The Runaround: Why Does the Boston Marathon Matter So Much?

When you hear the word marathon, what race comes to mind? For most people, THE marathon is the Boston Marathon. But why? Why do so many athletes have the Boston Marathon, coming up on April 15, as one of their bucket list running goals?

History

There is no other marathon that has the history of the Boston Marathon. Started in 1897 after the inclusion of the marathon distance in the 1896 Olympics, it is the oldest continuously run marathon. In that time, there have been a lot of historical moments. In 1936, when John Kelley tried passing eventual champion Ellison “Tarzan” Brown at the Newton Hills, Brown kicked into another gear, passing Kelley and winning. The newspapers said Brown “broke Kelley’s heart.” And thus, the final hill in Newton was renamed Heartbreak Hill.

Women surround a lot of the history of the Boston Marathon. For many years, women were not allowed to run it because it was thought that the marathon would be too difficult for women to run. Those people must have never experienced child birth. In 1966, Bobbi Gibbs snuck into and ran the marathon. In 1967, Katherine Switzer registered as K. V. Switzer as the application had no mention of the sex of the runner. Upon seeing a woman running in his race, then race director Jock Semple tried to literally run her off the course. After a stiff shoulder from Switzer’s boyfriend took out Semple, Switzer finished the marathon proving the chauvinistic thoughts to be wrong. In 1972, women finally were allowed to enter the marathon.

There is also some infamous history surrounding the Boston Marathon. In 1980, Rosie Ruiz famously won the women’s race out of nowhere while also breaking the women’s world record at the time. It was later determined that she hopped a train and jumped in the race with about half a mile to go. In 2013, the marathon and the world stopped when two bombs went off at the finish line, which sent the Boston area into a lockdown until the perpetrators were found days later.

Race Day

Unlike other marathons that happen on Sundays, the Boston Marathon happens on a Monday — Patriot’s Day. The Red Sox always have a home game starting at 11:05 a.m. so that as fans exit the game they can head toward the finish line. The whole city and suburbs around Boston shut down for the day. The race is so popular that you even need to apply to become a volunteer, and I know some have been turned down.

Many runners will take school buses from the finish line to the start of the race. The race starts in Hopkinton with it’s population of roughly 15,000. Why Hopkinton? Because it happened to be 26.2 miles away from the Boston Athletic Association office when the race began. When I ran it last year, I was about to run the biggest race in the world, and it felt as if I was in a small town like Bellefonte. The athletes’ “village” is in a field outside of Hopkinton High School. Even the elite athletes are limited to having their “VIP treatment” hanging out inside the high school. You start the race by running past a bunch of small Cape Cod-style houses on a two lane road. The only thing missing from Hopkinton was the Bellefonte Wok.

You’ll run through numerous small towns and colleges. One of the highlights is the scream tunnel at Wellesley College near the halfway point. The scream tunnel features hundreds of college women from Wellesley screaming and holding signs to encourage runners. How loud are they? I heard them from literally a mile away. They also offer free kisses to the runners. Don’t worry, dear, I did not partake in that tradition.

The marathon ends with the famous right on Hereford, left on Boylston. My friend Andy Cunningham once told me the Boston Marathon is only a 25-mile race as you are carried the final 1.2 miles to the finish line by the awesome crowds. “Just when you feel like you have nothing left, people lift you up again as you enter the city limits and make the final push; it’s here where Boston shines. They make all of us common runners feel like superstars, and it works.”

Qualifying

Most marathons require that you simply register or enter a lottery to be able to run it. Boston is different. In order to run the Boston Marathon, you have to run a certain time in another marathon in order to qualify. And those qualifying times are no jogging-while-taking-selfie times. They are fast.

But to throw an extra wrinkle in, you might end up running a qualifying time but still not run the marathon. For the last five years, once registration closed, it turned out more runners registered than what the marathon could handle. That’s what happened to me in 2017. I ran a Boston qualifying time in Pittsburgh with a 2:38 buffer. The cutoff last year ended up being 3:23, meaning I initially missed being able to run the Boston Marathon by 45 flippin’ seconds. Luckily things worked out for me thanks to an amazing company called Hyland’s.

Weather

Oh, the weather outside is usually frightful. Boston never disappoints in this category. Temperatures can range from the 90s to the 30s. Rain, sleet, snow, wind – anything is possible. Last year was arguably the worst conditions ever. No really. It was terrible. The temps were in the 30s and rain ranging from a drizzle to a sideways monsoon. Oh, and then there was wind, with a 25-30 mph headwind the whole time. Last year I saw many runners struggle with the weather as the onset of hypothermia started setting in. I managed the weather OK until I finished. Once my heart rate started dropping back to normal, my temperature plummeted and I started shivering, bad. The foil blanket they gave me didn’t help that much. And then like I always do, I got lost trying to find my family after the race. So that was fun.

So with all of this, the question is still why? Why do runners care so much about running the Boston Marathon? A friend of mine once told me that the Boston Marathon is the closest thing any amateur runner can get to being an Olympian. The elite athletes in the race have indeed been in the Olympics. And there I am running in the same race, even beating a few of them that dropped out due to the weather. For the record, I’m 1-0 vs. Galen Rupp, a 2012 silver medalist in the 10K.

Once you have completed Boston, you have earned an international symbol for being a serious athlete. Walking around Boston on marathon weekend,  you see is colorful Boston Marathon jackets from previous years everywhere. We went to a church service at the Old South Church, near the finish line and where the bombing took place in 2013. They had a “Blessing of the Athletes” service. Not only was it incredibly moving but, as we sat in the balcony, you could see the rainbow of colors from the various jackets worn at the service.

Quite simply, Boston is special. My friend Mike Renz puts it pretty well. “It’s just a totally different experience from local or smaller races.  It’s the one time of year that a sub-elite runner can kind of see what it’s like getting the red carpet treatment.” Here are a list of the athletes in our area who will be running, and one elite wheelchair racer who will be rolling, 26.2 miles from Hopkinton to Boston on April 15. They have put in countless hours and hundreds of miles to qualify and then repeat that process again to prepare for Patriot’s Day this year. Feel free to track them or any athletes here.

 

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Race Calendar

4/6 – 8 a.m. – Garden Spot Half Marathon and 10K – New Holland, Pa.

Ok, so not exactly a local race. But I’m running it so I’m writing about it. The race takes place on picturesque roads in Amish country. I’m also running this in combination with the Bird-in-Hand Half Marathon in September so I can get the highly coveted Road Apple award. You figure out what a road apple is. If you know what a road apple is, yep, it’s a real one.

4/6 – 10 a.m. – 13th Annual FaithCentre 5K/10K – Bellefonte Middle School

This is a family, stroller, and dog friendly event. Free door prizes, free pizza at the finish line, and medals for the top 3 male and female runners in age groups for the 5K and the top 2 male and female runners in age groups for the 10K.

4/6 – 11 a.m. – Donut Dash for Dyslexia 5K – Grange Fairgrounds in Centre Hall

Donuts and racing?! I’m so bummed I’ll be missing this one! Walkers, children and strollers are all welcome. All participants will get to enjoy donut samples from Duck Donuts, Happy Buns, My My Chicken and Way Fruit Farm. Donuts will be offered on the course (for those with intestinal fortitude) or at the finish line after the conclusion of the race. Proceeds benefit the Dyslexia Reading Center of Central PA.

4/7 – 9 a.m. – Tussey Teaser #2 – 16th Annual Tussey-Whipple 11 Miler – Tussey Mountain Area on Bear Mountain Road

Legs 1, 2, and 3 of the Tussey Mountainback 50-mile course. Runners must arrange their own transportation back from Whipple Dam State Park (or run it back yourself for a casual 22 mile run). The race is free and door prizes and Subway will be provided.

4/7 – 2:30 p.m. – The 16th Annual NVRC Rodney Myers Memorial Egg Hill 10 Miler and Relay – Gregg Township Elementary School in Spring Mills

Beginning near the Gregg Township Elementary School, this race follows scenic country roads around the mountain known as Egg Hill. Sign up to run the full 10 miles or as a two or three-person medley relay team. Leg lengths are 3.0, 5.0, and 2.0 miles.

4/13 – 10 a.m. – Third Annual Pet-Friendly 5k – Bellefonte Middle School

Proceeds benefit Senior Institute’s Charity for Bellefonte community member Nichole Walker’s battle with Cancer.

4/14 – 11 a.m. – The 10th Annual Paterno Family Beaver Stadium Run

The day after the Blue White Game features the only race that ends with a “finish on the fifty.” This is a fun event which benefits Special Olympics Pennsylvania. Along with the Paterno family, other famous Penn State players tend to show up. The year I ran it, Franco Harris was giving out high fives at the finish line.

4/20 – 9 a.m. – The Bunny Hop 5k – State College Area High School

This annual race is another one of my favorites. Hosted by the SCAHS National Honor Society, all proceeds will go directly to support the Four Diamonds Fund in honor of Maryann Newcomb, a former State High students and NHS member who continues to battle leukemia. Along with a sweet t-shirt, there are always prizes and games for kids before, during and after the race. Last year, I made a bet that any runner who could beat me, would get the opportunity to throw a pie in my face. Not only did that happen, but they happened to have an extra pie for my son to throw in my face. How nice of them.

4/27 – 9 a.m. CLC Charter School 5K Zoom – Tudek Park

Along with the 5K race, there is also a 3K kid run and a 3K walk. Proceeds benefit the CLC Charter School.

4/27 – 9:30 a.m. – Run Baby Run 5K/1 Mile Walk – Lower Trail in Alexandria.

Taking place at the Lower Trail (rails to trails) in Alexandria, this race benefits the Crossroads Pregnancy Center.