Boston 2008
Sorry that it took me a few days to let you know how the race went. We turned the trip into a mini-vacation and stayed a few extra days in Boston. Alas, we're back and I'm starting to recover.
First of all, I thank you all for your donations and for being a part of such an important milestone in my life. Before the race, Children's Hospital of Boston announced that they had reached the $1,000,000.00 mark for contributions this year. Your donation obviously helped them reach that goal. Nice job, slackers!
My wife Mary Rose was a real trooper. Being 6 months pregnant and having to stand at the finish line for hours waiting to see me finish was amazing. I couldn’t have had better support from her. My nerves get a bit frayed a few days before a big race and she was able to calm me down time after time. Thanks, Mar!
Race day was everything I thought it would be. The weather was perfect! It was 55 degrees and sunny. Although the one casualty was my right arm - sunburned with the name "Brett" in beautiful white letters where the sun could not reach the skin. Writing your name on your arm in black marker was probably not brightest idea.
The start was like a Superbowl send off. An opera singer belting out the national anthem as F-15 fighter jets flew over to send us all off. It was astounding the excitement from not only the spectators but each and every one of the runners around me. We are all excited to run the most prestigious road race in the world.
My race planning went a bit amok due to some stomach issues at mile 3 and 7. I think I took in too much water and Gatorade that morning because my body was rejecting everything that I tried to drink. Worried, I stopped drinking fluids in hopes I would sweat out the excess that existed. By mile 12, I realized I was fine again and focused on keeping the pace without have another episode of losing fluid like mile 3 and 7 brought upon me. I slapped people's hands, smiled at little kids looking on and generally had a great time while concentrating on my leg turnover.
I switched to "re-qualify mode" at mile 13 (A pace to finish at 3:15:00). At the very least, I wanted to run Boston again for years to come so a 3 hour 15 minute time would keep me qualified to run until 2010. I kept on pace through miles 14 - 25 until I saw the Citgo sign outside of Fenway Park. The large Citgo sign represents the 1 mile to go mark and I was told by others that have run the event to savor the last mile. The crowds thickened as we entered downtown Boston. I knew I was close and just had to hang in there for one final push.
Turning onto Boyleston Street in downtown Boston was one of the greatest experiences of my life. I couldn't feel my feet as I closed in on the finish line. At the finish line, the crowd went silent and tears rolled from my face. I had finished the Mecca of marathons. The crème de la crème of running road races in the world. I was officially a Boston marathoner.
Putting the medal around my neck was a proud moment for me. My finish time officially is 3 hours, 14 minutes and 57 seconds. That’s enough to qualify me into 2010. I'm happy with that. Very happy. I’ll have pictures available soon on my website (www.brettandmaryrose.com). Attached to this message is a sample. Give me a few days to get caught up at the office.
I’m sure to run this again next year. We’ll have our baby daughter and she’ll be able to see daddy run. Good stuff.
Again, I thank you all for your donations, payers, good vibes, karma, etc. I hope that I can somehow return the favor to all of you. Please keep in touch and enjoy the spring weather.
Take care,
Brett