LHS Students Dedicate 20-Mile Run to Marathon Victims

Editor’s Note: A group of runners from Lynnfield High School recently completed a 20-mile run from Lynnfield to Boston that included a stop at the Marathon bombing memorial in Copley Square. The run emerged as a half-serious idea early in 2013 and after the April 15 Marathon bombing, took on a new significance for the runners.

Thanks to Andrew Drinkwater for providing this account of last Sunday’s run. The attached Youtube video was created during the run by Tim Rice, showing a stop-motion look at the entire journey.

"First of all, the runners were: Seniors: George Kartsounis, Michael Welter, Andrew Drinkwater, Juniors: Tim Rice, Sam Johnson, Colby Choi, Kyle Flannery, Sean McHugh, and Chase Davidson.  

The idea for the run originated from a joke actually.  I remember one day back in January a few of us were running near the highway and we saw a sign for Boston and we joked with each other that we should run to Boston.  For the most part, none of us really took the idea seriously, and for a while we did not talk about it.  Then, in March, George and I were running in preparation for the upcoming spring track season, and we brought up the run to Boston again.  This time, we talked in depth about it, and the more we talked, the more into the idea we became.  By the end of the run, we had the rough idea of how we would go about running from Lynnfield to Boston, so we began doing more research.  We determined that we would do the run, just after the track season was over to avoid injuries as well as to avoid disrupting our track training.  We were all excited for it.

Then, on April 15, Marathon Monday, everything changed.  Our city and our sport had been attacked, and suddenly our 20-mile run among friends came to mean so much more.  We unanimously decided that we would dedicate our run to the victims of the the bombings, and we would run for Boston itself.  We would also add a trip to the memorial at Copley Square as one of the things we would do in Boston after arriving there.  The run suddenly symbolized not only personal physical and mental toughness, but the strength and resilience of a city that had refused to let fear and terror dictate its livelihood. 

We all met in preparation for the run in mid-May, and after the track season wrapped up, we were ready to go.  We spent several weeks training, and the day before the run, we had a pasta party.

On Sunday morning, we all met at George's house at 6 AM, and left by about 6:15 AM.  With us, in backpacks, we carried all the supplies we needed, including waters, energy bars, sunscreen, money, a first aid kit, toilet paper, cell phones, directions, and iPod's for music.  Tim Rice actually owns a GoPro camera, and he strapped it to his chest.  It took pictures every 5 seconds while we were running, and after the run, Tim put together an amazing video using the footage he got.  We also brought with us a few things that we wanted to leave at the memorial.

The run was about 20 miles, and the route consisted largely of running on the sidewalks alongside Route 28.  We took breaks every 5 miles.  During the breaks we refueled, re-hydrated, used the bathroom, and rested our legs.  Everyone kept up, and we helped encourage each other along the way.  Although the last few miles were really tough, we pushed through, and finished together.

Our entrance into Boston was over the Longfellow Bridge, and we stopped once we reached Boston on the other side of the Charles River.  We rested for several minutes, hydrated, and caught our breaths before making our way to Faneuil Hall for a much needed lunch.  After lunch, we walked to Copley Square, where we paid our respects to the victims of the Boston Marathon Bombings. 

The Memorial was beautiful, and you could feel the sense of mourning as well as community in the square, as people from all over came to express their sorrow for the tragic events.  We placed several running shirts and T-shirts at the memorial in respect, and after spending a while there, we took the T back to Oak Grove and came home.

While in the moment, there were several times that I took a step back and realized just how incredible it was to be doing what we were doing.  And while that final stretch over the bridge from Cambridge to Boston seemed like a struggle, it was without doubt the most glorious stretch I have ever had the privilege of running.  The entire experience was one of the best in my entire life, and I'm so happy that I was able to be a part of it.  There was an overwhelming sense that we were a part of something greater than ourselves, and it put the perfect end punctuation to my Lynnfield High School running experience.  We will never forget that day, and we are all stronger because of it."