Boston Marathon and Olympic Trials

Wow...hard to believe I haven't posted since tax day...and now here we are on Boston Marathon day. It's underway right now--looks to be a good, fast race and great conditions.

I have to tell you...the Internet is a beautiful thing. As I write this I'm doing some work stuff in the background, plus I have a window open for audio/video coverage of the race as it happens. I'm also checking in occasionally on Steve Runner, who I've mentioned here before--he's the voice behind Phedippidations, and has run Boston for several years in a row now.

The conditions for last year's race were horrible--cold, very rainy, and very high winds. Contrast that with today where the temperatures seem to be very moderate, it's sunny, and there's no wind. I know which set of conditions I would rather run in...

Just at this moment the runners passed the halfway mark, and Kenya's Robert Cheruiyot is leading. He looks very strong and is the leading contender to win this year. This would be his forth Boston title, and he holds the current course record. He's an amazing runner, and a very humble man. His story would make a good book or movie one of these days.

In other marathoning news, Boston was the venue for yesterday's 2008 women's marathon olympic trials. Deena Kastor won with an outstanding time of 2:29:35. Joan Samuelson (winner of the inaugural women's marathon at the 1984 Olympics) also ran in the trials, finishing in an amazing 2:49:08.

Congratulations to the winners--heck, to the FINISHERS!--of both events. Go take an ice bath, and get some Gatorade--you deserve it!