- Final state marathon of the year - next up Arizona in Jan and 16 states by next October
- Decided Friday night with a little help actually a lot of help from Caeli to run the marathon as a Caps player
-- Brillant idea since it was the day after Halloween and the temps were supposed to be around 45F at the start
- Arrive into Boston and begin the drive to Manchester
- Stopped at the former home of Robert Frost - it was closed for the season but the grounds were open
- Got to listen to FSU beat NC State - I love XM satellite radio!
- Got my packet, expo was kinda weak
-- Got a shoe alignment test and the guy was convinced he could fix my ankle/knee alignment - ha!
- Made my way to the hotel, relaxed a bit before heading out for dinner and a minor league hockey game
- Weird thing about this race is that it mirrored El Paso a bit in that I stayed in a Hilton Garden Inn, watched a minor league hockey game and the course went right by the hotel and it was sunny and dry
- Dinner was alright, poor service (seems to be a New England thing as it happened in Maine and the Boston Airport)
-- The game was better - is was the farm team of the Kings vs Sharks (since the Monarchs scored four goals, McDonalds offered up free fries with a ticket stub)
- As I left the arena it had already rained but was misting as I made my way back to the hotel
-- No more than five minutes after I got back to the hotel the skies opened up
- Got a glass wine and a sugar cookie from the bar and made my way up to my room
- Stuffed my face with leftover lunch and then fell asleep with the lights and TV on - woke up about 1am
- Finally got ready for bed and was back in bed and woke up at 7am
- Made my way to the hot tub for a few minutes and then a quick dip in the pool before the marathon
- Suited up: fleece helmet, mini-stick, girdle hockey pants, socks, and Caps jersey
- Got to the start and with nearly 2K runners - I'm the only one in a costume
-- The runners didn't seem amused but the spectators were pointing me out
- People asked why I dressed up? Maybe they don't celebrate Halloween in NH - it was 1 Nov after all - not 1 July
- Started out okay with partly cloudy skies and temps in the mid 50s, not mid 40s as forecasted but there was a cool westerly breeze
- By mile 6 and 6 miles of hills - was not thinking the hockey outfit was a great idea but the spectators loved it
- I heard a wide range of comments: Go Bruins (go figure), Alexander, Ovechkin, dedication, outrageous, outlandish, Mr. hockey guy, look at that, etc- one guy said he was gonna send pictures to the Capitals website
-- Can't imagine what it was like for runners to see me pass them when they were cramping or walking
- I hit every aid station on the course and only had to go to the bathroom one time - I was caked in salt
-- Suiting back up was not fun, dropped my Gu on the floor, not sure why I picked it up and carried it with me but didn't use it
- Around mile 22 - saw a guy who was dressed like a cow (who I saw at the game the night before) playing ball hockey with his girlfriend so I stopped and he let me take a few shots, no goals (seemed like he was waiting on me or heard about me running)
- The last 4 miles seemed to drag on and of course there were more hills and the walk breaks became more frequent but by this point I was running right into the sun - a nearly cloudless sky
- My goal at this point was to finish in 3:45 and at mile 25 I knew I had room to spare
- After one final hill - it flattened out as I neared the finish line
- Crossed at 3:42 and change
- Today was not a day for time but while it was fun it something I probably won't do again (dress up)
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