Wednesday, April 3, 2019

AMAZING BOSTON NEWS

This blog is sponsored by Blue Diamond Almond Breeze. The content and opinions expressed here are that of my own.

Don’t worry, I won’t leave you in suspense, mostly because I can’t hold my tongue any longer, so here comes the news...

I AM RUNNING THE 2019 BOSTON MARATHON!


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If this doesn't call for a HAPPY DANCE then I don't know what does!

I know, I know, before you mention "But, Carlee, you said after last year's race you wouldn't run the Boston Marathon again, sup wit dat?! You're a liar!"... THIS IS DIFFERENT and hopefully you'll hang with me for a second to see why.
Almond Breeze (you know, the awesome California co-op that makes some delicious Almondmilk) reached out to me a few days ago and asked if I wanted to partner up with them for the event and I couldn't turn them down. Not only was the offer pretty amazing, but I also think this is a loophole in my original decision that I can totally take advantage of ;)

You see, the main reason why I said I would not run the Boston Marathon again was because I did not want to take a spot away from a qualified runner, and here is the caveat in the situation -- I am NOT taking a spot away from a qualified runner, because all of the qualified runners have secured their registration already, hence I'm not going back on my word!

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I have a literally been on Cloud Nine since I received the initial email. Actually, let's be real, I think I'm on cloud 26.2!

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As you know, for many moons the hubby and I have been vegetarians and kicked cow's milk to the curb years ago. We love stocking our fridge with almond milk and since Almond Breeze is a local company, you better believe we support them any chance we get (and how awesome is it that they are now supporting me and my journey to Boston?!). They have so many different products (Almondmilk, Blends and even Creamer) and flavors (I am LOVING the New Almondmilk Blended With Real Bananas). There is something for everyone! And you can't forget about the co-op of growers behind the nuts themselves - AWESOMESAUCE! The company is really just a big ol' family!


We use Almond Breeze for everything from our cereal, to baking and from drinking it straight, to in our smoothies. Stay tuned while I document my Boston Marathon journey with Almond Breeze, including my fave smoothie I drink for recovery.

This is a recipe you do not wanna miss!

So, the logistics... I'm glad you asked! As you know, I'll be running #Ragnar4Rett on April 12th and 13th. If you are new to the blog, you can read all about our ultra relay race and efforts to raise money and awareness for Rett Syndrome HERE.


If you look at calendar, you probably have noticed the blatant issue...  Boston is the Monday immediately following Ragnar SoCal weekend. Thankfully, I have chatted with the #TeamSparkle girls and I think we can make this work. We have put in our estimated paces for the race and it appears our approximated finish time should be around 3pm on Saturday.


With that said, the game plan will be to finish Ragnar SoCal, shower at a friend's house and have the hubby take me to the San Diego airport to catch a redeye flight Saturday night, so I can arrive in Boston as early as possible Sunday AM.

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The Almond Breeze team has been extremely accommodating with my busy schedule! Thankfully, with all of the ultra-marathon training I have been doing, I believe I will be able to run #AllOfTheMiles without much issue. (And my fibromyalgia has "trained" my body to run on very little sleep... {sometimes I think I might be an elf ;)} so here's to hoping my adrenaline will keep me charged for these intense [and somewhat insane] 96ish hours.) 
We plan to race #Ragnar4Rett for time. We have won our division for the last few years and we want to retain our title. With that said, I am expecting to run the Boston Marathon for FUN. If you remember last year's race, you know that the elements were against us. Although it was amazing and memorable, I would not say I saw much of the course. My head was down with my hat shielding the rain being pelted at my eyes, so I probably missed the majority of the sights along the way. Not to mention, I believe many of the spectators were at home taking cover from the monsoon, hurricane force winds and freezing rain. Don’t get me wrong, the crowd support with still amazing, but I’ve heard it can be out of this world!

I had to run with all of the rain gear last year... YEP, I EVEN WORE DISHWASHING GLOVES TO KEEP MY HANDS DRY!

I can't wait for a totally different experience come Patriot's Day (well, I guess Mother Nature could always be a brat again throw a monkey wrench into things, but here's to hoping last year's weather was a once in a millennia type occurrence).

Wanna know what else I am excited to experience?! The pre-race dinner, presented by Almond Breeze! I'd be lying if I said I hadn't been eye ballin' the menu... I mean, come on, these are a few of the food items currently on tap - Three Cheese Mac & Cheese, Gluten-Free Pasta Primavera and Bread Pudding! The best part is, everything is made with Blue Diamond Almond Breeze! SCRUM-DIDILY-UMPTIOOUS! Tell me your mouth isn't watering... Now I just need to remind myself not to gorge on the deliciousness so I can still run the following day! #DoggyBagPlease

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So, how do we proceed?! With the Boston Marathon officially less than two weeks away, I do the only thing I can do... I keep drinking my Almond Breeze and just keep running (and maybe a little tapering so my legs can be fresh ;)).

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I've already registered for the race and have my bib number. Even with my invitational entry, I was able to use my qualifying time {I ran a 3:23 at the Ventura Marathon in October, which was 6.5 minutes faster than the required cut-off}, so I'll be in Corral 6 of Wave 2. I doubt I'll stick with the speedsters around me, but I'm not worried about that because I plan to run this race for fun, stopping along the way, taking #AllThePictures. My time may not be fast (especially after racing 30+ miles 30ish hours prior), but the time in Boston and the memories made will be AMAZING - guaranteed!

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A HUGE THANKS to Almond Breeze for this FAN-FREAKIN'-TASTIC opportunity. I honestly never thought that I'd be returning to the finish line on Boylston Street as a runner (I assumed I might come back to spectate or volunteer, but had given up the idea of running Boston again), but I'm ecstatic and can’t even wrap my head around the fact that this is real life. I've literally been pinching myself since I signed on the dotted line and can’t believe I didn't spill the beans already.


#RealTalk - Do you think I went back on my word?

7 comments:

Shannon said...

I am super excited for you!!! Sooo awesome! I am done with marathons for now...but, if an opp came up like this, I'd be all in!!!

Christine 'Fit' Newton said...

No way! I think this is an awesome opportunity; can't pass it up! Congrats, Carlee!

Anonymous said...

lol NOPE! great opportunity, you aren't take a spot away from a runner. Also it's Boston, and you do your thing girl!!! Even if people give you crap, you are allowed to change your mind.

Anonymous said...

Congrats! What a great opportunity:) I don't think you are going back on your word. But this gives me an idea...what if most of the sponsored spots were given to those who qualified but didn't get in?! It'd be a neat way to allow more qualified runners to run.

SD Mom said...

Do you need to come shower at my house? I live right by the airport!

Britany said...

Absolutely freakin' not! You were still kind to let the qualifiers through and now you have this amazing opportunity! I would have taken it in a heartbeat! Excited for you!

Ben and Jack's Momma said...

Nope, you didn't...This is amazing news!! Congrats to you Carlee!!! Enjoy every moment!!