"Why I'm running the Boston Marathon" ~ Boston Marathon tomorrow - 26.2 miles!

[Breeze54]

Why I'm running the Boston Marathon

http://www.wickedlocal.com/newton/news/lifestyle/columnists/x317097764

By contrubuted by Clara Silverstein
Sun Apr 20, 2008, 04:00 PM EDT



Newton -

Tomorrow, as I take my place among the 25,000 runners at the starting line of the Boston Marathon, I will be celebrating before I even run a step. I’m an unlikely runner – no athletic talent, the clumsy laughingstock of gym class who never tried out for a team. My story could be called the triumph of hope over experience.

Until this year, for the 25 years that I have lived in Boston, I watched the marathon pass me. I cheered, rang cowbells, handed out water – did everything but dare to think that I could run, too. I admired the marathoners, and thought it would be amazing to run among them. Given my stubby legs and lack of confidence, I thought there was no possibility.

Then I turned 40. That year, as I watched the Boston Marathon pass me by yet again, I overheard someone on the sidelines say that now would be the time to start training for the following year. The next day, I decided to take action. So what if the most strenuous thing I ever did on a regular basis was push my two children in a stroller, or swim a half mile at the pool? I pulled on a baggy t-shirt and hit Commonwealth Avenue right before it slanted into the first of the Heartbreak Hills. The crushed cups and empty gel packets from the marathon runners were still strewn around me, reminding me of my ultimate goal. I eagerly lifted my feet and pumped my arms. Within five minutes, I was doubled over with a stitch in my side. At this rate, it was going to take me more than a year to be able to run a block, much less an entire marathon.

I gave myself a month to see if I would ever like something that made my legs ache and my throat burn. To my surprise, the soreness began to dissipate and a rush of endorphins – the runner’s high – came in to replace it. I was hooked. Within three months, I had built up enough stamina for my first 5K race from the Boston Common to Kenmore Square and back. Even after that, the Boston Marathon – almost nine times that distance – seemed way too ambitious. Still, I kept going.
Seven years and two marathon finishes in my hometown of Richmond, Virginia later, I finally have the confidence to run Boston.

I am running because I want to challenge myself to do something that for most of my life seemed totally beyond what I could achieve. My middle-aged body is way past its athletic prime. What I do have is plenty of determination – the stubborn desire to show the mean girls who shoved me aside during gym class that I refuse to give up.

I am also running to raise money for Bottom Line, a group in Jamaica Plain that helps disadvantaged high school students in Boston apply to college, and then stay in school once they enroll. College was not a widely-shared goal in the urban public schools I attended. It adds another dimension to my marathon run be able to raise money for students whose dreams would otherwise be squashed by a discouraging environment.

Finally, I am running because, just once, I want to travel from Hopkinton to Boston the slow way – down the rural roads of Ashland, past the historic centers of Natick and Wellesley, up the Newton hills that could break my heart. Every step, every pavement crack, will remind me of how far I have traveled since I stood on the sidelines in my baggy yellow gym suit, waiting for someone to approve of me. If you’re out there, cheer for runners like me – the ones who are hours behind the winners, slogging along in the back of the pack, grateful to be there at all.

Clara Silverstein is a cookbook author and freelance writer in Auburndale.

Kastor Wins U.S. Women's Marathon Trials for Olympics Berth

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601079&sid=aUFdIvP1dNf0&refer=home

By Larry Siddons

April 20 (Bloomberg) --

Deena Kastor overcame a deficit of almost two minutes midway through the race and won the U.S. Women's Marathon Olympic Team Trials in Boston.

Deena Kastor celebrates after qualifying for her third U.S. Olympic team.


Kastor, the bronze medalist in the marathon at the Athens Games in 2004, covered the 26.2-mile (42.2-kilometer) course in 2 hours, 29 minutes, 35 seconds to lead three runners qualifying for the Olympics in Beijing.

Magdalena Lewy Boulet was second in 2:30:19 and Blake Russell was third in 2:32.40.

Kastor trailed Boulet by 1:55 with 14 miles to go, then picked up her pace with mile splits in the 5:30 range and took the lead about three miles from the finish. Kastor holds the U.S. women's marathon record at 2:19:36.

``In the middle miles, I thought I might have misjudged Magdalena's strength,'' Kastor said at a news conference. ``The gap started shortening a bit. That fueled my fire and I started to gain confidence again going into the last loop.''

Joan Benoit Samuelson, 50, the winner of the first Olympic women's marathon in 1984, finished 90th in 2:49:08 and crossed the finish line wearing a Boston Red Sox cap.

``I am just happy to have this (finisher's) medal around my neck, to have crossed the finish line,'' Samuelson said on the marathon Web site. ``The support along the course was unbelievable.''

The women's trials were run on a series of loops on Boston city streets. The race was held a day before the 112th running of the Boston Marathon, which follows a course from suburban Hopkinton, Massachusetts, to downtown Boston.

Kenyans run for Olympic berths at Boston Marathon

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jJx1hGnT5mQ0Vg1_v4gt7jemYjZg

9 hours ago

BOSTON, Massachusetts (AFP) —

Robert Cheruiyot will try for a berth at the Beijing Olympics as well as his fourth Boston Marathon title Monday in the 112th edition of the world's oldest annual marathon.

The Kenyan star, who won in 2003 as well as the past two years, will be trying to prove his case to selectors for the Kenyan marathon Olympic squad as he winds over the hilly course for his share of a record 796,000-dollar purse.



"Let me do it fast in Boston," Cheruiyot said. "I hope to qualify for the Games (on) the toughest course in the world."

Kenya's Martin Lel made his case a week ago, setting a course record in winning the London Marathon in two hours, five minutes and 15 seconds.

But Cheruiyot set the course record, and a personal best, by winning at Boston in 2006 in 2:07:14. A fourth Boston crown in six years would bring a 150,000-dollar first prize and likely a trip to Beijing.

Other Kenyans in the hunt include 2007 runner-up James Kwambai, 2004 Boston winner Timothy Cherigat and Shadrack Kiplagat, whose best marathon time of 2:07:53 ranks second only to Cheruiyot.

Russia's Lidiya Grigoryeva will defend the women's crown against 2006 champion Rita Jeptoo of Kenya and Latvia's Jelena Prokopcuka, runner-up each of the past two years.

Ethiopians offer a challenge with Dire Tune, 22, having won at Hong Kong in 2006 and last year and last January in Houston, where she reached a personal best of 2:24:40 three months ago plus Askale Tafa Magarsa, 23, who won at Milan in 2006 and last year in Dubai and Paris.

A leg injury will keep Kenya's Margaret Okayo, the Boston women's record holder, out of the event while Stephen Kiogora, third last year, was unable to train properly due to violence in the aftermath of Kenya's election and 2007 Chicago Marathon winner Patrick Ivuti has suffered malaria.

LIVE RACE DAY COVERAGE of the 26.2 Mile Run
http://www.bostonmarathon.org/

Women's Race

The 112th Boston Marathon start times are as follows:

9:25 a.m. Wheelchair Division Start
9:35 a.m. Elite Women's Start
10:00 a.m. Elite Men & Wave 1 Start
10:30 a.m. Wave 2 Start

Barbara Huebner will provide continuous live coverage of the Women's Race beginning at 9:00 a.m....
Read More >>http://www.bostonmarathon.org/2008/cf/Public/Commentary.htm#Women

Men's Race

The 112th Boston Marathon start times are as follows:

9:25 a.m. Wheelchair Division Start
9:35 a.m. Elite Women's Start
10:00 a.m. Elite Men & Wave 1 Start
10:30 a.m. Wave 2 Start

Jim O'Brien will provide continuous live coverage of the Men's Race beginning at 9:00 a.m....
Read More >> http://www.bostonmarathon.org/2008/cf/Public/Commentary.htm#Men

[Breeze54]

1. Chasing glory they can feel, not see - Visually-impaired marathoners dream big

Chasing glory they can feel, not see

http://www.boston.com/sports/specials/marathon/articles/2008/04/20/chasing_glory_they_can_feel_not_see/

Visually-impaired marathoners dream big

By Shira Springer
Globe Staff / April 20, 2008

SANTA MONICA, Calif. -

Carrying his collapsible white cane, Adrian Broca is running along the Pacific coast but dreaming of Boston. The pale gray concrete bike path ahead is invisible to him, blending into the surrounding sand. He can make out the dark blur of black pavement when he's on it, but little else.

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Sounds come through loud and clear, however. He hears the hum of cyclists speeding closer, but can't tell if they have enough room to safely pass. Suddenly, he feels a sharp tug on the tether he grips in his right hand. A training partner guides Broca out of harm's way. Near the end of the 10-mile run, Broca drops the tether and races to the finish, his guides giving chase.

"When I run with my legs really turning, I feel alive," Broca said. "It's liberating."

Broca, who lost his sight at 18 to a hereditary condition that damaged his optic nerve, is the fastest blind marathoner in the country. Tomorrow, the 31-year-old hopes to defend his title in the Boston Marathon's visually impaired division and meet the "A" qualifying standard for the 2008 Beijing Paralympics of 2 hours 46 minutes. That would place Broca roughly 35 minutes behind the Boston finish times of the world's top male marathoners.

"Once I hear the gun go off, I forget about being visually impaired and feel like any other runner out there who has one goal in mind," said Broca. "When I started running around my neighborhood after losing my sight, bumping into light posts and bus stop benches, I was fighting off my blindness, telling myself that this is not going to stop me."

He leads a field of 19 runners - 15 men and 4 women - who will run the 26.2-mile course without being able to see it. Among them are three totally blind runners, who are categorized as B1. Broca falls into the B2 classification because he can just barely make out the vague shape of a hand when held close. He will be allowed four guides to assist him through the race.

The logistics alone are daunting. Each guide will cover roughly one-quarter of the course. Depending on how many other runners are crowded around him, Broca either will use an 18-inch modified dog leash as a tether, gripping one end with his right hand, or ask his guide to just run alongside. Finding guides fast enough to keep up can be a challenge.

Broca's toughest competition will come from Kurt Fiene, the second-fastest visually impaired US marathoner, with a personal best of 2:52:55. Like Broca, Fiene knows the Boston Marathon is his last, best opportunity to qualify for the Paralympics.

Born with a condition that left him without irises, Fiene, 46, has no vision in his right eye and 20/400 vision in his left, putting him into the B3 category. B3 runners are prohibited from using guides. During the later stages of a marathon, Fiene struggles with vision in his good eye.

Continued...

[Breeze54]

2. Winning is shaping up as routine for Blauwet - (a parapalegic)

Winning is shaping up as routine for Blauwet

http://www.boston.com/sports/specials/marathon/articles/2008/04/18/winning_is_shaping_up_as_routine_for_blauwet/

Cheri Blauwet was confident before the Los Angeles Marathon last month, and 1:53:35 later,
she had a fourth win in LA to go with her two in Boston. (Hector Mata/Associated Press)


By Barbara Matson
Globe Staff / April 18, 2008

Cheri Blauwet has a lot of things going for her.

She just finished medical school at Stanford University and has taken a yearlong leave of absence before beginning her residency so she can focus on training for Beijing. The 27-year-old Blauwet has traveled the world to compete, collecting a vault's worth of precious medals from national and international competitions and a world view that can't be expressed by any trophy or prize.

Blauwet became a paraplegic in a tractor accident on her family's farm in Iowa when she was 1, and it was her family who first pushed her onto the track. She has been competing since eighth grade, while piling up the academic records that sent her first to the University of Arizona, and then to Stanford. Blauwet never felt limited in what she could do, only in when she could find time to do it.

Just a month ago, Blauwet, a two-time winner of the Boston Marathon wheelchair division, qualified for the Paralympic Games in Beijing in August with a victory in the Los Angeles Marathon in 1 hour 53 minutes 35 seconds. It was her fourth victory in L.A. Now she's competing in Boston for the first time since 2005.

The competition is what she craves.

"It's really amazing," Blauwet said as she settled into her hotel room in Boston Wednesday night. "I had been a high-level athlete. I had felt fit since high school. I always took that for granted. I didn't know what it was like not to be in shape.

"I mean, I tried my best to stay in shape during clinical rotations but I was amazed how different it felt when I got back into the racing chair. To stay in shape at the level of elite athletes, I realized how amazing what we do is, pushing your body to its threshold, those type of workouts."

Blauwet returned to full-time training in December, and has enjoyed getting back her competitive edge, as well as her identity as an athlete. She has dropped from 105 to 97 pounds while her muscles have become more defined.

"It's neat to see your body go from rounded edges to the more muscular edge of an athlete," she said.

"I think you can see it in your face and eyes, too."

more....