Boston: Expo and Such

We began our first full day in Boston at the rabbit shake-out, which started from their pop up on Newbury street. From Saturday through Monday, I was with my local running buddies Amy and Colin, and my pro start buddy from Utah, Jennifer.  At rabbit, I connected with my friend Liz, who lives in Portland, and my soon-to-be coach Nick. We ran a nice route along the river and passed Emily Sisson on the run! We popped into the Tracksmith Track House on the way back to the hotel, took photos at Hereford and Boylston, and had lunch at the Cheesecake Factory before heading to the expo. Our hotel was connected to the Prudential Center, which has many restaurants and also connected to the expo.

Right on Hereford, left on Boylston

The expo was a madhouse! This small town girl is not a fan of crowds or craziness, so it was not my cup of tea. In the Adidas gear area you could barely move and the check out line looked miles long. There were several really neat photo ops but the lines for them were very long and it wasn't worth waiting to me. I also didn't have my bib number yet, since I would pick it up at the pro meeting the next day. I did a quick run through and left as soon as my running buddies were ready - which didn't take long because none of us particularly liked it. There was so much hype and hoopla, and that drains me even when I'm feeling good. I know some people enjoy the excitement, but I found it very overwhelming. While I think not feeling 100% put a damper on things like this in the Boston experience for me to some degree, I think I'd have hated the expo no matter what, hah!

You could get a better photo with this by waiting for hours

We then walked over to another hotel to talk with some folks from Nike for a program I'm in. It was a much calmer environment and we got to use some Normatec recovery boots. Then it was onto the finish line for photos and more madness! We sent a vlog to our running group from there, and in it I said that I'm sticking with smaller marathons in the future. Sign me up for Bass Pro, lol!

Finish line area

Revolution hotel & my Vaporflys

Normatec-ing

We then walked around Boston Commons before heading back to our hotel and dinner at Amy's favorite, Wagamama's. Colin doesn't love being in photos but he was always willing to take one of me and Amy (Jen went to a Red Socks game after the expo so it was us 3 for awhile) - which made it a lot like a family vacation with Jon avoiding photos but taking them and of me and Albani!

Boylston street decor

The Capital building

Washington

The story continues here.

Boston: Final Taper Week

My final taper week was not ideal. On April 11, 1 week before the race, I did my final little long run workout: 12 miles via 4 easy, 4 MP, 4 easy. The MP miles felt much harder than they should have, but I chalked it up to that workout almost always feeling terrible - usually it's my worst long run of the build. My stomach felt slightly off but I figured it was just something I ate.

The following morning I woke up around 3 a.m. feeling terrible. I won't rehash all of these details, but April 12 I stayed home from work sick and spent the whole day worrying that I wouldn't even be able to make the trip to Boston, much less run the marathon. It started as a stomach illness that quickly progressed into a sore throat and cough, which was odd (I tested negative for COVID). April 13 I still felt pretty bad but went to work because I had way too much going on not to, especially with 5 scheduled vacation days coming. I went out to run 8 miles with a couple of friends that morning but ended up cutting it to 6 miles, and running 7:50 pace felt as hard as many workouts I'd done this season.

April 14 I had a little workout scheduled: 3 miles at threshold with 0:30 surges down to 5k pace at the end of each mile. I knew I wasn't going to be able to do that, but I thought I'd try 3 miles at MP (6:25ish) or maybe 3 x 1 mile at MP with short recoveries. I made it 1 mile in 6:40 and just didn't have any more to give. I felt so weak. I still had 3 days and although my acute symptoms were slowly improving, I felt like I was getting weaker.

April 15, 16, and 17 all involved short runs at 8-something pace that felt hard. On my final run in Missouri on April 15, I told my running buddies I didn't think I could even complete a 3:30 marathon in my present state. Everyone kept saying, "You never know, you'll just be extra rested, you'll feel great by race day", but in the back of my head, I knew.

My symptoms did improve each day and I was thankful that I felt decent enough to travel on April 15 - though our first flight was delayed due to airplane computer issues and we sat in the Springfield airport for 5 hours longer than planned. Wearing a mask all day at the airport and on our flights made things worse - I felt like I was suffocating and just breathing in sick air. However, Amy, Colin, and I were pretty excited and optimistic despite the airline hiccups and re-bookings. I made up a song called "We are never ever ever gonna leave this airport" (sung to the tune of Taylor Swift's "We are never ever ever getting back together"), and we committed to doing 26.2 vlogs for our running group [spoiler: that was very ambitious!].

Waiting

Amy, Colin, and I arrived at our hotel in Boston around 11:00 p.m. that night, and the long day of travel plus lack of dinner didn't do me any favors (we had to run across the Chicago airport to arrive at our gate right before they shut us out, so there was no time to grab food). Amy and my other roommate Jen's flight was on time but the hotel wouldn't let her into our room because the reservation was in Amy's name; Amy tried calling multiple times but couldn't get through, so Jen met us in our hotel lobby when we finally made it. Colin was in a different hotel and navigated to it solo by bus and train.

I kept a small bit of optimism because my symptoms improved each day and I wasn't wheezing. I also kept thinking that I ran a 2:58 in Houston sick, so maybe I could still run in the mid-2:50s, which wasn't my goal but would be okay under the circumstances. In hindsight though, every 4-5 mile run felt really hard and I was very weak. I was going to run the race no matter what, but I vacillated on whether or not I should still start in the professional field. Jen, also in the pro field, swayed me. She'd run in the pro field several years before coming off an injury and had come in around 3:15 that year. The entire experience was hard to turn down, so I went into it knowing that I wasn't strong enough to run what I'd trained for (2:45-2:49), but hoping that I could still pull off a sub-3. I also knew that I might not, and thinking about my sub-3 streak ending made me sad but I preferred that to not starting or not finishing the race. Sometimes you have to choose from only crappy options!

I did everything I could to get well during the week. It seemed to be a virus so antibiotics weren't an option, and I race poorly on those anyway. I took several OTC meds and herbal remedies. I drank lots of hot tea, ate a very antioxidant-rich diet, and slept as much as I could. Maybe I should have taken more days off work or off running, but I really don't think it would have made a significant difference. This illness was going around at work and almost everyone in my department caught it, so I'm also not sure if I could have avoided it. All in all, I wasn't not mad at myself over this because I don't think I made any errors, but I was disappointed in the circumstances.

The story continues here.

126th Boston Marathon

Boston is the marathon everyone knows and loves. After l8 years of marathoning and 30-some BQs, I finally decided to run it in 2022, primarily because I qualified for the women’s professional field. Lining up on the professional start was a once in a lifetime opportunity for me!

Women's Pro Start

Everything about the professional field experience was unreal: the official uniform and shoe checks where my shoes got a Boston126 stamp, the bottle drop where Olympic bronze medalist Molly Seidel showed up with her bottles in an Easter basket with a stuffed rabbit, the technical meeting where Olympians Des Linden and Jake Riley sat right behind us, the photo with Olympian Jared Ward. The tunnel of screaming fans as we walked to the bus, the bus ride where I sat across from Molly Seidel and her coach Jon Green, the chat with Molly on the way into the indoor staging area (which was televised!), the staging area where I sat right next to Jake Riley, seeing Ababel Yeshaneh fixing her hair in the bathroom, sitting in the warmest room in the pre-race area with Steph and Ben Bruce, Molly Seidel, Malindi Elmore, and many more. Warming up with nearly every other professional in the race back and forth on a 200 m stretch of road (I linked with many on Strava!), seeing top athletes from other countries in person (eventual winner Peres Jepchirchir, Britian's Charlotte Purdue, icon Edna Kipligat), seeing Sarah Vaughn do drills, walking to the starting line right by eventual top American Nell Rojas, feeling the pre-race tension, standing behind several of the top contenders, and smiling at the television cameras.

Making my way to the start right in front of Nell Rojas

The race course was lined with spectators and the whole area came alive with marathon magic before, during, and after the race. Everyone in the city makes each and every marathoner feel like a star. I've never experienced anything quite like this, and I was also blessed to share the trip with two of my local running buddies Amy and Colin, and my pro start BFF Jennifer. In Boston I was able to connect with numerous other runners I know from across the country, and to represent rabbit on an international stage. Colin ran an impeccably paced race and came away with a new PR of 2:48, and Amy nailed her 10th consecutive Boston in 3:32, a time she was happy with - I coach them both so had victories through their performances.

Something I am really good at is having terrible timing! After being 100% healthy all winter and for my entire Boston training cycle I got pretty sick and weak 6 days before the race. These circumstances gave me three choices for the race itself: DNS, DNF, or struggle in for a much slower marathon time than I’d trained for. I chose the latter and made it in in 3:13:01. I have no regrets about my decision, but I was devastated to be unable to show my fitness, to end my sub-3:00 streak at 14 consecutive, and to run 27 minutes slower than my seed time. In general professional runners DNS when they are ill and DNF when they are going to run significantly slower than they are capable of, but those choices weren’t for me. I preferred to fight for my finish, and I did all I could in my weakened state, while at the same time feeling embarrassed it wasn't more.

While I wanted more from the race itself, the trip was priceless with memories that will last a lifetime. Would I remember it all more fondly if I'd run a time in the 2:40s? Definitely. But I suspect that when I'm 90 I will remember the laughs, bonds, and moments with friends more than the time on the clock. That isn't to say I'm not coming back for a faster marathon in the fall!

As I went into the race feeling weak, puny, and doubtful, I mainly kept thinking, "Good thing I love the training process and trust God’s timing, eh?"

                                                                  -----------------------

My dad's video of the television coverage of me walking from the pro bus to the indoor staging area is here.

My dad's video of the television footage of the start is here; my parents' commentary is truly priceless.

A women's race recap video with an appearance from me at the start is here - I think I had the biggest smile!

The list of the entire pro field that I got to nerd out seeing is here.

Details:

• Final taper week
• Expo and such
• Professional uniform and shoe checks
• Professional bottle drop
• Professional technical meeting
• Race morning meeting and bus ride
• Race morning staging area
• Race morning warm up and walk to the start
• Race details
• Professional post-race area
• Touristy things, other escapades, and travel
• The aftermath

What's a Taper Without a Crisis, 300th edition

Although I've had things go right leading up to races more often than not, it's easier to vividly remember when things go wrong! There was my intense stomach illness before the Prairie Fire Marathon 2016, vertigo before CIM 2017, bronchitis before the Bill Snyder Half 2019, bronchitis before and during the Houston Marathon 2020, my hip malfunction before Bass Pro 2020, and my TFL freak-out before the Frisco 50k 2021. Prior to starting this blog there was also a walking pneumonia diagnosis the day after the Heart of America Marathon 2009 and a DNF due to cryptosporidium at the Run for Your Momma Half 2015, among others. Add to the list: stomach flu and a cold before Boston 2022.

Not the kind of carb-loading I had planned

I did my final little long run a week before the race like usual, which meant 12 miles with 4 at marathon pace in the middle on Monday, April 11. The MP miles felt much harder than MP, but that is not unusual for that workout; often it is my worst long run of the season and I have lovingly titled it "The Last Long Run Workout That Always Feels Much Harder Than It Should" (not to be confused with "The Taper Week Workout That Everyone Runs Too Fast"). My stomach felt a little off before and during the run, but I just figured something I ate hadn't set well or it was related to my menstrual cycle.

I went to bed that night with my stomach bothering me a little more, but I figured my dinner just wasn't agreeing with me. Then I woke up around 3 a.m. on April 12 with much more stomach discomfort. I got up and took some Pepto Bismol, then curled up in the fetal position until my alarm went off. I then got dressed to go to the group run through continued stomach pain, telling myself that I'd feel fine after going to the bathroom. I could barely stand upright though, so soon acquiesced that I should go to the couch instead of the group run. I remained on said couch from about 5:00 to 4:00 p.m., and called in sick to work.

After a day of rest, electrolytes, saltines, hot tea, and meds, as of now (April 12 evening), my stomach is doing better but I've developed a sore throat and cough. I don't even know! My husband convinced me to take a COVID test, and it was negative at least. The sore throat and cough have me much more paranoid than the stomach issue did, because this kind of illness tends to hang on for me and at times turns to bronchitis.

In hindsight, I was probably fighting this off over the weekend; both days I took 2-3 hour naps during which I was completely dead to the world, on top of sleeping ~9 hours a night. I didn't feel great on my weekend runs either, but just chalked it all up to tapering.

I admit this is stressing me out a lot. I don't have super specific time goal for Boston and of course I'm not going to place, but I sure don't want to show up on the starting line sick! I also learned my lesson from running Houston 2020 when ill (which in turn made me extremely sick), but this Boston pro start thing is a once in a lifetime opportunity for me, so I'm doing it.

I have time, I know. Maybe this is just my reminder to be thankful for every day of health and every race that I'm able to start! I just know that running a marathon not being 100% is not the greatest, and it can be hard to imagine feeling normal again when you don't. I am thankful it is Tuesday and not Saturday, but I am nervous...

Official diagnosis

Prairie Spirit 50k Photo Documentary

Mile 90 Photography did such an amazing job with these I thought they should get their own post!

Trying to hang on in the final 5 miles

Pace group for the first 18

Nearing the 17.3 mile turn around

Sweet relief

After I had some time to come back from the dead

Picking up pacer Andrew

Trying unsuccessfully to hang on

Trying to stand up

Crew hugs

My shorts pockets are definitely stuffed with gels!

Prairie Spirit 50k: What went wrong, what went right

I'm not disappointed with Prairie Spirit but I'm not out-of-my-mind excited about my performance either. It was good/fine - just like Cabin Fever, the only other race I've raced all-out this year so far...also much like every fall race I did in 2021! The last race I feel like I really knocked out the park was the Tobacco Road Marathon, but I also haven't had any unexplainable bad races in several years (the steamy 10,000 m at USATF Masters Nationals and the marathon I ran with bronchitis were very explainable). My workouts have been the same - I'm not running anything groundbreaking but I haven't had a bad workout for a very long time. All of this to say, I'm kind of in this spot where I'm happy enough with my running performances - not insanely thrilled but also not upset. All in all, most things went right for Prairie Spirit. 

Sunrise start

What went right:

My training cycle. I completed it all as planned through some rough winter weather, and handled the highest volume I've ever done (5 weeks of 100-110) really well. I hit all my workouts and felt really strong through all of the training. I was also 100% healthy without even a niggle.

The course. Prairie Spirit had less elevation gain than Frisco and for the most part was well-maintained crushed limestone. It was a little soft from recent rain but I don't think that necessarily hurt me.

The weather. I complain enough about bad race weather that I'd better to point out when it's fabulous - and this was! 32 degrees at the start and likely in the high-40s when I finished, which is about perfect long race weather for me. The wind was low for Kansas at 8-10 mph and I tried to draft off Andrew when we were running into it.

The company. I had running buddies the entire race, with Colin for about a marathon, pacer Andrew from 17.3 to the end, and Hans and Logan (both of whom I met during the race) for the first 20 miles. Can't beat that!

Pace crew, split here due to upcoming aid station

Chafing, or more precisely lack thereof. Nothing chafed except for my chest a bit from stuffing gel wrappers and my empty handheld into my sports bra at times. When I got in the shower after the race, multiple little gel tabs fell out because I was throwing away the large trash when we passed a trash can and after I finished, but the little tabs you pull off to open mostly stayed in. Shout out to rabbit for the awesome clothing that didn't rub one bit!

Pacing, I think. I wish I could have finished stronger, but I picked a very reasonable pacing strategy and stuck to it well, even when it felt super slow during the first 1/3 of the race.

Fueling, I think. I took 8 gels during the race and had zero issues with that...though afterward I never want to see another gel! I sipped on water as needed, but with it being cool I didn't need that much. My pre-race meal of oatmeal mixed with cinnamon and vanilla UCAN energy + protein 2.5 hours before the race followed by 2 scoops of UCAN energy in water 45 minutes before the race is always dependable for me! See below for one fueling issue though.

Records. Kansas overall female state record, Prairie Spirit women's course record, and the #5 time in North America for women in 2022 so far. I sometimes feel greedy saying that I didn't achieve my time goals when I set records, and I'm super thankful for them, just wanted to make them faster.

Kansas state record

North American female top 2022 performances

What went wrong:

The two hairpin turn arounds, slightly. The first was marked with chalk on the ground and a cone with a sign on the side of the road on the sidewalk, and it was just really lucky that I even saw it at all, because the guys I was with didn't. I turned my head as we passed the turn around and saw the sign, so we only went a few steps past it, but then I had to convince the men that it was actually the turn around ("Are you sure?", "Look, the sign on the cone on the sidewalk!"). The second was at a timing mat that we ran over and continued past until I asked, "Where do we turn around?" maybe 5 seconds later. Again, the men I was with didn't know either...so what I've learned from writing this is that all 3 of them owe me, hah!

Lack of caffeinated gel when I needed it most. Jon did an excellent job crewing aside from forgetting to put my final gel with caffeine in my handheld pocket at the 23.8 mile aid station. I was really counting on it to perk me up at that point! I wrote him very, very detailed instructions and he followed everything else exactly - not to mention got up at 6:00 a.m. to watch me run for over 3.5 hours - so I can't complain too much, but oh how I wanted that caffeine!

Decided not to divorce him, though at mile 27
it was questionable, haha!

Handheld sizing issues. I had one Osprey Packs Dyna handheld bottle that I'd tested on a few long runs, since Prairie Spirit required us to carry fluids the whole race. I bought a second one so I could rotate between the two at aid stations - dropping an empty one and Jon handing me a refilled one. I ordered a second one in a different color, not realizing the different color was the men's version. I didn't use it before the race because I thought it was exactly the same as the one I already had. I found out in the early miles of the the race that it was too big! Colin owns the same bottle and confirmed the red was men's. The final time I had it I ended up shoving it into my sports bra because I was too tired to deal with it being oversized (it required more holding onto because of the size). I don't think this hurt my performance, it was just annoying!

Miles 5 and 20 got a little quick (6:37 and 6:39). I don't think this was enough to hurt me, but it was a little faster than planned. For the most part I did well with staying around 6:50 until 29-31 (25-28 drifted slightly but not extremely).

Tapering. The best taper for each person is a lot of trial and error, and I've learned that I do well with less of a taper. When I'm coaching myself, tapering myself is possibly my biggest weakness. My two biggest Monday through Sunday weeks were both 110, 3 and 4 weeks out. 2 weeks out I did 93 and 1 week out 88. Race week I kept it pretty low with 70.2 - meaning only 39 outside of the race. I think that this was all fine, but some have told me I should have cut back more. 88-93 was a 20ish mile drop from peak weekly mileage though!

Body fat. I don't weigh myself - I stopped in 2019 and it's been so liberating! - but I can tell I have some winter fluff on me right now. I usually lean down during training cycles but I didn't as much as in the past during this one. I know that lighter doesn't always equal faster, but I definitely have a little more on me I did when I ran my PRs and it adds up over the miles.

Missed my goal. I'm not exactly sure why I couldn't run a PR or a 3:29, but I'm filing it under something that went wrong. I believe I gave it all I had on the day, and I'm not sure why I didn't have a little more, but I'm going to keep looking for it.

What to think about:

Pacing. The 50k is still a bit of a puzzle to me. I don't think I paced too aggressively and I was pretty even in my pacing (especially when accounting for long inclines and declines), but I couldn't maintain through the end. All of this can also be said about my first 50k. I ran high mileage in prep, so I'm still figuring out how to stay strong through the end.

Fueling. Although I think I fueled adequately with 8 gels (~800 calories), I might consider mixing gels and caloric fluids next time. I may also add electrolytes. Maybe I need 1000 calories?

Guidance/coaching. I self-coached for both of my 50k builds. I treated the training like marathon training plus back-to-back Saturday/Sunday long runs, which has also come to be my absolute favorie training. I tried to read and learn everything I could about the 50k, but there is far less information on 50k training than on marathon training available (not to mention almost nothing on pacing, fueling, etc. for a non-technical 50k). Most of the information I found was targeted either at 50ks on technical trails, or when the goal was completion vs. performance and training mileage was much lower than mine. There is quite a bit of information available on training for a sub-3:00 marathon or even a 2:45 marathon, but not on running a fast 50k. I am leaning towards working with a coach for my 2023 50k. 

Finally, was it any coincidence I received an email linking this article the day of the race?

My Prairie Spirit race recap is here, and photos are here.

Her smiling here was a victory

We are true ultra runners with belt buckles now

My mom took most of the day's photos
but I got one with her too!

Bling