BOSTON 5k Race Review

B.A.A. 5K 

Race: Boston Athletic Association 5k
Other Races: Boston Marathon and Mile Invitational
Website: http://www.baa.org/races/5k.aspx
When: Sunday, April 14th, 2013
Cost: $45 USD
Field Size: Limited to 6,500 entries

Start Time: 8am EDT
Location: Starts and finishes near Copley Square in Boston's Back Bay
Max Run Time: 60mins
Aid Stations: Two on course, located near miles 1 and 2
Swag: 5k finisher's medal and short sleeve t-shirt by adidas
Post Food: Hawaiian bread, water, Gatorade Thirst Quencher, Bear Naked Granola and Dole Fruit
Awards: Top 3 in each age group receive a gift card for adidas and $24,900 is distributed to the top 10 runners overall, the top 3 in the masters division and the top 3 in the push rim wheelchair division.
My Time: 26:27
Category Place: 2133 out of 5649 participants
Gender Place: 782 out of 3137
Winning Women's Time: 15:16 by Kim Smith from NZL
Winning Men's Time: 13:37 by Dejen Gebremeskel from ETH
My Garmin Details: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/312361847

Pre-Race:
Boston was full of early mornings and this was one of them. Unsure what it would be like for parking my husband Kevin and I were up at 5:30am and parked downtown Boston by 6:20am. We had lot's of time to spare and had already ate breakfast so we walked 20mins to Boylston
street where we would be starting and saw the race crew setting up.

We found a nice location to sit and relax our legs at the Panera Bread which gave us a great view of the start line and runners getting ready.

View from Panera Bread

Typically given the time we had till the race started I would've had some water while Kevin drank his coffee. Instead I opted against this knowing that my bladder might hinder me during the race if I chose so. 20mins prior to the start we ventured out to our coral. Typically Kevin would be running much faster than me but since he had his marathon the next day he was using this to shake out his legs and just enjoy the experience with his prego wife, me. Kevin also brought his phone along for the run so we could get some photos of the experience to share with my readers. What I loved before this race was that the runners were all so chatty and wanted to know where we were from, and what brought us here. Many Boston natives were out and eager to share places to eat, see, etc.


Race Play by Play:

For the start of the race there was a typical count down to the sound of a gun. My plan was to stay

around a 9min/mile and just to take it easy by listening to my body. With the crowd and energy it didn't take long before I was going quicker and feeling stronger. We ran along Boylston till we hit the Boston Common and Garden where we took a left. The course was beautiful with blooming trees all around and lot's of green in the parks. Back in Canada prior to leaving we were seeing snow still so it was refreshing to see Spring in full bloom. The sun was shining and temperature in the low teens. I was mindful of where I was stepping on the course because there were quite a few pot holes on the road and I wanted to make sure I stayed on my feet. We took another left on Beacon street. This was probably my favourite street because it was lined with trees in bloom.

During this early stage of the run I could already feel my bladder pressing due to baby Souter. Nothing

I couldn't handle but just something I tried to keep to the back of my mind. I've realized that the quicker I run the more I have to pee and the slower I go I don't, but my lower back starts to ache a bit. I have to find a happy medium. During the race I made sure to keep talking so that I knew I wasn't going too fast. It was easy to do since I had Kevin to talk to.

Near the...Official Boston Marathon Finish Line...So exciting! Next Year I look forward to crossing this after the full!

As you can see based on my Garmin Watch details my pace picked up every mile and by the last stretch Kevin and I had a decent stride to finish off. When complete we followed the rest of the runners to collect our medals. Thanks to the friendly volunteer, he noticed I was pregnant and gave me two. One for myself and the baby. 

Boston Expo and Meeting My Hero DEAN KARNAZES

After an early morning drive to Buffalo airport and two flights later we arrived in Boston. Along the way Kevin and I started spotting the traditional Boston Marathon jacket and this made for easy conversational flow with strangers. We learned their road map to getting to the Boston and their goals and excitement for their big race around the corner.

Already I was feeling inspired to hit my goal to qualify and be part of the running shannanagans. For now I was happy to be a fan/supporter to my husband and all runners.

Our first stop was picking up our rental car where the employees of that business met us with joy and laughter. Instead of being overwhelmed by all the people here this weekend to rent cars, they were on a high, and happy to help us understand the city better.

Next stop. Boston Run Expo.

Getting to the expo wasn't the easiest with Boston's one way streets, and many streets that changed names while you were on them...At the same time there were spectacular views of the water and thousands of individuals outside actively enjoying the sunshine. We found parking right at the expo fairly easy and followed the jackets to make our way inside.

Once inside we were directed right away in the direction we needed to go for Kevin to pick up his race kit pickup for the marathon and where we could also find our 5k racekit pick up. What an organized system.

We then went to the largest, and BEST expo I have ever layed my eyes on. The layout seemed intentional with the main run retail companies neighbouring one another. There were plenty of companies with fuel options, tech savy gear, recovery clothing, and other marathon options for your future.




My favourites were:
1. SKINS- the employees knew their product education and were so informative and helpful

2. YONANAS- delicious frozen fruit made into a dessert...Need I say more...We bought one as soon as we flew back in through Buffalo

3. BROOKS- they had awesome manniquins in the air running and I loved their fitting rooms...Thought it was strategic.

4. NORTHFACE-because they brought in Dean Karnazes for meet and greet singing autographs...Well played Northface

This now segways me into this experience. It was Kevin who noticed him first in the distance....I didn't even realize he was going to be there so what a GREAT SURPRISE it was to see him in reality. I was so giddy it was embarassing I'm sure for Kevin. Of course we got in line right away and shocking enough this line was quite short...I guess marathon runners that day weren't as into ultra runners. Many passed by asking who the guy was....SHOCKING! I wanted to jump into these conversations to educate them.... But I didn't!

Everyone in line received a poster of Dean. What a win! I started taking pictures from afar and Kevin and I spoke about his body, how lean, muscular and toned being affectionately known as the 'Fittest Man On The Planet'. Once it was my turn, I shared with him how much of an inspiration he has been for me. He showed modesty and humble qualities as he deflected my compliment. What I learned is that this truly is just him and his way of life. Dean's inspired my BHAG (big hairy audacious goal) of running with in the infamous 'Death Valley' ultra marathon. He quickly quipped "I recommend you think twice about that one". My over enthusiasm led me to share that I follow him on facebook, and with a sense of humour he mockingly replied by requesting security to escort the pregnant stalker out of the building. The last thing I asked was if he was running the Boston Marathon himself. As a runner purist he said since I'm here I will jump in after a 4 hour training run. No Big Deal!