After the ball is over... Chapter 5

Wednesday, April 20, 2016

I'm going to rewind a bit before continuing the account of Marathon Monday after we left the spectator spot to mention a few of the heart-warming things we saw. They are probably the same ones you saw on TV yourselves, but we were there and observed them first hand:

The young man who collapsed and was carried by two other runners the remaining block and a half (he was heat-stroking)... the runners helping each other was heartening.

We saw Team Hoyt finish. This is a man pushing his son, who suffers from ALS, in a wheel chair, the entire 26.2 miles. They are fund-raising for a charity that supplies equipment to sufferers of ALS. The father practically tears up in interviews, and having been through the ALS experience with my sister in law, I totally get it. The son has so far been living with the disease for five years. My sister in law only survived a year and a few months beyond her initial diagnosis. I had seen team Hoyt interviewed on TV the night before and felt privileged to see them go by, soon to finish.

We saw several of the unit that runs Boston in full military battle dress uniform, down to the boots. Laura told me there was quite a bit of discussion after 2013 whether it was secure to let them continue to do so.  They won... and got huge cheers as each one came by. That's the only group I got a photo of... especially for PMRUNNER, says Laura!

Speaking of which, I very much want to thank/acknowledge Laura for coming down and adding her local expertise and history to my own Marathon Monday experience. From a hand on my elbow to keep me from taking a wrong turn to knowing the history related to the military unit... it was nice having a "local" guide beyond the media coverage!

I did not get photos of much of the race action because... heavens it's hard to get moving shots. These folks have the finish line in sight they are NOT going to slow down just to suit my slow reflexes, among other things. The other issue: my phone was sucking down the power with the text alerts and checking on progress of my runners. In fact, by the time we left the railing... it was down to an alarming 2%!

What's bad about THAT, remember two blogs ago? We rely on those phones to locate one another once the runner finishes!

Laura and I headed over to the Sheraton, where the VIP lounge was, to use the facilities, and I plugged the phone in briefly. We wanted Laura and Kevin to meet... I mean, up to this time, I'd been with each of them, but independently. So we were in a guessing game. I had texted Kevin that we'd meet at the agreed upon post-race venue... but with my power gone and the phone off, had no confirmation he'd got the message.

I was also a bit worried about my Omaha triathlete friend... her splits were not what they usually are... she was not having a good day. She had posted on Facebook after she arrived in Boston that she'd come down with flu-like symptoms & I'd been praying she got rest & better... at this point I was praying for her to persevere and finish. With the phone off, I was blind as to her progress.

Always have a plan B, folks! Technology can fail. Lesson learned. A half marathon, we don't usually have this issue. A full? Different story!

Anyway, I was COLD by now. The breeze was stiff coming inland. Even though I knew that Kevin would eventually have to come back to the VIP Lounge to pick up his gear, I had sent him that text, so Laura and I headed back to my hotel where I changed back into my jeans.

Remember THIS outfit from Saturday? Here's Janet's shot of me standing on the finish line while everybody still had access:

Contrast with Kevin crossing the line (professional photo, he bought this one). He's the runner in maroon with GVH on the singlet:

Anyway the trick at this point was to find one another. Even though there was a "family meeting area", I didn't have it figured out. And our last communication was to meet at a watering hole called "Fire & Ice".

After much meandering to get through the security check points, we eventually found our way over there... the athletes could take short cuts... the rest of us, not, and we had to walk about four extra blocks, and ask questions of the volunteers for directions of just how to get to that specific place.

We got there, but no Kevin. We did find Jeff. Laura bought a round and we toasted Jeff's race. I found a spot to plug in the phone and while it was charging, made the connection. Kevin, while we were going back to get ME warm, had headed to the VIP lounge to get HIS clothing to get warm! So we missed each other, having been in the same place but at different times.

All's well that ends well, though, and we did get Laura and Kevin in the same space... WITH his medal showing, yet:

Shortly after that, Laura really needed to head home so we bade her farewell. Kevin and I went through our checklist of what's most important. Feeding me seemed to be it... went through mental check list, and opted for the little Italian place right in my hotel. We both ate (he was on the see-food diet after his run... I even talked him into a couple of bites of the sandwich that looked too big for just me). Then we chatted a while longer before sending him off to gently walk the mile and a half back to his hotel.

For those of you who are fitbit trackers? He had a step count close to 60,000 that day. I had 14,000 as a spectator. We both decided we needed quiet time to assimilate the experience, so opted NOT to do the after party at Fenway. Instead I went upstairs and packed for the trip, went to bed, got up early, and started my journey back the next morning early, but I'll save that for a final chapter!

And with that, I shall bid my Spark friends good-night... because it's getting to be that time.  Rest well, and tomorrow, it's back to work for me!