Marathon Runners Train For Boston Spring Races

After the St. Patrick's Day Parade, the true Bostonian's heart turns to road running, and for the competitive type, there are many races in the area, culminating in the famous Boston Marathon on April 21.

Some start training early; most don't. A large number of those who begin preparing as early as January take advantage of glamorous Briggs Cage, especially now that the Harvard track team has withdrawn to its hallowed bubble.

Most of the enthusiasts in Briggs are turkeys, but they make up for what they lack in talent with eagerness. One gentleman who has both is John Kelly the elder, a spry 65-year-old man whose name is almost synonymous with the Boston Marathon. Kelly, who works out in spiffy white shorts and a red shirt with a big white "H," runs for an hour six days a week and for three hours on the seventh day.

Most enthusiasts are now experiencing the thrill of returning to the great outdoors. The inefficiency of Cambridge snow removal delays this exodus to the wholesome fresh air, but the hardiest are only too happy to jump puddles and plow through occasional piles of snow. The sidewalks beside the river fill, and the anticipation is unbearable.

The first race is long past. There was a 20-mile jog from Hopkinton to Newton on Washington's Birthday. This year's 20-miler proved an encouraging point--training is not important. After coasting to victory, Pat McMahon said, "I haven't trained in two weeks and didn't run to win."

The next big event is the NEAAU 3--kilometer race this Sunday in New Bedford. Thirty kilometers is a pretty ambitious workout for most people this early in the season. "I just want to run more than I walk, and stay under 12 minutes a mile," one energetic man said.

On March 29, a large number will trot in from Lexington to Cambridge, a nine-mile distance. This is a vital tuneup for the Marathon for many, but one participant claimed that it was "strictly minor league."

Marathon fever is high as the 12-miler from Browne & Nichols School to the Cambridge Boat Club takes place April 13. The start and the finish are only 100 yards apart, but race officials force the entrants to run a roundabout course. Everyone, however, is thinking Marathon.

"It's those jokers from M.I.T. and Harvard that bother me--the ones with the funny hats and all, that don't train and just run for a fraternity stunt," gripes Jock Semple, giant of Boston distance running and head of the Boston Marathon. There are usually about 1000 entrants in the scenic 26-mile tour of the western suburbs, and turkeys abound.

It is run on Patriots' Day and it's the big one. There are many famous legs in the Boston Marathon, and Thousands of people take time out from their busy lives to watch the greatest exhibition of masochism in the Boston area. "It's all worth it," said one entrant, "until you see all the guys getting sick in the Prudential locker room afterwards."