NEWS & NOTES
A MARATHON FOR ALL AGES
At 84 years young, Volkert Bobeldijk of Canada is the oldest entrant of the in-person race. He’ll be competing in his 13th consecutive Boston. Eddie Reyna of California is the oldest virtual-race entrant at 91 years of age.
Four Massachusetts runners — Enchee Xu, Conor Beswick, Rachel Calderone, and Angel Robles — will be 18 on race day, the youngest you can be to enter the 125th Boston Marathon. An additional 37 18-year olds will take part in the Virtual 125th Boston Marathon.
Quarter Century Club
More than 100 athletes are now part of the distinguished Quarter Century Club of athletes with current streaks of 25 or more consecutive Boston Marathon fifinishes. Representing 27 states and two countries (USA and Canada), the dedicated group of runners haven't missed a Boston Marathon since at least 1995.
Among the notable QCC members are:
Bethesda, Maryland’s Bennett Beach, who at 53 straight Bostons holds the record for most finishes in a row. Bennett started his streak as a college student at Harvard, and ran last year’s Virtual Experience with family members.
Boston Marathon race director Dave McGillivray has run 48 in a row, going on no. 49. His is the third-longest active streak (behind Beach and Mark Bauman at 51). Dave traditionally runs late in the day on Marathon Monday, once a majority of the runners have crossed the line.
California’s Patty Hung is aiming for consecutive finish no. 35 on October 11. She holds the second-longest female streak in history, just a tad behind Andrea Hatch’s 36, which ended in 2014. Patty ran last year’s Virtual Experience at home in California despite tough conditions brought on by wildfires.
B.A.A. RACING APP — AVAILABLE NOW!
Download the all-new, free B.A.A. Racing App to track your favorite runners as they make their way towards the finish. The B.A.A. Racing App features live participant tracking, leaderboards, results, course map, race info, photo booth, and more! Search 'Boston Marathon' in your mobile app store and download today!