Entering the 2012 Boston Athletic Association’s half marathon had been in the talks amongst my Optometry colleagues for a while. During our first year here in Boston, a few of us would occasionally run together, but nothing consistent and certainly with no event in mind. This slowly began to change towards the end of spring semester, and eventually came to us all agreeing to sign up for this race when we returned from summer vacation.
The B.A.A. 13.1 took place in early October, throughout Boston’s “Emerald Necklace” park system. Most of the race proceeds went to the Dana-Farber and Jimmy Fund Organizations, both dedicated to beating caner. The start/finish line was at Franklin Park in Jamaica Plain, a suburb of Boston. Come race day I was glad to see how organized everything was, especially for there being over 7,000 athletes participating. It was pretty neat getting on the Boston subway at 7am Sunday, only to see 100’s of other half-marathoner’s decked out in race attire. Once we arrived, we passed off our extra jackets, phones, etc and made our way to the starting line. With this many people in one area, I guess it’s no surprise we ran into a familiar face or two (what’s up Doc Zimmerman?). The course was an “out and back” along this series of parks, lakes, and other scenic areas I would have otherwise never known about. The turning point was located at Boston’s Back Bay Fens area, where a few others in our class came to yell & cheer us on (Thanks Katrina, Kate, and Spencer!). A few highlights of the course included passing by the Arnold Arboretum, and Jamaica Pond, as well as through the Franklin Park Zoo towards the finish line (where we ran past lions, peacocks, and swans). Post-race amenities included medals, t-shirts, and lots of food. A+ on the French toast and chocolate chip bagels, BAA! Later that night, we continued the post race excitement with celebratory Burgers and Beer!
Due to conflicting schedules outside of class, we didn’t get to train together as much as we would’ve liked. Despite this, we all managed to arrive @ the starting line on race day ready to rock and roll. We also got together for a tasty carb dinner the night before. We chowed down on pasta w/ chicken and pesto, as well as plenty of toasted bread w/ olive oil (including Corinne’s frantic baguette/brushetta concoction).
Due to conflicting schedules outside of class, we didn’t get to train together as much as we would’ve liked. Despite this, we all managed to arrive @ the starting line on race day ready to rock and roll. We also got together for a tasty carb dinner the night before. We chowed down on pasta w/ chicken and pesto, as well as plenty of toasted bread w/ olive oil (including Corinne’s frantic baguette/brushetta concoction).
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| Hangin out after dinner. Talkin about tomorrow's race, random Optometry jargon, and singin Jack Johnson songs! |
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| After the subway ride, we then boarded a fancy shuttle bus that would bring us to the Franklin Park starting line. At this point, I felt like I was definitely on my way to an athlete-exclusive theme park or something similar. |
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| Post Race Flexin! |
They say “You experience your 1st race, and race your 2nd one” about almost any athletic event. Being my 2nd half marathon, I realized how true this is. I learned a lot from my 1st half, and was eager to see if I could improve my performance on this one. Going in, I pretty much just wanted to beat my old time of an hour & 56 minutes, and maybe break into the 1:40’s. I believe this was everyone’s first half marathon, with the exception of me and Lai.
Monique 1:54:57 - "Ms. Renegade Runner"
Corinne - 1:36:17 - 15th place, out of 508 in age group!
Ali - 1:56:56
Kevin - 1:43:42 - New PR, Whoooot!
Lai - 2:12:10
Esther - 1:56:16
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| These were the only shots taken on race day |
Congrats you guys!
