Marathon Complete!

DFMC #4 and Boston 2015 are complete!  What started off as a great weekend with BAA events, family coming into town for the marathon and a good run on a rainy, windy day, ended with a wheelchair ride and using crutches the rest of the week.  I'll get to that in a bit but some pictures from the weekend...

We got to see Team Hoyt in the BAA 5K

We hit the BAA Expo to pick up our bibs and peruse the gear

We couldn't pass up a tasting of Sam Adams 26.2 Brew.  It was afternoon somewhere!

We walked by the sites of the bombings 2 years ago and ran for those affected by the bombings

Some nice weather and grabbing a quick photo near the John Hancock VIP seating area

The Team Fundraising chart - $4.5 Million raised so far!

Cards in Honor of RJ and in Memory of my Grandmother and Aunt

Premarathon Pic in Hopkinton

Last words of advice from Jack Fultz, our team coach and 1976 Boston Marathon winner

Starting corral in the rain and wind.  The first 13 miles were wet and chilly; the last 13 were windy and chilly

High-five line at Mile 25!

Stopping to see family just before the finish line.  You can't see it, but I was in a lot of pain at this point

The finish line on a nicer day and a sight that I was soooo happy to see!

One last photo after completing the marathon!

Thanks to more than 140 donors, we have raised more than $13,000 this year for DFMC and innovative cancer research at Dana-Farber.  These donations and this support was what helped me complete this year's marathon.  I knew that I might have some hip pain during the marathon, but looking back I'm not exactly sure how I completed the race.  With about 4 miles to go, I had to start alternating running with walking/limping.  Running through Mile 25 and exchanging ~50 high-fives with DFMC supporters I knew I would make it the final 1.2 miles.  I thought of RJ, my grandmother and all those that I ran in honor of and in memory of during these last few miles.  With these thoughts and the mile 25 energy motivating me, I ran all of Boylston St and crossed the finish line.  It wasn't pretty but I made it!

After finishing the race, the BAA medical staff gave me a nice wheelchair ride toward the DFMC hotel.  Training through a historic winter, running the marathon in the rain and wind and finishing with my 2nd fastest time in Boston (no idea how this happened!), 2015 is a year I won't forget.  Luckily my muscles are relaxing a bit and I can start to put some weight on my right leg now.  I hope to be off crutches soon, but don't think I'll be running for a few weeks/months.

More than $1,000 in a week!

It is really amazing that we've raised another $1,000+ for DFMC in the last week!  This is based on new donations and with some company matches, we have a great chance of passing $13,100 this year!  Thank you again for all the support and making DFMC #4 a successful year.

Monday is shaping up to be a good day and hopefully the rain in the afternoon holds off until we finish.  Starting around 11.20am, I'm likely to cross the finish line some time around 3.15-30pm, hopefully.

Boston is getting the blue and yellow out and painting the start and finish lines.  After 1 Boston Day yesterday and the 2 year anniversary of the 2013 marathon, it will be great to be out there on Monday, running for DFMC, running in honor of and in memory of those battling cancer and running in appreciation of everyone's support you've provided again this year.  Thank you again and hope to see many people out on the course!

History of DFMC

Being the 26th year of DFMC, I only recently heard how DFMC and the Barr Program began.  Here's a link to an article of the history and the first few paragraphs are pasted below.  Please see the running.competitor.com article for the full history...

Boston Marathon champion-turned-coach Jack Fultz didn’t entirely comprehend what he was getting involved with back in 1989.

Fultz, who studied Business Finance at Georgetown University, was also a successful collegiate track athlete for the Hoyas. Turning to the marathon once he completed his NCAA eligibility, Fultz ran a blistering 2:11:17 (4^th at Boston in 1978), two years after winning the 1976 Boston Marathon in arduous 100-degree conditions, affectionately nicknamed the “Run for the Hoses.” His marathoning career began during his four-year Coast Guard stint prior to Georgetown.

Years later, as Fultz’s running career began to wane, he started coaching. While he enjoyed mentoring both high school and adult marathon runners, it wasn’t until Fultz agreed to coach his friend, Mike Silverstein, a freshman at Harvard University, for the 1989 Boston Marathon, that he had a notion of where this may all lead. He had no idea just how successful this marathon fundraising enterprise would become.

Silverstein’s close friend, Seth Feldman, then a freshman at Dartmouth College, had recently succumbed to the brain cancer that he battled at Dana-Farber’s Jimmy Fund Clinic.

And from here, DFMC and the Barr Program were started!

http://running.competitor.com/2015/04/boston-marathon/dana-farber-and-jack-fultz-forerunners-of-marathon-charity_126233

DFMC and the Schilling's

Shonda Schilling Running Boston Marathon To Thank Dana Farber Cancer Institute « CBS Boston



First few paragraphs are below:

BOSTON (CBS) — Shonda and Curt Schilling are both cancer survivors, and this year, Shonda is running the Boston Marathon to say thank you to the Dana Farber Cancer Institute for helping her husband battle throat cancer last year.

“He stayed in the hospital for six weeks, and just one after another the people were so kind and so gentle and so understanding of what we were going through,” said Shonda. “The only thing I feel like I can do to honor them is celebrating what Dana Farber is.”

Last June, Curt celebrated his last treatment at Dana Farber.

7 Days to Go

The 2015 marathon is just 7 short days away! Though this is year 4 of DFMC, I'm still amazed at the immense support from so many people.  We've hit and surpassed the original goal of $11,000 for DFMC thanks to the generosity of more than 130 people.  It really is incredible to me and between all of your support and that of the volunteers along the training routes, I'm lucky to be able to run with DFMC the last 4 years!  I'm not sure if we'll hit the $13,100 mark, but here's hoping!

This last Saturday we had our last group run, covering 10 miles along the course.  I entered the run unsure how my legs would feel.  My calf/achilles had bothered me after our 22 mile run but had been improving.  More recently my right hip had acted up.  Luckily things worked out well on Saturday and I felt good.

Team preparing to head out for the last run

On top of that, it was a gorgeous day and we were able to wear shortsleeves and shorts!  Though the marathon is still a week away, the weather looks encouraging for now: 62F and partly sunny.  For those that would like to track me during the race, the BAA offers several options including the BAA mobile app and Athlete tracking.  My bib # is 26012 and the DFMC team will be starting at ~11.20AM in wave 4.
BAA mobile app:Mobile App Link
Athlete tracking: Athlete Alert Link

Around mile 20 and the Johnny Kelley Statue

Summary of Winter Training for DFMC 2015

Some talented teammates put this together.  What a difference a month and some 50F days make!

Link for the video in case it is not working: https://youtu.be/GzyBkIEfM8I

Disappointing Week of Training

After our 22 mile run last Saturday, I felt really good!  Saturday was a good day and there was no indication that I was going to deal with calf/achilles pain on Sunday.  After waking up Sunday and feeling good, my lower calf (soleus muscle perhaps?) decided to seize up and be in pain the rest of the day.  As much as I tried to stretch and relax it, my leg would not give.

After more stretching and a massage on Monday, there was a little improvement, but nothing noteworthy.  I must have gained some wisdom in my years of running as on Tuesday, I was prepared to not run at all until the marathon.  None of these runs during the next 2 weeks will make a huge difference and my goal is to run the Boston marathon on April 20, not a Thursday run on April 2.

Luckily, I was able to get in and get some treatment on Wed.  I took the rest of the week off and was able to go out for a run today.  I kept it short (7 miles) but felt good overall; a little calf pain on the various hills, but pretty good.  I certainly didn't want to overdo it and we'll see how things feel tomorrow.

Amy and I heading out for our Saturday run

What's been so motivating this week is that after my latest fundraising e-mail, 10 additional donors have contributed to my DFMC efforts and collectively we've raised $9,832 thus far!  It really is incredible that ~120 people have supported my efforts and we're nearing the $10,000 mark this year!!  I can't thank everyone enough for their generosity and support of all my efforts!