Baaastin...{Boston}

Well, I can't believe that it has already come and now gone! The Boston Marathon that is. Since my very first marathon back in '99 I have thought about running the Boston Marathon. Once you get into the sport of marathon running...you can't help but think about it. One of the first questions people ask after you have run a marathon is, "Did you qualify?" They don't even have to explain...everyone knows they are referring to the Boston Marathon.

Maybe it is because it is the only marathon, I am aware of, that you have to have a qualifying time in order to just sign up! Or the fact, that it is the oldest and most prestigious marathon in American history. What ever the reason...I just wanted to actually run it. I didn't quality my first marathon, which was OK with me because I ran my first to have the experience of finishing a marathon. I wanted to enjoy the experience, be proud of my accomplishment and not feel the pressure or disappointment if I didn't get a certain time (I didn't even wear a watch--unheard of for most runners). But, I still only missed the mark by 6 meager minutes!! Aghh! So, as someone told me after my first marathon...it was addicting...and I could feel that that addiction had taken a hold of me. I wanted to qualify.

Well, I am happy to say that since my first marathon, I have qualified in every marathon I have run since. But Justin and I decided we wanted to run Boston together...which means that we would both have to qualify within the same year. (Justin has to run an insane time to qualify...it is a little easier for the females!) We did it in June '03 and we were excited to be able to go together the following April. But, happily, we also found out I was prego with Taylor.

So...now after 5 marathons each & 5 years after we first both first qualified together, we were able to run the 112th Boston Marathon together. And once again, (the first time since my first marathon) we did it for the experience.

We went out early to enjoy the weekend in Boston before the big race on Monday. Tara (Justin's little sister) had qualified for Boston in her 1st marathon ever...and so she came out also, so we could all run it together! (She is so fun, I am glad she was there with us!) It was such a fun weekend and even more just a great experience. We were able to do a little Boston sight seeing and we even survived the HUGE expo. {Honestly, it was a little much...too many (crazy) runners in one place... :)I was close to having a little panic attack}.

The race itself was so much fun! Tara mentioned that it was the funnest race she had ever run...and I have to agree. The weather was supposed to be cold, but it warmed up right at the start. There were 25,000 runners and the roads ahead of us and behind us were packed with people the whole race...I have never seen anything like it.

We were told that there were over 1 Million spectators lining the course...and I wouldn't be surprised if there were more! People lined the course the ENTIRE 26.2 miles!! We had written our names on our clothes and arms, so people would shout out our names in encouragement, which made it fun. They pronounced Tara's name funny though!!! That made us laugh! We were giving high fives to the crowds throughout the whole race. There were all these cute little towns that we ran through and past lots of college students from Boston College and other schools. The course itself was a little tougher than I had thought. The main hill "Heartbreak Hill" wasn't really much of anything...but there were rolling hills almost the entire way. So, besides a little runners sickness---it was a great race. We were excited to finish and make the training all winter (mostly on a treadmill...thanks to all the snow) worth it! GO BOSTON!

(Before the race---on our way to the starting busses!)