9 Waltham Trail Runners Participating In 2022 Boston Marathon

WALTHAM, MA — Eight members of the Waltham Trail Runners (WTR) will be running the 2022 Boston Marathon on Monday, April 18 to raise money for various causes and beat personal goals.

Lisa Fratt, Mike LaCava, Ben Delorio, Robin Dawson , Tim Irving, Avril Silverman, Pat Arnold, Tim Antonellis, and Naveen Pawar will all be hitting the 26.2-mile route this Patriots’ Day. As Waltham Trail Runners, they take part in runs on roads and trails in Waltham and surrounding communities on a regular basis.

“We are a very informal, casual group for runners of all levels,” said Ron Ayers, a Waltham resident and WTR organizer. "It doesn’t matter if you’re running your first mile, training for your first 5k, running Boston, or training for ultra, you can come out and get your miles in.”

WTR, which meets for runs five to seven times per week, will be setting up a “cheering tent” on Heartbreak Hill near mile 20 of the Boston Marathon to help its participants get over the hill.

“It’s a nice tradition,” said Ayers. “As a group, all of the runners are always really proud to have people participating. There’s something satisfying about seeing the person you run a couple miles every week with go out and do something like this.”

This year’s group of Waltham Trail Runners include first-timers, experienced athletes, and everything in between.

“This is my first go around in the Boston Marathon,” said Mike LaCava, who was encouraged to run the marathon by his friend, Scott Coleman, and is running for the pediatric cancer charity One Mission. "I got into running during COVID to have something to do and it just progressed into really helping me with my mental health and it made me feel really good.”

LaCava, whose family owns Shopper's Café on Moody Street, said he used to greet WTR members who started their runs from his business.

"They’ve been running Thursday nights out of shoppers every Thursday night for eight to ten years,” he said. "I always worked Thursday nights so I got to know a lot of the guys and girls who ran, and when I started running, I joined them on Thursday nights.”

With no plans to stop running regardless of how the marathon goes, LaCava said he could see himself signing up for more marathons in the near future.

“I'm really excited, I can’t wait,” he said. " I feel like a 10 year old kid waiting for Christmas. I can’t wait to get out there and do it.”

Waltham resident Lisa Fratt is getting ready to run her second Boston Marathon in less than a year after participating in the October 2021 race. She has run a total of 18 marathons and just finished one in Rome, Italy a few weeks ago.

“I was thrilled to qualify way back before the pandemic and was able to run it last fall,” said Fratt. “I want to really soak up every mile. There’s nothing in the world like running Boston. It’s really special and I really want to enjoy it.

Fratt is running to raise money for Boston Children’s Hospital, where she works and has run for in the past. She has already exceeded her goal of $2,500, but is still accepting donations.

Avril Silverman, one of WTR’s fastest runners, has run several Boston Marathons, including in 2018 during the monsoon. That year, she was one of the city’s top five fastest women, completing the route in 3:56:07.

“I’ve basically run all my life,” said Silverman. “This will be my 14th Boston Marathon, but I’ve done other marathons as well including New York, Alaska, Dublin, and on the Cape. “I’m grateful I can run and just be part of the marathon again.”

For more information on the Waltham Trail Runners or to join the group, click here.