Hi all,
I'm back from Boston, which means it is time to send in my race report.
Before I get into it, I want to thank the deads who worked so hard to
plan events. Robin Cain for planning the dead dinner on Saturday, Tim
Smith for hosting the bagel brunch, and Marc Frommer for organizing the
dinner Sunday night. Thank you!
I am sure yall remember my concerns about the weather before I left
Houston. Before I saw those predictions, I was planning on a sub 3:30.
After reading the weather forecasts, I threw those plans out the window.
More on the weather and the race later.
Gaye and I left Houston on Saturday morning and arrived on time in Boston
shortly before 4 pm. By the time we got to hotel it was too late to hit
the expo, so we went straight to the dead dinner at Big City. On the
T-line, who should we sit behind but Conrad Halling and Joan Cook. Our
first dead encounter of the weekend! We got to the dinner and it was
great seeing all the NE deads as well as deads from all over. Robin Cain
was kind enough to give us a ride back to the hotel and after a day of
travel, it was good to get to sleep. That is until the party cranked up
next door. Didn't get much sleep Saturday night, our neighbors in the
hotel were talking loud ALL NIGHT LONG. At one point, we ended up on the
floor in the closet area just outside the bathroom, the only quiet spot
in the room. :-)) Sunday morning, we got up, had breakfast, then
immediately headed to the expo, getting there before it opened. I got my
packet, bought an official jacket, a T-shirt, and then it was back to the
hotel to drop all our stuff off before heading out to Tim Smith's for the
bagel brunch. Another great dead encounter. Unfortunately, I was so
tired from lack of sleep, I dozed off after eating! Then it was back to
the hotel to rest up before dinner. We managed to make it to the Sunday
night dinner Marc Frommer planned. It was at an Italian restaurant on
the North End called D'Amore Italian Restaurant. Saw lots more deads and
the marathon maniacs. Turns out a running buddy from Houston, Lisa
Spence, was in the group. We used to train together. Even though she
lives only 2 miles from me, I only seem to see her when I am out of town!
We got back to the hotel early and fortunately, our neighbors partied
elsewhere, so I got a good night's sleep.
Got up early, about 4:30 am, had a couple of cups of coffee and a bagel
and I was ready to head out. Took the T-line to the Boylston station,
got out and there were runners waiting to catch the buses. Got to the
athlete's village around 7 am or so and after another cup of coffee, I
settled down to relax. Ran into Mark Oppenheim and a running buddy from
Houston. Made use of the free cell phones to call home. It was pretty
chilly at first but by 11 am it was getting pretty warm. I don't think I
need to tell yall how warm. I put on sunscreen and headed to the
starting line corrals. Got there early enough to get a good spot in my
corral (corral number 8) and it wasn't long before the corral was
jammed...as was corral 7 in front of us. It was so jammed, that runners
could not get into the corral. Soon, corral 7 runners were trying to
crowd into our corral. Whoever laid out the corrals miscalculated how
much room was needed. A lesson learned for BAA for next year! Make the
corrals bigger!! :-)) I could only faintly hear the national anthem,
then two fighter planes flew in low overhead. I never heard the gun go
off, but little by little we started moving forward. Took me about 5
minutes to reach the starting line and we were off. Sorta. Real
crowded. I tried to hold back, but with the early downhills, it was
hard. I did make an important adjustment. I approached this more like
an ultra than a marathon. I stopped at every aid station.
Mile 1 - 7:39.68 - Believe it or not, considering the downhill, this was
me holding back. I was hoping to find a water station here. There
wasn't. :-( I grab a piece of orange from a spectator. Something I
normally never do.
Mile 2 - 7:50.51 - A water station!!! And pandemonium as the runners
mobbed the volunteers. I managed to get two cups of water (one to drink,
one to pour on me), and one cup of Gatorade to drink. I maintained this
pattern at most aid stations. I attribute my survival to this strategy.
That and running through most water sprays along the way. And grabbing
cups of water offered by spectators. Something I also normally never do.
Mile 3 - 7:57.63
Mile 4 - 7:57.54 - Believe it or not, the first few miles went by slow.
But the later miles went by faster eventhough I slowed down.
Mile 5 - 8:11.79
Mile 6 - 8:00.86
Mile 7 - 8:04.68
Mile 8 - 8:04.76 - Before I got to the 8 mile mark, I passed a Houston
runner I have known for years. I looked at him and said, "Eddie, is that
you?" He looked horrible. He said he was considering dropping. He
managed to finish around 4:32, over 1/2 hour behind me. He normally
beats me by 1/2 hour.
Mile 9 - 8:14.98
10 - 8:24.04
11 - 8:31.82
12 - 8:14.46 - After passing the 11 mile mark, I see a downed runner. He
is on a gurney being loaded into an ambulance.
13 - 8:06.44 - What can I say. Wellesely. :-))
14 - 8:17.06
15 - 8:36.12
16 - 8:10.59
17 - 10:01.46 - I can explain. Looking for Gaye, I missed the 17 mile
split, so I hit my watch late. I do see Gaye. I give her a thumbs up.
18 - 8:54.89 - See above note. :-) I see another downed runner after
the 17 mile mark. Spectators are around him (her?) as medics come
running. I tell a policeman there is a downed runner and he says he
knows. From here on in, it seems every medical tent has runners.
Occasionally, I see medics running with gurneys. I hear sirens.
19 - 9:12.71
20 - 9:51.37 - Shortly after the 20 mile mark, I see the Boston Hashers!
I yell on-on and ask for a beer, but none was forthcoming. :-( I skip
my first aid station around here. I am so bloated, I can't take any more
in.
21 - 10:11.36 - Heartbreak hill. Enough said. I ran up the hill. In a
manner of speaking. It was more like trotted up the hill slowly. But I
was running!
22 - 9:13.76
23 - 9:21.79
24 - 9:18.25
25 - 10:40.07 - I take my only real walk break at the beginning of the
25th mile, walking about 100 yards as I drink water and gatorade. I am
bound and determined to run the rest of the way. I am being passed right
and left, but I am running!
26.2 - 11:57.07 - For some reason, I missed the 26 mile marker. I guess
I was so wiped out, all I could see was the finish line ahead. I was
running as hard as I could, but the finish line wasn't getting any
closer. :-))
My chip time was 3:49:05. Gun time was 3:54:39. Considering the heat, I
was pleased with my time. Although one of my slower marathons, I feel I
ran my smartest marathon from a tactical viewpoint. It was 85 degrees at
the finish. :-( One BTW, the collapsed runner on the front cover of
Tuesday's Boston Herald was on the plane home with us. He came in right
after me. He said he didn't remember hitting the pavement. Back to the
finish, I managed to make my way to get some water, pouring more on me
than in me. My stomach was bloated from all the gatorade and water I had
drunk and could not take in any more. I make it to the baggage claim and
call out my number. And wait. Marc Frommer is there helping another
downed runner. I continue waiting for my bag. I call out my number
again. Again. And wait. They can't find my bag. Marc comes over to
help me. I am ready to drop. Another dead comes by (Loren?) I go over
to sit down. They finally get my bag to me after over 20 minutes of
waiting and Marc and I slowly walk towards the family reunion area. I
beg a bottle of water from another runner who has two. Lesson Learned
for BAA. Have more fluid stops for runners AFTER the baggage claim area!
After we leave the runners only area, Marc leaves me and I trudge to the
letter "H" to meet Gaye. Eventually we meet up. Lesson Learned for BAA.
DON'T STICK A TRUCK AND MERCHANDIZE TENT IN FRONT OF A FAMILY REUNION
LETTER!!!!! :-)
We slowly start walking back to the hotel. Gaye gets a coca cola for me
to help settle my stomach. We make it back to the hotel. It must be
after 6 pm. She makes me a cup of noodle soup (one of the things that
will bring me back). I am still nauseous. I take two spoonfuls of soup.
I slowly get up, make my way to the bathroom, and proceed to throwup
everything I had taken in. I haven't thrown up after a marathon since
Houston 1999. Mark Oppenheim will remember that one! I feel better now.
I have some more soup, take a shower, get dressed and finish my soup.
We were supposed to meet Marc Frommer and the others at John Harvards at
7 pm, but it is now after 7 pm, and I am not up to it. We go downstairs
and have some Japanese food for dinner. My taste buds are all out of
wack, but it does taste good.
Going to bed, I realize how sunburned I am. I figured I sweated off the
sunscreen before we started. It is hard to find a good position to sleep
in. But I sleep good. Tuesday morning, we get up, have breakfast, and
head to the airport. We are early and spend time sharing war stories
with other runners. Arriving at Houston, we give two running buddies
rides back to Clear Lake. Feels good to be home! Next race, Beach to
Bay Marathon Relay in Corpus Christi on May 15.
Thinking back, it is amazing some of the things you will see in the
athletes village. There were two guys there dressed in costumes, one as
superman, the other as the flash. I thought the flash was nuts as he was
wearing a full body suit. I learned later that he actually beat me!
Looking at the BAA web site, I see my final stats.
8762 Halpin, Dennis B. 51 M Houston TX USA
Checkpoints
5k - 0:24:15
10k - 0:49:26
15k - 1:14:39
20k - 1:40:49
Half - 1:46:11
25k - 2:06:43
30k - 2:35:20
35k - 3:05:23
40k - 3:35:34
Pace - 0:08:45
Official Time - 3:54:39
Net Time - 3:49:05
Overall - 4636 (based on 16743 official finishers, that puts me in the
top 28%)
Gender - 3856
Division - 333
Epilog - from the BAA web site:
HOPKINTON
Temperature: 83°
Wind Direction: SE
Wind Speed: 5 mph
Humidity: 40%
WELLESLEY
Temperature: 80°
Wind Direction: E/NE
Wind Speed: 5-10 MPH
Humidity: 40%
BOSTON
Temperature: 85°
Wind Direction: SW
Wind Speed: 15 MPH
Humidity: 27%
STATISTICS
RUNNERS
Entered: 20,344
Started: 17,950
Finished: 16,743
WHEELCHAIRS
Entered: 53
Started: 45
Finished: 43
HANDCYCLES
Entered: 7
Started: 7
Finished: 7
Dennis Halpin