The start
Hopkinton Common is a scene to savor, minute by minute, for
hours before racetime. No matter the weather, the town green is alive with
the nervous anticipation of athletes pacing and prancing among the hawkers
and spectators.
At 11:30, a half-hour before the starter's gun, it's time to stretch
again, jog a bit and review race strategy. At 11:45, duck underneath the rope
barrier and claim a 2-square-foot plot in the staging area.
At noon, the gun sounds and the world's elite marathoners begin their
quick step to Boston. For agonizing minutes afterwards, the rest of the field
snakes its way to the starting line at the Doughboy Statue.
Right away, the course drops sharply. Most runners find themselves
boxed in, unable to open their strides and forced to conserve their energy
for the road ahead. In this regard, the crowded conditions are a blessing. At
1.1 miles, the sounds of live country fiddlers elicit yelps and hoots from
the herd.
4.3 miles: In Ashland
A quarter-mile past the Dairy Queen on Route 135,
the course's first significant hill winds to the left. To this point the
course has been almost all downhill through semirural residential areas. Now,
having established a comfortable pace just under 6 minutes per mile, I work
to maintain that rhythm up the hill, testing my strength ever so slightly for
the half-mile incline. The crowds have increased, and a sign over the road
reminds us: ''22 miles to Boston.''
6.6 miles: Framingham
The intensity of the race has accelerated and
runners pass me as I resist the urge to run with them, concentrating instead
on maintaining an even pace. A big sweeping left brings us down a short slope
to a long flat stretch past the Framingham train station, and to the
intersection of Routes 135 and 126. The crowd here is the biggest yet, a
five- deep mob that compels nearly everyone to run a little faster. At 7
miles, opposite the Dennison factory, I see my wife for the first time since
Hopkinton. An encouraging word, a quick kiss on the run, and I'm off for
Natick.
