Two Weeks Out...

This past week had been a good one, all things considered after the events of April 15-19.  As I posted about last time, the closing of Crossroads Pub on April 20 allowed DFMCers and other runners to gather on the 17th, celebrate, reminisce about training, tell stories of the marathon and mourn and support each other re the events that took place on Marathon Monday.  This past Monday, one week after the attacks, the Somerville Road Runners held a small candle light vigil in Somerville.  It was another opportunity for runners to support each other and the victims of the bombings.

The week also allowed a return to running and other work outs.  I was able to attend the November Project twice this week.  For the first time hitting the Monday workout of sit-ups and push-ups and returning to the Wed AM workout at the Harvard Stadium...22 sections in 25 minutes.  Another run is planned for this weekend and with it, another day returning to normal.

While I can say a return to normal, many people are still dealing with the attacks, both physically and mentally.  We have learned that 2 past DFMC runners were injured in the attacks and are still hospitalized.  Two other family members were also injured and their story has been documented in both local and national news.  With the OneFundBoston raising >$20 million thus far, >$650,000 has been raised to help Celeste and Sydney.  To learn more about their story, visit the Site for Celeste and Sydney

Lastly, thank you again to everyone who has reached our and offered support.  Two stories I forgot to relate demonstrating how all Bostonians have rallied around those effected area two separate thank yous.  While having a restaurant patron thank me as I walked by wearing my BAA jacket was nice, having an employee at BJs say "thank you" and shake my hand for "all I did" was very unexpected and caught me off guard.  Amy told me afterward that he had asked if we were there, Amy said that I had just finished and had let other runners use my phone to contact family.  I did nothing compared to the first responders but seeing Bostonians support each other has helped the healing process as well.  Again, thank you for all your support the last two weeks.

A Roller Coaster Week

I've already written a bit about the afternoon on Monday and the aftermath of the explosions.  I'm going to try and focus on the positives of the day and week.  First, the support of so many friends and family members has been incredible. So many e-mails, facebook 'likes' and comments and calls offering support and urging me to remember all the good that led up to and included most of Monday...the fundraising efforts for DFMC, the training season and the race itself.  It took me several days to get to that point, and the race will always be remembered in the context of the attacks, but I'm doing much better now.

After running the BAA 5K on Sunday AM, Mom and I walked around the finish area, went to the BAA expo and attended the DFMC past party on Sunday afternoon.

The DFMC pasta party had a list of all the pacesetters, those who had raised more than $8,000 thus far. During the party, the DFMC staff announced that the team had raised more than $3.7 million thus far toward our goal of $4.6 million.  Personally, I'm well above my original goal of $10,000 and am at the $11,800+ mark.  I can't thank everyone enough for their generosity and support.

Over 1400 people attended the DFMC pasta party at the Copley Marriott.

After the pasta party on Sunday, we returned home to prepare for Monday; I got my bag together and Mom and Amy figured out the viewing plans the following day.  Their plan was to head to mile 17 and meet other DFMC supporters and then head back to mile 25 where the patient partners and family are waiting to support runner.  Hopefully I would see them twice during my journey into Boston.

On Monday AM I was up early and headed to Park St to meet Tim, a DFMC runner that I spent a good deal of training time with.  We caught the bus from Boston to Hopkinton around 6.30AM for our 45-60min journey.  Once in Hopkinton, we headed to the DFMC church to wait and prepare for the upcoming race.

Runners putting our post-race bags onto the DFMC bus.  They would be waiting for us back in Boston.

After the morning DFMC activities, including sending off Dennis Moran in the handcycle division, we headed to the start where, along with 9,000 others we began Wave 3 of the 117th Boston Marathon.  After about 5 minutes, I crossed the start line with 2 teammates.  We trained together and had similar goals so we ran together for the day.  Though incredibly crowded (we run on two lane roads), the race started off really well...a great pace, great fan support and lots of energy throughout the race.  The first 10+ miles went exactly like we hoped.  We averaged a 9.15 pace or so and were where we wanted to be.  I started looking for people around mile 10 and saw Shuhao, my former boss, who proceeded to run with me for a few minutes.  The support was great and from that point on, I continually looked forward to seeing friends and family.

After mile 10, we ran through the scream tunnel at Wellesley College.  At the 1/2 way point, I saw Jesse and Max and was still feeling great.  It was around this point that our group of 3 runners broke up as Lauren pulled ahead and ran her own race in to Boston, just missing breaking 4hrs.  Tim and I continued through Wellesley and up the first major hill at mile 16.  That was my first chance to see Mom and Amy.  As we were on a great pace, I stopped for 2 quick hugs and got back on the road.  Shortly thereafter, I saw the DFMC flag and stopped to get a hug from Delores Barr Weaver, founder of the Claudia Adams Barr Program for Innovative Cancer Research.  This was tremendously motivating as I turned onto Comm Ave and hit the first of the Newton hills.  Seeing great friends like Jessie and Joe at this point was also a huge boost!  Though I was where I wanted to be, I couldn't turn on the speed as much as I had hoped.  The hills took a toll but I persevered and made it through.

As I made it through Heartbreak Hill in much better shape than last year, I also realized that breaking 4hrs would be incredibly difficult.  I was pretty sure that it was not possible, but was holding out hope.  Again, the energy in the air was amazing and thinking of all my support, all the donors and all those that I was running for provided a huge boost throughout the hills and as I made my way through Brighton and Brookline.

Approaching mile 25 this year I made sure to take in the whole DFMC Patient Partner section.  I got many 'high 5s' and another energy boost.  As I passed the DFMC group, I saw Amy and Mom one last time, got another 'high 5' and continued on to Boston.  Unlike last year, the weather allowed the fans to enjoy the day as much as the runners.  The entire race was amazing and helped propel me onto Boylston Street to finish the marathon.  By this point I knew that I would not break 4hrs, but would still have a personal best and was ecstatic about that.

As I crossed the finish line, I knew I had given it my all and that a 4.02.39 was about the best that I could have done on that day.  I was exhausted and slowly made my way to the runner's chute.  I stopped to chat with Jack Fultz, the team coach, and Jan, the team coordinator.  It was about 20 seconds into that conversation that the explosions occurred.

The rest of the week has been a bit chaotic as well, though I was able to relax a bit on Thursday as Burton, a therapy Leonberger, was available at work for the employees.  Simply petting Burton was a tremendous stress relief and helped the rest of the week.

With the end of the marathon season, another tradition came to an end.  Every Thursday runners would gather at a bar, travel on the T to Woodland and run the last 9 miles of the couse back.  Following the run, everyone would socialize and catch up.  Thursday was to be the last 'hoorah' for the Thursday night runs; instead, it was a time to chat with runners about the events of the week and have a tremendous support network around.  With the craziness of the week, seeing friends on Thursday & Friday evening was a good way to end the week.

Crossroads with DFMC teammates and other runners

I'm not sure when I'll merge the events of the last week into a single experience, but having signed up for Boston's Run to Remember 1/2 Marathon in late May seems entirely appropriate this year.  While I still have not made a decision about running Boston next year with DFMC, the events of the past week have made me strongly reconsider my initial thoughts about not running. Like so many other runners, the events of the week make me want to run again next year, rather than deter me from running again. As I said before, I can run, I can support cancer research and I can do more.

Recovering, on many levels...

Thank you to everyone for your support, thoughts and offers to chat or get together if needed.

Before writing more about the race and my experience yesterday, I still need some time to process the events that took place yesterday afternoon.  I've had a hard time wrapping my head around what to think, feel and take away from yesterday.  On a day where so many of us run for charities important to us and have raised funds for these causes and thus run with the support of so many people, the senseless act of violence is in stark contrast to what the day is about.

I was able to finish the race approximately 2 minutes before the blasts and was standing about 75 yards away when the first went off.   After being shepherded away from the finish area by BAA staff and emergency personnel, I was able to help in a small way providing my cell phone to several other runners to contact their family.  I was able to finally contact mom and Amy and eventually connect with them at the team hotel.  Of course, 2 of the best hugs I have ever received ensued.

Hearing from DFMC today, we now know that while all runners and staff are ok, 2 family members of a teammate were seriously injured.  A coworker watching the marathon was also injured.  Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

I continue to wrestle with the conflicting emotions of celebrating the accomplishment in the context of tragedy.  I am trying to take some thoughts away from the DFMC pasta party and David Weinstock's speech.  David spoke of the impact of cancer and how it takes away too much...not only the direct impact on those directly affected, but the impact on all those who know individuals impacted by cancer...too much life, too much happiness, too much.  Thinking about that in regards to yesterday, to let these events take away the lives of 3 people and injure so many, to take away the enjoyment and experience of yesterday, but also reflecting on our training, our fundraising accomplishments and why we ran, that would be too much.  I find that hard to say as I'm still struggling with it, but it is what I'm striving for.

To conclude for now, I entered yesterday's race convinced I would not run DFMC again next year.  After the events of yesterday, I am reevaluating those thoughts because I can run, I can support cancer research and I can do more.  Time will tell.

Less than 24hrs...

At this time tomorrow I'll be about 13.1 miles into my 26.2 mile journey from Hopkinton to Copley.  Luckily, I've already run part of the course this morning, or at least the last 1 mile or so.  Today was the BAA 5K (or baby unicorn race as some are calling it) and a good chance to stretch the legs out after all this tapering.  Amy and I decided to break out the new shoes as we kick off the BAA Distance Medley.  The medley covers the BAA 5K, 10K (June) and 1/2 Marathon (Oct).  

 With the marathon tomorrow, I had no plans to 'race' this race, but we ran a respectable 29 min race.  Amy even mastered the art of picture taking while running, capturing this awesome image of me running and others at the finish...

  

 

3.1 miles completed, 26.2 miles to go...

After the run this morning, we have the DFMC pasta party this afternoon to remind all the runners why we have trained so hard the last 16 weeks, why we did all the fundraising and what will inspire us tomorrow.  I know that I am looking forward to it.  As a fun little activity yesterday, Mom, Amy and I went to The Paint Bar to paint the marathon finish, or at least an interpretation of it.  After telling all us Type A personalities to relax and not worry about lines that were not straight or colors mixing, we proceeded let our creative sides out and create our masterpieces!  

Yesterday we painted the finish, today Amy and I ran through it and tomorrow I'll finish my 2nd DFMC experience running on the support of family and so many friends, running Running in Honor Of and in Memory Of many individuals.  If you're on the course tomorrow, look for me in the stylish DFMC singlet...

BAA Expo & DFMC Registration

Today started the final preparations for Monday.  I went to the BAA Expo at Hynes Convention Center, got my number and swag bag!  I also picked up my number for the BAA 5K on Sunday AM.  Yup, I'm running both BAA races this weekend and will run a total of 29.3 miles in <30 hours.  We'll see how well this strategy pays off on Monday, but the Sunday race should prepare the muscles for Monday.

After the BAA registration and meandering around the expo (but resisting the urge to buy lots of expensive items) I went to the DFMC registration at the Marriott Copley.  This year I actually remembered my forms and was prepared for the process.  In addition to picking up all the DFMC materials, I also got to pick up my "Pace$etter" patch to wear on my singlet.  This patch is given to all runners who raise $8000.  I wear this patch this Monday and thank all the individuals who have helped me raise over $11,500 for DFCI and Claudia Adams Barr Program in Innovative Basic Cancer Research.

More to come this weekend, and hopefully some pictures...

6 Days to Go...

Wow, it's been an incredible last week...$1,880 raised in the last week alone!!  That brings the grand total raised to $10,757 from over 150 donors!  The support from so many new and repeat donors has been incredible and your support and generosity will be a huge motivating factor come Monday.

Speaking of Monday, I'm not sure about others, but I've been checking out weather.com every day for the last week or so.  Today's forecast is for 63-64F as a high with partly sunny skies.  While this is not an ideal temperature range (I'd prefer about 45-50F) it is substantially better than this year.  There's still time for the weather to move up or down, but fingers crossed that it stays dry at the very least.

As for my current training, I'm continuing to taper and last week ran a grand total of ~21 miles, many at a much slower pace than past runs.  This week will be about the same distance though I'll also be running on Sunday in the BAA 5K as a warmup race.  Though I won't be racing this race, I'll use it as a nice opportunity to stretch out my legs and get warmed up for the marathon on Monday.  We'll see how well this strategy works.  As for the race itself, I'm definitely getting excited for Monday and there's only a few days of work and the weekend to get through!

Fundraisers, Long Run and 1st week of Taper

I didn't realize that it had been over 2 weeks since updating the blog!  Apologies to all those waiting for the next edge-of-your-seat exciting post :)

So for everyone's enjoyment, I'm going to attempt to be brief tonight.  I will undoubtedly leave out details, but if you're truly interested in hearing the details, drop me an e-mail or call or message on facebook or whatever.

On March 20th, I had another fundraiser at the Asgard with a raffle for the numerous donated and purchased gifts from so many generous people.  A great group of coworkers and friends turned out to support the cause and DFMC!  We had a great night and between both fundraisers raised ~$1,500 before any company matches!  A very nice success and everyone left the bar happy.  Thanks to everyone who came out, who has donated to DFMC and who has supported me in my training and fundraising over the last 16 weeks.  As of tonight, we have raised ~$8,500 for DFMC and I'm within $1,500 of my goal!

On March 23rd, the DFMC team gathered at BC to start our 22 mile training run!  My 'normal' group ended up going to Hopkinton and running in on the marathon route but I chose the out-and-back approach, getting a little more work on the hills.  Also, for the first time this training season, I used my headphones the entire time.  I wanted to run the training run that I wanted...not getting caught up going to fast just to stay with a group.  Yes I ignored the social aspect, but this was me trying to be smart in this training run.  I managed a nice slow run though my Garmin freaked out on the way back to BC so I don't actually know how good of a run it was.  According to my watch I ran some miles in ~4-5 minutes!!  Guess I was really speedy :) Overall it was a great run and I felt good at the end of it, which is the best outcome one could hope for.

Since March 23, I've been in taper mode.  This has been even more critical as I tweaked a hamstring at last week's track workout.  I've been taking it easy, foam rolling every day/night and even skipped the 'long run' this weekend in favor of rest.  It was hard but apparently I'm getting a bit wiser in my old age.  Today I skipped the track workout and instead had a nice run of ~6 miles in the 20-30mph winds around Boston.  Let's hope that we don't have such winds on marathon day, at least not a head wind!  Speaking of weather, if you're interested, Accuweather.com offers a 25 day forecast and right now, April 15 is looking pretty good.  Fingers crossed it stays this way!

I'm lacking any pictures from the fundraiser, including pictures of the amazing cake that Selina and Kiss My Kakes put together.  I'll post those this weekend along with some more updates hopefully.  Now that we're in taper mode I hope to have a little free time to update the blog before April 15th