Patriots Day. Boston. It’s a day of chaos in the city. 11 a.m two things are set off in tandem that set the wheels in motion to what is one of the biggest days in the city. First pitch at Fenway Park for the annual Patriots Day baseball game, and about 25 miles away from the ball park in a town called Hopkinton, MA a gun sounds, and with this gun a fury of runners head towards Fenway Park eventually passing it and heading into the Back Bay towards the finish line of the Boston Marathon.
If the two events are timed right, the game is letting out just as the lead runners of the marathon are making their way through Kenmore Square racing to the finish. But it is after the lead runners have passed that the real insanity begins. Forty thousand additional people, leave Fenway and make their way to Kenmore Square and the surrounding areas of the race and just start cheering people on. Some Sox fans know people in the marathon, but for the most part, they are cheering on complete strangers. People they will never meet face to face after that nanosecond has passed.
The runners, some decked out in elaborate costume, some running for themselves, others running as part of a team for a cause or a charity, such as livestrong or Boston Children’s Hospital. They write their names in marker on their shirts so the people cheering can shout their names. These are the people that aren’t the elite, they don’t run for a living, and they need the encouragement. Kenmore Square marks Mile 25 of the 26.2 mile race, and after climbing Heartbreak Hill, most are exhausted, this is the moment that they need all the encouragement to keep it up, to finish the race. Many won’t finish, lots have to walk, but for those who have made it this far, there is not turning back, they are going to make it.
Below is a photo gallery showcasing those people. Their hard work, determination, and training. Running is their passion. Like me, most sit at a desk all day working. Unlike me, where my passion is my camera and looking through a lens, their passion is running. I get up at dawn, get a cup of coffee, complain about the cold as I stand behind my tripod waiting for the sun to poke its head above the horizon. They are lacing up their shoes, stretching and running for miles, before sitting down at their desk for a full days work.
I feel that I owe it to them to take my passion and talent and capture them doing their passion. Because lets face it at the end of the day, they work a lot harder for a lot less recognition. I mean sure the few days prior to and after Marathon Monday they get their glory, but for the rest of the year they are training for nothing but themselves. I put up a photo on my blog, post to flickr or twitter and people are commenting congratulating, criticizing. These are the people that deserve the real recognition, running for passion, for a cause.
So without further adieu I present just some of the people I was able to capture running a marathon.
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