often do this at the end of races to motivate myself to get under the next minute. I saw that I could still get a 3:26:xx if I ran fast so I mustered every bit of energy I had to get myself to the finish line. That run down Boylston is so exhilarating that it's easy to find the power.

I crossed the finish line in 3:26:53 and was so elated to be done. But before getting too excited, I knew that I needed to quickly exit the finish line chute, get to Greg and then walk to the hotel. Even though I was exhausted I forced myself to walk quickly through the chute and I was pleasantly surprised at how well I was moving, as compared to how I typically feel post-marathon.

Mile 26: 9:05
Last 0.48 on Garmin: 8:14 pace

I made my way to Greg relatively easily and quickly. I had been concerned about that walk over the weekend because hypothermia can set in quickly once you stop moving. I was so relieved to see him and that Epsom salt bath at the hotel was like heaven.

Later that evening, I met up with my friends Lisa and Jenna for dinner. I was walking around quite well and in much better shape than I was in 2016, when I ended up in the medical tent. Today, my legs are sore, but again, nothing like 2016. I'm so happy that I executed well on a difficult course in challenging conditions, and that's more important than getting a PR in my eyes.

Final Thoughts and Takeaways
I had a great day in Boston and I think the crappy weather may have been a blessing in disguise. I didn't go into this cycle seeking a PR in Boston; I went in to build myself up as an athlete. Success on a day like yesterday was dependent on staying warm with the right wardrobe strategy before and during the race, running conservatively, and keeping a positive outlook on the situation.

This was a character-building experience and now that I know I can run well in these conditions, it will make most all other weather feel easy. Even though the headwind was a force to be reckoned with and the conditions were far from "comfortable" I honestly believe I would have done worse in the heat. I overheat easily when I run, so I tend to be more successful in the cold, even if it means putting up with downpours, puddles, numb hands, muddy falls, ice pellets and the rest of it.

Stats

• I placed 1,474 out of 11,604 female runners, putting me in the top 12%.
• I BQ'ed by 18 minutes and 7 seconds.
• I set a course PR by over 21 minutes compared with 2016.
• I ran 4:59 slower than my marathon PR, which I'm pleased with due to the course and conditions.

Random things I bought over the weekend to help with this race

• Shoe laces to tie my race shoes around my waist
• Bobby pins to secure my hat to head
• Extra safety pins
• Toe warmers
• Vaseline
• Epsom Salt
• Newspaper to sit/stand on in Athlete's village
• Shower caps (provided by the hotel)

Huge thanks go out to my husband Greg, my coach Andrew, my family and all my friends who supported me throughout this training cycle and on race day. I had the most fun I've ever had in a marathon yesterday, and I look forward to going back, probably in 2020.

Related: Boston Marathon 2016 Report