got out of the area safe before the trouble. oh, i got a pr. more later when i am at a real keyboard. Made it back to Idaho safe and sound. My niece also ran the race. Her first marathon. Ran as a charity runner for Tufts University. She was put on a bus at mile 25. I am more disappointed in her lost opportunity than any impact the events had on me. Her husband was in the finish area and heard and felt the blast but was not hurt. Flew into Hartford CT on Wednesday and spent most of the week at my wife's college roommates home on Cape Cod. Her roommate keeps an apartment 10 minutes from the start for work during the week. We did the packet pickup on Sunday, then went to the apartment Sunday night. Used the runner drop off near Hopkinton. Easy Easy. No crowds or lines. Best race I have ever run. New PR. Last thing my wife said to me at the runner drop-off was "run smart". I distinctly remember her saying "don't be stupid". Either way, I finally ran a marathon with even/negative splits. Summary Training went so well over the winter, against the advice of many, I decided I wanted to go for a PR. The plan was to take off at the goal pace, but not fight the crowd, just go with the flow. I started in corral 4 of the second wave. Again, very well organized. I was worried about a crowded start, but it was not as bad as I had feared. Turns out the crowd was a good thing keeping me right at goal pace. I cruised along almost exactly at the pace I needed. Everything stayed right on pace all the way to Newton. Felt great and was right on pace. I tried not to push on the hills and keep the effort even. Made it to the top of heart break hill just ahead of schedule. Legs felt good. Wind felt good. Figured I would pick up the pace and see how long I could hold on. According the the GPS I was going a little quicker, but I felt like I was flying. The only trouble the entire race was I felt the first sign of a cramp in the left calf at mile 24. At that point I was pretty sure I would make the PR if I could keep the cramp from setting in. I eased up a little, but that only made it dicier. I decided to just go. 3:23:49 Took about 1:30 off my previous best. Met up with the wife and friend and decided to head back to the apartment. We were already on the train with the trouble started. For reasons good and bad I will remember the day for a very long time | 