First, and likely only, Boston completed, 3:30:41 (qualified in 3:19:23). I found it to be an unusual experience.
The BAA is a well organized crew, as they should be with 120 years of experience! Lots of helpful information is sent by email to get a runner sorted. Even with all the people, the Expo went smoothly for bib pickup Plenty of vendors with running goodies or new destinations. Grabbed supper at one of my favorite North End spots, La Famiglia Giorgio's. Smartly showed up early, around 4 pm, to beat out all the other folks that forgot to make reservations (booked solid 1-2 days after 2016's marathon). I hydrated often given it was hot Sunday and planned to be slightly cooler Monday. Spent most of the day frustrating my wife because I wasn't "excited yet".
Bedded down early, even having the kids with us (thank goodness for Marriott upgrades!). Woke up early, got my traditional half bagel and banana before walking from Long Wharf to the pickup point on Charles St. Busses were plentiful and I just walked into one. Around one hour later arrived at the athletes village in Hopkinton about 2 hours before my wave (W2). While the space was crowded, I could still find a spot for some dynamic stretching. There was food and fuel (Cliff/Gatorade) if you hadn't planned ahead or wanted more. The port-o-let lines moved well. Which is nice because my hydration efforts over filleth my cup! Spent time piddling around and stretching plus pre-fueling at the appointed times (I didn't know or expect to meet anyone at the race). When the announcement came for my wave, off I went the 1M or so to the start. The F-15s for the start blasted overhead as I walked...always fun! More toilets (and water) just before the start corrals which was good (hoped to make it my last visit...). Periodic bib checks kept people moving to the spot designated for you by BAA.
There was little shade at the start. The heat that made me nervous in the village was more apparent waiting for the gun. Cool deal: one of the runners in W2 hoped to be the first completing 50 consecutive Bostons (he did). Once the gun went off, it took nearly 2 minutes for me to cross the mats (corrall #3). I was amazed at how many runners were in front of me. The road was jammed side to side and as far as the eye could see. Due to this press, there was little fear of a jack rabbit start running downhill and ruining my quads for Newton. That said, some runners had to bang and barge through. What really surprised me was the number of runners that were markedly slower than the "throng"...can't call thousands a pack. I had imagined that the wave/corral system would keep like runners with like. Yet I saw my first walker before 5k, several more before 10k, and the aforementioned slower runners. Given my first mile was nearly 7:50, it struck me as odd to have people unable/unwilling/whatever to go faster.
I was very fearful of the first 5k with the big downhill plunge. The shear volume of people made it nearly impossible to be overly quick (without pushing through). Spent lots of energy dodging runners with different paces for nearly 10k. The 8M/1hr mark still saw me with a solid crowd of folks and running the pace I had planned (7:15 mpm). And the first inkling that something might not be quite right. Somewhere around 12M, my right side cramped. I didn't shake it until mile 24. Thus I spent most of the race managing discomfort verging on pain which made enjoyment impossible. The Newton hills were the worst and I slowed to nearly 10 mpm pace. I compressed my stomach muscle to compensate for the cramps. That made breathing difficult just as I needed more air. The flat spots helped to mitigate the cramps though didn't last long enough to fully eliminate them despite all my efforts. What seemed to help were the popsicles kids were handing out along the hills. By the time I got onto Cleveland Circle, the cramps started to dissipate though my body was fragged. I was able to pick up the pace into the last 1.5M and did have a big smile for my family about 1/4 mile before the finish (my beautiful wife parked herself on Boylston around 7 AM with the kids to get her view!).
Sadly, my tale is rather boring (nothing like the works of art from
@Kremlin Watcher). Boston certainly is a historic race and I am both proud and happy to have finished. The course is tough and even a mild spring day like Monday cranks up the degree of difficulty. I'm not a people person so while the crowds were cool, it wasn't an energy builder for me. Spending the majority of the race in discomfort probably clouds my ability to enjoy the moments. I never could have appreciated 30k runners in one venue before Boston. I simply never ran anywhere near alone at any point; a singularly different experience from any other race. My biggest complaint about the crowd size was water stops...they don't really mean stop people!!! Despite hydration every mile of the race, both sides of the road, folks would crash into the line and sometimes stand still. I would have thought experienced runners would be taking hydration on the run.
What I take from Boston is the need to work on fueling/hydration. I think my concern about the heat led me to take on too much water and wash out critical electrolytes. Hell, I used the port-o-let like a crack addict for the two hours before and one hour into the race. None of my training runs (up to 23M) were hampered by cramps. While the days were cooler (40/50), I didn't go crazy on pre-hydration and had none of these race day issues with only one water stop during training.
Hope any other runners had a great time and that all of you get to run a favorite race soon, be it Boston or other.
Cheers,
Roland