After missing the Olympic Standard by sixty-five seconds at the 118 th Boston Marathon, I set a goal to go after the Olympic standard of 2:18 at the Twin Cities Marathon. Why Twin Cities? The weather is consistently ideal, the course is fast and being a US Championship was an extra bonus. (un) Lucky bib no. 13 With this year’s race being a U.S. Championship, the hospitality was superb. The Twin Cities in Motion people sure know how to host runners! With the race being on Sunday, I arrived on Thursday in order to give me time to relax before all other athletes arrived Friday. I followed though the same tapering phase I had done for Boston. I felt pretty relaxed on the days leading up to the race. With the way my training had gone, I believed anything was possible on race day. I believed I was capable of not just running under 2:18, but also competing for a top 10 spot. After a traditional pre marathon four-day caffeine depletion, w