The Boston Marathon is the mother of all races. It is the Super Bowl, the World Series, The Masters. You get the picture. It was a dream and not even a realistic dream for me to ever participate in it. Last year, that all changed. I learned that it is possible to connect up with a non-profit, raise funds and run Boston. So, I researched and found the perfect fit for me. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute at Harvard University was the charity I chose because it was appropriate since my sister, Betty, passed in the previous year with this devil known as cancer. I realized that most families have been touched by cancer and knew that everyone of them would contribute to cancer research. I went through several interviews with Dana-Farber and was chosen to be on their team. What a team it is! I joined a Facebook group with others doing the same as me and immediately knew that I was among some of the greatest people I have ever met. This made the process so much easier. The support is just unreal.
For several months, I raised funds (the window is still open for donations) for cancer research and was overwhelmed by the outpouring of donations from friends, family and even strangers. Along with fundraising, I began marathon training. I had run a marathon back in 2011 and basically went with the same strategy. I had several setbacks, which is normal for everyone in training because it is just life. I had the flu twice which set me back. I also had issues with my feet. I spent a lot of time working through these issues. When Marathon time was approaching, I was not fully trained to run a marathon but was up to the challenge and knew that I could complete the 26.2 mile trek from Hopkinton to Boston even if I had to walk some. There is no shame in walking and, in fact, it is a strategy used by many. It was my plan as well. Run a mile, walk 2/10 of a mile. This keeps your body fresh and helps with “hitting the wall” like most amateur runners at around mile 17-20. The goal is to finish the race. My time doesn’t matter, however, coming in at less than 6 hours would be a victory for me considering the training setbacks.
On April 14, Cathy and I flew to Boston. We went to the Boston Marathon Expo and I got my bib and all of the other goodies they give out. Now, it is getting real. A dream is coming true. On April 15, we met Cathy’s brother Paul and his wife, Darlia, for brunch just a few yards from the finish line. After we ate, we went to the finish line and enjoyed seeing all of the people taking pictures and dreaming of crossing the line. This was also the 5th anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombing and there were memorials at the bombing locations. We went back to the hotel for rest. Cathy went to the airport to meet Tiffany, who flew in from Haiti to be with me for the race. My sister, Pat and her husband, Virgil, also drove all the way from Tennessee to be there. I am a blessed man to have their support as well as others who were back home praying for me. I needed it!
I woke up at 4 AM on Monday morning, Patriot’s Day in Boston. I prepared myself for the race. I knew about the weather as I had been obsessing about it for weeks. The forecast never wavered. It was going to rain, be windy and cold. Just deal with it and I decided to overdress and not be cold. I can deal with being too hot but not being too cold. I said my “good-byes” to Cathy and Tiffany and left the hotel room to meet with the Dana-Farber team for the walk to the busses that would take us to Hopkinton. The weather was crazy. 39 degrees and raining with some sleet. The walk was about 30 minutes and the bus ride almost an hour. Then, another walk to where we would camp out until the race begins at 11:30. Dana-Farber team has a church in Hopkinton for their team to hang out. This was wonderful. They provided food, coffee, water, medical supplies and most anything you need for the race including panchos. I enjoyed my time visiting with others from the team before the race. We were a support team for each other. The topic of the day was the weather, of course. Again, I opted from warmth.
The time has come for the walk to the start line. Boy, is it cold. We were in Wave 4. When we arrived at the start line, we were told to just go. Normally, they countdown to begin a race but with the weather, they didn’t want us standing around waiting in the cold, so we took off. The beginning of the race was downhill and I had been advised to not start off too fast, which is good advice anyway. It was raining with winds around 20 mph and about 42 degrees at this point. I am praying for a break in the weather. It never happened. I had a decent time going in the first half of the race and was very happy about that. Remember, I mentioned about issues with my feet. My left foot began to hurt at around mile 10. I ran but walked more than I should and by mile 13, the halfway point, I was in severe pain. I was around 2:40 for the first half and realized with my foot hurting and this weather, 6 hours wasn’t going to be possible. What I didn’t realize, being on the course, people were dropping out. Hypothermia was taking its toll on many of the runners. I was noticing the medical tents were filling up but didn't know it was hypothermia. I wasn’t too cold but was extremely miserable. How can an event be so miserable and so exhilarating at the same time? This is the Boston Marathon, my once in a lifetime opportunity and I am running for my sweet sister who had to endure months of cancer treatment. I could hear Betty say “you can do this, Eddie. Keep going, God will help you.” So, I kept going.
The rain is coming at me in sheets. Straight at my face. The winds have increased to 40 mph gusts and 30 mph sustained. We did have a heat wave. It was around 47 degrees now. I had 13 miles to go. I walked the rest of the way. My foot was not going to cooperate. The pain was too much. (I now know that what happened to me was a gout attack which also weakened the top of my foot.) I was not interested in a kiss from any of the Wellesley girls. I was only interested in seeing the finish line. I did manage to enjoy the support of the people who lined the streets in this same weather. Good for them and it was most appreciated. One girl had baked cupcakes and I grabbed one as I went by. All of the volunteers handing out water and Gatorade were amazing. Police officers were most appreciated as you can imagine that security was tight. All of them standing around in this brutal weather for hours.
Coming into Boston, I see the famous Citgo sign, an iconic sign that you can see past left field at Fenway Park. I was getting close and knew that I can make it to the finish line. I can finally see the turn onto Boylston and once I made that turn, the finish line is ahead. I decided that I want to run through the finish line so I began to run. The pain was too intense. I had to walk. I had envisioned this many times. I will emotionally run across the finish line with my fists raised in the air in triumph! With about 20 yards to go, I decided that I am going to run through the finish line even if it kills me. Just short of the finish line, I hear Paul, my brother-in-law, yelling out to me. I looked over and waved. I looked up to the people in the booth taking pictures and with that movement of my head, I lost my balance. I began to drift to the left and had no control over my legs. It was like driving on ice and losing control. My body had just been through a lot of stress and my legs were just not listening to my brain. I went straight for a wall to the left and I grabbed the top of it but could not maintain control and fell violently on my side on top of the finish line. No! This cannot be happening to me. How humiliating. I fell on the Boston Marathon finish line. My ribs were hurting along with my right arm. It occurred to me....I haven’t crossed the finish line. Several medical people had approached me and all I could think of was...get me across the line! This is where I met Carryl Roy, one of my Dana-Farber teammates. She approached me and pulled my leg across the finish line, as my bib was on my leg. They put me in a wheelchair and hauled me off to a medical tent. I explained to them that I was fine, not dizzy, not cold and ok to walk. So, I did. The whole time this was happening, I was concerned about my family who would be watching this happen and they would be worried about me. What I didn't know was that they were not able to get that close to the finish line and never saw it happen. I was actually glad about that.
Hey! I just finished the 2018 Boston Marathon in the most brutal weather imaginable. I even took home a souvenir, bruises and contusions from the finish line. I bet none of the 25,000 finishers had that!
I made my way back to the Copley Marriott and was able to visit with my new hero, Carryl, who drug my butt across the finish line. My family was there as well and we took pictures and talked about the race. It was this time that I learned about all the people dropping out with hypothermia. many of the runners didn’t even begin. I was a blessed man. I did it for Betty. She would have been so proud of me. She always was. What an experience. It is one that I will never forget. God is good!
