Goon Squad Runners
Boston - From the eyes of a Cougar
Written by Cougar
Friday, 30 April 2010
So, my initial goal was to keep a good solid base and walk away from Boston healthy and ready for some hard training for my fall marathon. As many of you know, I was thrown a curve ball early on with a broken foot and a cast for a few weeks. Mentally it took some wind out of my sails but figured at this point if I could run Boston it would be strictly for fun and I would NOT stress over the training. I missed many runs due to motherly duties but never really stressed because I was confident I could do the distance.
I decided to run for Team Donate Life to help raise awareness for organ and tissue donation. I was in contact with a couple of families and a woman with Cystic Fibrosis who is waiting for healthy lungs. I put Matty B and Adam Slaven(both donors) as well as Sheila's name on my singlet. They were my angels on marathon day.
I definitely wasn't focused on this race because, I almost forgot to pack a jog bra and I did forget to pack my pajama's and food for marathon morning. It's not easy being a Mom. Thank God my husband pieced it together for me(clothes/food). I was totally winging it!! NOT LIKE ME!!!!
Race morning, I hooked up with my GOON buddies and it was great walking together to the starting line. I got into Mamacita's corral and was nervous about keeping up with her. I didn't know what kind of fitness I had due to the lack of training. I told her I would stay with her as long as I could. The pace felt very comfortable (much to my surprise) so I stuck with it. I prayed to my angels before the hills and they really came through. Steve and I had run the last 10 miles the weekend before so I just imagined him running with me. The BEST part was seeing the GOON FLAG waving and it was PUSHER!!! I ran to him and blew him a kiss. Thanks PUSHER for being there!!
As I went through BC I was looking for Warrior and Judge but the crowds were INSANE!!!! I've never seen BC like that!! I knew I was still feeling great so I continued the pace. I have never felt so good in this marathon but I feel I'm starting to figure out this course. I wanted to feel good at the end so I waited to get over the hills to see what I had left. I'm not sure when I lost Cristina but we did very well keeping the pace in check early on. It was cool seeing Mrs Triage too! I had my ipod in but for some reason I looked over and there she was! (GOON GOD intervention) I was shocked to cross the finish line in the time I did.(3:19!) 7 minute Boston PR so I guess I had some fitness left over from Chicago! I walked back to Kenmore Sq to catch the bus back with a Gate City Strider.
He and I were interviewed by NESN!! We answered 3 questions about the marathon and won $80!! It was a FANTASTIC day all around!! I wish I had the BIG G singlet on but sometimes it's important to run for others less fortunate than us. I look forward to wearing the BIG G this summer!
I LOVE THE GOONS!!
Cougar
Groton 5K
Written by Thundergod
Friday, 30 April 2010
In early April, Heather talked her friend Anisha into doing a road race. It would be her first. We were all very excited for her. In fact, she was so excited that she in turn talked her husband Andrew, much to his dark and stormy chagrin, into joining us.
After some back and forth, we settled on the Groton 5K Road Race. The location was perfect, close enough to both of our houses, and the event was big yet had a local hometown vibe. I was all for it. Only, there was a slight problem. The race was less than a week after the quad-trashing Boston Marathon. Would I be recovered enough, I wondered, to race a 5K only 6 days after Boston? I didn’t know. But I was willing to find out.
With a left upper quad still tight, I spent the morning of the race working the kinks out, smoothing the muscle, and stretching whatever I could. Although it was only a day earlier when I felt a little pop come back into my legs and in my basic energy levels, all normal in the aftermath of racing a marathon, I was hopeful that with some work on the quad, mixed with a little race morning magic of adrenaline fired once the gun went off, I would be fine. I knew I would likely not be peak for my current ability, but I also knew that I’d be well enough to perhaps compete for the Master’s division and the cash prize that went along with it. Having looked at prior year results, I also knew that I would have to run well under 18 minutes.
After arriving, picking up race packets, and meeting up with Anisha and Andrew, I set out back to the car to drop belongings and then jump into a warm-up. It took a few strides to get the legs moving freely. The area is quite hilly, so although I would have rather of had a flat stretch to rev the engine, get the legs turning over, I settled for a nice downhill section, which was by chance the beginning of the course. A few times up and down, I was ready. My left quad was staying glued and feeling okay for the task ahead.
Before long I found myself on the starting line, where I wiggled my way into the front line. I took note of the some familiar faces – those I knew to be fast – and a handful of high school track stars. The familiar faces are known entities, but the youngsters are wildcards; they always range from kickass fast to watch-your-back/don’t-slow-down-or-I’ll-catch-you fast. You can never tell which they are until they are. I would find out later that there were a few of each.
This starting line was actually quite fun. There were a few chatty guys, one of whom knew the course and answered all of my questions (fast start, rolling hills, and a big hill at mile 2). The other part that made it cool was that my dear friend Cheryl (Cak), who was doing the 10K race later in the day, was behind the roped fence marking the course about 20 yards up. I waved. She waved back. I made silly gestures. She sent up some of her own. Even her husband Tom got in the act. We had our own language, just the three of us.
A moment later two muskets fired into the morning sky. The race was started. For some reason, I couldn’t help but laugh as I struggled to stay in the lead with the swarm of front row runners. Out of the school the course went, down a hill, hard left, and now, finally, the pretenders were falling off while the stallions were jockeying into position. My legs were pumping fluently, feeling good, my quad holding strong, as I worked in a large front pack of 25 with three, then four, and then five and six guys going off the front.
By a half mile in, I was sitting in 20th place and working my way up. Mile 1 came in 5:40, about what I expected, when I had moved into roughly 16th place. Somewhere between Miles 1 and 2, the leaders were mostly out of sight due to the slightly rolling terrain and trees now coming into bloom. No matter. I was still racing my own race. I had to take care of myself and my own breathing before I could fall into racing against others.
With each hill I picked up another one or two place. On the hill at Mile 2 I climbed to about 13th place with two of those high school cross country stars not far up. I was feeling pretty good but I could tell that my breathing was a little choppy in holding a higher pace. I had push when I needed it, but I could tell that the deep residual fatigue of the marathon could loom if I pushed too hard. When I focused on form, that lingering fear of bumping up against the residual fatigue went away. And so that’s what I did. It was all in my head, I told myself. All in my head. Just do what you know you can do.
Mile 2.25 was a water station. I blew through it, grabbing a cup of water and getting in as much as I could before spitting most out – my heart rate was far too high to actually get much in. I had taken the tangent on the road while my high school pals had not, as they cut across to the other side of the road for water. I used it as a chance to make a move. I was now racing, counting positions, looking for a Top 10 finish.
The high school kids caught up to me. At that point I decided that whatever pain I could subject myself to would only last a maximum of five more minutes, and so I through in a surge to gain some clearance. As I pulled away, they chased me with a, “Go get it, man!” And I went to get it. In the process I caught another runner just before the turn back onto school grounds.
Now on school grounds, I could sense I was alone. The guy in front of me was too far up to catch, and those behind me were far enough that I hadn’t heard footsteps or breathing, and as I ran by spectators, I could tell I had their attention rather than someone behind me, meaning I was probably in the clear. But still, with those high school runners, I wasn’t sure.
As the course went up a hill to the track, I knew all I had remaining was 400 yards. A spectator confirmed my standing in the race: “Tenth place, looking good.” From that point on, all the way down and around the bend in the track, I was running scared. Something, someone, was behind me. Could I hold? Focus on form, turn those legs over… go, go, go I went. Saw my friend Cak but had little energy for anything more than a smile and a weak wave. Around I went all out fearing the reaper, hoping for the best. Finally around the bend, I was able to make out the finish line, and as soon as I saw it I knew 10th place was mine. Of 894 entries, it was a good day.
Turned out I was out of the money of being 1st Master’s runner by two positions.
Anisha and Andrew held their own. Anisha felt great and was already thinking about a next race while Andrew, as long as there’s a good after-party, could be talked into it. And after our own little celebration at a nearby brewery, I think he is on for another!
Finish: 18:17
Pace: 5:53 min/mile
10th place of 894 overall
2nd place Masters (Age 40+)
All downhill to Boston
Written by Codfather
Friday, 30 April 2010
I just don't get it. Why I would train 60-80 miles a week then race a course that made ground-chuck out of my guads but never taxed my cardio, upper body, lower legs and my cerebral mantel. As a first time runner of Boston I just don’t get it. I like to think a marathon is an all embracing spiritual event, one that tests every level of training leaving the results to speak for itself. One could dress-up a race and say it’s the oldest in the world, the most historic, safe to day it’s got the best race director that ever walked the planet, the best fans, the best volunteers, posts the fastest field, sponsors through tons of cash on enfistructure and comforts at the start and finish and top it off with unprecedented support on every level on the course. Strip away Boston’s accolades and adornments and measure the course against ones past marathon training and expectations learned from other marathons and what is left at its purest form? Are we left with a one dimensional downhill bombshell that taxes only one muscle group? Counter point: one could say BayState is a one dimensional marathon: all flat never taxing our up and down training. Let’s face it, Bay State doesn’t stand in Boston’s shadow, it’s a race for us locals who want to sleep in our own bed and be home to make lunch for the kids.
Could I be whining about my lack of experience with the course? Should I have followed David Hall’s advice and trained hard on the course on 80% of my long runs. Would that have helped me with the downhill portions? Should I have gone from 10.1% body fat to 9.1% to help relieve the cumulative impact the quads took running the first 16 miles? Let’s face it; the fleet-footed and thin runners are much better equipped to handle the rigors of Boston than “us”, with average runner’s body mass. I’m going out on a limb here so why bother being PC, might as well hang myself fastidiously. I wonder how the Clydesdales handle this course. Ouch! Moving on to cardio. I plowed my way through endless speed and tempo runs only to have my cardio hover around the 142 range (with exception of the last ½ mile at the finish). What about my upper body and lower leg conditioning – that too was never taxed and my mental state was clear and focused the whole race. Heck, I can tell you what Dan Frank and my good friend Robbie were wearing at the top of heartbreak and the horror in Dan’s eyes when he saw me in red, hey Jay, you look great in Blue and yellow the color suits you. The real key in determining metal fatigue is the ability to quantify race completion time at the 40K mark, I computed it exactly: 37 seconds off pace minus my mat time at the start.
Never again ~ I’m done with Boston.
Humm. Guess I’ll miss being home in my ice bath 1 hour after Boston. If I run London next year; I’ll just have to suck up the lousy food and terrible hotels. If I run Paris I’ll have to buff up on my French and not shower for 6 days to fit in. I guess I’ll miss the bus ride to Hopkinton. I’ll miss meeting of my entire group 1A: Frank, Brian, Glenn and Tina at the start in our own corral talking smack and relieving ourselves under the cloak of Market Basket leaf bags and seeing #2 son Ryan at 17 right before heartbreak. I did enjoy chatting up a few auslander aus Deutschland auf Deutsche und wishing them a great stay in our fair city. Will I miss the inordinate masses of the well traveled, the foreign body types and colors? Made me long for world travel, felt like I was on a world tour. I did kind-a-really-like the eye candy at Wellesley and the noise they had piped-in from a prerecorded Patriots division win. I will miss tipping the message person a 20 and seeing the look on her face when I said, “You complete me”. I will miss the women’s elite start which if you were lucky enough to see was real tear-jerker, the best of the best sporting game faces that would comfortably scare the Winter Hill Gang. Ok, I’ll miss Al P. insisting to accompany me to the bus at the finish with his infectious smile and warm demeanor and knowing that the bus will have me home 1 hour after my finish. Who was the genius to have stocked Budweiser on the bus back from Boston? Yummy.
Well maybe next year if I do run Boston I could do my long runs on the course, loose just 1% of body mass and give Frank and Brian something to think about, and if I work on strengthening my quads with light weights just a bit, perhaps I could challenge one of them in a foot race at the finish completely winded, running a runners race; mentally incapable of thinking, heart rate red-lined at 280 BPM, breathing as if I was on deaths door, muscles starving for all manner of glycogen, body drained of every once of feeling and begging for and ice bath and a cold Bud on the slow ride home from my beloved Boston. Yea, I’m differently done for now………but maybe I’m all in for next year, this town owns me now and forever. Yea, I’m done with Boston just not yet.
Donald Chapelle
Last Updated ( Saturday, 01 May 2010 )
NEW GOON ANNOUNCEMENT
Written by Bentley and Tank
Monday, 26 April 2010
The Goon Squad Runners welcome 2 new Goons to the Squad.
Thor Kirleis - appropriately named Thunder God and Deb Johnson Mangia (as she is said to be a fantastic cook)
Welcome Thunder God and Mangia! Ruff Ruff.
photos courtesy Jim Rhoades & the Departed
Last Updated ( Monday, 26 April 2010 )
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