The Road To Boston, Part 1 – Qualifying

When the Finish Line Becomes the Start Line

I crossed the finish line at the Oklahoma City Marathon in October of 2021. It was my first in-person marathon in 2 years and it was a gloriously perfect day for me. The number one reason was because I beat the time goal of 3 hours and 55 minutes I had set for myself. How much did I beat it by? ONE SECOND! My official time was 3:54:59. I cut it close but I beat it.

Boston is the reason this odd number is significant. Not Boston the city, Boston the Marathon. The Boston Marathon is a race you have to qualify for based on the time you run and how old you are. My division right now is 65-69 years old. The time I have to beat to qualify is 4:05. But running just below 4:05 does not get you in the race. It just allows you to put in a provisional registration for the race.

Close But No Cigar

To actually get accepted to run Boston you have to be below your qualification standard by some number of minutes and seconds that is determined by how many people attempt to register and what their qualifying time is. They accept starting with the fastest runners in each age group and keep allowing people in until they are filled up. If they are filled up at 4:04 then those who ran above that don’t get in even if they were below the 4:05 time. Everyone who tries to qualify knows this and accepts it, even if it is frustrating. I know this personally because at the Erie Marathon in 2018 I was in the 60-64 age group and needed a time of 3:55 minus whatever the cut off was. I made it in 3:50:24 (still my PR) and thought for sure I had made the cut. I actually lost out getting in by 16 seconds. 16 seconds I could have easily found during my race if only I had known. But that’s the way it goes when you try to qualify.

That’s why the time goal at OKC was 10 minutes under the actual qualification standard and that is why I was so happy at the finish line. I didn’t find out if I got in the race for several weeks and it then turned out the cut off time was ZERO minutes below the qualification standard. So I didn’t need the 10 minutes after all but I wasn’t about to take any chances. In the meanwhile, I had a great race and it gave me a lot of confidence for the future.

Partners

One of the main reasons I was able to achieve this time was having a running partner for the majority of the race. Rob Katz and I ran together when I lived in Tulsa and when we realized we were both going to be running OKC we decided to run it together. It was a good strategy for both of us. Rob had run one marathon before but had gone out too fast and faltered at the end. Because I was slower in general than he was running with me would force him to slow down and keep a sustainable pace. Meanwhile for me running with Rob would keep me at my best pace instead of faltering and slowing down as the miles progressed.

It worked perfectly not only for the reasons I just stated but because we entertained and distracted each other for all those miles. We talked a lot, made interesting (and sometimes snarky) comments on other runners, and just in general enjoyed each other’s company. The miles really did fly by.

Our plan was to run 20 miles together then decide how we felt and do the last 6 based on that. Rob accelerated a bit at that point and finished before I did by a few minutes. He had a MUCH better race this time around and it set him up for his next marathon when he was a Boston Qualifier! He is set to be on the start line of Boston in 2024 and I am so excited to hear of his experience.

I really encourage anyone running a marathon to get a partner or join a pace group. It will help with discipline and pacing and enjoyment!