Boston: Week 16

One week...

Hopkinton is waiting for me.

There is no more training I can do that will change anything next Monday.  There are no more long runs.  No more hill repeats.  No more speedwork.

The only thing I can do now is screw something up. Try to make up miles - I won't.  Step in front of a bus - I hope I won't.  Catch a cold. Stub my toe. Whatever.  I'm sure I'll be fine.

I could obsess about the weather.  I won't...although I do check the forecast every now and then just to make sure I know what to pack.  Rain or shine, I'll be on that start line, and (hopefully) three hours and fifteen minutes later, I'll be in Boston.

If it weren't for the support I get at home, even if they think I am a little bit crazy, I would not have been able to do any of this.  My girls are the best.

I watched "Spirit of the Marathon" last week.  The individual stories within that movie are inspiring, and it is a good reminder that just being there is an achievement in itself.  However, there is a mystique to the marathon that is hard to describe - one that I wasn't looking for and didn't expect to see - and the movie captures that to some extent. Once I did one, I was hooked.

It reminded me of a thought that has occurred to me before.  I don't say it much out loud because I really don't want to sound like I am patting myself on the back.  That is hardly the case.  However, I realize how truly lucky I am to have been able to make the changes I did when I did in order to be able to even train for a 10k, let alone a half-marathon.  I am humbled and even more in awe of myself that I finished under 3:30 on my first try and qualified for Boston on my second try.  Who does that?

I've never regretted anything in my life.  It serves no purpose.  But I have to admit a twinge of regret at not realize that I could do this when I was 30.  What might I have been able to do?

Regardless, Monday, April 18 is all about what I still can do.  I can finish.  I can most likely finish under 3:30:00.  I can maybe set a PR and hit my goal of 3:15:00.  No matter what, I will be prepared and I will try my hardest...and I will not be disappointed with the result.

Boston Marathon Finish Line - Boylston Street