The Boston Marathon is truly a special race. The energy, excitement, and local support for the race is simply amazing. There might be a few imperfections here and there, but for an outstanding overall experience, it's tough to beat Boston.

Being the year after the 2013 attacks, we knew every aspect of the event would be crowded, and it definitely was. First, they added about 20% more runners to accommodate those who were unable to finish last year. This was a cool gesture by the BAA, but it did create a bit more crowds at the expo and on race day. Not a huge deal, but you definitely felt the crowds throughout the weekend. The expo space is pretty small too, so with a ton of extra people, the expo was pretty overwhelming and cramped.

T-shirt
Boston always has cool t-shirts, but I was astounded at how long the sleeves were on our Adidas long sleeve finisher shirt. I'm a normally proportioned person, and the shirt was at least 5 inches too long in the sleeves. I just don't understand who decides this is a standard measurement.

Race Day
It was chilly when we arrived in Hopkinton, but it warmed up significantly by the time the race started. Again, the field was considerably larger this year, but I was lucky to be up front so I never noticed it (I did know many people in later waves and corrals, and none complained of onerous crowds at the start or along the course. So, great job by the BAA accommodating everyone smoothly).

Everyone talks about how this course beats you up in the beginning and then forces you over hills at the end. Well. that's exactly what happened. I came into this race more prepared that for any race in the past, and I really got kicked around by the course. The slight heat (about 65 on the course) and relentless downhill had me abandon my goal by about 14. At that point I could have kept pushing, but I've run this race twice before so I knew what lay ahead. Had I kept pushing for my goal, my finish would have been jeopardized.

Aid stations were very well manned, as always, and even with the heat they were outstanding. Boston always gets real pros as volunteers, and this year was no different.

Biggest complaint
At the finish line, we had to walk a long ways before getting any water or gatorade. My running mates and I badly needed water after the race, and we had to keep walking and walking and walking before we got any. Other runners were also complaining about this too. I get that they wanted to keep people moving, but having runners stop and look around for water in disbelief doesn't help that end. I really wish they had some people just handing out bottles of water closer to the finish - especially on a hot day.

Because they limited the size and type of bags you could check, the BAA provided more robust blankets at the finish, which had arm slits and hoods. These were a great perk and definitely helped after a tough 26.2 effort.

Overall, it was a great race with outstanding crowd and volunteer support. The day was a bit warm but beautiful and the course was managed very well. I'm grateful for every time I get to run Boston, and this year was truly special.