Marshall Leads NETT To Inspired Results at Boston Marathon

Well this year's Boston Marathon certainly lived up to all the hype and more but thanks to some great team preparation, some veteran experience, and a lot of inspiration, the New England Track & Trail folks out on the course Monday posted some simply amazing results.

First off, I simply can't say enough about what an inspired race Marshall ran out there. Personally, I'm going to tell people about this guy's performance for years to come. To toe the line, in sweltering heat, and throw down a 3:18, good for 5th place in his division is simply...simply....I can't even....

Marshall you did what you never thought anyone could do. You made Crazy Dave....speechless.

Seriously. He came in with bib number 7195 pinned to his very special Hannah singlet and finished 1635! It's literally unthinkable. Perhaps the only thing MORE unthinkable is the fact that he went to his weekly track workout the NEXT DAY! (I wish I was kidding, but I'm not).

I could dedicate the rest of this page to superlatives and try to describe what we're all feeling about Marshall's performance, but it really wouldn't do it justice. But let's say this: If every other one of us dropped out at mile 2, his result alone would have us all one cloud nine for the rest of the spring.

But we didn't drop out. Anywhere.

The rest of the NETT crew drew inspiration from the same well and threw down some of the best results possible on such an incredibly unrunnable day. Tina came into the race qualified at 16,536. She claims she never quite hit her stride, but we all know Tina's always a bit tough on herself with results, but the numbers don't lie Tina. You finished 5776, almost 11,000 spots higher than you came in with. 11 THOUSAND!!!! You were the 1276th woman to come across the finish line. You were 189th in your divison. Holy crap. THAT is some inspired running.

Crazy Dave posted a strong result in his first Boston as well, gaining a lot of added inspiration from the "Hannah" cheers he heard on the course starting in Framingham, getting very loud and frequent in Wellesley, and continuing all the way into Kenmore Square until things got so loud, nothing could be made out over the roar. He posted a 2:58, good for 476th overall (1527th qualifier) and 55th in his division. ("I may run faster, but I will never run another race that even in my life. I can guarantee you that much.")

Another person that clearly put in an inspired race and ran almost even splits was Ali, clocking a 3:02 in a sweltering heat, finishing in 634th overall and 78th in his division! He only lost about six minutes on the back half of this race when most folks were losing 30 to 60 minutes. As a result of his smart pacing, he improved about 5500 spots from his qualifer as well. Insane! AND he was our gracious host for the post-race decompression session, so we all owe him a BIG word of thanks for that.

The Youngstah, with a photo of Hannah pinned to his shirt, put in his own gutsy performance out there, pacing himself in the early miles and working a bit with pal Keith Schmitt to run a very solid 3:32, good for 350th in his division. Paul's the most experienced marathoner most of us will ever know and has run marathons in every possilbe condition, so when he pulls things back, you know it's a hot day out there! Great work Paul.

The same goes for Keith, in fact, who posted a 3:28 in blazing conditions, losing clothing and gaining strength as he went. Really impressive stuff, especially for a guy who spends most of his time crushing trails like you would not even believe.

There is more to tell, but I'm out of time. I'll post photos ASAP. For now, like the Ponies on the Facebook.

Lastly (for now), a big thanks to our support crews:
-Doris and Mary popped up around every corner with fresh Gatorade which was literally the difference in Crazy Dave's race and guided three zombies around the crowded streets of downtown (we'd probably still be down there otherwise)
-Karyn and Ron were providing ice to runners in Newton (you want milk with that ice?)
-The Chamberi clan, AC and Chris all up on that "hill" (what's it called again?).
-Frank, Nick and Emma cheering and helping us all decompress after.
-Dustin for his calming influence post-race (and quick medic-alert reaction to help a runner in distress)
-BScan somewhere on Beacon (how did he yell loud enough to get my attention in that crowd?)
-Mike M out there and many many more
-And a big shout to to Dave and Doris' "mistress" club, the Parkway Club who hosted a few of us on their bus to Hopkinton and provided a lot of support this training cycle. A great group of folks who had their own success out there on Monday.
-Sorry to those I missed. You know who you are. More soon.

Liz's Take on Boston

Well, as most of you know our latest NETT casualty, Liz Haacke, has returned to her native Northlands. But before she left, she threw down a great Boston Marathon. Here’s her take on her first Boston.

My thoughts on the marathon:
This is a little later than I had hoped to write it, but moving kind of came at me fast and took over my life a bit. So here is what my impressions are from what I remember.

First up, the bus ride out. I was so happy to be going on the bus with Karyn and Peter, it gave me people to talk to and calm me down. And Karyn mentioned that the bus ride is one of the worst parts of the race, and I agree. You are driving and driving and driving thinking the whole time that you need to run the whole way back, you really get a sense of how far you have to run. Also, I was surprised to be surrounded by fellow Canadians on the bus, so we had a pleasant chat about Canada and also the marathon until the man sitting next to me told me Winnipeg is a horrible place, well seeing as that is where I now reside, our conversation was over after that.

Once I got off the bus I found a line for a port-o-potty. Walked around a little then I was time for my wave. Deciding what to keep on, what to put in my bag and what to toss along the way was a challenge as it was a cold wind that morning. One the way to the start I made one last pit stop and then had about 3 minutes to make it to my coral.

Then we were off, and it was a smooth start, one of the fastest starts of all the races I have done, and I kept telling myself to take it slow, that if I thought I was going slow enough I probably still wasn’t and to run my own race. The first half felt great, I had what I thought was a great pace, I saw my friends that had volunteered and had been put at the elite water stop at the 5k mark, so seeing them gave me a boost. Going through Wellesley was fine. Then a few miles after the half my quads started to hurt and my pace started to slow again.

When I knew the Newton hills were coming I welcomed them in a way, I had trained on hills quite a bit, and it gave my quads a break. So I took heart break in stride, it was challenging yes, but so much better than going downhill at that point. The last few miles were decently painful, but I kept going and I saw my friends again in the last half a mile so that gave me a boost.

Crossing the finish line was a great feeling and way more emotional than I thought it would be. Moving through everything in the finisher’s chute was slow and didn’t help with cramping, but it was well organized.

Overall I am glad I did it, and it was a great way to say goodbye to Boston.

Thanks Liz. We miss you already! Best of luck from NETT!!!

Eminem's Boston Race Report

Karyn M-M defied the laws of medicine by not only meeting her post-surgery goal of completeing Boston, but re-qualifying for next year. Here's Karyn's report:

Done!

What a day -- the weather was perfect. A light breeze, constant sunshine and temps between 48 and 60.

Peter and I kept a steady pace until about mile 16 when he was felled with a calf cramp -- he'd been having calf problems for the last week.

I ended up running ahead and stayed pretty much on pace to achieve my goal of under-four-hours (okay...I cut it a little close at 3:59:03...but I wasn't the least bit disappointed. I was ecstatic). Five months after knee surgery and I re-qualified...if by the skin of my teeth : ) Also fabulous was that Daniel jumped in just before mile 23 and encouraged, cheered and paced me to the end -- making sure that I crossed under hours. He was awesome. (A cheer from Little Skittles at mile 23 -- where he was sitting in his throne with his track buddies was pretty nice too).

The only foolish thing I did was not dealing with a pebble that landed in my shoe at mile 7. By the half I knew I had a decent cut or blister and by the finish line I was a bit worried about taking my shoe off and looking. I spent about 15 minutes in the med tent while they cleaned and bandaged it. Turned out to be a lovely cut-and-blister combo package. I won't be wearing shoes for a few days : )

Best news is that Peter picked himself up and finished despite his calf. He crossed the finish line in 4:13! I had been worrying for 10 miles that he wouldn't make it. I shouldn't have!

That's our news. Off to an icebath with the hockey game in the background.

Mini Ponies Gallop Through Historic Boston Marathon

It was a historic day at the Boston Marathon with world-record times and the NETT Mini Ponies were right there in the thick of it all.

Liz Haacke said a fond farewell to the Hub by pounding out a 3:41 in only her second attempt at the distance. Here's hoping Liz enjoyed it so much she'll be back again next year to run! (We'll hear more from Liz tomorrow on her run)

Deb Robertson somehow managed to sneak in some great training while putting wedding plans together at the same time. In what will (I assume) be her last marathon as a single lady, Deb knocked out a 4:05.

New mommy Tina Wang somehow managed to balance a newborn baby, driving lessons for Nicholas and marathon training to run 3:38. Poor woman is so sleep-deprived, she was making coffee stops on the course! I don't know how she did it. (And if you're thinking this photo of Tina gulping starbucks looks familair, it's a repeat of her pose from two years ago here Same outfit, same pose, pretty funny!

And Karyn Miller Medzon, only a few months after knee surgery, held steady and strong to requalify with a 3:59 (Karyn's report will be posted separately, shortly).

On the men's side, Frank White's weekly training efforts on Heartbreak Hill clearly paid off as he skated to a 2:50 effort.

Congrats to all!!

A Tale of Two Long Runs

It was the best of runs, it was the worst of runs.

With three weeks to go before the Boston Marathon, a host of NETT members were out among the masses this weekend on the course for their final long run. And depending who you were talking to and what day they ran, it was either an encouraging fun-filled run or a complete and utter sufferfest.

Eminem and her pal Peter made a wise choice and met up with another friend in the Parkway Running Club to do their long run on Saturday. You remember Saturday right? The one with all the sun and the temperatures around 60. Karyn and Peter finished their 22 miles and told tales of dancing water stops with Hawaiian shirts and hula girls.

"It was fantastic today," she reported. "There were literally thousands of runners on the course. Busloads were arriving at the start line and there were aid stations at just about every mile, staffed by businesses (shoe vendors, sports stores), charities, private running clubs. At the 21-mile mark people were giving out plastic Hawaiin leis and food. It was so much fun. Peter and I had a great run--we were about 10 minutes faster than on any of other 21-milers. So it was encouraging."

But Sunday, oh cruel and unforgiving Sunday. You remember Sunday? Or perhaps you slept in. Well, a group of six MiniPonies who apparently don't get the weather channel on their cable package set out in a cold rain for a 21 mile sufferfest that would have made Dickens himself cringe. (three of which aren't even running Boston--talk about masochists!)

It had all the elements of a Victorian tragedy: Transportation troubles, horrendous weather, injuries and near-hypothermia. Frank W, Crazy Dave, Jim Rhoades, Mary and Jean Dany started off from Hopkinton (Ben S had the car trouble and met up with us on the course) in what seemed like a light rain and mild temperatures. But instead of warming up, conditions got worse, with temperatures dropping, rain coming more steadily and a pretty solid headwind for much of the way.

To make matters worse, around mile 12 Frank ran into a knee problem and was forced to walk in the rain solo before we could finish at 21 and go pick him up. When we pulled up next to Jean Dany shivering out on Comm Ave just before Dickensianly named Heartbreak Hill, through quivering lips, all he could utter was, "Please sir....may I have some warmth?"

Mary shouted "Bah Humbug" to the boys and just sprinted up Heartbreak Hill while spinning yarns of the devastaion she plans to bring to the Pittsburgh Marathon in May. "Claire's got NOTHING on me!" she screamed back at the howling wind.

Post-Script
In retrospect, with the misery of yesterday's slog somehwat dulled, we're all agreed it was a good test of mental toughness. And given that Eminem and Peter had their own tragedy a few weeks ago at Stu's 30K, I suppose they deserved such a great day. But why don't we let Charles have the final word:

"Any man may be in good spirits and good temper when he's well dressed. There ain't much credit in that."
--Charles Dickens

Rick's take on the Boston Marathon

As always, our roving reporter, Rick Cleary, has provided his own unique take on his 31st--YES 31st Boston Marathon start:


Hi Running Pals:

So here are a collection of thoughts and scenes from my 31st Boston marathon start, 29th same day finish:

The basic question: HOW'D YA DO?
Pretty good! I ran 3:37:02 to crack the top 8500 of almost 22000 finishers. I was 900th male 50 - 59, but one of the first 899 was Fast Eddie Sandier, so call me Fat Ricky for at least another year. The good news was that it was my fastest Boston marathon since 2002 (what a coincidence that my son Eddie was born in March, 2003!), the bad news is that to officially requalify for my age group I needed a 3:35:59 so I missed by 63 seconds. I hope to take advantage of my upcoming sabbatical, actually our upcoming sabbaticals since Ann has one too, to get in slightly better shape and run a good time somewhere in the fall.

The follow-up: WOW, 63 SECONDS SHORT OF RE-QUALIFYING ... WHERE COULD YOU HAVE MADE THAT UP?
Well, the obvious place would have been to reach down and run the last couple of miles hard. At 24 miles I was 3:16:05 on my watch with 2.2 miles to go, and my recent miles had been about 9:30 each. A modest pick-up to under nines would do the trick. But I'm just not a reach down kind of guy. I like to think that the same failure to stress myself to make up those 63 seconds accounts for the fact that I've been running for 35 years without injury.

Related story #1: I saw two guys earlier in the race wearing t-shirts that said, "Pain is temporary, quitting is forever!" I didn't want to waste energy in a debate but I immediately thought to myself, "No, no, no! Quit and try again next year; but hurt yourself seriously and you might never run again." This will all be explained in my upcoming book, "The Mediocrity Manifesto: How Doing Your Best is Killing You."

Related story #2: Two weeks before the marathon I went Marathon Sports in Wellesley and bought a new pair of shoes for the race. The eager twenty-something waiting on me said, "If you go outside and run along the sidewalk we'll do a stride analysis and we'll know if you need a stability shoe and..." I said, "I've been running for 35 years, never been hurt, and I almost always buy the second cheapest Asics. Get me a pair of these in 11."

Some other places I might have made up that 63 seconds to requalify:
-I did need to stop briefly in the woods by the railroad tracks near the 15K mark in Natick, and in my modesty I probably went farther off Route 135 than was really necessary given the circumstances. Let's call that 30 seconds lost.
-Mugging for a picture taken by Sunday AM running pal Jeff Dosdall at the Natick/Wellesley line. Maybe five seconds.
-High fiving the family and friends at Wellesley College ... another 15 seconds.
-Shouting to spectators with radios on to get Red Sox score updates ... maybe three times at five seconds each time.
There, that's 65 seconds. OK, I've convinced myself and I'm strong enough to run the time I need if I focus better!

Experienced runners would ask: DID YOU RUN EVEN SPLITS?
Well, no. Fast Eddie ran impressively negative splits, running the second half faster which is something I've managed only twice 78 marathons. I ran the first half in a little over 1:42; (7:50/mile) the second half a little under 1:55 (8:45/mile) so a minute per mile slower the second half. So should have I gone out slower? I'm not so sure. I know as a coach and as a rational math professor that everything in the literature would suggest even pacing is better. But I get really tired of running after two hours or so. I did my 20 mile training run in March at about 8:30 pace for the first 14 and I was still so tired I slowed way down and was well over 10 minute pace the last couple of miles. I think picking it up can work if you're generally fit but for those of us living on the margin getting time in the bank might not be a crazy strategy. Steady splits also require great mental focus and toughness, which (as previously noted) is not my long suit. At least this year the decline in splits was linear, not exponential!


And everybody asks: HOW WAS THE WEATHER?
Close to ideal. Sixty or so, sun came out just as we started. I'm glad I wore a tee shirt under my BAA singlet, as I saw a lot of badly sunburned shoulders after the race! I got slightly burned on the right (south facing) arm.

Other little moments from the day:

-My number of 14024 (the zip code of Bliss, NY, near Geneseo) put me in the first corral, right near the starting line, in the second wave. This was great, as it only took about 30 seconds to get across the line and I was running comfortably within the first mile. The earlier start and two wave starts are both huge improvements in the whole process.

-There's always those people you keep trading back and forth with ... For me this year the most memorable was a women whose entire uniform was an ad for Aquaphor ointment. I spent more time than usual worried about chafing.

-It's astonishing to me that in a race with water and Gatorade every mile there are people carrying enormous amounts of their favorite foods and beverages in various tummy packs, fanny packs, camelbacks ... I expect to soon see people pulling small carts with their preferred refreshments. This is especially annoying for those of us who weigh a little more than we'd like to and would run better if we were a bit lighter; seeing these people deciding to carry a few extra pounds just seems crazy to me!

And the thank yous:

-Ann, Eddie and Tommy for training encouragement, race day logistics and excellent cheering.

-My Wellesley College fan club, whose support really encouraged me to get into this year's race using my membership in the Quarter Century Club. One of the reasons I run the first half faster is to get to see everybody there!

-Martha and Bob Collins for the super service ride to Hopkinton; and the rest of the Sunday morning training group for their encouragement.

-My colleagues Dave Carhart and Erl Sorensen for their excellent cheering by Dave's house near mile 2, and the traditional complicated math sign with a code for my goal time. (This year's sign: 3^3+4^3+5^3-(Sum n=1 to infinity of 1/2^n)
Note that's 215, and 3:35 is 215 minutes.)

OK, time to rest up and get 63 seconds faster... I'd love to speed up enough to get my qualifying time back toward an Eastern NY zip code ...

Rick