Boston Day 4 - Marathon Report

 

I'd been dreaming of running in Boston for a long time. Nothing was stopping me now...it was an awesome feeling! I felt so kick-ass like I never before. This whole city was looking alive. Friends back home were also pouring in their awesome support!

My morning started with a light 2km jog down to the red line train. Carl and I figured the $20 shuttle from the hotel to the gathering spot wasn't worth the moolah. 

Easily I think over 300 buses streamlined Park Street to take us to Hopkinton.  I was impressed how the buses came 25 at a time and continuously picked up the crowd of over 20,000.

I remembered getting off the bus with a big sweat. It was already a sizzling 26 degrees Celsius. Oh my, it was going to be a tough day.

The start with the 9 corral systems was unique and seemed to work quite well. I started in corral 6 and started about 5 minutes from the gun time. These corrals were secured and closely monitored.

It was hard to settle into a good pace. I was constantly yo-yo-ing with the massive crowds - something I wasn't used to for the entire marathon. There were a lot of runners. And there were even more crowd support on both sides of the run course. Even the non-runners came out to show their support.

My first 5km was a good indicator that I wasn't going to stick to my 4:20 pace. It was a scorcher. The aid stations always started with water then gatorade on the right hand side and then the same again on the left hand side. Each mile ticked away quickly with each aid station with drinks getting warmer and warmer. I think the peak was very close to 30 degrees Celsius. 

It was only by kilometre 10, I was comforted to see the crowd bringing out the bags of ice, freezies, oranges and even little cups with ice. I definitely appreciated the awesome support because the warm water at the official aid stations wasn't doing me any favours.

At the halfway mark, came the famously loud scream tunnel with incredibly cute girls from Wellesley School all lined up (many had signs saying "kiss me"). Contrary to popular belief I didn't take any of their offers but I did had to dodge at least 3 guys trying to get a smooch. It was a very bizarre scene - it definitely made me laugh.

The crowd support was giving high fives along most of the route. If you ever needed a turbo boost, there's nothing better than running by hundreds of screaming fans willing to give you high fives. The downside, I couldn't dare stop running no matter how much it hurt.

The killer Heartbreak hill wasn't as bad as it was famously known for. This hill was at about the 34km; however, we needed to run 3 undulating hills before even getting to Heartbreak. Heartbreak was no big deal, just another bump before the finish. These hills were great for my confidence. I was able to pass a lot of runners here. I seem to run better when there are massive crowds.  

As I got closer to the city, I remember making two final turns to get onto Boylston Street with a final 3 km stretch to the finish. These last 3 km were amazing, I could hear the loud cheers perhaps even a few notches higher than the stream tunnel through Wellesley.  

I was fist pumping at the finish (official photos to come!). The dream was complete! I did it, I FREAKING DID IT!! Runners at the finish line were literally collapsing in front of me. I couldn't catch them as I was having a hard enough time to stand up myself! Okay, maybe I was too busy fist pumping...

 I have some pretty bad tan-lines. Don't laugh!

Later that day, I met up with an old friend, at a runner's bar named Crossroads. I just couldn't resist, I had to get the real Boston Creme Pie.

The BEST part of the trip! =)

Boston Day 3 - Two Very Fine Schools and Two Very Fine Treats

The next morning, off to Harvard!

Havard has an annual average of about 7.2% acceptance rate. It might be hardly worth applying.

The Old Yard is turning 375.

The John Harvard Statue is famous for its three little lies (hint hint that's not really him)!

Then it was off to the Legal Sea Foods, one of Boston's most popular restaurants! Very Fine Treat #1: Clam Chowder was in the works. Full of clams and potatoes and my favourite - CREAM!

Fried clams with fries was a little ambitious on the day before the marathon. The waitress wouldn't let me substitute the fries for the clam chowder; hence, the decision was a no-brainer - I had to get both.

Fancy light fixtures caught my attention.

You won't find this in Harvard.

From Harvard's pretty Harry Potter look to MIT's almost unfinished improvised look. I got the impression a delinquent randomly drew up these geometry to rebell against the rest of historic Boston.

When we found our friend Liam and we sure didn't mess around. We found the highly tasty Very Fine Treat #2: Boston Crème Pies (albeit the mini-version without the exterior creme and cocoanut) at the Quincy Market where Carl and I had originally pass by in our Freedom Trail Run.

 

Yes these weren't the full sized ones, but who were we to nick pick. These were fabulous. I ate most of the top layered pudding first, realizing it was all cake on the bottom (I was told I was eating it all incorrectly).
More to come on the real one...this was only the mini version. Carl, Liam and I ended up sitting on this bench all day for nearly 4 hours catching up (and smelling the wonderful horse poop seen in the background). I was too tired to walk after a few days of travel. The marathon we planned on tacting on was also the next day. NBD!! =)

Boston Day 2 – Getting kicked out of the Expo

I was a man on a mission!

Operation Boston Crème Pies and clam chowder was still in the works.

It was Day 2 and already my frustrations were mounting. Eventually our tummies were getting super hungry walking down Boylston Street and we were desperate.

 Poe Burger

Not the same as Boston Crème Pies, but a comparable alternative was this awesome Poe Burger. The patty was stuffed with lobster limbs - need I say more?

Hard to read, but a rule we can all abide by on the menu...


" *Consuming Raw or Undercooked Meat, Fish, or Eggs Can Pose a Risk to Your Health. So Can Smoking,  Riding a Bike, or Crossing the Street. Eat, Drink & be Merry!"

...I can certainly appreciate the balanced facts.



Just outside, I ran into this shoe. I asked for directions for the coveted Boston treat. The shoe claimed Toll house cookie and Indian pudding were better! We got into a heated debate in the baking sun. The shoe told me Boston Creme Pie didn't really exist and it was just a load of pudding-cake (not pie).

Long story short, we had to settle our differences and became good pals with the conclusion Boston Creme Pies does exist!  

Okay the story didn't really pan out that way, but there is a little bit of history on the dessert.


Slowly Carl and I made our way to the expo. We brought an Aussie friend, Keith, who we met at the hostel, along for the experience.

We were somehow leading a group of strangers into the gate, with no real sense of directions.  Oddly enough the doors, located just near the arch gates, lead into this massive underground convention centre (we were above it the whole time).

Carl was done early on. Keith and I felt like little kids in a candy store. The big running names were all here! I guess that shouldn't be surprising considering most of them are based in Boston. We couldn't leave.


Keith and I were ushered into the end where all the official merchandise were located. By this point, Carl probably had been waiting for a few hours and got in more than some good reads from the Boston Marathon magazine. 


Security had to kick us out (kindly show us the exits), before I even had the chance to try on a couple items. Nevertheless, I grab them anyways and made it to the cashier. On the positive side, there wasn't any long lines. =)

Before we knew it, the day was gone. Operation Boston Crème Pies and clam chowder had to wait another day!

Boston Day 1 – Fleeing to the Freedom Trail

Boston is a big running city. 

Running stores were plentiful. Sidewalks were generally wide and flat. Each intersection was uniquely old-looking in its own angular way. I couldn’t believe the number of people running on the streets. I felt a little overwhelmed. The Boston Jackets were everywhere!

Carl and I have just arrived in Boston with only 5 days to explore. The hunt for Boston Crème pies and clam chowder and seafood officially began. 

We had to kickoff the trip with the Freedom Trail to check out the historic sites. On the way we past by Boston Public Garden and started at the Boston Common. I couldn't help but take some pictures during the run.

 Boston Public Garden

The Freedom Trail was about a 4-km route that connected several key revolutionary and colonial-era sites in the downtown core. 

 Massachusetts State House

 

Looks like some Occupy action.

Quincy Market

It wasn’t hard to immediately notice the downtown core had plenty of running festivities in stored for the big marathon. The whole city was in a running frenzy. Quincy Market had some street theatrics and quite the selection of food (more to come later!).  

Most of the Freedom Trail consisted of a zigzagging path of red bricks. We simply just followed it.

I had to capture the shooter of the model!

Across the bridge we went.

Charlestown Navy Yard

Don't worry these are only "defensive guns". The offensive ones are missing.

WWII Era Destroyer needed some touch-up.

Nearing the end at Bunker Hill Monument.

And up the 294 steps we went (probably not the best taper idea)! 

The end of Freedom Trail. 

IT’S A WORKING MAN PB!

UBC Tri/Du Race Report 

Proof!

This race was supposed to be a “friendly opener” to the race season. All that changed when more than 50% of the top contenders are the people you train with. All of a sudden, this friendly race became a hotly contested showdown ie. every precious second spent during the transitions actually counted – not that it never did, just the stakes were higher.

I showed up to this race with my game face on. I knew there was no way I was going let last year’s sandbagging time beat me again, which had given me a little more confidence heading in.

All that was left was the unpredictable weather!

The previous night forecast wasn’t pretty…DUN DUN DUN how am I going get in my action shots? My personal photographer (aka Dad) threaten to not attend had the weather not been pleasant. Ironically, my sister was playing volleyball in a nearby gym (War Memorial) during the same time, which would had made it convenient excuse for ditching me. Thanks Dad!

   

Good news, those little mm’s were a no show on race day and I got in my action shots. My race ended up being close to 10 minutes quicker than last year. Overall I was quite pleased with all swim, bike, and run. It was a positive sign that I was ranked top 15% in all three swim, bike and run (but obiviously some of the faster swimmers who took time to change before getting to T1 were shafted of a better swim split muahaha). This has never happened before!! YAY! Now I can say I'm equally as slow fast in all three.

Let’s back up. The swim felt awful. Perhaps that’s how I should get the job done. Coach Tia was able to time me with a clocking of 27:50 for the 1.5k swim. I was having severe stomach cramps and felt slower than during swim practice. I suspect that the cramps might have been caused by those uber tight new tri suites. They look fabulous by the way!

My dad who was braving the cold to take pictures thought I was attempting a new “topless” approach to pedaling since he only saw me leaving and arriving to the transitions. These were the only pictures he captured of me on the bike.

Me leaving T1

Me entering T2 – What a complete dork!

I knew my slow runs wasn’t going make me a faster runner. A lack of intervals training was my downfall so far. This explains why my legs felt fresh at the finish and why I had to pretend a little to seem tired. My lungs on the other hand were spent. Hey at least I know where to improve. It’s still march and early in the season! =)

My Race Stats for UBC Tri/Du

I want to try something new this year. For the races I've done consistently in the past, it would be neat to get a comparison by rank percentage to the race field and my PB achievements. UBC Tri/Du is one of those races. Sure, in some years I may shave off a few kms and heck even the race field may be a little more-or-less competitive, but in general I would like to think I've come a long ways from the mountain-bike & board-shorts and pre-Garmin eras (exciting times!). 

This is probably too nerdy to post on facebook. Here it is..judge gracefully.

Race report and photos to come. =)

Birthday Post

I figured my day of birth should warrant an update post.

Oh man Boston training has been a little rough this week, shall we say... I've been eating so much king-crab, cakes, cupcakes, cookies, and as well as boozing and bubble teaing it up this past week, it's ridiculous. This isn't exactly making me faster.

But it is prepin' me for the Boston Creme pie, Boston clam chouder, and lobster and other great stuff.  

Oh man, I'm getting excited for Boston, only 52 days to go!  =)