Patriots' Day and Marathons

Today is Patriots' Day in Boston and that can only mean one thing... It's Marathon Monday. The first time I ever saw the Boston Marathon was more than 40 years ago. My dad had taken me and several of my siblings to watch the Red Sox game that day (another Boston tradition on Patriots Day). The Sox got shelled as I recall, but that was not the highlight of the day. As soon as the ballgame ended, Dad led all of us quickly out of Fenway over to the bridge on Beacon Street that passes over the Mass Turnpike just before Kenmore Square. We had to hurry if we were going to see the runners.

I knew nothing of this event, or of running in general. In those days (probably in 1968 or 1969), I think only three or four hundred men entered the race. Running under 3-hours was a major accomplishment. By the time we got there, we were told that the lead runners were still 30 minutes away. Eventually, they came by. Many were foreigners as I recall, especially Asians (Japanese and Koreans), with a few Europeans sprinkled in. I doubt there was a Kenyan or an Ethiopian to be seen. Dad told us we had to watch for Johnny "The Younger" Kelley (Champion of the 1957 BAA Marathon), as he might have a chance to win. As the leaders ran into the distance, we were told we were not leaving until Johnny "The Elder" Kelley ran by. The winner of the 1935 and 1945 BAA Marathon, Johnny was already well past his prime, but he was a fan favorite, not so much for his past victories, more for his record seven second-place finishes. He is responsible for the sportswriters dubbing the final hill in Newton "Heartbreak Hill."

Except for the few years that I was not living in Boston during my service in the Marines, I have either run in or watched the Marathon. I first ran it (illegally) when I was 17. I made it through 20 miles in 2:20, only to strain a hamstring and walk 3 of the last 4 miles to finish in something like 3:48. I did not run the race again until my mid-30s and my best time remains 3:12. Respectable, I guess, but pedestrian by today's standards.

These days, I enjoy going to my sister Cathie's home on Comm Ave, near mile 19, just to watch the leaders and cheer for the rest of the folks who need my support. I take my kids along. We make a day of it. I predicted today's course record yesterday. It was an easy call. Temps in the mid-50s and a 10-20 mph wind out of the northwest. I didn't know WHO would break the record, but I was pretty certain it would fall.

Obviously, it requires a ton of talent to run 26 miles at a pace faster than 4:50 per mile. 99.99% of the population cannot run a single mile that fast. Still, those guys are ONLY running for less than 2 hours and 10 minutes. Is that really as hard as slogging along for 5 or 6 hours? I'll tip my hat every year to that middle-aged woman who really doesn't look like she belongs out there with the Africans. She has a lot of grit and she must have a lot of faith in herself and in her maker!

Keep on Running.