To the loser that wrote you this e-mail get a life.

Boston is a unique experience. All runners qualified or not are awed by the quality of the field, and there is only one Robert Cheruiyot who won both 2006 (course record) and 2007. Negussie, who won in 2005, wore no. 6 this year and was found disoriented on the course; he did not finish due to the effects of hypothermia. Aside from the very few elite runners who win prize money, or the women this year for the championship, what do all the participants get out of the race?

BAA has the answer, and that is in the question and message that is posted in all the literature and throughout Boston; it is about the “promise”, whatever it is the goal that each runner sets for himself or herself to participate in this road race (or any other race).

As long as a runner understand his “promise”, it really doesn’t matter how fast he runs, or whether or not he qualifies. I train runners to go 26 miles to benefit a local charity, and we have Boston experience and participants on the verge of BQ (that is why I was seaching the web for easy BQ marathons), as well as folks who tax their limits just to do a half. The effort that goes into training and qualifying can not be understated, and it is heart breaking to see a runner missing BQ just by one second. For everyone in our group, a marathon is between the runner and himself, against his own clock, pitted against his own goals and objectives, the BAA “promise”.

At the same time, we are trying to apply to be an official Boston charity although we are not hopeful of our chances since BAA has historically accepted only local charities rather than from out of state. We would love to receive the ten waivers that would probably mean about $30,000 of pledge commitments to our cause.

With that said, I must say that I have not met a Boston marathoner who ran on a sponsor or charity waiver ever tried to hide that status. In fact, I have encountered apologetic clarifications, and that may be the powerful force that drove a friend to finally qualify at age 70 after having run Boston three times in his earlier years from the back.

BAA has it figured out as the current marathon is actually three races in one: the first wave with bib numbers to 10999 consisting of largely sub 3:30 runners, the second wave of slower runners which at 3:30 would start to come in at race clock 4 hours after most first wave runners have already finished, and waiver runners in corral 20 in the back.

As a post script, Boston times are typically slower than qualification times anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes for the average runner.

Brad, you didn’t run the Boston Marathon. You just paid for the privilege of thinking you did. Running the Boston Marathon means sacrificing months and months of free time and working really hard to get one’s body in shape to qualify for the standards required to QUALIFY for the race…yes, it is a race, not stroll through the park (they keep time for a reason).

I don’t have a problem with charity runners per se. I think their philanthropy is noble. I just have a problem with them being at the Boston Marathon. In fact my issue isn’t with charity runners themselves. It’s with the B.A.A. who, in my opinion, is prostituting the race’s elite reputation to attract thousands of wannabes to pay for undeserved honor of saying they “ran the Boston Marathon”.

So good for you and all the money you’ve raised over the years for some worthy charities. I just wish you would stay away from the race I literally give my blood, sweat and tears for every year, until you truly deserve to be there.

Dal Coger
Medford, MA

during the race. it’s not a joke. all I heard during the race was ‘go team’ for every fatass wearing purple. Whatever….I work hard to do my best on race day , and my best at marathon’s by the way is 4:12, slower than Brad.

marathons and triathlons are NOT just something ANYONE can do.
you have to earn it. oh you might get thru it and then tell the world you did it, big fricking deal.
my wife is doing a danskin tri. she’s in a training group. there are fatsos in it who sit around and talk during pool sessions.

the whole thing diminishes the meaning of these events. it makes me sick.
that’s my opinon. like it or not.

In my line of work, we have a lot of people donating a lot of money. We try to match those people up with the recipients as much as possible, for many reasons. Imagine if we matched up Brad with his charity, which as you know, is a house that provides emotional and physical support for families with children with disabilities.

Announcer: “And this is Brad Feld, Kids. Brad’s set a goal of 5 hours for this marathon, and succeeded in flying colors, finishing more than an hour over his PR of 4:05. He was able to accomplish this training just 30 miles a week! The key to this training is Brad’s stated philosophy: he just doesn’t care how he does! Kids, let’s try to be more like Brad Feld!”

Brad feels good about himself because he donates money to this charity, which is relatively easy for him to do, to accept his entry into the race. What he and most of you don’t seem to understand is that there is a larger issue associated with this – it doesn’t stop with writing a check. If Brad met those children and their families a year before the marathon, and kept in touch with them along the way, do you think he would have run 1:02 beyond his PR with a “don’t care” attitude? Did he backdoor into the marathon? Absolutely not! Did he go about this the right way????

You guys can make Brad into a hero if you wish. I will look to people like Margaret Tinsley, a 58 year old mother of three, no college degree, who qualified by the time standard, and finished 112 places in front of Brad. I’m going to start reading her blog instead!

as a marathoner myself, i have great reverence for Boston. it is, to most marathoners, the superbowl, the world series, the final four, and the stanley cup finals all rolled into one. honestly. it has transcended.

that being said, the argument that mr. Feld backdoored his way into Boston is LUDICROUS. now i, along with countless others, believe that running Boston without a number and bragging about it is an offense punishable by public flogging and ridicule. for shame. you should not breed. no one should be forced to carry on your horrible genetics. (i have personally emailed the BAA and asked for a ban on the subject of this article: http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=127825&format=&page=2)

HOWEVER!, donating time, money and resources to charity is a feat that should be revered and rewarded by every human being on the planet. rewarded with respect and honor, and with entry into the Boston Marathon (as decreed by the BAA!).
one of your readers was correct when they stated that the Boston Marathon was no longer just a race, but an event. and, as i have said, it has transcended. it has done so in large part due to the fact that it has generated such an incredible about of _good_ by allowing charity based entries.

Waddle On!, Brad! Keep on truckin. Amen for 51 (please don’t forget DC (my home)) before 50. Billings will be quite a gem for you in Big Sky, however a bit on the brutal side.