The Race That had a Little Bit of Everything!

Apprehension, doubt, fear, misery, suffering, joy, elation, ecstasy, and pain, just a few of the many emotions I went through this past weekend racing my first Boston marathon. I was so excited to arrive after a long day of travelling to Edmonton the night before, flying to Toronto and then connecting to Boston. Amber and I found our rented apartment which was about 300 sq. ft. and very quaint in a terrific part of town. It wasn't far from the race expo and a lot of great places to visit and sight see. We had a bite to eat and an early night on Friday and at about 12am that night my worst nightmare came to life. My stomach was severely cramping that evening and that night I started throwing up from apparent food poisoning! I had Ahi Tuna for dinner and unfortunately that was the wrong choice! I was up every hour on the hour all night throwing up until 8am and thinking my race was done at that point.

I felt terrible Saturday and could not eat a thing, I tried to go out with Amber for a little while but I was so tired and irritable that I could not handle the crowds and went home to bed. After sleeping as much as possible I felt better on Sunday and was able to see the Women's Olympic marathon trials, which were incredible and Dena Kastor won it easily.

Sunday I woke up very early, 5am, to do as much as possible to prepare for what I was determined was going to be a good race. I hadn't done the "carbo loading" I was hoping to do but I did get a lot of pre-race rest! The bus ride out to Hopkinton was very, very long and Amber and I were anxious to get off the bus and hit a washroom. The atmosphere at the start was great and the sight of over 21,000 people preparing for one of the biggest races in the world is incredible. Everyone was nervous and excited, anxious and afraid, but also highly motivated and ready, including myself and Amber. I lost touch with Amber about 30 minutes before the race but I new we both had to prepare ourselves for our own races at that point.

I made my way nervously to the start line and not realizing it was so far away I made it just in time, 3 minutes before the gun went off. I was in the first corral of 13 in the first wave, did I mention there were over 21,000 runners. I looked around for Lance Armstrong but I guess he was on the other side of the corral and I didn't see him. The gun went off I was immediately surprised by the pace, the first couple miles are downhill and running at a fast pace downhill will ruin your legs later in the race. I new this was going to be the case here too but it was the moment to throw everything I could into it, all the hard training I had done was going to pay off today!



At about the 3 mile mark I could hear someone behind me say, "good luck Lance" and I was surprised he was so close to me. I picked up my pace a little and still felt okay but was definitely pushing my limits for a marathon. The atmosphere running through the towns leading into Boston is incredible, the crowds are amazing and thousands and thousands of people are cheering and screaming for you the entire time.



At the hour mark (16 kms) I was having a tough time and needed to stop for a bathroom break. I found a port-a-poti at an aid station and continued on a little disappointed at having to stop but I only lost a minute. Another 45 minutes went by and I needed to stop again! I lost another minute but thankfully had no more issues.



The half way mark (21 kms; 1:19.52) I was feeling pretty good and surprised at how fast I was moving. The sun was extremely hot and I was in the early stages of dehydration but I kept moving as quickly as possible. When I hit 30 kms (1:55.19) things really started to go downhill for me physically; my legs were cramping and extremely tired, couldn't hear or see anything but what was right in front of me, and I couldn't eat the gels I was planning on taking so my energy was next to nothing!

I shuffled along drinking as much as possible at the aid stations and as one banner in the marathon said, "my legs were screaming but the crowd was screaming louder." I kept moving but the pain I felt in the last three miles was something that I have never felt before and it took everything in me to keep going! I had the thought that Lance was closing in on me, which he was, and that kept me moving for a little while. Then I thought about all those tough, tough training runs in Grande Prairie Amber and I went through in March and April and in Calgary in January and February. The cold, icy, windy weather was a lot tougher than the moderate climate in Boston in April.



I turned on to the final stretch and gave it everything I had, the crowd was yelling at me, pushing me to the finish and it worked. I made it in 2:46.47, a new personal best time and meeting all of my goals. I learned a lot about my level of determination and perseverance, I had every reason to give up, I was sick two days before and no one would have blamed me for pulling out or not starting. However, I new I could come up with a great race and not giving it everything I had would have meant I was cheating myself. I'm very happy with the result and I'm looking forward to the upcoming racing season, Amber and I have been training very hard this year and we are both going to have some unbelievable results! Amber had a terrific race too, finishing in 3:32.29 and setting a personal best herself, I'm very happy and proud, she definitely earned it!