Re: Boston Marathon Discussion Thread

StevenT42 Mon Apr 15, 2013 7:49 pm

It's been a while, and it took a little bit to track you all down from the V-Team site. I'm glad to read that everyone from the forum is okay. Thank you guys for making these tracking threads.

Best of luck to all of you out in Boston, even after-the-fact, it has to be quite chaotic out there at the moment.

Julie Mon Apr 15, 2013 8:25 pm

Just saw one of my local running buddies is OK by a FB post. Praying lots. My church is having a prayer time this evening for people to drop in and pray for this. It's just so sad.

ounce Mon Apr 15, 2013 9:12 pm

StevenT42 wrote:It's been a while, and it took a little bit to track you all down from the V-Team site. I'm glad to read that everyone from the forum is okay. Thank you guys for making these tracking threads.

Best of luck to all of you out in Boston, even after-the-fact, it has to be quite chaotic out there at the moment.

Welcome.

Bob Mon Apr 15, 2013 9:33 pm

What an awful day. I got a call from Schuey this afternoon, and he was pretty shook up. Not to talk gossip, but he did say Vivian was pretty close to the explosion, and hid behind a garbage can before crossing the finish line. 1L was a worry for a while, too. Was told she saw the explosion (assuming she was on Boylston), but did not cross the finish.
It was eerie talking to Martin, because in the background it was constant sirens for the length of the phone call.
Glad we are all accounted for and physically safe.

Mark B Mon Apr 15, 2013 10:51 pm

Bob wrote:What an awful day. I got a call from Schuey this afternoon, and he was pretty shook up. Not to talk gossip, but he did say Vivian was pretty close to the explosion, and hid behind a garbage can before crossing the finish line. 1L was a worry for a while, too. Was told she saw the explosion (assuming she was on Boylston), but did not cross the finish.
It was eerie talking to Martin, because in the background it was constant sirens for the length of the phone call.
Glad we are all accounted for and physically safe.

Amen to that.

Seth Harrison Mon Apr 15, 2013 11:00 pm

I spoke to Vivian and she was about a minute from the finish line, but she's ok. I couldn't get a hold of Michele, but John P. told me that she's fine too.

kath Mon Apr 15, 2013 11:13 pm

Yikes. The third bomb was found on Boylston at Dartmouth, which is exactly where I was when the first explosion happened. There are no spectators lined up on the sidewalk there but the street is full of the volunteers who hand you your medal and other stuff.

Ben Z Tue Apr 16, 2013 12:58 am

Thanks for the updates and VERY glad our team is OK.

Im just saddened by this. Geez.

Michele "1L" Keane Tue Apr 16, 2013 9:44 am

Thanks all for the concern. I stopped to give my daughter a hug at 25 miles or I might have made it or been closer. My watch recorded me at 26.1 miles so I'll take that. I think I would have crossed around 4:11 and change. I saw the second blast pretty vividly but had stopped running when the first one went off (as did most of us) since I thought someone was shooting. I think I took a couple of more steps before the 2nd one. And then I dropped down and ran to the sidewalk by The Lord & Taylor store and the Mandarin Hotel. The cops were running behind us telling us to go to Mass Ave. My in laws were at Hereford and saw me seconds before and heard everything. I know that you are all wondering about how slow the times were but there was a headwind through Newton and from BC to the end. It was pretty brutal actually.

I believe that I am physically fine. I was able to get my bags from my still closed hotel last night around 10:30 with my key and a police escort. All the rooms had been opened and checked and they were all wide open. Weird.

Nick Morris Tue Apr 16, 2013 9:58 am

Michele "1L" Keane wrote:Thanks all for the concern. I stopped to give my daughter a hug at 25 miles or I might have made it or been closer. My watch recorded me at 26.1 miles so ill take that. I think I would have crossed around 4:11 and change. I saw the second blast pretty vividly but had stopped running when the first one went off (as did most of us) since I thought someone was shooting. I think I took a couple of more steps before the 2nd one. And then I dropped down and ran to the sidewalk by The Lord &taylor store and the Mandarin Hotel. The cops were running behind us telling us to go to Mass Ave. My in laws were at Hereford and saw me seconds before and heard everything. I know that you are all wondering about how slow the times were but there was a headwind through Newton and from BC to the end. It was pretty brutal actually.

I believe that I am physically fine. I was able to get my bags from my still closed hotel last night around 10:30 with my ket and a police escort. All the rooms had been opened and checked and they were all wide open. Weird.

We are all just glad you are safe!!!

ounce Tue Apr 16, 2013 11:24 am

Nick Morris wrote:
Michele "1L" Keane wrote:Thanks all for the concern. I stopped to give my daughter a hug at 25 miles or I might have made it or been closer. My watch recorded me at 26.1 miles so ill take that. I think I would have crossed around 4:11 and change. I saw the second blast pretty vividly but had stopped running when the first one went off (as did most of us) since I thought someone was shooting. I think I took a couple of more steps before the 2nd one. And then I dropped down and ran to the sidewalk by The Lord &taylor store and the Mandarin Hotel. The cops were running behind us telling us to go to Mass Ave. My in laws were at Hereford and saw me seconds before and heard everything. I know that you are all wondering about how slow the times were but there was a headwind through Newton and from BC to the end. It was pretty brutal actually.

I believe that I am physically fine. I was able to get my bags from my still closed hotel last night around 10:30 with my ket and a police escort. All the rooms had been opened and checked and they were all wide open. Weird.

We are all just glad you are safe!!!

+1, and thanks for explaining the last few miles as I was wondering why the times slowed. A headwind does explain it.

In general, I would expect registration fees for future big marathons across the country to go up at least $20.

mountandog Tue Apr 16, 2013 11:37 am

I will write a race report at some point, but I'm just too emotionally raw right now. I have a 3rd grade, 8 yr old son with missing teeth at home just like that little boy that was killed. I'm at the Manchester aiport and just can't wait to get home. If I think about it too much it just tears me up. Even though I finished a couple hours ahead and missed the actual event its amazing the impact it still holds.

healdgator Tue Apr 16, 2013 5:12 pm

Nick Morris wrote:As an FYI...Michele's sister did confirm on FB that Michele was ok. She was one tenth away from the finish when the blast went off.

wow

ounce Tue Apr 16, 2013 5:48 pm

mountandog wrote:I will write a race report at some point, but I'm just too emotionally raw right now. I have a 3rd grade, 8 yr old son with missing teeth at home just like that little boy that was killed. I'm at the Manchester aiport and just can't wait to get home. If I think about it too much it just tears me up. Even though I finished a couple hours ahead and missed the actual event its amazing the impact it still holds.

I feel ya, man.

JohnP Tue Apr 16, 2013 11:59 pm

I got home tonight and posted a number of pictures to Facebook. The pictures of the restaurant with abandoned tables were really wierd (I posted five off them). I thought it was some joke they do but it was real, I found a story of it on CNN. Some guy was there this morning when I saw this, and I asked him what had happened and he said when it happened, and people started racing through the Prudential center, that the people in the restaurant thought someone with a gun was loose so they all bolted out and left clothes, credit cards, phones, etc., on the tables. It looked preserved even the next day.

Vivian was one of the last to cross the finish line. I told her she might have come in last place, But then I realized my time was slower than hers even though I finished ahead because I was in wave 2 so I started earlier. So that means I might have come in last, that's always been a secret fear I had. I'll write up a race report in a few days, I know work will be busy as i'll be telling a lot of people about this rather than actually working much.

I really thank everyone for the concern that's evident in all the posts. As far as the race, I was not surprised by my time. If my daughter didn't live in Boston which meant we got to spend the weekend with her, I'm not sure I would have raced this year. I trained 10 weeks only, have a bad knee, and did zero hill training. So I did OK for a while but once I hit the stretch with hills, it took too much out of me. Still, I was about 50 minutes faster than last year so I've got that going for me! Very Happy

Mark B Wed Apr 17, 2013 12:45 am

Scary, sad stuff, John. Glad you're safe. Hope we get a chance to hear from Vivian soon.

carleenp Wed Apr 17, 2013 12:56 am

Glad you are safe John!

jon c Wed Apr 17, 2013 11:58 am

We got home yesterday evening with no travel issues.
I too like many others have already mentioned have been overwhelmed by the numbers of people wanting to make sure that we were ok. Thanks to all just for caring.
I went across the finish line about 25 minutes before the explosions. I met my family at the Boston common which is much less crowded than around the finish. Connie, Hannah, and I were on the T heading out to the Riverside station where our rental car was parked. At Hynes Convention Center stop, they announced that everyone needed to evacuate the train, that there was an emergency. We walked out to the street level, and started to hear the sirens, and soon police, fire, big bulletproof SUVs, and ambulances came flying by. People on the street were talking about explosions around the Prudential center, so we decided to start walking away from downtown. We found the race course, saw all the runners stopped before the underpass, and made our way to Kenmore square. Hannah had not eaten and as a type 1 diabetic, I felt it was worth the risk to stop and get her (and me) fed. We found a Qboda with a dozen people inside watching TV coverage so we sat down and ate and saw what was being reported. We had just about finished eating when the manager said the police wanted the area evacuated. So we left quickly and walked toward the Fenway train stop as my plan was to parallel the train line as best we could. The police said the T was not running there either, so we slowly made our way further down the line. At the Longwood stop, we finally found a train that was letting people on. There were hardly any people on the train so we probably got out sooner than many folks. So we then were able to get to our car and got back to our hotel at around 6.
The sheer numbers of people on the streets are just staggering during this event. I have often thought in the years I have run this race how inviting a target for a terrorist incident this would be. I was also so impressed how the police handle things. They often have a pretty thankless and at times dangerous job. I guess it simply shows that no matter the precautions are taken that these types of things can happen. The only surprise is that something didn't happen sooner.
Will I come back to Boston? Absolutely, yes. I can certainly understand if some have hesitation, but for me, this is simply a reflection of the world we live in. I was deeply saddened by the loss of life and those who will have permanent limb loss and injuries. What better tribute to those people than to show up and run it again next year. That's how I feel today.
For now, hug your spouse, loved ones, significant others, and especially your kids and spend quality time with them whenever possible. None of us know what tomorrow will bring.

ounce Wed Apr 17, 2013 12:23 pm

Great report and I'm glad you and your family were blessed with your speed.

Mark B Wed Apr 17, 2013 12:26 pm

Thanks for the update, Jon. Glad you and your family are safe.

Nick Morris Wed Apr 17, 2013 12:32 pm

JohnP wrote:I got home tonight and posted a number of pictures to Facebook. The pictures of the restaurant with abandoned tables were really wierd (I posted five off them). I thought it was some joke they do but it was real, I found a story of it on CNN. Some guy was there this morning when I saw this, and I asked him what had happened and he said when it happened, and people started racing through the Prudential center, that the people in the restaurant thought someone with a gun was loose so they all bolted out and left clothes, credit cards, phones, etc., on the tables. It looked preserved even the next day.

Vivian was one of the last to cross the finish line. I told her she might have come in last place, But then I realized my time was slower than hers even though I finished ahead because I was in wave 2 so I started earlier. So that means I might have come in last, that's always been a secret fear I had. I'll write up a race report in a few days, I know work will be busy as i'll be telling a lot of people about this rather than actually working much.

I really thank everyone for the concern that's evident in all the posts. As far as the race, I was not surprised by my time. If my daughter didn't live in Boston which meant we got to spend the weekend with her, I'm not sure I would have raced this year. I trained 10 weeks only, have a bad knee, and did zero hill training. So I did OK for a while but once I hit the stretch with hills, it took too much out of me. Still, I was about 50 minutes faster than last year so I've got that going for me!

I checked out your photos this morning and you are right, the tables do look like they have been preserved. Glad that you are alright!!

Nick Morris Wed Apr 17, 2013 12:36 pm

jon c wrote:We got home yesterday evening with no travel issues.
I too like many others have already mentioned have been overwhelmed by the numbers of people wanting to make sure that we were ok. Thanks to all just for caring.
I went across the finish line about 25 minutes before the explosions. I met my family at the Boston common which is much less crowded than around the finish. Connie, Hannah, and I were on the T heading out to the Riverside station where our rental car was parked. At Hynes Convention Center stop, they announced that everyone needed to evacuate the train, that there was an emergency. We walked out to the street level, and started to hear the sirens, and soon police, fire, big bulletproof SUVs, and ambulances came flying by. People on the street were talking about explosions around the Prudential center, so we decided to start walking away from downtown. We found the race course, saw all the runners stopped before the underpass, and made our way to Kenmore square. Hannah had not eaten and as a type 1 diabetic, I felt it was worth the risk to stop and get her (and me) fed. We found a Qboda with a dozen people inside watching TV coverage so we sat down and ate and saw what was being reported. We had just about finished eating when the manager said the police wanted the area evacuated. So we left quickly and walked toward the Fenway train stop as my plan was to parallel the train line as best we could. The police said the T was not running there either, so we slowly made our way further down the line. At the Longwood stop, we finally found a train that was letting people on. There were hardly any people on the train so we probably got out sooner than many folks. So we then were able to get to our car and got back to our hotel at around 6.
The sheer numbers of people on the streets are just staggering during this event. I have often thought in the years I have run this race how inviting a target for a terrorist incident this would be. I was also so impressed how the police handle things. They often have a pretty thankless and at times dangerous job. I guess it simply shows that no matter the precautions are taken that these types of things can happen. The only surprise is that something didn't happen sooner.
Will I come back to Boston? Absolutely, yes. I can certainly understand if some have hesitation, but for me, this is simply a reflection of the world we live in. I was deeply saddened by the loss of life and those who will have permanent limb loss and injuries. What better tribute to those people than to show up and run it again next year. That's how I feel today.
For now, hug your spouse, loved ones, significant others, and especially your kids and spend quality time with them whenever possible. None of us know what tomorrow will bring.

Thanks Jon! It sounds like you had an adventurous trip back to your hotel. I am glad that you and your family are alright!!

Michele "1L" Keane Wed Apr 17, 2013 1:47 pm

Thanks, Jon! Glad you are all fine. I also heard from Randy Egge. He finished about an hour before it happened as was at his hotel when he heard.

ssilvert Wed Apr 17, 2013 1:54 pm

Looks like they have a clear picture of the bomber. I just heard that they made an arrest, but that's not official yet.

http://www.bostonglobe.com/2013/04/17/boston-medical-center-reports-five-year-old-boy-critical-condition-victims-treated-from-boston-marathon-bombings/UiktKly60y4m8UVHeNu8NP/story.html

Stan

wrichman Wed Apr 17, 2013 3:40 pm

Just want to say I'm so glad every one here is physically safe. Sending you all a big, virtual hu. Mentally/emotionally dealing with this will be different for every one involved.

I was supposed to run, but did not due to injury. I was spectating a few blocks from the finish (almost mile 26) on Commonwealth Ave. right before the turn with 3 friends. We heard the bombs and saw smoke coming from the finish area. We all looked at each other confused wondering what it was. About 30-60 seconds later officials stopped the runners right in front of us (right where you see the picture of the runners stopped before the underpass) - that's when we knew it was something serious, but we didn't know what had happened. They kept asking us what was happening, but we didn't know. Suddenly, every cop around started running, biking, police cars speeding down the street. I got on my phone, but it wasn't even on the news yet. Called my husband and he looked online and started seeing what happened and telling me.
My brother in law, who works for the FBI, called me within minutes and told me to get out of downtown as quickly as possible. I saw some residents bring pitchers of water and blankets out for the stopped runners. We (my friends and I cheering) had just seen 4 of our friends run by only 5 - 10 minutes before and wondered if they were ok.
Long story short, I split up from my friends who were going back to their hotel. I walked up and down Commonwealth Ave. for over an hour looking for my friend (who was at work at the time near BU) to drive us out of the city. There were so many police, sirens, ambulances. They kept closing roads. It was very surreal and scary. I stayed 15 minutes outside the city in Medford the whole weekend, so I felt much safer when we left downtown and was away from it all.

I'm back in Chicago today - I'm not enjoying living in a city right now. Every loud bang and siren I hear makes me jump and relive it all over again. I've been in a fog since Monday - lots of random crying and not really sleeping. I had to get another MRI this morning, and I started crying in the middle of it and in the parking garage because I felt trapped. I started a new job a few weeks ago, and I was supposed to go to a meeting to meet new colleagues today, but I can't handle being around a lot of people right now.
I'm having trouble processing what happened - what I saw and experienced was different from what I saw on TV. I'm trying to connect the two events in my mind.

For every one who was there - my friend (who I was staying with) was in special operations in Afghanistan for 5 years - he encouraged me to talk, cry, and go with whatever feelings I am having. If you need help, ask for it...don't be afraid to ask for help coping with what you went through.

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