PUBLISHED 03/14/2007
Best Spectator Route
Here's a way to see your favorite runner not once or even twice, but three times. You'll need a full tank of gas, money for tolls and parking, the map above--and a 3:30 or slower runner; anyone faster and the cops may be chasing you.
1. Skip Hopkinton--it's too crowded to spot anyone at the start--and drive straight to the town of Ashland (about 3.7 miles into the race). Park close to Main Street. Watch your runner where Main intersects the racecourse on Union Street/Route 135. Grab a quick bite at Stone's Public House and hop back in your car.
2. Head north on Main Street, which becomes Myrtle Street/Badger Road. Turn right on Salem End Road. Turn left on Temple Street and right on Worcester Road/Route 9. Head east on Route 9 for seven miles. Turn right onto Weston Road in Wellesley. Turn left onto Linden Street and park at the Talby Municipal Lot. Cross over the train tracks and watch your runner (now at mile 14) on the northbound side of Washington Street/Route 16. Toss him or her a banana.
3. Hustle to your car and get back on Route 9 East. Take it to Route 128 North. Go one exit and get on Route 90 East (Mass. Turnpike). Take Route 90 7.6 miles to exit 18. Follow the signs toward Cambridge. Turn right on Storrow Drive. Follow it to the Boston University exit. Take Carlton Street one block and turn right on Commonwealth Avenue. Follow it to St. Paul Street. Park near Boston University and walk half a mile to the 24-mile mark at Coolidge Corner. Start screaming.
Best Little Rest Stop In Hopkinton
Ah, to know Beth and Richard Kelly of Hopkinton on Marathon Day. For the past 31 years, the Kellys have been opening their home ("the only yellow house on the town common," Beth says) to dozens of running relatives and friends (and others they've befriended) prior to the race start. They offer fruit, juice, yogurt, a big-screen TV, and wood-burning stove--and rest rooms with short lines. With such comforts, one might be tempted to impersonate a long-lost Kelly cousin.
Best Breakfast Of Champions
With its midday start, Boston makes it tricky to know just when to eat your main prerace meal. Too early and you're toast by mile 20; too late and you're doubled over by Natick. Both Beardsley and Kathrine Switzer, the first woman to officially run Boston, recommend eating breakfast between 8 and 9 a.m. Beardsley goes with coffee and a bagel with cream cheese; Switzer prefers toast, oatmeal, a banana, and coffee or tea. Then eat an energy bar and have some sports drink 90 minutes or so before the start. (Hydration update: For the first time, Gatorade Endurance Formula, with added sodium and electrolytes, will be provided on the course.)
