2013 Boston Marathon — The "Other" Finish Line

Countdown to Boston: 5 Days! 

Last year, 5 weeks after the Boston Marathon I finished the "other" finish line on May 26th on the yard of bricks at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Here is my story:

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As a symbolic gesture, Indianapolis Motor Speedway officials invited non-finishers from Indiana and surrounding states to cross the racetrack’s iconic finish line. About 35 runners, including me, took them up on the offer to run the half-mile stretch from Turn 4 to the Yard of Bricks.

I was one of the runners caught in the bottleneck a half mile from the Boston Marathon finish line. One week before the Indy 500, I received an email from the Boston Athletic Association inviting me to “Finish Your Race Across the World’s Most Famous Finish Line – The Yard of Bricks on Sunday morning May 26, on national television before the start of the 97th Running of the Indianapolis 500.”

This was a good consolation to my non-finish 25.8 mile Boston marathon. On race day morning my family and I arrived early to meet up with the other Boston Marathon runners who came to finish their race. We were briefed on what was in store for us. 

We were treated like celebrities. About an hour before the start of the race, we would walk the “red carpet” before the “real” celebrities arrived. We posed for photos for local and national television stations as well as assorted newspaper and magazine companies. 

We were then loaded up in vans to transport us to Turn 4 to begin our run. Because this is live television the main concern was getting the runners to run the half mile within 3 1/2 - 4 minutes. This translated to a 6:10-8:00 minute mile (or 7:00 average).

This became my big concern as I was nursing an sore hamstring and hadn’t been running the miles like I used to. I asked the other runners if we were really going to have to run 7 minute miles. For live TV, yes, we had to come across the finish line just before the announcement of “Start Your Engines.” We got the cue to start running. They gave two of the faster runners up front American flags. This made for great photos.

We started off in a tight pack and I was in the front half. The spectators were on their feet and I could hear the cheers and chills went down my spine. I was trying to look good on TV and run with the pack but within a few minutes I was falling back. When we came to pit lane, I saw all the pit crews  lined up to give us “high-fives” and cheer us on. The other side of the pit lane was flanked by firefighters and police officers.

The front runners broke the tape as they crossed together with hands held high. The roar of the crowd was unbelievable. It is regrettable that I was prevented from crossing the finish line in Boston, but finishing across the yard of bricks brought tears to my eyes. This was truly a moment to cherish and commemorate the tragic event of April 15, 2013. r

 Starting out from Turn 4

 At the finish

Getting high 5's from the pit crew 

On the Yard of Bricks

2 Rules for Qualifying for Boston

2 Rules for Qualifying for Boston 

#1 Be a woman

#2 Get old

I don’t remember whom this quote came from, but it made me laugh when I first heard it. But this is how I qualified for Boston at the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon in 2010 at age 59.

I began my marathon training at age 50 ten years ago as a challenge to myself because I wanted to do something special to mark this “over the hill” era of my life. At the time I was a casual runner, running to stay in shape with an occasional 5 or 10K race and never had a thought of running a marathon, let alone think about Boston.

After an injury sidelined my training for my first marathon, I ran a less-than-elite time of 5:18 in the Honolulu Marathon. Unhappy with my finish time I thought I needed to run another to redeem myself. I ran the next several marathons with injuries and kept adding make-up races to prove I could run faster. After marathon #9, I finally ran under five hours with the help of a pacer. By then I had been running two marathons a year so I figured I should shoot for a goal of completing 20 marathons in 10 years and make #20 the Honolulu Marathon, right where I started.

On a very cold Saturday morning, November 6th , I ran marathon #17 in the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon. My training started back in April when I decided I needed a running coach. My new coach, Brennan Liming, asked me what my running goals were. My only goal was to reach a PR of 4:45. So this is what we went by. My training calendar was filled with midweek easy runs, tempo runs, fartleks, strides, mile repeats, 400’s, 800’s, 1000’s, negative runs, and Saturday long runs – all gradually increasing in volume and intensity. By the summer my weekly mileage was climbing higher than I had ever trained in the past. It was getting tougher, but I loved it.

In fact, I was improving. I ran a half marathon in May and had a PR. Then more PRs followed – The Cary Road Race, Magnificent Mile, Anna’s Angels 10 Miler, and the Triangle Autism 5K. Using the race time predictor at www.runningforfitness.org, I figure I could run my next marathon under 4:30. Was this a Boston qualifying time? Only if: #1 you are a woman, and #2 you are old.

My running friend, Lena Hollmann, who is in my age group and has followed my Facebook accounts of my training, suggested that I could qualify at 4:30 even though I would be 5 months shy of my 60^th birthday when I try to qualify in Indianapolis. She explained that a runner must have completed a qualifying marathon within the year and a half before the upcoming Boston Marathon.

This changed everything about my training. I would go for it. I received so much encouragement from my running friends on Facebook. Logging in my training miles took on new meaning. I knew that my Facebook friends were looking over my shoulder at my entries. I was on a quest. I looked forward to those long runs over 20 miles so I could practice my race strategies.

On race day, I had three long runs of over 20 miles under my belt and had confidence that I would make my goal. Using my new Garmin, I was keeping myself on target mile after mile. At mile 10 I was one minute ahead, at mile 21 I was one minute behind. The 4:30 pace group had caught up with me at mile 22 so I hung with them, thinking I could stay at their pace for the next two miles. I figured if they plan to come in at 4:30, this would match my time. But then I realized this wouldn’t work because they started behind me.

Mile 23: I’m tired, and it’s cold, and I’m slowing down. What a shame it would be to miss my mark by a minute or even a second! I kept thinking: “Dig deep. Remember my practice runs.” I had a full minute to make up at mile 24, so I left the 4:30 pace group and focused on my form. I moved my arms more, picked my legs up and visualized my finish.

The last two miles were my fastest –

Mile 25 pace: 9:39.

Mile 26 pace: 9:09.

Marathon finish: 4:29:07.

The Boston qualifying time:

Women Age Group 60-64 is 4:30. 

I barely squeaked by, but sadly I was NOT able to make the Boston field the next year. But the feeling of BQ-ing was pure elation.

 Esther crossing the finish line in 4:29:07! A BQ.

 Raleigh friends at the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon Expo.

 Celebrating our race at the Corner Wine Bar in Broad Ripple.

Showing off our race medals in our hotel room. Cheers!

Remembering Boston April 15, 2013

In 2 weeks, I will be lining up to run Boston. One year after the horrific day of the bombing that injured many spectators and killing one innocent little boy. All eyes will be on this race and it will be significant because many people around the world - not just the running community - but those that support the survivors will be on the sidelines united as "Boston Strong."

I am privileged to be one of the 36,000 runners and I will lace up my shoes and say a prayer as I start another journey to Boylston Street finish line.

 The finish line the day before the race.

 The day after many media stations are camped out.

 I saw many memorials going up around town.

 "Justice Will Prevail."

 The drop bags were available the day after.

The folks manning the drop bag area presented me with my medal.

Here is my race report from 2013:
My 25.89 Mile Boston Marathon

After struggling through this tough course within a half mile to the finish line, I was finally feeling elated to be crossing the Boston Marathon finish line. My first Boston Marathon! The spectators were cheering us on. Street bands were blaring. I notice the “T” Boston’s commuter train on the left has come to a stop and commuters have become race spectators too. I push my pace trying to revive my slow pace to one that I can live with and then I came to a halt. We all came to a halt!

I stopped my Garmin at 25.89 miles in 4:44.

Some of the runners ahead of me turned around and said the race has been stopped. A few minutes earlier I heard sirens, one after the other. This brought back memories of another marathon that was stopped in 2007 when I ran the Chicago Marathon. One person died and over 300 other runners were taken to emergency rooms due to heat. I had a bad feeling, but couldn’t understand why this would stop a race. I texted my husband, Mark to let him know my race was stopped. We had planned to meet after the race as he stayed back at our friend’s home while I ran. Runners were in a holding pattern wondering what was going on. Mark texted back about a bomb and several people were killed and many more injured.

What? Really? Why? Who? A few minutes later I could see several people hugging and crying. And it sunk in what had happened. Mark said he would come pick me up. I knew this would be difficult with street closures and the chaos around me. I walked up to the nearest street corner and noticed city buses lining up so I got on thinking I just need to get out of here. Then I realized that they were evacuating all the runners. Runners were boarding the buses. Many of us still needed our drop bags which were still at the finish line. We were told that they were going to have dogs search for explosives first before they would let us get them. Many runners had their car keys, hotel keys, and cell phones in their bags. I lent my phone to several runners who did not have their phones. The man next to me had his smart phone and was reading us the current news reports of what was going on. It was grim. The buses finally moved us off the race course. We arrived and at the Boston Commons area which is a major road through town. Up and down the road came the police force, the SWAT Teams, the Bomb Squads, and then Military tanks. It looked like we were going to war. And the sirens kept coming.

It was going to be a long day. Mark posted to my facebook page that I was safe. This proved helpful as my family and friends back home were sending texts, voice messages, and emails asking if I was okay.

I am okay. It was an unspeakable tragedy that I will not forget. I hope no one ever forgets those who suffered greatly from this event and know that runners form a strong bond.

Here is my story from the beginning of Monday, April 15^th:

I arrived in Boston’s suburb of Lexington Thursday before the race and got right to an easy run of 5 “hilly” miles. Since I live in a city with no hills to train on, this easy run was not so easy. The weather was cool and breezy, but good for running. I went to the Expo on Friday and I was in paradise. I was in the Mecca of the running world, like the Super Bowl, or the Indy 500. I was surrounded by the fittest of the fit.

The Expo was large as you would expect. After packet pick up I headed straight for the official marathon merchandise. (I had to buy my jacket!)

I did one last easy run on Sunday to get my legs used to these hills. And after my pre-race dinner I set out all my gear and went to bed early. Since I was staying with friends, I did not need to catch an early bus to Hopkinton. I arrived at the Athlete’s Village and found my corral. The sun was out and the music was blaring as runners milled around waiting for their starts. I was in corral 3, wave 3. I found some other Raleigh runners to walk to the start with.

I started at 10:40 AM with 48 degrees, sun and clouds with slight breezes. The conditions seemed perfect and after one mile in I took my jacket off and wrapped it around my waist. Since this course is predominately downhill, I was advised to “hold” back and not start out too fast. But so many runners were flying past me and I thought, “What do they know that I don’t?”

I was hoping to average 9:45 but averaged 9:35 in the first 7 miles. Going downhill was hard to keep my pace “down.” (Everyone talks about the 3 hills, but it’s more like 12 and lots of them in the first half even though they aren’t as big as the Newton hills, still you have to constantly change gears.) I was especially surprised at the end of mile 1 to find my first hill (323 feet - 353 feet). I pushed on. Another hill at mile 4 (190 feet - 243 feet). I kept my pace in check and pushed on. Mile 9 came another hill (139 feet - 223 feet) and I wondered what would “Heartbreak Hill” do to me? My pace slowed down to 10:23 in the next 7 miles.

Then miles 16 - 21 came the BIG hills and I was NOT prepared for them (since living in Indy is very flat). It’s embarrassing that I walked a lot. I averaged 12:50 in this area. Then in mile 16 a little old, gray-haired woman hunched over ran past me. I couldn’t catch up to her. In the next mile an Achilles Guide was running past me with a blind runner. I couldn’t catch up to them. Another slow mile for me, a man with a fake leg (not a blade runner either) was passing me. The last straw for me was when a man in a wheelchair (not a special racing one either) and aided by two Achilles Guides pushed past me.

Finally, I crested Heartbreak Hill and I could pick up my pace, but not as much as I wanted as my legs were screaming at me. I averaged 10:50 in the final miles. The winds changed and became strong headwinds in the last miles and I had to put my jacket back on. I gathered my wits and pushed on trying to find the wheelchair guy, the fake-leg guy, the blind runner and the little old lady runner so I can pass them. I managed to pass 2 out of the 4. I pushed on until the race came to a halt.

The spectators were fabulous all along the course. There was hardly a moment where some type of street performers or cheering crowds were absent. The whole town celebrates “Marathon Monday” and you are the star.

This was a historic event and I won’t ever forget my first Boston Marathon, but this race was truly humbling. My initial thought was “I would never run this freaking course again.” But in the aftermath of today’s events, “It will be an honor to run this race next year and I WILL BE BACK!” Bring on those hills!  r

Turning 63

Today is my birthday and I am now 63! I look in the mirror and, yes I notice the permanent creases around my eyes, the dropping chin and extra laugh lines. All appropriate for a woman my age.

I remember reading lots of child growth and development books when my daughters were babies and they would walk you through all the stages of development from infant to kindergarten. This was helpful to mothers to determine what to expect at what age. By 6 to 8 months your infant will begin sitting on their own, for instance. Or by age 4 months they will begin teething. Well, for the aging, a "development" book would be interesting. By age 60 your mother will begin to lose muscle. Your mother will begin to lose memory, lose balance, etc. Ha. Well now, I do believe aging has changed in my lifetime. My mother, at age 63, was far more elderly than I. Her mother was quite old at age 63 and confined to a "rocking" chair for the most part.

I am 63 and energetic and feeling quite young. In fact, I may be in better shape than most 40-somethings. I am a conscientious eater, I work out and I run marathons. Of course, I do not kid myself, none of these activities "keep" you young and as I mentioned, I have all the facial lines that a senior woman should have and I have a bit more arthritis pain than ever, BUT the secret to youth is ATTITUDE. When you let the little old lady in, you become just that - a little old lady.

I enjoy this stage in my life. I have never been busier doing all the things I've put off. I recently wrote out some "bucket list" items and getting to them. We don't have any guarantees that we will live a healthy life until we die at 70, 80, 90 or 100, so today is the day to live. I will do my best to take care of my health and remember that life is short and we live to love. I praise God for allowing me to wake up each day in good health.

Okay, these are my thoughts for today.

Love today.