Boston Marathon Conclusion

Hello and welcome back to another week! If you are new, I’m glad you stopped by! Last week I started you out on my Boston Marathon journey as a duo bike rider, which is how I participated. So, this is a continuation of that journey and eventually a wrap up of the entire day. 

As we started to find our rhythm and settle into the 26.2 mile journey to the finish, I made sure I had my things in order for a smooth ride. The weather was great for Jamie about 50 degrees and overcast, with a light rain here and there. Honestly, not too bad for me either. I was definitely layered up as I said, but comfortable. 

Somewhere at about 2-3 miles in, the elite men came thundering by us. My boys were anxiously awaiting the video that I would take. As runners, they thought this was a pretty cool thing for us to be able to see. And it was. I won’t elaborate, but let’s just say the video that was supposed to be, sadly was not. But…WOW it was so incredible to see that type of athleticism so close! In just a few seconds they were already by us and racing on. By the time the elite women came by us, which by the way was equally as impressive and I did get a great video of that, we were almost halfway into the marathon. 

Going through the different towns, it was neat to see all the people that came out to cheer the runners on. Their cheers were so loud at times that it was overwhelming, especially when we went through the Wellesley College scream tunnel. Jamie had tried to explain this to me, but seeing and HEARING it in person was incredible. The students were lined up for a long way and were screaming and cheering as loud as they could. It was pretty incredible and definitely uplifting along the course! Certainly a favorite part!

Wellesley Scream Tunnel, SO Fun!

I was starting to fatigue by this point, but knew I had to do my part and carry on. Encouraging Jamie and mentally helping him, as it was of course getting increasingly difficult for him. The hills were no joke. Remember he’s pushing this big bike with me in it. Most runners are just getting themselves up those hills, which is also incredibly difficult! Jamie gets a lot of encouragement from fellow runners along the way, and some include me in the “good job” comments too. Mostly they are directed towards him, as they should be. 

Speaking of encouragement, I’m not just encouraging Jamie along the way, but I take the time to encourage other runners as well. We’ve had several come up to us either during or after races saying they love running next to us because of the level of crowd involvement that the duo bike draws in. They love being a part of that too. It’s easy to understand why, because it is just an overwhelming sense of human love and kindness. Something we all need. 

At mile 23 we saw our MDA Team Momentum family cheering us on. That was a great boost to get us to the end. Shortly after we saw them, the skies opened up and it started pouring. It was both miserable and exhilarating at the same time! About that time, I had started to look for our sons who were not too far from the finish. Somehow, with all that rain, and a sea of people, Jamie and I looked over at the same time and we made eye contact with our sons, who were cheering loudly. That was an incredibly moving moment for me. It was a split second, but it felt like slow motion. Seeing them cheering for us definitely got the waterworks going for me. I tried to get a video of that too, but the rain was making it very difficult to document this part of the race, unfortunately. Video or not, it will forever be imprinted in my mind. 

After that, it was the final push to the finish as we rounded the final turn. The crowds were thick, and again, the screams and cheering were overwhelming! It was still pouring rain, which really did make for an exciting finish. We crossed the finish line in 3 hours and 23 minutes! Our goal was 3:15, but we were both pleased with our result. I was SO proud of US. Months and months of training in the freezing cold Indiana temperatures. I can no longer say I’m just a fair weather rider. I’m well seasoned in all weather at this point!

We did it!

So, we celebrated briefly and got a picture snapped to document this incredible moment in time. As soon as that picture was taken, it’s like my mind reconnected with my body, and I instantly knew I was in trouble. Things weren’t good. My arms and hands were vibrating from overuse from cheering so much and ringing that cowbell, haha, I definitely didn’t need more cowbell. 😂 I was soaked and really cold. Despite my rain preparation, with rain like that it’s hard to stay dry. Then, I realized I couldn’t move my legs. I told Jamie, “I’m not ok, I need help.” I was very scared. I was also obviously worried about him, who had just run a marathon! He managed to get me pushed to the VIP tent where the disabled athletes were able to go after the race. As we entered, someone put a medal around our necks and congratulated us. Then, they had an incredible medical team that took over, so Jamie could take care of his needs. I didn’t understand what was happening because this hadn’t ever happened to me before. They lifted me out of the duo bike and laid me on a stretcher. I was kind of hysterical because I was so scared. No matter how hard I tried I couldn’t move my legs. I could feel them touching them, but could not move them. There was a flurry of people working with me, helping to get all of my heavy, soaking wet layers off of me, so I could breathe. Something about when they took the medal off of my neck made me realize that I had definitely also pushed my body to its limits, and it wasn’t happy with me. In that moment, I felt like I had actually earned that medal. I too had run the race, in my own way. Jamie kept checking on me because he was obviously scared too, but the medical team did a great job of reassuring him that I was in good hands. 

They got me warmed up, gave me some fluids, and there was one man who stayed with me the entire time. He was such a kind and gentle spirit, and he made all the difference in keeping me calm. I wish I could go back and thank him. He sat with me for a long time, and helped me sit up with support, and then when I was ready he started to move my legs for me. It took awhile, but then it’s like my brain reconnected with my legs, and I was able to somewhat move them. He did that for a good bit, and then I told him I was ready to try and get back in my duo bike and get out of there. Standing was difficult and he helped me walk a few steps, but my legs could definitely not hold me at that point. Jamie was also doing pretty good, and he was ready to try and push me through the crowds back to our hotel. That is not easy! Takes extreme patience for sure! I thanked the medical team profusely. They were my angels on earth. 

We finally made our way back to our hotel room where the boys were waiting on us. My son helped me out of the bike, and as I was trying to walk to the bed my legs collapsed, and I fell. I knew I needed to get in a hot bath to warm my muscles up, so that’s what I managed to do eventually. Slowly, I regained function, although it took several days to feel my full strength again. I think it was just a combination of adrenaline, cold, wet and sitting in one position for so long that took a toll. 

Post race celebration 🎉 

After we both recovered for a bit and got cleaned up, we joined the crowd downstairs to celebrate. I knew I would get a lot of comments /questions because I was in my wheelchair and wearing the Boston jacket and medal. People assumed I had run and hurt myself during the marathon. Part of me wanted to make up a story to tell about how I had rolled my ankle, but managed to cross the finish line anyway, haha! Instead we just explained numerous times that we were a duo team. It was a fun evening wrapped up with dinner with our boys. 

Before we left for home the next day, we took advantage of the free medal engraving. Long line, but worth it for sure! No doubt it took humble courage for us to run the Boston Marathon as a duo team. I’m forever grateful for these wonderful opportunities, and most importantly we were able to raise over $30,000 for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, which was our whole mission for this run. It’s all about the fight, and we are in it to win it! 💚