I didn’t know what to expect going into the race. Everyone kept asking me how I felt and I just shrugged. I had a great half marathon in Charlotte VT in September, and successfully upped my mileage a bit from previous training cycles. But I had struggled to hit splits in my workouts, and long runs had been slower .I joined a local group run for my shakeout. I felt fine, dialed in and ready to go, and finished on Boylston street, staring down the finish line with a smile. Boston was back. 

Monday morning I took the T to the Boston Common to meet some friends and take the bus to Hopkinton. We arrived at the start, fiddled around for a few, and off we went with a shrug. Boston 2021 was a rolling start; it felt odd to just go, without the standard standing around in a crowd of thousands of our closest friends.

The first 10 miles flew by. It was a nice steady but fast pace that felt comfortable in a way unique to a marathon you’ve built up to over many months. I told my friend Matt I was going to dial it back a touch. He agreed that was probably prudent, and asked me to lead. Of course a few minutes later he took the lead again and I sat on his heels, unwilling to let him get away, even if it was a little faster than I wanted. Around this time I had my first Upper Valley sighting, as we passed my training buddy Kyle who was going at a smarter, slightly steadier pace. Shortly thereafter I veered across the road to high five my wife Cindy, who had made her way to Natick to cheer for me. This was pretty fun!

Around mile 11 we caught and passed Shalane Flanagan, who was having a quick chat with her pacer, immune to the cheers of support from the crowds. A little before the halfway point we went through the Wellesley Scream Tunnel.  I had ignored this feature the first time I ran Boston in 2019, sticking to the middle of the road, but this year I caved to the peer pressure of a friend in front of me and high fived as many of the screaming ladies as I could. Up another hill, and as things were starting to get uncomfortable I had my second Upper Valley sighting, Kyle and Sara cheering on the right side of the road.  I veered across for more high fives and a little boost of speed. As we went through the half the big sign said something like 1:20, which meant the pace was looking pretty good.

The Newton Hills were next, and as my pace slowed I feared this could be a breaking point. Over the highway, and a right on Comm Ave past the firehouse. Just get to the Somerville Road Runners cheer zone at 30K and look decent when you pass all your friends there, I told myself. We kept cruising, my friend Matt and I arriving together. The noise of the cheers gave me another boost of speed, high fives all around as I took a feed. Not particularly hungry, but I gulped down the maple syrup, hoping for a boost. Heartbreak Hill was hard, but I felt steadier than in 2019. Maybe all those Upper Valley hills are good for something! A giant cheer from my physical therapist, small child on her shoulders, gave me the boost I needed to get up and over. All downhill from here, sort of.

I was really hurting, but the noise was getting louder, almost deafening. I heard cheers for Shalane and understood. I held her off for a minute or two, feeding off the noise, until she passed me never to be seen again. Down into the city, things really hurt, but I just kept putting one foot in front of the other, not looking at my watch. It turns out my pace wasn’t quite as slow as it felt; a testament to all the base miles over the summer. Before I knew it I was taking a right onto Hereford, gritting out the last stretch. Cindy was somewhere in the deafening crowd and later remarked that I looked worse than I ever had at the end of the race. Left onto Boylston. I knew this stretch was deceptively long and I was ready for it. I emptied the tank to finish strong, knowing I could collapse after the finish and be done. Before I knew it I was crossing the line.

My time of 2:40 was a touch slower than the last time I ran the race, but close enough to be happy with, and my overall placing a little higher. But I had forgotten just how amazing of a race Boston is. What feels like the whole state is out there cheering for you, and it was great to be back.