Boston is for all of us!
Every year when I sit down to watch the Boston Marathon on my couch while covered in blankets and with my laptop and phone set to tracking, I find myself feeling extremely grateful that I have been apart of this incredible event. In 2015 and 2016 I was inspired to run the race because of a friend named Danny Stults who miraculously went from a 1500 runner to a marathoner in the span of one month. After the bombings in 2013, Danny like many American runners were more fired up than ever to run the race.
He was very adamant that we were going to heal as a country by continuing to show up and not live in fear of having these special events taken away from us. At the age of 21, I didn’t really understand the full the magnitude of what had happened but I was inspired by Danny and our amazing community to run the marathon. The beautiful thing about the Boston Marathon in my opinion is that it’s one of the only running events I can think of where the fans in person and at home take it as serious as the runners themselves. The amount of pride each runner and fan carries with them is contagious and trickles from one to another. The Boston Marathon is in every sense, the people’s race of America. You don’t have to be the most talented athlete in the world to run it. You don’t need a Nike contract or a system full of EPO. You need to have a strong work ethic, discipline, and a genuine belief in yourself. Whether you are a few minutes off the qualification time or feel far off the mark, don’t ever count yourself out. If you want to get to Boston, believe every ounce of that goal and don’t compare yourself to anyone but yourself. I cannot wait to return the marathon again in the next few years. I look forward to the sounds of helicopters flying over you at the start, the smells of family’s BBQ on their lawns, and the sights of thousands of hard working individuals leaving their hearts on the streets of Boston Massachusetts. Whether your journey starts in Hopkinton or Dover, Delaware, if you are a runner the Boston Marathon is inside you.