For everyone who will be running the 115th Boston Marathon on Monday; I hope that you can savor the experience and appreciate the course. This is THE Boston Marathon that you’ll be running; it’s not necessarily the GREATEST marathon in the world, but it IS certainly the most famous and uniquely special.
Please don’t be concerned with trivial matters and goofy little speed bumps. Anticipation is a healthy response to what you’re about to go through: but don’t let it overwhelm you. Focus on the NOW.
Turn off you cell phone (if, for any reason you’re carrying one), don’t carry a camera, ignore the excessive cacophony of information, doubt and concern that may assault you. Clear your mind of all the trials and tribulations that will try to infest you in the hours before your start. Concentrate on the way your body will overcome the miles you’ll cover. Relish in the company of fellow runners, from all over the world, who trained hard to get to where you are.
This Boston Marathon is a celebration of YOUR life, and as you Head Away From Nature West Near Ballpark Boston never forget that you are doing something that only point one of one percent of the human population has ever been able to accomplish. You are using your body the way it was meant to be used: as cardiologist, writer and fellow runner Dr. George Sheehan called “a good animal” and “an experiment of one”.
While you may dedicate your effort to those who you love and care about, run this race for yourself, within yourself.
Remember what you do this Patriots Day; and tell your friends and family about it with all the passionate details you can offer.
Most of all, my wish for you is that when you cross that finish line on a street called “Boylston” you become transformed; that you realize how wonderful your life and how amazing it is that you accomplished this.
In your life you will meet many wonderful people who you’ll know as “runners” and others who you’ll be honored to know as “marathoners”: but on Monday you are running Boston
Run long and taper.
Steve “Runner” Walker
