atombuddy

Great summary, and I particularly liked the first two paragraphs. For those of us who are aging past even our second prime (if such a thing exists), it's a constant struggle to find the joy in running and racing, however we can. But it is possible, and you seem to have found it, at least in Boston in 2019. P.S. You just started Game of Thrones? You have a lot of catching up to do!

Boston will (pardon the expression) break your heart just about every time you come into it with high expectations. And in one way or another, weather always seems to be working against you. But I guess that's one reason this race is so epic. Nice job battling through!

Somehow, I knew that the dumb, bad, devilish runner would prevail. Congratulations!

Cute baby! And cupcakes!

A long time ago I learned that weddings were all about the dress. But I always thought it was the bride's dress.

Juliet's 5K gives me such a sense of deja vu (Surf City...2-hour barrier...you know what I'm talking about). As for you, I think you're right to shake up the routine for the time being. You've accomplished a lot in just a few years, but you still have a young family and lots of NRR pleasures to experience. I think the mojo will come back in its own time.

Still awesome after all these years!

This sounds exactly like my wife's diagnosis and treatment in 2006. She's not a runner, but has an extremely healthy lifestyle including walking, yoga, and very disciplined eating habits. A couple of years ago, we threw a party to celebrate 10 cancer-free years. She's still going strong (her own retirement isn't slated until next year), so I suspect you will be too!

I don't have access to such high tech gadgetry, but I definitely hear you. In my advancing age, as my body slows and creaks, I find that my old bread-and-butter easy runs are becoming unsatisfying slogs. So I'm beginning to experiment with more variation, hills, speedwork, tempos, fartleks...you get the idea. Hopefully, it will keep things as fun for me as the dreadmill is for you. And, of course, with our ideal winter weather, I get to do it outside!

A positive split in your first marathon? That's the dream! Congratulations on following through so well with your plan, not to mention your pretty good quarterbacking form!

Is there any wine to be gleaned from said toe-tapping grape? If so, I raise a glass to you! As we get older, things do tend to happen, and many of them get in the way of our running. And yet, here we are, still going at it in spite of aches, pains, disappointments, and the inevitable slowdowns. There must be something to this running thing after all!

I'm sorry things didn't work out as you'd hoped, but at least you did better than I did in Long Beach. And I know what you mean about the age factor; I think I've been able to rule out any other factor in my steep decline over the last three years. But you're still a young whippersnapper by my standard, and I'm sure you have some good races ahead of you. Keep in mind that I ran my best post-high school marathon at age 60.

I'm glad you found what you needed, and that it keeps on giving.

Go ahead and put me down as an alternate in case somebody cancels on you. But I've already done HTC, so I don't want to take space away from someone else.

Good luck with your new school adventure!