After many false starts, re-dos, and uncertainties, Boston Marathon 2020, the very flat, Indiana, virtual edition is a wrap. I wasn’t even sure if I wanted to do a virtual marathon, but I am so glad I did. This was really the best for so many reasons.
Since I travel for most of my marathons, I usually push through the wear and tear of airplanes or long road trips, disrupted sleep, and eating only restaurant foods. To be able to sleep in my own bed, cook my own pre-race meal, and to have a start line in my own neighborhood felt so relaxed and easy.
Being at home also meant my people could be there, and that was a total game changer. Several people asked me for info about my race plans, but I certainly didn’t expect to see anyone first thing. Lydia surprised me at the crack of seven a.m. at my starting location with Boston signs and a mini start line printed out. It was so touching that she found all of the downloads, took the time to print them out, and got up so early just to send me off.
I felt ready to go, and her energy (and high kicks! because with Lydia, there are almost always high kicks) just pumped me up even more. The sun hadn’t quite come up yet, so it was dark and cool. Perfect marathon weather.
Louie biked the whole race with me, playing music through a portable speaker and carrying my fluids. He decked his bike out with a hand made flag with streamers that said “Outta da waaaaay!!! Freakin’ Virtual Boston Marathon in progress.” He also told me I was in first place, which made me laugh. It definitely felt like an elite experience to have a personal bike escort!
26.2 miles at a runner’s pace is a long time to be in the saddle. If it bothered Louie at all, he didn’t let on. In fact, (and maybe this is TMI, but oh well) when a song really grabbed him, he couldn’t help but dance while biking. This involved a little booty shaking, and the flag on his bike waved back and forth like a wagging tail. It was the ultimate in adorable husband moments watching him shake that little booty.
I had planned a loop course, connecting many of my favorite run spots in Indy. From the Monon, to the Cultural Trail, to the Canal Walk downtown, the White River Trail, the Towpath, a loop through Rocky Ripple, along the White River to Arden and Riverview, passing the Art Center back to the Monon through Broad Ripple, with a finish along the Towpath and through Meridian-Kessler.
First, we headed south on the Monon into downtown. There was fog hanging over the skyline. I noticed the trees along the Monon and White River Trail just starting to yellow with the coming autumn. We found a nice rhythm, aided by uncanny traffic luck—not a single stop in all of downtown Indy. While we were passing NCAA headquarters and IUPUI campus I thought I was about to hit 7 miles, but it was actually almost 9. We were ticking them off without me even realizing it.
My crew showed up at several places throughout and I just felt overwhelmed and grateful. Ty timed her morning run to cross paths with me on the Canal Walk downtown. She was running with a friend I don’t know, and she cheered for me too. Cheers from a stranger, just like a real race!
At the half way mark, Lydia, Cindy, and River camped out at the old Armory with 13.1 signs. They even got April spectating via FaceTime all the way from South Jersey. With a slight uphill, this was the perfect spot for some extra friend motivation. Cindy and River cheered again as they biked passed us on the Towpath (heading to their next spectating spot, though I didn’t know that at the time).
Because I love the stretches of road on either side of the White River in Arden and North Broad Ripple, I couldn’t resist including that in my loop. As we crossed the bridge over Meridian Street at mile 20, Louie joked: “A hill at mile 20! Rough. Who made this course?” The laughter got me up the hill, and we found our friends waiting on the other side on Arden. They had stopped for an apple fritter for Louie in case he needed fuel too. Have I mentioned that these people are the best? Because they really are. And Louie saved a big hunk of it for me. Generous, thoughtful people all around.
This course also entailed me hopping over a guard rail after the College Avenue bridge, then descending a steep hill to get back onto Riverview Road. In the course of a normal run, no big deal. I do this little maneuver all the time. At mile 21, not the best idea. But again I laughed: What idiot mapped this route?!? (In case you hadn’t figured that out, it was me. All me.)
We had our first significant traffic stops as we headed into Broad Ripple. The sun was breaking through the clouds and for the first time I was noticing the heat and missing the sunglasses I forgot to grab in the low dawn light.
Again maybe TMI, but this a marathon recap, so bodily functions are fair game, right? By this point I also needed to pee pretty bad. I had passed up a lot of my bathroom options, and I wasn’t sure there would be another unless I ducked into a Broad Ripple restaurant (which seemed like a big time suck). I had resigned myself to waiting it out until the finish. I’ve never made it a whole marathon without having to pee, and to be honest, I was going to be pretty proud if I could. I marvel at the super humans who can hold it. But the full bladder was slowing me down, and my energy was dipping. Nothing hurt. I just was flagging.
Right before turning toward the Art Center I spotted a porta-potty at Opti Park. What a savior. I was able to enjoy the rest of the race and savor the finish line fun thanks to that bathroom.
We had another long stop waiting to cross College Ave. to get back to the Towpath. All of the stops combined made it harder for me to get back up to speed. If I’d had a strict time goal or been in a real race, I might have had the motivation to push harder, but I was there for joy. I decided to let go of pace and cruise in.
My friends showed up again at mile 25, this time joined by Whitney with little Elliot. There were dance moves and high kicks, and they gave me such a boost. Then, Louie and I got to laugh at me once again as we crested the hill on Pennsylvania. Who plans a hill at mile 26? Oh yeah. This girl. Overall, I’d planned a very flat course, but it was fun to joke about the timing of the hills I included.
As I came up Central Ave. toward the finish, I saw my friends holding up a finish tape, traffic be damned. Some neighbors (who I don’t know) joined them to cheer, just because they happened to be out and about and thought it was cool. My friends told me later that one woman said: “Let me put a bra on, I’m coming over!” I mean, a stranger put a bra on for me!
Since I’ve never come close to winning a race before, it was something special to fly through the break tape… and then I kept going. I should have been at 26.4 according to the mapped route, but my GPS was lagging, with the Boston app even further behind. I wanted to make sure the run counted, so I kept going. What’s another mile? Just going for a low-key ultra. By Louie’s count, I went a total of 28 miles.
I got to re-do the finish, because this crew wouldn’t have it any other way but to set it back up. Cindy handed me a cookie in place of a medal and said I looked like I could have gone at least ten more miles (which is a truly a flattering and wonderful thing to say to a sweaty, tired human who just finished a marathon). Louie mixed up a Tailwind recovery drink for me. Whitney danced. Lydia surprised me with a box full of pastries from Rene’s, a stellar bakery. They made me feel so loved.
While I didn’t want to put a lot of pressure on myself, I couldn’t help but hope to be sub-4. I didn’t post the goal publicly, but I told Louie and a few friends. My official Garmin time was 3:50:30 at 26.21 miles. That makes this my third best marathon, after Missoula and Louisiana. Glad to know even with missing a couple of key long runs (due to the whole tail bone/grief fiasco), my lifetime fitness compensates somewhat. And I did feel good after. I think I could actually have gone ten more miles, maybe further, albeit at a slower pace.
My other goal (and really the most important one of the day) was to finish with joy, and thanks to all the wonderful people who showed up for me, I mega-crushed that goal.
The details:
Boston Marathon (virtual) in Indianapolis, Indiana
September 12, 2020
Marathon #14
Weather: 64º at the start, overcast, warming to 79º
Finish time: 3:50:30
SPECTACULAR!!!! Congratulations to you! And what a fantastic support crew, too! 🙂
Thank you! I count myself lucky, indeed!
I love everything about this!!!!!
Love everything about you, my friend! Thanks for making a virtual appearance at my virtual race!