The Boston Marathon has been called the Superbowl of Marathons. Runners only get in by hitting qualification standards in smaller marathons (26.2 miles). Kimberly Grogan, a local mom of two and with her husband Kevin owns and operates Gear for Multisport Athletic Store at the National Training Center.
Kimberly made her first trip to the point-to-point running event; the 2018 edition was not your typical run! This year’s event had the worst weather conditions in race history; 30+ mph headwind(running straight into the wind) with frozen rain the entire way. Grogan sat down with the Tablet to reflect on the mental & physical adversity that she overcame to reach that finish line on Boylston Street in Downtown Boston.
Tablet: Describe race week and morning leading up to the start.
Grogan: Race week started when Kevin and I flew to Boston – before that is a blur of scheduling the store and kids and their activities. Hoping the weather forecast would change, I probably didn’t pack everything I should have. The atmosphere in Boston on race week is awesome. The expo was the busiest place I’d seen in a long time, so I didn’t spend much time there. I read and slept a lot. My last little run the day before the race left me laughing because a few times the wind and gusts shifted my feet around while both were mid-air, kind of freaky feeling. But it’s Boston, so you don’t worry about the weather, you face it.
Tablet: Conditions were harsh. Was there any part of the frigid rain or 30+mph winds that played into your favor?
Grogan: Last year I raced to try to qualify for Boston at DC at the Rock ‘n Roll. The weather there had 30 mph winds and 30 degrees. Pace clocks were blown down all over the course, and there was a layer of ice that had formed on the top of the water cups. I thought nothing could be worse than that. I am hot natured, so I don’t worry about the cold so much, but I was puzzled about what to wear to be comfortable.
Tablet: What will you remember about your Boston 2018 most?
Grogan: The collective feeling of positivity amongst the competitors even though we were all about embark on a 26.2-mile course of more unknowns for which we couldn’t have prepared.
Tablet: What was your biggest obstacle on race day?
Grogan: My head once my body didn’t feel great. Feet were frozen rocks for the first few miles (head: you’re fine you had the same thing in DC), people are running past me in this deluge? (head: run your race and don’t look at your watch), Ugh here’s another gale of high gusts and extra rain (head: I wanna walk, no, you’ll get to the finish line faster if you run), body tightened at about mile 16 (head: you should just quit, no you should adjust your goal from PR to qualifying for next year, just run easy, and you’ll make it), watching runner’s in the medical vehicles (head: don’t look, but it would feel good to sit down, but you wouldn’t get the medal)
Tablet: You trained hard leading up to the event. Was it a little tough now looking back on how the day’s conditions played out?
Grogan: Yes, I wanted to run another marathon within a few weeks to use my fitness, but work and family obligations won’t allow that to happen. Which is ok, my body was pretty tired.
Tablet: You’ve said that the volunteers were wonderful along the Boston route. As a race director, how much do you now appreciate them?
Grogan: I love how neither the RD nor the volunteers ever wavered in their belief that we could be better than the conditions. They never let on that we were experiencing anything abnormal. They were out there in their goulashes and GoreTex serving us all day long. Volunteers at any event understand the lifestyle and how we are all there to support each other to our goals.
Tablet: Describe how pro triathlete and runner Lisa Bentley helped with your Boston Marathon experience?
Grogan: She is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to racing and racing Boston. I was so fortunate to have her coach me and mentor me. She is an amazingly positive person, and I think if I hadn’t had my ‘list of assets’ to draw on during the race my negative head would have won. I finished reading her recently released book, “An Unlikely Champion” the day before Boston and I drew on so much of its positivity before and during the race.
Tablet: On the plane back to Minneola five hours after you finish. How tough was that?
Grogan: It hurt. I just wanted to sleep, but anyone knows that sleep after a race is as restless as the night before because of the aches.
Tablet: What’s next on your race radar?
Grogan: I will do a few running races close to home in preparation for the New York City Marathon in November.
Tablet: Anything else about your unique Boston ’18 experience?
Grogan: It meant a lot to have my husband, Kevin, along on the trip. He helps me tremendously with his never quit and strong mind and helping me with the details of not forgetting anything that I need. It was also pretty cool that our 13-year-old, Gavin, had the race on the TV all morning during his homeschool and he was quite upset that they cut the feed after the pro women. He was super congratulatory when I spoke to him. Our daughter Nora, ten years old, was ready with ice packs and heating pads for me in the days after the race.
