Since running was one of the sports I have participated in, I had to watch the 130th running of the Boston Marathon on television. The Boston Marathon is unique in that runners need to run another marathon in a qualifying time to be eligible to run this race. For runners it is a special race.
When I ran a qualifying time in a marathon a number of other runners more or less said, “You have to run Boston now.” A friend of mine who also ran a qualifying time found a two- for-one airline package and asked if I would be the other ticket. So, no excuse now to not run.
People ask why you want to watch a few runners run for two hours; there is no “action” or “scoring points,” just the same thing the entire two hours. I tell them it is the same as watching race cars run around a track for 400 miles. Runners watch the changes in strategy and the attrition of runners along the way.
The women elite runners had a group of 14 runners at mile 16. Then a few miles farther there were only nine, a few more miles and the number was six, then three and then one. The men’s group was smaller with about eight runners and one lead runner out in front of them. Then the group dwindled down to three and that lead runner was now behind them.
The race is 26.2 miles and is not won until after mile 20 or so. What a runner is fascinated by is the pace they are running. The men are running under a five-minute mile pace and look like they are out for a friendly jog. While the primary focus was on the lead runners, a large majority of the time there were a few quick glances at the runners in the trailing pack. The social media had several photos of the start of the race. Looking at 25,000+ runners in a tight pack waiting for the gun to sound was an amazing photo. And the “famous” Wellesley College sound tunnel section with the women students lining the streets and yelling encouragement to the runners as they pass by was seen a few times. I have to say as you come out of that section you feel some new energy for a few miles.
This is a race where professional runners enter for prize money. Winners of certain categories get $5,000 and the men’s winner received a $50,000 check for breaking the course record. Joan Benoit ran and if you remember she was the first women’s Olympic Marathon winner in 2:24:52. She is still running and won her age group with the fastest time. The men’s winner, John Korr, ran a time of 2:01:50 which has an average pace of 4:39 minutes per mile. Running a 4:39 mile is amazing but to do it for 26 miles is where the attrition factor occurs, something local 5K and 10K runners appreciate.
The magic time for breaking the two-hour mark in a marathon is still a challenge. The record is 2:00:39 so it will be broken one day. Similar to when Roger Bannister broke the four-minute mile for the first time. The magic time for women seems to be 2:20:00 for a fast time. Sharon Lokedi came across the finish line in 2:18:51. She won last year’s race with a time of 2:17:22, so she did not get the big money for breaking the course record. Her average pace was 5:16 which is also amazing for that distance. The first American woman, Jess McClain, broke the U.S. record for a marathon with a time of 2:20:49. She finished in fifth place overall. The first American men’s runner was Zouhair Talbe with a time of 2:03:45 and finished in fifth place.
I compare running a 4:30 pace for 26.2 miles the same way other fans might compare driving over 200 mph for 500 miles or the recent astronauts circling the moon. I liken it to visiting my parents in North Dakota and 70 degrees below zero with a high temperature of -20 degrees. Or running in below zero weather. It’s something that can only be imagined for the average person. You need to try it to appreciate it.
