boston marathon 2016- the journeys end

its been two weeks since boston (and then some... almost three weeks, man im the worst at this blogging thing). as expected, i didnt take a month off from running... hell, i didnt take two days off from running, but that shouldnt surprise anyone. i love to run (shocking) and it really helps me in so many ways. i wouldnt quite call what i did the first week after the race "running", more like run waddling, but it stretched out my legs. it kept me sane. it cleared my mind, helped me to remember things from the race and the whole journey. helped me recover. ive also done a lot of walking thanks to my bff, who drags me out of bed kicking and screaming at early hours of the day on my days off, bribing me with donuts and coffee and bed hair and sweatpants and giggles. recovery has been good for me, including a new 5k PR (ill write more about that this week... or within the next few months maybe)... but im ready to get back into training again (i think).

after crossing the finish line of the boston marathon (making sure i didnt stop my garmin in my pictures, success!), i just kept smiling. i have no idea how far i had to walk to get anything (nor what came at me first... all the things! blanket, medal, protein drink, warm bananas, hawaiian bread rolls, fruit cup) but i just kept smiling. photographers everywhere. people everywhere, some upright and smiling, some on the ground, some crying, some ready to pass out or throw up... the finish line of a marathon is a pretty diverse place. i saw a familiar face from home (hi chandra!), got hugs from the girl who gave me my medal (which after seeing the pic below, apparently came before the blanket). i had really just run the boston marathon... and i wasnt crying!

as i kept walking i heard my dad calling my name. he, my step sister and my aunt had made it to the finish and it couldnt have been at a more perfect spot. i was able to hang out with them off to the side of the crowd and just reflect on the whole day for a few minutes. what an experience... despite the number of races and marathons i have run, boston was truly unlike anything i had ever done before.

i seriously had some wacko open mouth thumbs up illness this weekend.

but i like it.

no surprise i was the slowest of all my super speedy friends, but leslie and sam waited for me at the finish to say hi. we snagged this pic before heading off to find my family.

sam, you can smile?!

i headed off to get my drop bag before finding the rest of my family. i hadnt known what to really put in my drop bag for after the race (thinking it was going to be warm) so all i had was my jacket and battery back up for my phone. i wish i had a blanket and sweatpants, i was so cold! there was (of course now that the race was over) shade everywhere and i got really cold. in an interesting turn of events ty and my family didnt take the route i had told them to go after seeing me at mile 25 (taking the way behind boylston to get to the finish) and they ended up stuck on newbury street on the opposite side of the race from where i was. i think i likely walked 3 miles to get to them... thanks for the recovery walk! it was so awesome to finally get to them, but i was ready to sit down (and eat a cannoli! and have a bud light! one of many for the next few days...)

so proud to be on this team of amazing people!

we went out that night for dinner at KINGS (yummmm). i wasnt much in the mood for bowling but i might have eaten my weight in their ranch dressing and avocado bacon burger. 

medal envy

sam and josh stopped by to visit... sam was his non smiling self, and even if josh called me emily he at least acted like he was happy to see me. sam was likely just mad i almost beat him. one day.

i spent tuesday walking around boston, had some coffee, got my jacket embroidered with my finishing time, spent more money on boston apparel, and had lunch with katie ("i know i look 18 but im really 35 and need a beer...." haha). after leaving my family at boston common at 10am, i got on the green line later that day, headed for the red line to get to lunch and literally bumped into them getting off the train. we had to document the irony. this was what we decided on.

family love.

i went to the north end and waited in line for a half hour for cannolis... something ive never done before, and would do over again in a heartbeat. tomorrow. whos coming with me? (fun fact... i just tried a cannoli for the first time in the past few months. im now obsessed)

oreo?? yes.

recovery is best spent drinking bud lights and eating cannolis with family, incase you wanted in on that top secret. its wonderful.

all in all, this weekend was magical. ive tried my best to put it into words, but i know there are many things ive left out, forgotten about, will continue to think about and remember for the rest of my life. i didnt cross the finish line thinking "omg i have to be back here every year from now on forever!"... but i do think i will be back one day. will it be next year? i dont know, and im ok with that for now. i had a moment of weekness a few days after the race when vermont city put out a post- "hey did you run boston and it was so hot and you didnt get the time that you wanted and dont want to let that training all go to waste?! well were ordering up a cool misty rainy day for our race, head on down! and heres a $10 off code for you! register today!" (i swear thats what it said...). they almost got me. it is tough to not want to just go out and try again (tomorrow), but i knew i needed some recovery (and i likely gained 10lbs already). i have another race coming up (likely to also be hot) and if i qualify there, great. if i dont, i still believe ill be doing this whole running thing for awhile (i hope) and can get myself back to boston at some point. i also believe that when i go back to spectate ill have a very different perspective on the race now that i have run it. an amazing, amazing journey, from start to finish.

official stats:
30,741 entered to run
27,941 started the race
26,639 finished the race

my stats:
12,716/26,639 overall
4,206/12,168 female
2,842/5,948 female age group 18-39

“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.” 

Ernest Hemingway