It takes so long to properly train for the Boston Marathon, that when you finally run it, it’s almost anticlimactic, right?
Never, says a couple area runners who have completed the race, arguably the most famous marathon in the world.
Additional Photos
“In the world of marathons, there is nothing like Boston, at least not in this country,” Andy MacLean of Gardiner said. “I’ve heard some call it a 26.2 mile parade.”
On Monday, MacLean will run his second Boston Marathon, his 11th marathon overall. For Waterville’s Paul Josephson, this year’s race is either his 12th or 13th Boston Marathon. He lost count.
“I wear a Colby shirt. That gets me more shoutouts,” Josephson, the chair of Colby College’s history department, said. “I enjoy running through Wellesley. They really know how to cheer on runners… It’s a wall of noise.”
According to the Boston Athletic Association’s web page, there are 217 Mainers registered to run this year’s marathon. Among the first timers are James and Audrey Machowski of Wales. It will be the third marathon for James, and the fourth for Audrey.
“People have told me to just enjoy it and take it all in,” James Machowski said. “We’re looking forward to it.”
James earned his bid by running a qualifying time in last fall’s Maine Marathon. Audrey missed qualifying, but won her bib through a Maine Track Club lottery just before Christmas.
“It was the best Christmas present I could get,” she said.
For MacLean, 49, the Boston Marathon is the highlight of his recent return to running. In his 20s and early 30s, MacLean, the mayor of Gardiner, ran nine marathons.
“I still ran and did road races, but no marathons for 15 years,” MacLean said.
MacLean qualified for Boston by running the Mt. Desert Island Marathon last fall. His wife, Michele, ran Boston last year, and qualified again this year. Unfortunately, the race filled in eight hours, and she was unable to enter.
“She got me motivated,” MacLean said.
For runners trying to train for the Boston Marathon in Maine over the winter, prepping for the race can be brutal.
“I thought this winter was pretty hard,” Josephson said. “It’s wonderful to run the Boston Marathon, but it’s hard to train for the Boston Marathon. Maine runners face obstacles people training in California or Florida don’t see.”
Added MacLean: “The cold, I think that’s worse than snow. I’d go out in temperatures zero and up. I’m an early morning runner, so pretty much all of my runs are when it’s dark and cold.”
The Machowskis prepared by following a training program set by coach Bob Brainerd of the Maine Track Club. Since November, they’ve run between 25 and 55 miles each week. Now, the Machowskis are tapering back in anticipation of Monday’s race.
“Every week we knew what we were in for,” Audrey Machowski said. “Without that (training plan) we wouldn’t be as ready as we are.”
Josephson said he sees his familiarity with the course as a strength, and he’ll know from where he is and how he feels if he should push harder or pull back. He uses the Boston Marathon as a training run for the Sugarloaf Marathon, which will be on May 15.
MacLean ran the Mt. Desert Island Marathon in 3 hours, 27 minutes. He hopes to finish Boston in the 3:15-3:25 range.
“(Mt. Desert Island) I think is a harder course than Boston, Heartbreak Hill not withstanding,” MacLean said.
Boston’s weather forecast for Monday calls for partly cloudy skies with a high temperature of 60 degrees, ideal marathon weather.
“Perfect temps would be nice, in the 50s,” James Machowski said.
Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242
tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Comments are no longer available on this story