Jeff Larson's Marathon Training Blog

Today I'd like to send out props to L. Street Running Club member and SmartRoutes reporter Jeff Larson and his blog. When Jeff isn't running the streets of Boston, he's telling us which streets to avoid on the way to and from work. And he's blogging too. Check out Jeff's blog.

1930 Boston Marathon

No GU. No Coolmax. No Ipods. No Gatorade.

Let's turn back the clock to 1930. The Hostess Twinkie is invented. Herbert Hoover is President. And FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) stages the first World Cup tournament.

Here's what was shakin' in Boston. Check it out...
http://runningpast.com/media/baa_1930med.wmv

Boston Marathon runners meet their match

Here's a nice article from Saturday's Boston Herald. It's all the inspiration you'll need to lace up your running shoes and go for a run.

More than 30 runners participating in the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge met up with young, cancer-stricken buddies, who are slated to cheer on the athletes during the race. The occasion was the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute’s “Meet Your Match” party.

“He reminds me a lot of me when I was kid,” Tyler Hart said of his partner, 7-year-old Ben Raybuck. “He’s very energetic and inquisitive and personable.”

The “patient partners,” all current or former patients of the Jimmy Fund Clinic, met the runners they have been teamed up with at the fete yesterday afternoon. The party was an introduction for new duos, while previous pairings had the chance to rekindle friendships.

The partners will meet at the 25-mile marker to congratulate and motivate the marathon marchers during the 111th Boston Marathon on April 16.

“It makes these long, cold runs much easier,” Hart said. “When I think about not wanting to go out running, I think about Ben having to go for chemo. He really has been an inspiration.”

The Patient Partner Program has been pairing Jimmy Fund kids with athletes since 1992.

Source: Boston Herald 1/27/07

Quote of the Day

"It's a cool course. It's very challenging. It has a lot of character, with this one very unnecessary hill."

- Uta Pippig

2007 Official Boston Marathon Merchandise

Pre-order your official Boston Marathon merchandise now at Image Impact! Jackets, T's, Hats, and mugs are available. According to their website, Image Impact is "expecting delivery of the jackets in early March, at which time all pre-ordered units will be shipped."

LET'S GO RED SOX!

The Red Sox will start their traditional Patriots Day game on April 16 against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at 10:05 a.m., an hour earlier than in previous years. The change is due to the earlier start of the Boston Marathon.

Kastor to run her first Boston

American Deena Kastor will be at the starting line in Hopkinton for the 111th Boston Marathon on April 16, 2007.

Last year Kastor earned the #1 women's world ranking by Track & Field News for her unstoppable 2:19:36 win in London. Best known for her inspirational bronze medal performance in the 2004 Athens Olympic Marathon, Kastor is a former world record holder in the 5K, a two-time silver medalist at the World Cross Country Championships, and the 2005 Chicago Marathon champion. She is also a multiple American record holder on the roads and track, has won 18 national titles, and is an eight-time NCAA All-American.

“Five and a half years after my first marathon, I am finally running Boston,” says Kastor.

“Tradition, sponsors and fans make this the greatest and most well respected marathon in the world. It is an honor to be a part of Boston this year and it is my greatest desire to win this prestigious event.”

Kastor, who lives in California but has roots in the Boston area, added “I am hoping the crowds will be especially loud as I pass the Newton-Wellesley Hospital as that is where I was born 34 years ago.”

Source: BAA

Fantastic Finish #5

This is the last of five fantastic finishes from The Boston Globe's new book Not Till the Fat Lady Sings. Take a look at the previous four posts if you need to catch up. By the way, these finishes weren't ranked by The Globe. However, this moment made their "10 to start" list...

1998 BostonMarathon

April 20,1998

Ok, so you're coming down Boylston Street and you hear the public address announcer say you're on your way to winning the Boston Marathon. In the bag right? Not quite.

That's what happened to woman wheelchair racer Jean Driscoll. Just as she was about to raise her arms in victory, inches from the finish line, Australia's Louise Sauvage came speeding by and broke the tape. The margin of victory was less than the length of a wheelchair. All this after Driscoll flipped her wheelchair on the trolley trackes in Cleveland Circle and took 5 minutes to get back in the race. Oh yeah, and one other thing: Driscoll raced on a flat tire from Cleveland Circle to the finish line.

A Finish Like No Other...

Most Dramatic Boston Marathon Finishes - #4 of 5


1980 Boston Marathon
April 19, 1980

Rosie steals the show--and the marathon--from the real winner Jacqueline Gareau.

Yet Another Dramatic Finish

1996 Boston Marathon

April 15, 1996

After battling cramps and diarrhea, Uta Pippig passes Kenya's Tegla Loroupe in Kenmore Square and goes on to finish first on Boylston Street. Pippig made up an amazing 30 seconds in less than a mile!

Another Dramatic Finish...

1978 Boston Marathon

April 17, 1978

Boston Billy edges Texan Jeff Wells by two seconds for his second Boston win. Wells ran the last 13 miles in 1:04:22, about 17 seconds faster than Rodgers.

Most Dramatic Boston Finishes

The next five blog entries are all about dramatic Boston Marathon finishes.

These five thrillers made the list of the top 50 most dramatic Boston sports finishes in The Globe's new book Not Till the Fat Lady Sings.

Pick up a copy, relive some fantastic finishes, and see if some of your favorite "endings" made the list.

Here's the first of five Boston Marathon finishes that made the list...

1982 Boston Marathon

April 19, 1982

The Duel in the Sun - After running neck and neck for 26 miles, Alberto Salazar pulled ahead of Dick Beardsley in the final 150 yards to win by just 2 seconds!

Boston beats NY!

According to a recent Runners World survey, the Boston Marathon was chosen as the ultimate "dream race" by readers.

Runners World received 10,000 responses worldwide to the survey.
Here are the top 5 races on runners' wish lists...

1. Boston
2. Chicago
3. New York City
4. Marine Corps, Washington, D.C.
5. Disney, Orlando, Florida



Source: Runners World, Dec. 2006

Boston Marathon Quiz

An 85 year-old male would have to finish a marathon in _____ to qualify for the Boston Marathon.

a) 5:00 hrs
b) 5:30 hrs
c) 6:00 hrs
d) 4:45 hrs


Check the comments section for the answer.

Quote of the day

“To run Marathon to Athens in Greece, tracing the supposed historic route of Pheidippides in 490 B.C. It’s hilly, it’s hot, it’s not the most well-organized race, but it’s still Marathon to Athens. I was there in 1972 and wanted to run it, but didn’t want to barge in. I already had a reputation for doing that in Boston.”

-Kathrine Switzer mentions a race on her "to do" list, from Runners World Jan. 07.

By signing her entry form "K. V. Switzer," Kathrine Switzer became the first woman to receive a number in the Boston Marathon. By her own estimate, Switzer finished in 4:20:00.

An Interview with Bill Rodgers

Click this link to hear an interview with 4-time Boston Marathon champ Bill Rodgers

After clicking the link above, scroll down the page until you see the words "Bill Rodgers" with a red bar next it. Double-click the play icon on the red bar and enjoy!

Morse and McGillivray honored by Boston Press

Boston Athletic Association Executive Director Guy Morse and Boston Marathon Race Director Dave McGillivray received the 2006 Sports Personality Award presented by the Boston Press Photographers Association.

The award is presented annually "to that person who; busy though they may be, take time, consideration and cooperation in helping our assignments to be more interesting and newsworthy."

Past recipients have included such Boston sports figures as Red Auerbach, Carl Yastrzemski and Cam Neely, as well as Boston Marathon legends Johnny Kelley and Dick and Rick Hoyt. In 2005, the world-champion Boston Red Sox were honored with the award. The Boston Press Photographers Association is the oldest press & television photographers association in the United States.

Think Coach Belichick has got any chance of winning the award in '07?




Source: B.A.A

U.S. runner passes up Boston

American Meb Keflezighi, the silver medalist from the Athens Olympic Marathon, will bypass this year's Boston Marathon in favor of making his first appearance at London. Keflezighi had to withdraw from the London Marathon in 2005 after sustaining an Achilles injury in a freak encounter with a dog during a training run.

Bob Larsen, who's been Meb's coach since he enrolled at UCLA in 1994, sees London as a better prep race for the 2008 Olympics instead of the hilly Boston course. Keflezighi finished third in Boston last year.

"It is important to get him into a flat course," said Larsen. "Beijing is absolutely flat. He's never run on a flat course when he's tuned-up and ready to run well. It helps in our planning."

Quote of the day

"The body does not want you to do this. As you run, it tells you to stop but the mind must be strong. You always go too far for your body. You must handle the pain with strategy...It is not age; it is not diet. It is the will to succeed."

- Jacqueline Gareau, 1980 Boston Marathon champ

That '70s Marathon

Prokopcuka and Cheruiyot to run Boston

In its 22nd year as the major sponsor of the Boston Marathon, John Hancock Financial Services announced the return of two-time champion Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot of Kenya and last year’s runner-up Jelena Prokopcuka of Latvia for the 111th running of the race on April 16.

Cheruiyot and Prokopcuka have chosen to compete in Boston to reinforce their commanding lead in the prestigious World Marathon Majors series and move closer to sharing the million-dollar prize awarded at the end of the year.

The series brings together the best athletes in the world to compete in Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago and New York. John Hancock also sponsors a significant purse for the top runners at Boston each year.Both athletes return to Hancock’s elite team with outstanding accomplishments.

Cheruiyot is the reigning Boston and Chicago Marathon champion, earning the distinction as the only man to have ever won both marathons in the same year. In Boston last year, Cheruiyot claimed the course record in 2:07:14. He also won Boston in 2003 and the Milan City Marathon in 2002. “Boston is always an exciting race to compete in and I'd like to thank John Hancock for welcoming me back to run again against a highly competitive field," said Cheruiyot.

Last year’s women’s runner-up in Boston and two-time New York City champion, Jelena Prokopcuka, will be racing for the crown after placing second last year and fourth in 2004. Prokopcuka has competed for Latvia in the past three Olympics and is a multiple national record-holder on the track and roads. At the Osaka Marathon in 2005, she secured the win with a national record of 2:22:56. At New York the past two years, she was the undisputed leader despite being challenged by the world’s best runners.

“Robert and Jelena are two of the premier marathoners in the world, as evidenced by their current standing atop the World Marathon Majors leaderboard,” said Guy Morse, Executive Director of the Boston Athletic Association, which organizes the marathon. “The constitution of the elite athlete field makes Boston one of the most eagerly anticipated sporting events of the spring. Like the rest of the community, we appreciate John Hancock’s ongoing support.”

Volunteer for the 111th Boston Marathon

The Boston Marathon needs YOU...or one of your friends. Be a part of the best marathon on the planet. Volunteer now! Follow the link below to check out some of the job descriptions and register online. Thank you in advance to the thousands of dedicated individuals who help out on Marathon Day.

Click here to volunteer for the Boston Marathon

Will Cloney Award Presented to B.A.A.'s Guy Morse

Last month Bill Rodgers and his brother Charlie (of the Bill Rodgers Running Center) presented the 2006 Will Cloney Award to Guy Morse of the Boston Athletic Association.

The award, which honors continuing service to the sport of road running, particularly in the Boston area, is named after Will Cloney, race director of the Boston Marathon from 1947 through 1982, and president of the B.A.A. from 1964 through 1982.

Morse, the race director of the Boston Marathon from 1985-2000, and the Boston Athletic Association's executive director since 2001, first became involved with the Marathon in the mid-1970's when he served as a volunteer for Cloney.

"On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the award, they hearkened back to someone who would embody decades of service, not just someone who did something exceptional this past year," said B.A.A. president Tom Grilk in introducing Morse. "Without Guy, who knows what would have become of [the Boston Marathon] . . . Nothing happens until someone makes it happen; that person, for us, is Guy Morse."

Source: B.A.A

Run Boston for Charity

Approximately 1,200 runners will represent 21 official charities in the 111th Boston Marathon on April 16, 2007. Over $63 million has been raised by the Boston Marathon Charity Program since 1994.

You can get a bib number by raising funds for one of the 21 charities (click the link below for more info) or donate and support another runner reach his/her pledge goal.

The 21 charities are:

American Stroke Association - Tedy's Team
Good Sports
Habitat for Humanity Greater Boston
Lazarus House, Inc.
Massachusetts Melanoma Foundation
Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (MSPCC)
Alzheimer's Association, Massachusetts Chapter
American Liver Foundation, N.E. Chapter - Run for Research
Boston Medical Center
Casa Myrna Vazquez
Children's Hospital Boston - Miles for Miracles, Team Boston
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute - Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge
The Greater Boston Food Bank
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Mass. Chapter Team in Training
MetroLacrosse
Michael Carter Lisnow Respite Center
Morgan Memorial Goodwill Industries, Inc.
National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Central -NE Chapter - Marathon Strides Against MS
National Ovarian Cancer Coalition, Inc.
Read Boston
Thompson Island Outward Bound

Contact information, applications and descriptions of each charity can be found on the B.A.A.'s Official Charity page.




Source: BAA

What's a 14-letter word for world's greatest race?

Don't worry. This little brainteaser isn't as difficult as The New York Times crossword puzzle. But as a runner, what could be more fun than completing a Boston Marathon-themed crossword? I guess completing the Boston Marathon! Good luck. Click below.

The Boston Marathon Crossword Puzzle

Thanks to Infoplease.com

Boston Marathon Expo returns to the Hynes Convention Center

The John Hancock Sports & Fitness Expo and Boston Marathon Bib Number and Packet Pick-Up will return to the Hynes Veterans Memorial Convention Center on Boylston Street in Boston’s Back Bay, just a few blocks from the Boston Marathon finish line and Copley Square Park.

The Expo and Bib Number/Packet Pick-up will begin on the Friday prior to the race, beginning at Noon on April 13. The change from the previous two-day format to three days will enable the B.A.A. and Conventures, Inc. to better accommodate the anticipated 22,500 official entrants, their families and guests, and the general public.

Boston Marathon Number and Packet Pick-up is for official entrants in the Boston Marathon, and the John Hancock Sports & Fitness Expo is open and free to the general public.

The full schedule for the 30th annual John Hancock Sports & Fitness Expo and Boston Marathon Bib and Packet Pick-up will be:

Friday, April 13: Noon - 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, April 14: 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Sunday, April 15: 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

The John Hancock Sports & Fitness Expo will feature more than 200 exhibitors and is widely regarded as the running industry’s premier showcase for new products, services and events. For more information, please visit:http://baa.org/BostonMarathon/2007Expo.asp

2007 Boston Marathon to Serve as USA Women's Marathon Championship

USA Track & Field has designated the 2007 Boston Marathon as the USA Women's Marathon Championship, guaranteeing a deep field of American women in the 111th running of the historic Hopkinton-to-Boston race, to be held on Monday, April 16, 2007.

The 2007 USA Women's Marathon Championship will be a part of a year-long build-up to the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Women's Marathon, which will be held one day prior to that year's Boston Marathon.

"In 2006 we saw a tremendous performance from our U.S. men in Boston, with five placing in the top 10. Now, with the 2007 Women's Championship and the 2008 Olympic Trials set to take place in Boston, our spotlight is shifting to the top U.S. women," said Guy Morse, Executive Director of the Boston Athletic Association. "Over the next two years, the recent resurgence in American distance running will be continuing in Boston."

The 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Women's Marathon will be held on Sunday, April 20, 2008: the day before the 112th Boston Marathon. The course will follow a multi-loop course through Boston and Cambridge. The top three finishers in that race will qualify for the U.S. team competing later that summer at the Olympic Games in Beijing.

WBZ-TV (CH.4) TO BROADCAST EXCLUSIVE LOCAL MARATHON COVERAGE

WBZ-TV announced that the station will once again broadcast its exclusive, complete local coverage of the Boston Marathon in 2007. WBZ-TV will go from start to finish with comprehensive, live coverage of the 111th running of the Boston Marathon on Monday, April 16, 2007.

“The Boston Marathon is one of the most significant athletic events in the world, and it means even more to the people who live right here in the state and the region,” said Ed Piette, President and General Manager of Boston’s WBZ-TV, TV38 (WSBK), and Providence’s CW28 (WLWC). “’BZ has a long and distinguished tradition of carrying this event in its entirety. When WCVB pulled out of the race, changing the dynamics of the coverage model, we very much wanted to figure out a way that WBZ could still bring the Marathon to viewers. After discussions and updated strategic planning with the B.A.A., we have developed a plan which will serve our community, deliver quality audiences to our advertising partners, while providing world class coverage of the Marathon from Main Street in Hopkinton to Boston’s Boylston Street finish line and everything in between.”

“WBZ-TV has partnered with the B.A.A. to televise the Boston Marathon for nearly three decades,” said Guy L. Morse, Executive Director of the B.A.A. “Many local viewers tie their Patriots’ Day tradition to watching WBZ-TV’s coverage of the Boston Marathon, and we are pleased that the station will continue to show the extensive, unparalleled coverage that local viewers appreciate and count on. WBZ-TV has demonstrated for years that coverage of an international sporting event can – at the same time – be focused on the event as a community-wide celebration, as a race for local participants and as an elite road race.”

Also, the Boston Marathon will be carried live and wire-to-wire nationally in the United States on VERSUS (formerly OLN). The B.A.A. will announce its international carriers prior to the 2007 race.

We're #4

Last week just about everybody published some kind of
Top 10 list for 2006. So it should come as no surprise that Running USA came out with the "Top 10 moments for U.S. Distance Running in 2006." Do you remember Boston 06?

#4 U.S. Men 3-4-5 at Venerable Boston

Led by 2004 Olympic Marathon silver medalist Meb Keflezighi, U.S. men made a statement at the 110th Boston Marathon in April. In his Boston debut, Keflezighi, a Team Running USA athlete, went for the win and placed third in 2:09:56, followed by Brian Sell (2:10:55, PR) and Alan Culpepper (2:11:02). In addition, Peter Gilmore (2:12:45, PR) and Clint Verran(2:14:12, PR) also finished in the top 10, 7th and 10th respectively. The U.S. also put 11 men in the top 20 - its best Boston showing in the prize money era (first year 1986) and its best showing overall since 1983.

OK, so now you're probably wondering which moment topped ’em all?

Drumroll please...

#1 Deena Does It!

Sub-2:20 Win at London

On April 23, Kastor impressively won the Flora London Marathon in a sterling 2:19:36, which broke her 2003 U.S. record (2:21:16) and made the 2004 Olympic Marathon bronze medalist the 4th fastest woman all-time and the 8th woman to break 2:20 (and first American woman). The Team Running USA athlete maintained a metronomic 5:20 pace throughout and split each half in 1:09:48. Brava, Deena.

from Ryan Lamma, Running USA.

New Start Time

Just a reminder: The 111th Boston Marathon on Monday, April 16, 2007 will begin at 10 a.m.

“An earlier starting time will benefit the 22,500 runners who compete in the marathon due to the cooler temperatures, while allowing all of the communities, and the City of Boston in particular, to re-open roads to traffic earlier in the day,” said Guy Morse, Executive Director of the Boston Athletic Association, organizer of the Boston Marathon. “Also, due to the efficiency of the 'Wave Start' program which we implemented for the first time in 2006, the majority of runners will not be transported from Boston to Hopkinton much earlier than in past years.”

The B.A.A. has been discussing this concept with officials of each of the cities and towns since last year and has now received support from representatives of each, as well as those from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

The Mobility Impaired Program, Wheelchair and Elite Women's divisions will continue to start earlier. The race will also continue to utilize a two-wave start, with the first wave beginning at 10 a.m.

The inaugural Boston Marathon, held in 1897, began at 12:19 p.m., and the race traditionally began at noon in the 109 races that followed.

“A start which is two hours earlier than past years doesn't necessarily mean we are requesting from each city and town along the course that the roads shut down two hours earlier in all cases,” said Race Director Dave McGillivray. “The B.A.A. is working closely with each individual city and town to determine the exact road closure and re-opening times based on the new starting schedule.”

“In a positive change for the communities through which the course runs, an earlier start means that the roads will re-open much earlier than in recent years,” said McGillivray. “We are simply shifting the times that the course is closed then re-opened. And, for some towns, the total time of the road closures likely will be a bit less than in the past.”

Source: B.A.A.

What's your reason?

Happy New Year.

Ready to train for Boston o7? I am.
And I'm ready to blog!

We'll start off nice and easy--just like my training. So sit back and enjoy the video...




Now go out and run.

Tomorrow: Boston Marathon news.