Boston Marathon - What Was I Thinking (Part 14): Moving Along
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Yes. I am still here. Yes. I do have more to the story. Yes. I have had Active Rain-ites pounding on my door demanding that this long, drawn out, never ending, 26.2 mile story actually come to some conclusion! Tough! Too bad!! Although.... I will move the story along and hope I haven't lost everyone!
First, lets have a quick summary.
- I don't like to run
- I momentarily lost my mind and with just three months before the race, I got myself entered as charity in the Boston Marathon
- I was striving to hit $1000 in donations per mile that I complete
- I pushed my training too hard trying to ramp up in just three months. With just a few weeks before the race, both knees hurt to the point that I could no longer run.
- I did no training the last two weeks before the race except to eat well and stretch.So to move the story along and to try and maintain the AR friends that haven't sent me evil letters, I'm going to jump up to race day. From here on out, the story is an attempt to give us non-marathon runners an idea as to what it's like to participate in the Boston Marathon.
I was picked up at my house by Super Dave at 6:30 AM and we head into Boston. The town feels like a ghost town as there are parking spots available everywhere since its early and its a Massachusetts holiday. Dave parked in one of the available spots and since its a holiday, there is no need to pump in the quarters. His plan is to just hop in his car at the end of the race and drive home. Someone will have to pick me up as I don't know when (if ever) I finish.
We met three of Dave's friends on Tremont street. There are about 30 school buses lined up which will ship the runners out to Hopkinton. It's an amazing thing to watch. Hundreds of runners pile into the buses, the buses pull out and are replace by 30 more buses. Quite a production line.
As we're driving out of Boston and hop onto the Massachusetts turnpike, it hits you... wow... this is pretty far. The bus I was on was filled with runners of all shapes, ages, sizes and experience. Some are listening to Ipods, some are napping, one, attempting this also for the first time, had plan written down and she was going through it. At mile one, a Gatorade. At mile two a water. At mile three a Gatorade. Etc. A bit too organized for me.
After 45 minutes, we arrive in Hopkinton, Massachusetts where the athletes village is set up. We found a spot in the village where we opened up a blanket and drop our stuff. What a great place to people watch. Just behind us were two twins from California, about 40+ years old and totally decked out in pink with pink fluffy boas and tiaras. There are alot of people napping, reading, drinking coffee, chatting with friends and eating breakfast. There was a stage set up which had performers singing through the morning!
The village also had an area for coffee, bagels, water and gatorade, all free. I brought my breakfast/lunch with me which consisted of two bagels, two bananas, a power bar and eight mini bottles of water.... the breakfast of champions? I space out my meal as I hate running on a full stomach. I also managed to get in a 30 minute nap. Dave's friends couldn't believe how relaxed I was. Actually, even with my knees in questions, I don't think that I was nervous or scared at any point before or after the race. It was all to exciting. THIS was the athlete's village for the Boston Marathon!
Stay tuned for Boston Marathon - What Was I Thinking (Part Fifteen)
What Was I Thinking (Part one): In the Beginning
What Was I Thinking (Part two): Goodbye Reality
What Was I Thinking (Part three): The Point of No Return
What Was I Thinking (Part four): Super Dave
What Was I Thinking (Part five): My Follow Through
What Was I Thinking (Part six): The Rise of Marathon Martin
What Was I Thinking (Part Seven): Doctor, Doctor.... Give Me The News
What Was I Thinking (Part Eight): Train, Train, Train
What Was I Thinking (Part Nine): Show Me The Money
What Was I Thinking (Boston Marathon Part Ten): Double Trouble
What Was I Thinking (Boston Marathon Part Eleven): I Must Recap
What Was I Thinking (Boston Marathon Part Twelve): The End of the Road?
What Was I Thinking (Boston Marathon Part Thirteen): Could this be the End!?---------------------------------------------------------------
Staying in Boston? Try the Inn at Longwood in the Longwood area of Boston. This Boston Best Western Hotel is conveniently located near many Boston attractions.
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