A new scenic course and perfect weather greeted the almost 6,000 runners on the morning of the 10th day of the 10th month of the 2010th year &- Oct. 10, 2010 &- for the 10th annual Boston Athletics Association Half Marathon, according to a BAA press release.
The half marathon was presented by the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and The Jimmy Fund. This year’s race, which started and ended at the White Stadium in Franklin Park, led runners through the Emerald Necklace Park System.
Runners ran by various ponds and parks, including the Franklin Park Zoo.
“It was a new course this year, so it was a little different,” said
Katie Crowley, a College of Arts and Sciences senior and the secretary of BU’s running club.
“But it was a really nice race. BAA’s great, they’re very organized,” she added.
This was her third year running in the BAA Half Marathon, she said.
The participant limit expanded by 1,000 runners compared to last year, although the capacity reached full limit just two hours after online registration was opened, according to a BAA statement. Mayor Menino was at the starting line, and wished all the runners well before the starting gun.
“It was a little crowded at first,” said Meghan Downey, a senior at the School of Education and president of BU’s running club. “But it was only maybe the first two miles that were congested.”
Like Crowley, this was Downey’s third year running, she said.
Still, participants had little to complain about, as sunny running conditions met the runners on Sunday morning after a stint of bad weather the week before.
“It was a gorgeous but cool day for the run,” said Bill Smyth, head coach of BU’s swimming and diving program. This was Smyth’s second time running the BAA Half Marathon, he said.
In the men’s category, veteran runner John Korir emerged among the leading pack of fellow Kenyans as the victor, finishing the 13.1 miles in 1:02:21, just a second behind the race’s record of 1:02:20, set in 2007 by Thomas Nyariki, according to the official BAA Half Marathon results. In the women’s category, another Kenyan, Caroline Rotich, finished in first with a time of 1:10:52.
In the men’s wheelchair division, 51-year-old Gary Brendel, a Massachusetts native, won his first BAA half marathon with a time of 1:01:01, while in the women’s wheelchair division, 47-year-old Jacqui Kapinowski finished first for the second time in four years with a time of 1:31:07, the results said.
In addition, the BAA recognized 44 runners who had run the half marathon every year since its inception in 2001, making this their 10th year running, according to the BAA website.
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