Rob Rose Running Column 4/7/07

Charles Darwin and the Boston Marathon. Is there a common

trait between the 19th century scientist and the 21st century

athletic contest? With the biggest running event of the year

only days away, it's interesting to note how dominant the Boston

Marathon really is and how the evoluntionist's theory may apply

to it.

In a nutshell, Darwin's premise of evolutionary selection

postulated that 'the survival or extinction of an organism is

determined by that organism's ability to adapt to its

environment.' The Boston Marathon is the centerpiece of spring

running in this region with everything else adapting to keep in

step with it. It's not just that one weekend in April that it

owns but also the four months that lead up to Patriots Day. Many

longer distance races have come into being and maintain their

existence because of Boston. New England is the Galapagos of the

running world with unusual race species spawning due to the

presence of the April classic.

Twelve years ago, the Wampanoag Road Runners revived a race

that had been held for a period of years in the 1980's but had

been discontinued. That was the Old Fashioned 10 Miler. It began

in Sharon but was moved to Foxboro after the first two years.

One of the reasons it was brought back was to serve as a pre

Boston race to test one's conditioning and it is always held

eight weeks before Boston. The race has become enormously

successful with this years' turnout the best ever. But if it

wasn't for the Boston Marathon, it wouldn't exist.

Before the OFTM, there was Amherst and Stu's. The Jones Town &

Country 10 Mile was founded by Tom Dederian in 1975 and is held

in late February. The course through Amherst and Shutesbury was

described by Dederian, the author of the definitive work on the

Boston Marathon, as "a pre Boston race; an hyperbole of the

Boston course, hillier and to be run at a faster pace. (Bill)

Rodgers won it before his first Boston win in 1975.".

Boylston's Stu Thurston has his name permanently affixed to

the Stu's 30K, undoubtedly one of the great classics in our

region. Thurston had a training route that circumnavigated the

rolling terrain around the Wachuset Reservoir. Twenty eight

years ago, it became a race with the explicit purpose of molding

runners for Boston.

In recent years, more species (races) have emerged to satisfy

the demands of the principal organism (Boston). The Boston Prep

16 Mile in Derry, NH is renowned for its no mercy hills. The

Eastern States 20 Mile in late March has been used by many as a

last long race before Patriot's Day. The Martha's Vineyard 20

Miler, the day before the OFTM, has to limit its field because

of the demand. The Hyannis Marathon and Half Marathon in late

February give runners the opportunity to qualify for Boston or

get ready for it. In early April, the Tri-Valley Frontrunners

sponsor the Boston Tune-Up 15K. Wonder why they called it that?

More local runners, however, compete in fall marathons than in

the Boston Marathon. In addition, there are many New England

fall marathons, such as Bay State, Cape Cod, New Hampshire,

Clarence DeMar, Mystic, Hartford and Portland from which runners

can choose. One would think that there would be an equal if not

greater number of fall prep races for these runners. Not so.

The list of long distance prep races to get fall marathoners

ready for their events is surprisingly short. The Cape Ann 25K,

the Marshfield Road Runners 20K and the sporadically held Nahant

30K are the few opportunities runners have to test their

abilities in a competitive situation. In many areas of the

country, fall is the marathon season of choice. When I lived in

Pennsylvania and Virginia, everyone geared toward marathoning in

October or November. There were also an equal number of longer

distance races in the spring and fall.

It should be pointed out that Boston's reach also extends to

shorter distance races. It seems that any race is reluctant to

schedule on Patriots Day weekend as the calendar is light.

What does this all mean? Perhaps there may be an untapped

opportunity for some enterprising race director to start a fall

half marathon or longer distance to cater to a fall marathon

customer base.

If Boston wasn't such a foreboding presence maybe some of the

winter classics would have come to life in a different season.

Stu's 30K in early October? Amherst in late September? The

Martha Vineyard's Autumnal Classic? The Cape Cod 15K Tune-Up?

Maybe. But in the current situation, they would probably go

extinct. Just ask Charles.

Footnotes - seven local runners were chosen in the lottery for

the June 16 Mt. Washington Road Race; Norfolk's John Curran,

Wrentham's Douglas Fuller, Seekonk's Matthew Gancz, Scott Harris

and Frederick MacDonald and Mansfield's Ben Nephew and Keith

"Turbro" Purrier will make the 7.6 mile ascent to the clouds ...

Dead Race Society - April and May bring the greatest number of

races in the year and with so many, some will not survive; so

here are the races that were contested in 2006 but won't be back

in 2007; the Raynham Teachers in Training will take a year off

and not hold the race in late April this year; the mid May

Marlboro Eagles 5K is gone ... after 11 years the May Dover

Police Chase is out of here.....the Kyle Conlon Memorial Road

Race was a one time event in May 2006 ...