Boston 2010: Worth Every Cramp

If there was a somewhat common theme at Boston this year it was that cramps crept in on runners of all abilities in the late going, especially from mile 20 to the finish. This means people who trained properly as well as people (like me) who might not have put in all the necessary mileage, experienced this cramping just when it was least expected -- midway through or after the Newton Hills. With temperatures close to perfect and adequate hydration reported in most cases, it was a bit mystifying, but something that is just part of the lore and charm of this extra-special marathon. There was wind, hitting from all sides at one time or another, and that could have been a contributing culprit, but who really knows? At any rate, at this moment, counting wheelchair athletes and handcyle competitors, there were 995 finishers from Illinois.
Our first finisher was wheelchair racer extraordinaire Adam Bleakney, 34, of Champaign, who finished 9th among the rollers in 1:38:01.
Top male runners were Greg Costello, 29, of Chicago, who was 41st overall in 2:26:01; Trey Robinson, 26, of Evanston, 134th in 2:35:59; Michel Jacques, 26, of Evanston, 140th in 2:36:12; Derek S. Holland, 32, of Chicago, 150th in 2:36:50; and Harley Johnson, 36, of Urbana, 164th in 2:37:33.
Top females were Julie A. Zehr, 29, of Ottawa, who was 63rd in 2:57:25; Jean Marinangeli, 26, of Arlington Heights, 70th in 2:58:10; Janet Leet, 44, of Arlington Heights, 74th in 2:59:14; Candace Caveny, 40, of Mascoutah, 98th in 3:02:30; and Loryn King, 26, of Oak Park, 112th in 3:03:53.
Others who really stood out were Doris Schertz, 71, of Lombard, who WON the F70-74 age group with a 4:25:04; Nancy Rollins, 63, of Evanston, who placed 2nd in the F60-64 group with a 3:34:00; Brian Sweney, 51, of Chicago, who finished 9th in the M50-54 group; and Elena Shemyakina, 50, of Geneva, who finished 9th in F50-54.
Finally, everyone knows that American Ryan Hall of Mammoth Lakes, CA, placed 4th with a 2:08:41, the fastest time ever run by an American at Boston. But did you know we had our own Ryan Hall? Yep, Ryan Hall, 30, of Chicago, a local shoe rep., finished in 3:09:44. Way to go, Ryan! And good friend Mark Buciak, 49, of Chicago, nursed a sore achilles tendon to register his 31st consecutive Boston finish. He came across in 4:05. Great job, Mark.
Congratulations to all who ran Boston!