Tuesday, April 22, 2008

2008 Boston Marathon



Quick trip, but I Chinatown-bused it to Boston Sunday night, staying at Kassie/Dave's to catch Monday's race. Dave's teaching at Wellesley, w/ K & D living right on campus. This is exactly the halfway point in the marathon--and a new vantage point for me, as when I've watched races in the past, it's been the finish line I'm parked at, or in the case of NYC, close to the start.

Taking it all in at 13.1 was a different experience, then. Runners have generally found their rhythm and held it for a while by now, which is of course welcome, but 13.1 is also the start of those can-be-torturous middle miles, w/ the beginning well-behind yet the end still far from seeming likely/real. This is why the infamous scream tunnel kinda saves the day--distracting/encouraging for at least a mile or so. Oddly I didn't hear much of anything, having stood a ways down the road from it. That there were like a million cowbells in full effect had to have masked a bit, too.

Anyway, per usual, seeing that first pack of elites emerge (this race: women first, followed by the mens a half hour later) made me almost pee myself. It's insane how fast they're going, how fast they've been going for an entire hour, and how fast they'll continue to go for another hour still. And though as a group form/gait was impressive overall, I was surprised to see a few of the frontrunners looking more than a little ragged. Like, arms were flying around to a surprising degree. I don't know, this is probably routine, strange to me only because of the vantage point newness.

It was especially stirring to watch the Kenyans pass this year, realizing/imagining the challenge of training in their home country in recent months.

I somehow missed seeing ol' Lance go by (one dressed like a bee), who missed his 2:45 goal by five minutes. Also missed a hell of a (women's) finish...

Kassie and I were talking later about how it's pretty surreal, witnessing the aftermath of such an event--several overfilled trash cans and chucked orange wedges the only evidence of 25,000 runners having passed through town not an hour earlier. And given the holiday, several of the shops were closed, making the streets extra-still. Waiting for Kass to drop her ma off at the train station, I stretched out on a curbside bench, sun on my forehead, and napped in total peace.

Yeah, so it was great to see K & D, as that's a trip I'd meant to take much sooner. They're both tearin' it up w/ their respective art, w/ D just recently commissioned to paint a huge wraparound mural in this prominent campus building. K's stuff never ceases to amaze, and it's been fun to watch her style shift in the years I've known her. Totally inspiring, the both of 'em.

Now if I'd only managed to return home w/ my phone charger, jacket, etc., etc., etc. Long sigh/par for the course.

Also running related: If you live in/around good ol' Kent, WA, do go here. Chef's a good man.

Posted by princess kanomanom @ 8:07 AM