Boston Marathon

The 113th Boston Marathon was held April 20, 2009 on Patriots' Day. Boston knows how to celebrate Patriots' Day. The city not only holds its annual marathon, but also declares the day an official city holiday by closing local schools and government offices. Ask any runner, and he will tell you the Boston Marathon is a big deal. All runners must qualify for the race by running a previous marathon. This year's cutoff qualifying time for 18-34 year-olds was 3hr 10mins for men and 3hr 40min for women. If I did the math right, that's about a sustained 7.25 minute mile. The fastest man finshed with a time of 2:08:42 (thats less than a 5 minute per mile average) while the fastest woman finished with a time of 2:32:16. Mitch was lucky to have the day off so he could take some pictures. Bekah, however, had to work. If the marathon didn't attract enough people and excitement by itself, Boston also hosts a Red Sox game and Celtics game just to make sure the day is extra festive.