Why I Won’t Run The Boston Marathon Again

Or, at least, not for a long time

When I ran the Boston Marathon in 2015, I re-qualified to be in the 2016 race. Prior to completing the iconic race, I had already qualified for it a few times.

I finished the 2015 race in 3:23, which means, at the time, I was over 10 minutes faster than the qualifying time for my age and gender. Since then, they’ve changed the qualifying standards, requiring all of us to run five minutes faster than before in order to earn our way into the race. This makes it even harder for runners who want to complete the Boston Marathon.

With that in mind, I have good reasons for not wanting to do Boston again for quite a while.

No, the bad weather I dealt with in 2015 did not scare me from doing it again. I’m also definitely not angry I ran slower than I would have liked and did not get a personal best. It’s much harder to run a personal best when traveling, and it involves time zone changes.

What I noticed though, was when I registered for the race in September 2014, it shocked me the number of people who ran a qualifying time and did not get accepted into the 2015 field (later, I found out that was the case every year).

An astonishing number (nearly 2000 people) worked so hard to run a qualifying time and did not get to go. For some, that may have been the only chance they had to run the race. It takes a lot of commitment to train to run a Boston qualifying time, and it is extremely heartbreaking to be rejected from the field even though, theoretically, you’ve met “the standard.”

I know many runners dream of finishing the Boston Marathon. It’s a huge accomplishment and finishing it, to the average runner out there, feels like you just went to the Olympics (at least it felt that way for me). It’s a bucket list item for many runners.

Finishing Boston was my dream, too. Ever since I was 15 years old, it was one of my life goals to proudly wear the coveted finisher’s medal and to hang it on my wall.

I feel so fortunate that my dream finally came true in 2015. I overcame quite a few setbacks, from past injuries to financial difficulties while I was a university student. However, although I didn’t break my goal of 3:10, I still emerged victorious across the finish line.

But I didn’t need to break 3:10 to call it a “victory.” Finishing was a personal victory, and it was a good stepping stone for what has to happen next as I continue my running journey.

Since many runners desire to finish the Boston Marathon, I felt if I opted not to register even if I qualified, then it will allow another runner to achieve their dream. I wanted my qualifying spot to go to someone who hasn’t done it before and who may not have gotten in had I applied.

It could be someone’s first and last chance to race Boston, and I don’t want to take that away from them.

Every runner who worked hard to run a qualifying time earned the right to be there. Just because they ran one minute faster than the qualifying time while I beat the qualifying standard by 10 minutes, does not diminish the other runner’s incredible accomplishment.

I can always re-qualify when I get faster, which brings me to my next point. I feel like I need to get faster before I attempt the course again. It’s a very technical and challenging course.

I hope every runner who dreams of finishing the iconic race gets to experience that joy so they, too, could celebrate their personal victory.

I know that me opting not to do it again probably won’t make a big difference (or any at all) in the number of first-timers that get to go to Boston, but it’s the least I can do.

I can forever be grateful for running Boston, but it’s someone else’s turn (whenever racing can safely return).