Boston Marathon!!

Are you watching the Boston Marathon online this morning!?  It's my favorite day and I'm totally glued to my computer.  I love the online tracking of athletes.  Watching every step of my friends' races this morning is awesome.  Are you watching?  Tracking?  Receiving text updates??  LOVE this race!!

Sidelined

I have a friend who has always been a competitive runner. Then she married, had two kids and has just started running distance races two years ago. Last year's Boston was her third marathon (in one year) where she snagged a shiny new PR in the 3:35s.

For the past year, she has been living, breathing and dreaming about the 2011 Boston Marathon. She has been setting PRs in all distances this year, even placing first in several local races. Her goal for 2011 was to finish around 3 hours alongside her college running teammates who are all traveling from around the country to meetup in Boston. Her training was spot on and it looked like her dream would become a reality.

But three weeks ago she felt some pain in her pelvis after a long run. She had it checked out and the doctors told her it's a stress fracture and that Boston is out for this year. You can probably imagine the disappointment. She's been working through all the emotions -- anger, frustration, disappointment, bargaining with herself and the powers that be... She's questioned whether the risk of running it anyway is worth it. Of course, it isn't. She's 30 years old and has years of running and PRs in her future. However, the disappointment she feels right now is very real and it's been a difficult time for her.

Do you have humorous running blogs you turn to when disappointment rears its ugly head? Where do you go to find something to lighten the mood, someone to commisserate with, maybe another mama blogger who has written something that she can relate to...?

Boston Marathon: new standards!

Today the B.A.A. announced the new qualifying standards for entry into the Boston Marathon. Their website is taking a long time to load due to everyone wanting to read the changes, but you can find the changes in the link below, too.

Beginning with the 2012 registration, the B.A.A. is instituting a rolling admission. Basically the faster qualifying times for each division are rewarded. For the first week of registration, those who ran their qualifier 20 minutes faster than the standard will get to register. During the second week, those who ran their qualifier 10 minutes faster can register. Later in the week, everyone will get to register but priorities are still given to the faster runners.

For the 2013 registration, the 59 second grace period in qualifying times will be abandoned and all qualifying times will be 5 minutes faster. The extra 5 minutes I was looking forward to with my 40th birthday coming up this year will no longer be available. Boo. I have a lot of friends who squeaked in with their qualifying times this year. Had it been 2013, they would not be training for Boston right now.

What about you? What are your thoughts? It all seems very fair to me and I like that it maintains the elite status of the Boston Marathon. It should be hard to get in to. Someday I hope to qualify and be there. What I would like though is for the B.A.A. to review the number of sponsered entries that are given out. Years ago a man I worked with got a bib because his wife worked for Adidas. It was his first marathon and he finished in over 5 hours. This year a woman I know got a free bib (and an all-expense paid trip, plus swag!). She'll finish in the 3:40 range (which will qualify her for 2012), but it will also be her first marathon. I wouldn't want a freebie because I think Boston is something that has to be earned. It bothers me to know qualified runners have been bumped because of the free entries sponsers have given away.

http://racingnews.runnersworld.com/2011/02/boston-announces-new-qualifying-times-registration-process.html?cm_mmc=Facebook-_-RunnersWorld-_-Content-Blog-_-NewBostonStandards