Moving Boston Marathon to the Fall

rojo wrote:

When I was coaching at Cornell, I did come to the conclusion that the track and xc seasons should be reversed. IN the fall, the Northeast has MUCH better and more predictable weather than the spring. There often is little wind- ideal for track racing. In the spring, it's often so windy.

We used to talk about that (high school, upstate coach) but the conclusion was- the possibility of snow and cold for the State Championships in November.

And I don't think sprinters and field events would like it as much as distance.

drtyue wrote:

I would agree with changing it but to October. At this time, barring any hurricane, the weather is much more dry, sunny and stable (less rain and wind) with an average high in the low 60's F . The daylight is still bright enough. too. As you get into November temperatures drop rapidly, daylight is not as bright or nearly as long and the climate is much more unstable. It could even snow! September is very stable and bright but still very warm, like in the 70's F. I find the best running to be about 60F, dewpoint below 50F, slight breeze and a mix of bright sun and puffy clouds.

I'm from the northeast, south of Boston by quite a bit. We have had fairly heavy snowfalls in October. And hurricane season is mainly September but I recall plenty of awful storms in October, too (one nearly ruined a short bicycle tour with my dad and we ended that tour riding all day in a 40 degree rain). October in Boston is not going to be 60 degrees at race time either. The historic high is low 60s but that won't happen until early afternoon at best.

They don't need to move to the fall, they just need to move it the first or second weekend in May. It might be a little bit hotter but usually no snow storms by then.. DOOM FIXED IT.

Monday's conditions are *not* forecast to be terrible. Light rain, moderate wind, and temperatures in the 50's. We get that in the fall too. It's a road race. You dress for the weather and you deal with it. Man up.

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I agree with you about the weather not being so bad, but don't think "man up" is the appropriate way to encourage people. A higher percentage of men dropped out last year. It is pretty well known that women are better at adjusting to unexpected conditions than men. If you want to succeed on a tough day, maybe acting more like a woman is the better way to go.

When they first started planning for the Boston marathon, the original route was going to be Concord to Boston to celebrate Patriots Day and the battle of Lexington/Concord. However, Arlington did not want the runners to go through, so they moved the start to Ashland where a train could help get runners to the start line. If the race still started in Ashland, but finished at the Boston Common you would have a much easier marathon. No 3 miles of downhill pounding to start and easier logistics with a train stop right at the starting line. The hardest part about Boston is they make you sit around for so long and walk a mile from Hopkinton High School. The weather would be much more manageable if the start line were right next to better staging area.

rojo wrote:

When I was coaching at Cornell, I did come to the conclusion that the track and xc seasons should be reversed. IN the fall, the Northeast has MUCH better and more predictable weather than the spring. There often is little wind- ideal for track racing. In the spring, it's often so windy.

Does anyone have information about how it was decided that cross county is run in the fall while outdoor track is a spring event?

Yes! I think it's absolutely obvious that you're right - they definitely should move the Boston Marathon to the Fall! There are so many reasons, and you already mentioned the key ones.

2019 runner.. wrote:

Keep it the same weekend but have the option to flex it to Sunday. They should be able to decide the Thursday before the race which day will have more favorable conditions and choose that date. Would give a big tool against disaster weather scenarios like last year. Participants would be unaffected as they're already generally taking at least a day off work to stay through Monday.

Right. Road closures, thousands of police, EMT, and firefighters, several cities, hundreds of road closures, thousands of volunteers, and millions of dollars in revenue lost at the expo...easy peasy. Let's do a "flex day" and have it on Sunday.

Lots of other marathons do that, right guys?

Bueller? Bueller?

Boston weather is always insane because of its geography. Storms that come up the East coast really start to rip when they get to Boston. When I was a kid, we would get blizzards and my Aunt and Uncle in NJ would have flurries. And even when you get a sunny day and high pressure, the interaction between the water and the land always brings about breezy afternoons. But the main problem with the fall is snow and ice. I remember having to make my Halloween costume out of my snow suit one year because we had about 6" of snow on the ground.

Boston for non elites is just a an opportunity to say your better than 90% of other runners and spend a lot of money on a destination event. If anything it should be treated like a tour run and not an actual race. So stop trying to run prs and just chill.

You make fair points about the last two years' weather, but how many years has the weather been just about PERFECT in Boston? Not worth moving it as New England weather is unpredictable in the fall as well.

Everyone here has forgotten the obvious solution . Keep the race on Patriots Day but decide on the race direction based on the weather . Last year a race from Boston to Hopkinton would have been a lot faster . When the wind is from the west keep it Hopkinton to Boston . On the back of the mileage markers just post the reverse distance Mile 25 is Mile 1.2 the opposite way . The BAA would just have to announce in the morning where the race was starting . BOOM ? PROBLEM SOLVED!!!!!

I grew up in Massachusetts, so you can guess how I'd feel about changing the date of Boston. Used to ride my bike to watch at Framingham. Later, saw Boston Billy set his 2:09:55 AR, what a moment it was.

Ran against Alberto in high school out there, and ran for UMass where our boy Randy Thomas managed a 2:11:51 at Boston in '78, I think it was, probably still the best by a UMie. Let's keep this race on Patriot's Day. I bet my former teammate John Legere over at his little phone company would agree with me too.

A better solution is to get serious about taking action on climate change.

+2. You beat to the Bowerman quote

The original organizers picked Patriots Day because they were inspired by Pheidippides’ original run. They were Bostonians, and proud of their messenger who had spread the “British are coming!” message at the outset of the revolutionary war. When they heard the Greek reasoning for the original marathon, since the story resonated with Boston’s history, they chose Patriots Day.

I don’t think Paul Revere said “I should ride to warn everyone, but the weather kinda sucks so I’ll wait a few days.. or flex my ride to another better weather day”.

Run the damn race. Boston’s special because it’s hard to get into, and it’s hard to run. Des Linden’s best race was also her career personal worst time last year.

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poor hobbyjogger loser - race like a real man/woman and give no ducks about weather

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I don’t think they should change it from April but I do think they should have a flexible start. If it’s gonna be hot start it at 7am. If it’s gonna storm in the morning start it at noon. With technology it’s a non issue in communicating the start time the day prior.

Common sense is making a comeback wrote:

I don’t think they should change it from April but I do think they should have a flexible start. If it’s gonna be hot start it at 7am. If it’s gonna storm in the morning start it at noon. With technology it’s a non issue in communicating the start time the day prior.

Good idea , why act like we have to do it exactly like 1896? Set a range of 12-18 hours when it will start and decide the date before .

Moving the Boston Marathon to the fall is a terrific idea.

If you move it to September all of your "B" Squad Kenyans will be running the Berlin Marathon and the US guys will have a chance at the podium.

If you move it to October all of your "B" Squad Kenyans will be running the Chicago Marathon and the US guys will have a chance at the podium.

And if you move it to November all of your "B" Squad Kenyans will be running the New York Marathon and the US guys will have a chance at the podium.

So for sure moving it to conflict with another major is a great idea.

(that was snark, in case you didn't notice)

Ha! White Nights Marathon in St Petersburg is supposed to be run on the night of summer solstice. Last year it started on 8 am on a late July day.