Projo Running Blog

There are some things that we as human beings have no control over. Mother Nature taught me this lesson once again on Monday, April 16th. After four long months of training I felt well prepared to turn in one of my fastest times at the 111th running of the Boston Marathon; however, this was not to be on this day.

This was my 13th consecutive Boston Marathon and my 38th career marathon and I felt better than ever. I started training back at the end of January and had endured that brutal cold spell that we had at the beginning of March. I worked out in all conditions; snow, ice, wind, rain, and a few days of heat. My coach and I decided to design my training schedule with more speed workouts to see if I could achieve a personal best in Boston. Training went very well. Most weeks I ran and lifted six times a week, so by the time April came I felt ready to roll. Everything really seemed to be coming together, my staffing problems were solved for the moment, for the first time in several marathons I felt healthy going into the race, and I had a strategy that seemed like it would work. Then it happened.

About a week before the marathon I began hearing the forecast for a nor'easter. Now I have raced in all kinds of weather, but running 26.2 miles in a tropical storm is another thing. What made it even worse was that I had joined the Providence Ronald McDonald House Running Club and collected donations from many sponsors. Not that I would have withdrawn anyway, but racing for this worthy cause just made me more determined to get out there and hit the road.

The race day came and sure enough the weather was not ideal to say the least. It was one of the coldest Boston Marathon’s in the last 50 years. However at 9 a.m., I approached the starting line with my two guides/friends, Randy and Q, and we were off.

At the beginning of the race the weather seemed to let up a little and I was moving along at a really good pace. At the six-mile mark I was only behind my goal pace by less than a minute.

Then it happened. The wind and the rain picked up and as if that wasn’t bad enough I hit a huge puddle that soaked my feet. After this it was all downhill.

The next three miles I think took me an hour and a half, which really discouraged me. The wet roads would not allow me to get any traction and I was kicking so hard that my bad hip started freezing up and the hamstring on my other leg started to cramp up. The next hour felt more like six hours and I was so cold I just wanted this day to be over. For the next 15 or 16 miles it was really a test of will.

The going was slow and sometimes frustrating but we kept at it despite the fact that there were no more water stations. Ten hours and 32 minutes after I started this 26-mile trek to the heart of Boston I crossed the finish line. I was tired, wet, cold and frustrated; however, I’m glad I didn’t quit and I helped raise money for others in need.

Hopefully my next marathon in October the weather will be more cooperative and I can go after my personal best, but for now I’ll stick to running a few 5K’s and try to get over my battle with Mother Nature.

Thanks to all of you who donated to the Providence Ronald McDonald House. To date I was able to raise over $1,600.