T-minus....

As the days of Boston race week slowly creep by, my thoughts have turned to my race plan and preparation. For some reason I'm having a minor crisis of confidence as to my level of preparation for this race - as if having run 3 ultras and nearly setting a road half marathon PR in the last 3 months didn't quite "get it done". (I should note that I am saying this more to reassure myself than as any kind of humble brag.) I am sure this is a case of typical prerace jitters, and I am also quite sure that there are around, oh, 30,000 other runners around the world right now having the same thoughts as Patriots Day approaches.

Interestingly though, I am rethinking the "take it easy and enjoy the day" game plan that I had championed only a few short days ago; a plan which had been my mantra for the past few weeks leading up to this point. Here is my thinking - if I go easy and cross the finish line knowing I've left 3, 5, 10 minutes out on the course, while I will certainly be thrilled with my achievement, will I always wonder about what could have been? After all, shouldn't we save our best efforts for the biggest stages? And what bigger stage is there than Boston? 

In looking back over my last week or 2 of training, I've been on-point. I've hit my target paces, exceeded them in most cases comfortably, and have actually been training in much warmer and more humid conditions than I will face on Monday. It looks like conditions will be favorable for a good race - shouldn't that count for something?

So here I am, 4 days out, considering wadding up and pitching my entire race strategy. Perhaps a PR effort could be out there for me. Or even the very elusive sub-3 marathon. When will I get another chance like this? Who knows when I will even run another road marathon, for that matter? I still have a few days to sleep on it, not to mention some quality time with my coach when I make it to Boston to discuss the matter. I am certainly fortunate to have the chance to consider such possibilities. And I'm finally going to have my Boston medal.

Whatever happens, I'll still be very grateful for that.