Bosworth
Race Report: 106th Boston Marathon—April 15, 2002
Finish
of the 106th Boston Marathon
Monday
morning at the Colonnade in Boston and I hook up with Mark
Kalen and his buddies and we take the bus to Hopkinton and
arrive about 9:30am. The strange thing is the bus ride was
so long I just couldn't imagine running all the way back to
Boston. We hang out, eat bagels, drink and wait for the noon
start.
55
degrees and very humid. We walk to the start past a long line
of busses. A tall hedge becomes an impromptu toilet, men on
the street side women on the other. There's a punk kid in
a driveway with a guitar and amp, playing a Jimi Hendrix tune.
Cool.
Todd
Bosworth (left) and Mark Kalen at Hopkinton, bracing themselves
for yet another marathon
...will they ever learn?
The
gun goes off and we shuffle across the start line. I'm sweating
like a pig by 3 miles. Not a good omen. I wanted to run 7:15s
but we're cruising under 7:00s. At 7 miles I tell Mark and
Angelo I'm slowing down and watched them go. But the race
is amazing. People lined up on either side of the road the
entire way. Rolling hills between little towns and parties
on the front lawns with beer and BBQs. Like a 26.2 mile long
parade. Constant cheering. At twelve miles Wellesley College
and the girls are screaming for a half mile. See Mark again
at mile 18 or so. His hamstring was bugging him. He'd get
ahead of me up the hills and I'd pass him down the hills.
Last time I saw him was up Heartbreak Hill.
Heartbreak
Hill is a misnomer. Slight incline for a half mile. Shelly
and Weston (in the backpack) were waiting at the top of Heartbreak,
Boston College, 21 mile mark. I was zoned out when I heard
them yelling but decided to turn around and go say "hi." After
crossing over the yellow tape I got confused as to where they
were in the crowd. I finally found them up a little road walking
back to the train. Sweaty hug and some kisses.
Back
over the orange temporary fence and I have 5 miles to go.
South Boston and the crowds are now 5-10 people deep. Really
loud. There's Fenway Park and I'm at 25. The sun breaks through.
Down Beacon, right turn, left turn, Boylston and there's the
finish. I tell myself I'm never running another marathon.
What the Hell was I thinking? I'm completely wasted but still
running. People screaming. Across the finish line and I walk
to the VIP tent. They ask me if I want anything? Yes, a chair,
liquids and some quiet.
Bosworth
& Kalen sporting those cool Boston finishers medals
(Any bets on if they are underglass on the mantle above the
fireplace by now?)
There's
Mark. He finished a few minutes before me. "What do you think
about New York this fall?" - by Todd Bosworth, April 25, 2002
The
Bosworths taking in Boston---a heck of a lot more fun than
running 26.2 miles
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