Christians travel to Jerusalem; Hindus journey to India to submerge in the Ganges River; Muslims pilgrimage to Mecca to celebrate the Hajj. Runners flock to Boston to run the marathon.
On April 15, 2013, 26,000 runners will line up in Hopkinton, Mass., for the 117th running of the Boston Marathon. In 164 days (yes, I’m counting) I’ll be one of them.
America’s oldest and most prestigious marathon is the epitome of races, the “Super Bowl” for runners. Unlike most marathons, where anyone can just sign up to run, the Boston Marathon demands more: a qualifying finish time at a sanctioned race. I’ve been on the hunt for my qualifying time for nearly two years, finally crossing the finish line at the Sioux Falls, S.D. marathon in September with a time of 3:26 (an average pace of 7:52 per mile).
In my very first post on this blog, back on July 5, 2011, I vowed to myself, “this is the year I will qualify to run in the Boston Marathon.” I also, secretly, vowed to myself that I would keep blogging on a regular basis. Honest, I had the best of intentions … but it’s harder to qualify for Boston than I thought, and it’s hard to blog consistently about running and training when you’re busy actually running and training. Looking back, I see that I haven’t written a post since last spring.
Life is in a better balance now, my Boston goal has been achieved, so I’m looking forward to returning to the blogosphere. Hope you will welcome me back by reading, and commenting, and sharing.
Want to learn more about the Boston Marathon? From the website: Managed by the Boston Athletic Association, the Boston Marathon is the world’s oldest annual marathon and ranks as one of the world’s most prestigious road racing events. Held annually on Patriot’s Day, a holiday celebrated in Massachusetts and Maine in observance of the beginning of the American Revolutionary War, the Boston Marathon is rich in history and tradition. The legendary point-to-point course starts in rural Hopkinton, passes through numerous quaint New England towns before finishing on Boylston Street in the heart of Boston.
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