You and your friend can train together.
You can run Boston, and your friend can go and cheer you on.
You friend can run one of the dozens of marathons within a few weeks either way of April 18, and you can go and cheer him on.
It's not that difficult.
That's Great! Thanks for posting!
joho wrote:
Did they change the standards again this year? I thought they made the last standard change about 2 or 3 years ago.
It seems a few people on here aren't familiar with the way Boston currently accepts registrants.
In order to even register you have to meet the qualification standards. which can easily be found on their website. Anyone who has met this qualifying standard can register for the race over a two week time period.
The B.A.A then sorts every person who registered and sorts them in order by how much they beat their qualifying standard by. From this sorted list they then accept the fastest 30k runners (or whatever they decide the number is that year).
If you made the qualifying standard and registered it doesn't mean you get to run Boston, you still have to be one of the 30k fastest runners who registered when sorted by time faster than qualifying standard.
After registration ends and the 30k runners are notified the B.A.A also releases what the cut-off ended up being for the current year.
in 2014 the cutoff was 1min 38s faster than your qualifying time. 2015 was 1:02 faster, and this year the time jumped to 2:28 faster.
Don't register, just show up and run the course.
Don't give up on Boston yourself. Train with your friend for a different spring marathon and get a better BQ for Boston 2017.
You should definitely still run Boston. You never know if you'll get another shot
Better run it this year, next year will be a zoo with them cutting 5000 this year.
Here is an article on what it took to get in in 2016:
You should probably give your bib back so that it can be given to someone slower than you. It's not fair that you have more natural ability than your friend, and the playing field needs to be leveled. In fact, all bibs need to be given back and redistributed evenly so that everyone has a fair shot at competing in Boston.
If someone doesn't give these four hour marathoners a chance to compete, how are they gonna get better? Just a little leg up, that's all they need.
Brev wrote:
Crazy how much they lowered the time this year. My friend missed out by 12 seconds. Problem is I\'m already registered and the plan was to train and race it together. Is there any way I can get out of this without losing $180?
Are you such a pu**y that you can\'t race without your \"Friend\"?
You don\'t deserve to run Boston (at least in the men\'s category).
Shoebacca wrote:
Have him write them an email or letter explaining his intent to train with his buddy who did receive entry, that he only missed it be 12 seconds, etc. There's a chance they'll accept him. They don't make as many exceptions anymore, but it's worth a shot. DO IT NOW.
You can also try to find him a sponsor or charity bib for the race.
That's similar to what I did to gain entry into the 2008 Boston Marathon after I missed qualifying by 3 seconds at the Big Sur marathon. (1) I sent the RD a course profile, which showed the 500 ft hill at Big Sur was more difficult than heartbreak hill. (2) I also send them an article from RW, which said Big Sur was one of the 10 toughest marathons. (3) In addition, I provided a statement from a multi-time local marathon winner, who said that it is his opinion that I should be let into the race, because the course I qualified on was much harded than the courses that most people who qualify on. I then called the RD and asked if they would consider my application. They said they would without making any promises. I was later accepted!
V1per41 wrote:
joho wrote:Did they change the standards again this year? I thought they made the last standard change about 2 or 3 years ago.
It seems a few people on here aren't familiar with the way Boston currently accepts registrants.
In order to even register you have to meet the qualification standards. which can easily be found on their website. Anyone who has met this qualifying standard can register for the race over a two week time period.
The B.A.A then sorts every person who registered and sorts them in order by how much they beat their qualifying standard by. From this sorted list they then accept the fastest 30k runners (or whatever they decide the number is that year).
If you made the qualifying standard and registered it doesn't mean you get to run Boston, you still have to be one of the 30k fastest runners who registered when sorted by time faster than qualifying standard.
After registration ends and the 30k runners are notified the B.A.A also releases what the cut-off ended up being for the current year.
in 2014 the cutoff was 1min 38s faster than your qualifying time. 2015 was 1:02 faster, and this year the time jumped to 2:28 faster.
ooops. I forgot about that change to the registration process. Hopefully this process is having the desired outcome on the qualifying times.
shut up. use your brain and figure it out
Brev wrote:
Crazy how much they lowered the time this year. My friend missed out by 12 seconds. Problem is I'm already registered and the plan was to train and race it together. Is there any way I can get out of this without losing $180?
Send him a Boston themed postcard.
Run the race.
What if next year you can't make the standard and your friend does? Would you really expect your friend not to race because you didn't get in?
If this happened to me even my wife would understand that I should go race. I don't have the kind of friends that would ever think that I should hold back because they didn't make it. The thought would never even cross their minds.
The charity race scene is a disaster if you ask me. They line you up behind everyone and if you're at all serious about running you would never be able to get free of traffic.
Just my two cents.
There are lots of awesome things you could do in this world with your friend next year. It's ok to eat a registration fee. Here are five things that the two of you could do that would be better than running Boston by yourself:
1. Find, or create, a doable 2-person Guinness Book of World Record, and get t-shirts made after you achieve it. You will become legends to your friends on Facebook.
2. Go to Mexico and buy an assortment of performance enhancing drugs, and test them out in a race South of the Border. Who knows? Maybe your friend will find the cure to their slowness disease and the two of you can run Boston every year for the rest of your lives.
3. Make your own running adventure that hasn't been done before. Choose a scenic place to do it and takes lots of photos. Once again, you will become famous on social media and set a FKT.
4. Find a winnable race for your slow friend and let him beat you across the line. Make a slow-motion video of the train-up and race using Chariots of Fire music.
5. Do something at the end of May called the Bob Marshall Wilderness Open. Grizzly bears galore. Nothing like friends confronting danger together and stepping out of their comfort zones.
1:49.84 - 800m Freshmen National Record - Cooper Lutkenhaus (check this kick out!!)
Jakob on Oly 1500- “Walk in the park if I don’t get injured or sick”
Emma Coburn to miss Olympic Trials after breaking ankle in Suzhou
VALBY has graduated (w/ honors) from Florida, will she go to grad school??
Men who run twice a day and the women who love/put up with them