Boston:
· Boston 2014 was an emotional experience, particularly for all who ran the 2013 race. The short version of my 2014 Boston – a 3:17:47, 2 minutes better than last year, and over a minute better than my lifetime Boston best. So, I should be happy, right? With a 1:31:29 1st half and a 1:46:18 2nd half, the answer is “kinda”. I prepped using the Hanson Plan, and was shooting for a 3:05-3:10 race. The weather forecast a few days before the race looked nearly perfect, and as the day approached, it turned out a little too nice for spectators, and a little too hot for us mere mortals. In hindsight, I started with the 3:05 in my sights, and should have shot for the 3:10. I made it to Wellesley and through mile 16 at about a 7:00 pace overall. The temperature was climbing, it was a beautiful sunny day, and there was very little shade to cool things off. The bad news – there was 10 miles yet to go, and the hilliest part of the course was yet ahead. I struggled through the Newton hills, and shuffled up Heartbreak Hill with a couple of 9:00 plus miles. Once on the downhill part of the course after Boston College, I re-established an 8:20-8:30 pace. I passed a number of folks that had many more reasons to struggle than I did (one running on a prosthetic leg, for example) and they reminded me that pain is temporary.

When I got within a half mile of the finish, the cheers and energy level of the crowd lifted me back to a 7:00 pace – right on Hereford, left on Boylston. My best Boston, but not my best effort, by a long shot. I didn’t understand it at the time I was getting my finisher’s medal, but strangely, the race announcer was ‘talking smack’ about Meb’s victory as an American winning the race for the first time in 31 years, and the crowd was responding in-kind. When watching local TV coverage that night at the hotel, I understood. I couldn’t pry myself from watching Meb put on a clinic on how to defeat a more talented and younger runner (Boit – who is an American also). Yea, I understand that the other guy (Chebet, from Kenya) almost caught him, but folks, when Meb went right on Hereford, left on Boylston – that just wasn’t gonna happen. Not that day. A 45+ second lead that became a scant 8 second gap at Boylston grew to 11 seconds at the finish line. The crowd’s energy and noise…I can only imagine what was going on in Meb’s heart at that point.

If you get a chance, read the posting at the website – https://www.baa.org/news-and-press/news-listing/2014/april/2014-boston-marathon-mens-race.aspx . This Boston was the racing community’s version of the 1980 ‘Miracle’ USA Men’s Hockey team victory over the Soviets…9 times out of 10, the 2:05 younger guy catches the 39 yr old American. But not this time! This was Meb’s time. This was America’s time. This was Boston’s time. Am I going back? You bet I am!