Success in Portland: I’m going to Boston!
http://bojordan.com/log/?p=524
Today in Portland the weather was reasonably cool (unlike in Chicago!), with no real rain and mostly-tolerable wind. I have felt good the past few days, and have been eating well, so everything was set for a good outing. Which, I’m happy to say, after five years of hard work, I delivered in spades! I crushed my Boston qualifying time (3:10:59) with a 3:00:48, of which I’m extremely proud.
I started out a little faster than the 3:10 pacer, knowing I needed to stop to pee in the first half, and I never needed to let up. I almost caught the 3:00 pacer around mile 22, but the wind (and my quickly tiring calves) wouldn’t let me close the gap; I have no doubt I could have stayed with that group the whole way had I known I had any business shooting for sub-three.
My light race shoes (Asics Gel-Speedstar) were superb, even on some pounding downhills. I don’t think I’ve blackened any nails, even with dead legs the last few miles. I tried listening to my iPod starting at mile 21, but I was mentally in better form without the music. Plus, my new headphones sucked, and I threw them away before the finish. My calves were gone at the finish, but I recovered quickly over the next half hour, and six hours afterward I’m rather looking forward to the ten-minute walk to our sushi reservation.
Speaking of which, Susi also qualified for her second running of Boston. And Jeri ran a good race, even though she’s already qualified.
I’m already signed up for the 112th running of Boston; just waiting for the paperwork to go through and validate my time. We already have rooms at the Westin.
Of special note is that Boston 2008 will be the 25th anniversary of my dad’s 1983 Boston race. I hope he can be there to see me run mine. Maybe he’ll commit to qualifying so we can run it sometime in the next few years? I may already have qualified for 2009 with this time, but I’d like to run a Boston-qualifying time in Boston, and perhaps make it a tradition.
I enjoyed the course through Portland, and the city is fun. Pros: Tons of water stops, port-o-johns all over the course, good weather, great mix of flats and hills, all marathoners. Cons: Gear check was screwed up, start and finish were simply too crowded, wind was challenging, and some might call the industrial out-and-back section less than scenic. Overall I thought it was a great event, and I suspect I’ll be back for it again.
Today in Portland the weather was reasonably cool (unlike in Chicago!), with no real rain and mostly-tolerable wind. I have felt good the past few days, and have been eating well, so everything was set for a good outing. Which, I’m happy to say, after five years of hard work, I delivered in spades! I crushed my Boston qualifying time (3:10:59) with a 3:00:48, of which I’m extremely proud.
I started out a little faster than the 3:10 pacer, knowing I needed to stop to pee in the first half, and I never needed to let up. I almost caught the 3:00 pacer around mile 22, but the wind (and my quickly tiring calves) wouldn’t let me close the gap; I have no doubt I could have stayed with that group the whole way had I known I had any business shooting for sub-three.
My light race shoes (Asics Gel-Speedstar) were superb, even on some pounding downhills. I don’t think I’ve blackened any nails, even with dead legs the last few miles. I tried listening to my iPod starting at mile 21, but I was mentally in better form without the music. Plus, my new headphones sucked, and I threw them away before the finish. My calves were gone at the finish, but I recovered quickly over the next half hour, and six hours afterward I’m rather looking forward to the ten-minute walk to our sushi reservation.
Speaking of which, Susi also qualified for her second running of Boston. And Jeri ran a good race, even though she’s already qualified.
I’m already signed up for the 112th running of Boston; just waiting for the paperwork to go through and validate my time. We already have rooms at the Westin.
Of special note is that Boston 2008 will be the 25th anniversary of my dad’s 1983 Boston race. I hope he can be there to see me run mine. Maybe he’ll commit to qualifying so we can run it sometime in the next few years? I may already have qualified for 2009 with this time, but I’d like to run a Boston-qualifying time in Boston, and perhaps make it a tradition.
I enjoyed the course through Portland, and the city is fun. Pros: Tons of water stops, port-o-johns all over the course, good weather, great mix of flats and hills, all marathoners. Cons: Gear check was screwed up, start and finish were simply too crowded, wind was challenging, and some might call the industrial out-and-back section less than scenic. Overall I thought it was a great event, and I suspect I’ll be back for it again.