SO MUCH FUN!!!!! I know that this isn't my fastest time at Boston, but it is my second fastest time at Boston, and I feel awesome! Got on the buses in plenty of time with Christine and Benny and then just chilled in the Athletes Village for a couple of hours. Did the usual: stand in port a potty lines, write my name on my arm, sip on some water and Gatorade and nibble on some bread and protein bar. The plan was to all start in Christine's corral. First time ever that I had friends to stand with right up to the starting gun. The second part of the plan was to not run out too fast. The third part was to finish. And the fourth part was to feel good enough at the end that I had no reservations about running another marathon in just under 3 weeks! Done, done, done and DONE! So happy!!! :-) I enjoyed the course this year more than ever! Noticed things that I have never noticed before! Saw Santa, noticed all of the names of the little towns we were running through, enjoyed the beautiful Cochicuate Lake, noticed all the signs (especially the one of Ryan Gosling that was a giant shirtless poster of him that said, "Hey girl, keep running. I'm waiting for you at the finish line. With a puppy. And a glass of wine."), loved all the women and few men at Wellesley, heard an old friend who moved to the Boston area scream my name, counted all the hills through mile 16-21 and said, "Ha! I gotchoo, to each one (in my head, of course, not out loud, because that would be crazy), gave a shout out to the Citgo sign, and soaked in the crowds through the finish. I really loved it this year!!! And guess what? Zero pain and NO cramping! I feel awesome!!!! Beyond thrilled! Yea, my time wasn't the best. I could blame it on the heat but I ran a faster time in much worse heat in 2012. I think I simply got the time I trained for, and I am completely satisfied with it. Boston is a harder course for me! BUT I STILL LOVE IT!!!! :-) And because I had such a great experience I am going to write some boring stuff below so I can refer to it later!! :-) Actual distance run: 26.52 miles Time: 3:36:41 Rank overall: 9750 Rank Gender: 2626 Rank Division: 369 Runners who finished: 26,639 Male runners who finished: 14,471 Female runners who finished: 12,168 (Which in a nutshell, if my math is anywhere near correct, I kicked roughly 7,347 male buttocks, well I guess that should be doubled, right? Since buttocks come in pairs and all. So, roughly 14,694 male buttocks today!!! Not to be petty or anything!!! Hee Hee Hee Hee) __________________________________________________________________________________________ (For me to peruse through later . . . ) Sunday Breakfast: yogurt with granola and Chia Lunch: Teriyaki rice bowl at Snappy Sushi Dinner: Pasta and salad at Filippo's Before bed: 1 emergency pack and 1/2 teaspoon magnesium powder Race morning: 1 emergency pack 1/2 ciabatta bun 1/2 Gatorade peanut butter protein bar 8 oz of Gatorade 6 oz of water 30 minutes prior to starting time: 1/2 EmergenC tablet 2 power gummies (orange blast) Throughout race: couple of swigs of Gatorade and water when it was offered Gu X 4 (every 45 minutes) 2 Hyland leg cramp pills at mile 21 when I could feel my calves start to tighten up No cramping during or after race. Jogged a couple of times afterwards (about 100 feet), was able to walk back to the hotel (1.4 miles) with Ry, Christine and Benny without any problems. No pain afterwards, or now. :-) | 
