" ... I'm not as concerned with time as much as with competing well."

We asked Team USA Minnesota's Chris Lundstrom a few questions about his preparations and plans for Monday's Boston Marathon. Lundstrom (pictured) returns to Boston for a third time coming off a redeeming 4th place finish at the Twin Cities Marathon last fall.

DtB: Are there things that you learned from your successful 2006 TCM that you're planning to put to use at Boston?

Lundstrom: I took a few things from Twin Cities and applied them to my training. The most important thing that I tried to do similarly was specific course preparation. In other words, running marathon pace over the type of course that I will be racing over. That was very easy for Twin Cities. We (Jason [Lehmkuhle] and I) did a bunch of runs over various parts of the course, with some of them being marathon simulation workouts.

Training on the course itself was not an option for Boston, so I had to be a little more creative in preparing for the demands of the course, particularly in the dead of winter with ice and snow to deal with. I used Google Maps to look at elevation and try to find some hilly areas and loops that would simulate Boston at least to some degree, and on a few occasions I did workouts on the treadmill, adjusting the elevation throughout the run to mimic the Boston course. The downhills are really a big challenge at Boston, and that's tough to simulate, but I did the best I could.

Also, I've been good about my strength training, and I think that does wonders for keeping your legs strong in the late stages of a marathon, especially a hilly one.

DtB: You raced three straight weekends back in March, was that part of a new strategy for getting ready for Boston?

I ran the Gate River 15k, the USA 8k Championships in New York, and the ING Georgia Half Marathon. I don't typically race that much, but I felt like there were good reasons for going to all three. The 15k was a very competitive race and I really needed a tough race in the 15k to half marathon range to focus my training through February and early March. The winter gets long without something to look forward to and shoot for, and I have been to Gate before and really like that race.

The 8k was really a chance to get out to New York and see the course that will be used for the Olympic Trials Marathon next fall. On top of that, I got a short, high intensity race in, which I like to do at least once in the month or two before the marathon. The ING Georgia Half was really a perfect simulation for Boston -- it's a very hilly course, and it was hot, which can be the case at Boston. So I really felt like it would be a good chance to test my legs and give them one final long, hard effort before beginning the taper.

On the whole, I think the three weeks in a row of racing were beneficial. Back when I was just out of college, I would go through periods where I raced every weekend, and I haven't really found any better way to get sharp and race-ready. There certainly was a risk involved in racing that much, with all the travel and the demanding nature of the races. I could have overdone it, gotten sick, and/or sacrificed training, but I think I came through it in good shape and having managed to train pretty well between the races. I definitely was worn out for a few days after the half, but the timing worked out well with that being the beginning of my taper.

DtB: What can you tell us about your goals and race plans for Boston?

Nothing. It's a secret.

No, seriously, I went out very conservatively at TCM and that paid off. I plan to get out a bit faster at Boston, but hopefully within the same effort range. Boston is a net downhill through 16 miles, so I think it's tough to run a negative split race there. At the same time, you need to save something for the hills from 17-21. So it's sort of walking that fine line, and hopefully I can run the right effort again, and not obsess too much about exact splits in those early miles.

In terms of goals, I was 20th in 2005 and 16th in 2006 at Boston, and I'd like to place higher again this year. That's the main goal. Ultimately, a top ten finish at a Boston or New York would be a great accomplishment for me, so that's definitely on my mind. In terms of time, I've tried to gear my training towards running 2:15. It's such a crapshoot at Boston with the weather. It could get hot, or windy, or it could be a great day, so I'm not as concerned with time as much as with competing well.

Photo courtesy of Team USA Minnesota.