My alarm was set for 5:15 am Saturday morning, but I hit snooze a few times. For all that know me, it should come as no surprise! At 6:15 I was finally awake and ready to head out to meet the runners at BC. As I live pretty close to BC, I figured I would walk over to avoid having the hassle of parking in the garage. I also knew that it would probably be better to get some miles in before the run so that I didn't force people to wait for me at the end. 3.7 miles and I was running into the gym at BC to meet up with my team. I hit the bathroom, talked with people and heard the announcements. It was during that time that I realized we were really at the end. A bittersweet ending to an awesome season in which I loved almost all minutes of it.
Runners were off and we headed out west on Commonwealth Ave wishing each other good luck on the 22 miles about to happen. I was keeping a happy pace and stopped at the first water stop to say hi. The second water stop came by pretty fast. In between the 2nd and 3rd water stop, I noticed that there was a slower runner behind me. At the 3rd water stop, she caught up right as I was about to leave. I had two options at that point, keep running or see if she wanted to join up with me. Ruth kept saying that she didn't want to hold me back and I kept telling her that it was better that she did it than me go out to hard on the first half which is common. We were having fun gabbing away on through Wellesley on towards the college. As we were heading onto 135 the crowds started coming. I have run many races, but I have never in my life seen so many people on a day without a race occurring. Often times there would be 50-100 people on one block. So many people were nice and cheering each other on. It was nice to see so much support for each other as we all work towards the common goal of finishing Boston. Like any situation, there were some super rude people that got under my skin. A reminder to runners, we are all out there running for a good cause, so please be kind to each other. And yes, I am looking at the team that earns the rude card who were running in bunny ears and tails....I only wish I knew what team they were so I could write to their coach about the unsportsman behavior that occurred. After dealing with some of those "nice" runners, we were headed right on to Hope Street which signifies the start of the hills. I won't lie, the hills were tough, but it was nice not to go through them alone. We made it to the last water stop and knew we were in the home stretch. Pep talks were given to each other as needed, but we stuck together. 2 miles later and we were turning onto the BC campus.
I felt good as we were turning into the parking lot of the gym. In fact, I almost broke down crying as Ruth told me our final time for the 19.85 miles we had just done. It was a realty that I could make my goal time and finish well. Add the miles I did prior to the run with Ruth and I officially finished 23.59 miles. Way over my goal of 22, but that is what happens when you end up talking and not wanting to leave your running partner. We walked inside, stretched, debriefed and talked with the volunteers. I said goodbye and started the walk home.
As I had made it maybe .05 miles, Leslie asked me if I needed a ride. Leslie has been my team mom and biggest supporter this season and seeing her ask me for a ride was the perfect end to the support that she has provided the last few months. I hopped in her car and walked from the end of my street home. I ended up deciding I needed to loosen up a little more and walked an additional 1.42 miles to make sure I didn't cramp. Up the stairs and into an ice bath followed by a hot shower and I was jumping in the car to drive to the Berkshires.
A good friend was hosting her 50th birthday in true fashion and I couldn't miss it. The theme was medieval and it was necessary to be in full dress. Amazon was my savior in providing me with a nice medieval dress and I had packed my 2xu tights to sleep in. I put on my dress and was happy to see that it went down to the floor. An a-ha moment came into mind as I decided to slip the tights under my dress. Imagine:
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and you have what I looked like at the party. I kept loose all night as I practiced my dance moves on the dance floor. Shifter's party, bring it on! I am now officially ready to dance the night away after the marathon as long as I wear my tights under a long skirt or dress.
I woke up this morning with minimal soreness ready to concur the day and drive home from Lee. Who knew this would be possible? All in all, this weekend was one for the record books and I am happy to have had the experiences. Bring on the taper!
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