Weather Karma.
If you live near the great lakes you get pretty good at amateur meteorology.
At least if you have half a brain. If you don’t, you just watch the local forecast and scream about how any storm that shows up is “media hype.”
(As an aside: Nothing pisses me off more than the “I’M SUCH A WEATHER GEEK! I WATCH THE WEATHER CHANNEL LOL”! types who ultimately react to every missed storm/cold front/warm front with “LOL U WEATHERMEN CAN’T GET IT RIGHT!”. Really, assholes? Really? I’m a rank amateur who understands the basics about how forecasting models work. And *I* get that its more complicated than simply reading radar.)
That said, I started my Boston weather watch on Monday since frankly, I wasn’t all that concerned. I was troubled when I saw a couple highs forecasted in the 80s, but was even more troubled when I saw how much difference there was between the GFS and the ECMFW. Particularly troubling was that the ECMFW was trending warmer since I understand it’s generally more accurate.
That said, once I saw this on meteostar yesterday evening I knew we were toast:
70s at the start, mid 80s by the finish.
More or less the worst case scenario for a marathon in the northeast in the spring because 1. trees aren’t really grown in yet 2. sun is at a lower angle than it would be in like…July 3. If you’re from the north east, you’re probably not heat acclimated.
On one hand, at least this winter wasn’t brutally cold. I did a 20 miler in weather that topped out at 77. ATB was fairly humid and it was about 60 degrees when I drove home.
On the other hand, FUCK. This is what we get for that tailwind last year. I realize nature isn’t vindictive but this sure as hell feels like it.
Of course, I’m not in PR shape so this is an excuse to not run horribly fast. (As tempted as I am to not run at all, I want to visit some people. :-/) Unfortunately, I’m also too fat to run shirtless. Oh well.
Can’t control the weather. Stay hydrated, folks. And eat salt. And for the love of Vodka go out slower than goal pace.
Semi-related: Who will be at the expo at like…10ish on Saturday? (lolz – bold question.)
Holy crap that’s warm. However, I wish you the best of luck and have fun playing in Boston afterwards. Considering it’s on my list of cities I MUST get my ass to, it’s quite sad I’ve been so slow about getting it together enough to go.
You should! I like it, even though the bars close super early. :p
THat is some warm weather but you’ll be fine after that 20 miler you did. You never know, maybe there will be a tailwind to cool you off and push you to the finish. Best of luck in Boston. I am not running this year but will be there to cheer people on. Won’t be at the expo until after 2
I’ll be at the expo, not sure what time. Got to go pick up my gear…for the 5K. But I’ll be thinking cold thoughts for you!
Besides the obvious answer of “first” where would you like to finish Monday? What time are you shooting for?
No goals. None. I just want to not die.
good luck! I will be tracking your progress from the comfort on my cubicle.
Try not too laugh as I FRY!
Holy crap, I wasn’t worrying too much about the weather until I read this & got the email from BAA. Ah. I am going to melt. Or run naked/in white shorts (wtf BAA?) Karma.
Good luck on your goal to not die…you got this!
The wording of that email cracked me the hell up which I NEED just about now. White shorts? YIKES.
I was feeling fairly “meh” about the temps until I pulled that model read last night. THAT scared the crap out of me. NOT DYING FOR THE WIN!
Miami was like that this year, but it’s Miami, so you know . . . kind of to be expected, but this is Boston. Also, since I now work in a climate office, you’re so right that most people have no idea just how difficult it is to pridict the weather. Getting things right, as much as they do, is nothing short of a minor miracle. Good Luck on Monday! And the one good thing is that if you do decided to say fuck it and lose the shrit. You’ll be in a sea of 25,000 people and not running alone down the Frat Boy infested streets of Home Town USA.
You raise a good point. MAZEL TOV.
I hear running skirts are good for keeping cool… I KID! Good luck!
Um yesterday I checked Weather.com every hour or so … for that evening’s fun run. In my defense, last night we had to run in the rain and thunder. So my wariness was warranted.
As for Boston, I say SCREW IT and run in your sports bra if you start to get overheated. Does Megan have an extra one-shouldered sports bra? One-shoulder = even less clothing!
Weather forecasts like that are why I will never do another race in Miami, or possibly in the state of Florida. Please don’t melt. Hot run = cold beer.
Maybe people will spray you with a hose from the sidelines. Let us know your number so we can track you!
Whoa, not good. All I can say is I’m so glad I’m not running. Erm, I mean you’ll be fine! ATB was humid and you ran faster than expected. Wear that bra top with pride.
No pride here. I could pass as a few months pregnant!
We shall all die.
You’ll do great! “f” the weather, it’s all a state of mind. Run your ass off.