Dear Deads, Boston - 2003



When I was in college I had E. Digby Baltzell for a course. (Philadelphia Gentlemen: The Making of a National Upper Class in 1958, The Protestant Establishment: Aristocracy and Caste in America in 1964, Puritan Boston and Quaker Philadelphia: Two Protestant Ethics and the Spirit of Class Authority and Leadership in 1979). Although he was a Penn professor, his theory was that the Puritans had given energy and drive to Boston that the Quakers didn't bequeath to Philadelphia, thus Boston would always outdo Philadelphia. As a result, all these years later I was prepared to hate Boston. But I must say I was very impressed with what I saw of Boston. Fantastic architecture, great energy, good public transportation, we had a very good time. (By the way if you love either city read these books - I didn't agree with Baltzell but he wrote well and argued persuasively.)



Went up on Friday - long difficult drive, but I was glad to be there early Saturday for the Expo. Number and shirt pickup was relatively easy but the expo itself was a very crowded event and I think the set up left something to be desired. I gave up trying to get any official merchandise. (They had the same strange setup as NY where you had to fill out a form which were in short supply and try to find a place in a completely disorganized line. How difficult would it have been to set up chutes?) I did like the Nike booth with all the names of the participants.



Saturday did some touristy things. Sunday did the Freedom Run and then the brunch with Joe and Julie. Thanks for the hospitality.

Much to my wife's surprise I slept well both Saturday and Sunday night. Got out to Hopkinton about 9:00 and explored both the Commons and the Athlete Village. (I know way too much walking). Wisely got some sunscreen at the Hawaiian Tropic tent.

Got in a Porta Pottie line late and found myself one of the late leavers from the village. Much to my surprise found it was quite a struggle to get to my corral (14). It was very warm - I'm more incline to credit Julia's 70 then the officially listed 62/64. This made me very nervous because I have always had problems with warmer than expected temps. (70 isn't hot in July but is when you haven't acclimated it is).

The chutes were very narrow and packed but everyone was in good spirits. The start was anticlimactic. One knew it started but of course we went no where. However the change to the chutes was a good one and has already been noted here when we got to the start we were able to run immediately. Only 11+ minutes to the start not bad.

Some impressions: although it is late spring there was little evidence of it - the trees are bare and stark and no flowering shrubs (too far north?). The density of runners was amazing. I've been in two other big races (NY and Marine Corps) but I don't remember being so crowded for so long. (Of course NY is two races for the first 8 miles). I ran comfortably along enjoying everything. (I watch the race last night with my wife - didn't see much I could remember but they did show the store where the windows acted like a mirror - there was a sign directing your attention to the window and a fellow calling out check your form. I didn't immediately realize that it had been deliberately set up so you could do that.) I liked the water/Gatorade set up staggered on both sides of the road. At some of the stops the volunteers seemed a little overwhelmed but I never failed to get fluid. At some point I saw Jim Adams whom I had met at the brunch. He said he was struggling but then took off at a speed I couldn't match. (Much later I passed him again and he was walking.)

Somewhere around mile 18 I saw a dead singlet - it was Jennifer (Browning?). She seemed to be running quite comfortably and looked terrific. At some point we went up a hill and I said that didn't seem too bad and she asked if it was heartbreak hill and I said I thought it was. It wasn't. When we got to the actually hill, Jennifer easily pulled away. I'm sorry now I didn't stay with her. I saw later my 30K spilt showed (I used Nextel's program to email myself) I was on pace to a 3:57 finish. I didn't know that and had thought 4 hours was already out of reach. I felt on edge of cramping but was probably more conservative then I needed to be. I used Succeed tablets and I must say I am quite impressed and grateful for the suggestion to use them. I believe they did make the difference (I saw lots of people with that stiff legged walk I experienced in Philly and lots off to the side stretching). As it happened I never got cramps during or after although my forearms were iffy for awhile.

Somehow I missed entering Boston proper (is there a sign?) but realized at one point the police on the side now had Boston patches. When you entered Brookline there were thousands of kids and a strong odor of beer but they were enthusiastic.

I felt great. I knew I was going to be able to run the whole way without any problem and that it was unlikely I would need to slow down. I forget when I first saw the Citgo sign (way before Brookline) but I knew it was a mile from the finish and knew I was very close and just enjoyed that sign getting bigger and bigger.

I liked that they had both a 25 mile sign and a one mile to go sign. The turn onto Exeter came quickly and when I turned onto Boylston I realized with a start that I was finished. The quest I had started four years ago was over. I was able to run with great energy down the middle of the street and for the first time was relatively alone on the street. I sprinted on down only delayed by a huge guy trundling along. (After I got thru the finished I discovered this guy and two others weren't official runners - they had just jumped in somewhere near the finish - made me kind of mad that I had to go around him).

I didn't like the crush at the finish. It was very hard to get my chip off (ended up doing it myself) and getting the medal wasn't very nicely done. Of course my baggage bus was one of the last and people kept getting in front of me then you had to fight your way back thru the crowd to get to the family reunion area. (But maybe all these things bugged me because I was just a little cranky from being so tired). Felt very good afterwards (and have had only had minimal soreness). Tuesday was shopping on Newbury Street (a reward for my long suffering wife), then a leisurely drive home stopping for a long meal to avoid rush hour traffic. (Excluding the meal stop the return trip was two hours less than the drive up. I went back on Wilbur Cross/Merritt Parkway and avoided I-95 and the G. Washington bridge - much better trip). Favorite souvenir: Got a shirt at the Brooks booth - "Brooks in Boston". Can't wait to wear it.

Chad Brooks Back