Eren Crushes Her Boston Marathon PB Dream!

BOSTON MARATHON RACE REPORT
BY: Eren Perez

THANK YOU JULIA!! We did it again! It still hasn't sunk in...

Achieving a 3:15 marathon seemed like a very tough and far goal, going well under my goal is so unbelievable. And of course I now believe I can run faster.  This is the first race in my athlete career where I actually believe I could achieve my dream. I knew it would be hard, but I knew I could do it. Thank you for giving me the confidence.

Race week: was managing a migraine episode so it was hard to sleep and get rest, my dreams started to walk away from me because I know I can't run with migraines. Kept positive and did everything I could to manage it. Saturday was our travel day. We arrived and I went to pick up my bib. It started to feel more real and migraine was slowly fading woohoo. Sunday shake out run went well. Spent the day eating, doing a bit of walking and resting.

Race day: my bus loading was at 7:30am so we woke up at 5:15am and headed towards Boston Common at 6:30am. Had oatmeal before leaving and brought a honey sandwich with me for the athletes village. Made it to the athlete's village around 9am so had about 45mins before they called my colour to line up. It was so so cold, my hands were numb but the sun was warming us up. Lined up to go chase my dreams at about 10:25am, my wave went off at 10:28am and I crossed the start at 10:32. Woohoo!

Nutrition: had two ELMT before the race and a Maurten gel every 30 mins. For the last hr, I had a gel every 20mins.  

My plan: I wrote on my arms my goal time for 5km, 10km, 21km, 39km to achieve a 3:15. I was well under that from the beginning but I was trying to hold back and be conservative. I was nervous about facing Newton again as it broke me two years ago. That's where I pulled out of the course to DNF at first, but decided to keep going and it was a drilling one foot in front of the other until the finish race. 

The Race: It was nice to see that I could control my HR despite the adrenaline, fast pace, uphills and downhills and control my HR. When I reached Newton then it was a mental game until the finish. I saw Alex, my partner, at km 10 and 25 and he gave me a big boost. 

Newton: it was finally time to face my fear again, I waved hello at the Newton sign and got to work on the first hill (not too bad). I was able to bring my HR down through the first hill which was nice. The runners around me were so good, we were all in good spirits and kept telling each other "we are doing it". I had a chat with Newton through the next hill and then made my way to the heartbreak hill. I took it easy because I didn't want to cramp up and slowly made my way to the sign. Woohoo, bye Newton!! 

It was downhill to Boston from here AND a mental game. I stopped looking at my HR as I knew it was going to be high and just held on to my dreams. I knew I was well under my goal time so told myself "keep it together and just get there in one piece". As we approached Boston, the crowds were louder and bigger and they carried us through. I stayed super focused and consistent and didn't think I had it until the left turn on Boylston. I turned left on Boylston at 3:10 ish and finally let my legs go hard.  Tears and so many emotions came out on those last 500m. I WAS GOING TO DO IT!!

Post Race Thoughts: I accomplished something special, pushed the limits again, and Boston taught me once again to never stop believing in myself and to keep dreaming. I was also able to stay in it mentally for most of the race and take it all in. My mantra for the race was "you belong here". It's such a team sport and I'm so happy I was able to execute a perfect race on behalf of all the people that helped me get there - coach, training partners and friends.

Chip time 3:12:20 : This is a 4min marathon PB for Eren and on this course is something unbelievable!! She also BQ qualified for 2027 !!! ... see you next year in Boston!

Congratulations Eren you are one brave athlete. You have a ferocious ability to push your limits and have taught me that the human body really is more capable than we think.

Coach Julia