The Boston Marathon is a dream for many, and for others, it’s become a yearly routine. For some, it’s about something much bigger than running. And for all, there’s a story to tell about what compels them to push their bodies for 26.2 miles in history’s most established test of endurance.
Every year, the Monitor highlights a few local runners who embody the spirit of marathon running. From seasoned veterans to first-timers, here are a few local stories to follow on Monday, April 20, as runners make their way from Hopkinton, Mass., over Heartbreak Hill and across the finish line on Boylston Street during the 130th running of the Boston Marathon.
David Audet, 39th Boston Marathon
Few runners in the area have run up and down Logging Hill Road in Bow more than David Audet. And fewer have run as many Boston Marathons.
Not only that, but Audet is one of only about 12 people in the world who have run a marathon in each state in under three hours. His resume is impressive, with his best finish in Boston being 78th overall in 1994.
The Concord man calls himself uncoachable. He says he has always run the way he’s wanted and sometimes too much, perhaps. He calls his running schedule erratic, but it has worked for him.
Now aged 61, he’s slowed down a bit and his knees aren’t exactly what they used to be. “The winter got to me,” he said. Practically every runner in the area said the same thing.
After one of his longest finishing times during the 129th edition, this year is all about the finish line. His family sticking around until the end means the world to him and he aims to see them at the finish line this year. Plus, he wants to get to his 40th consecutive event next year.
“The goal is just to finish with no high expectations, just enough to get me back so I can go next year,” Audet said.
He’ll have plenty of family cheering him on, and that’s the most exciting part. He can’t wait to spot them on the sidelines.
Concord’s David Audet is one of, if not the most, seasoned marathoners in the region and is returning to Boston for his 39th consecutive run of the major. Credit: David Audet / For the Monitor
Madison Reitze, first marathon
On the other end of the experience meter stands Madison Reitze. She’s the owner of Revive Beauty Bar downtown, but she’s running for her son.
Reitze has a special connection to the marathon. Her two-year-old son, Dawson, was diagnosed with a congenital heart disease, Tetralogy of Fallot. Before turning 1, the young boy underwent multiple surgeries to address his condition at Boston Children’s Hospital, open heart surgery, a slide tracheoplasty and a tracheostomy.
It was all overwhelming.
“I was there for a very long duration of time, and I just started running because it was kind of my fight with mental sanity being in the hospital,” she said.
She knows and understands, deeply, how much the fundraising for Miles for Miracles during the Boston Marathon helps children there.
Running the course itself is a nerve-wracking thought. She has ramped up following the running training plan recommended by the fundraising group diligently amid caring for her son and running her business.
“My son is a part of a lot of research studies, and without the funding that raised money to be a part of this team, without these types of things, those studies would never even be possible,” Reitze explained.
Reitze had her own physical challenges and has attended physical therapy sessions to address IT Band syndrome.
She never thought she’d be more than a five-kilometer runner, and now she’s on the precipice of a major marathon. She’ll be joined by her husband and Dawson, her son’s nurse, her coworkers from the salon, friends and plenty of supporters.
Reitze’s fundraising page can be found here. (childrenshospital.org)
Alex Reitze, Dawson Reitze and Madison Reitze cross the finish line at Boston Children Hospital’s walk. Credit: Madison Reitze / For the Monitor
Sarah Jenness, First Boston Marathon, fifth overall
Sarah Jenness is a young runner from Concord currently attending Endicott College. She started in fourth grade when her mom signed her up for a track program. She ran cross country for Rundlett Middle School and some for the Crimson Tide.
The cross-country distances never left her satisfied. Jenness wanted more. The mental challenge was the most enjoyable part.
“You can prove yourself over and over again, you can do hard things and your body is capable of so much more than you think it is,” she said.
Since starting with the Chicago Marathon in 2022, she’s run the Carmel Marathon in Indiana, Berlin, Hartford and now she’s fulfilling a lifelong dream by running Boston. Her performance in Hartford to qualify was a 29-minute personal best.
To prepare, Jenness has worked with a private coach as she’s come back from a stress fracture in her third metatarsal. It was hard not to run because it was part of her routine and an escape from everything else in life.
For the first time in a long time, she doesn’t feel burnt out and she can’t wait to get back on the marathon course.
“I’m excited to see, like what I can do now, and like what I can continue to do,” Jenness said. “Because just seeing my growth over the past four years has been super cool.”
Her mom printed out shirts with her face on them as she goes for a 3-hour, 15-minute run in hopes of qualifying for the New York City Marathon.
Keith Lundquist, Seventh Boston Marathon
39-year-old Lundquist of Hopkinton was featured in the Monitor’s vignettes last year. His first experience at the 2013 Boston Marathon was a harrowing one but it also pushed him to keep running.
This year is his seventh overall and will be his third in a row. He had big ambitions and was a high achiever. He finished 242nd overall in 2 hours, 31 minutes and five seconds.
He said he hopes to stay in that same ballpark with some adjustments to his plan and pacing for certain sections.
“Train harder and smarter, hopefully, is the plan. But the first three times I ran it, I didn’t really have any idea what I was doing,” he explained.
Lundquist recently ran the Indianapolis Marathon in November and hit a personal record, but he isn’t necessarily hunting for a PR on Monday. It was a tough winter to train, he said.
His wife and two daughters have been a huge motivating factor and he always knows where to expect them — at the bottom of Heartbreak Hill, which comes toward the end of the route.
“They’re in a fairly strategic spot, and also a good spot for me to be able to find them in there,” he said.
Hopkinton’s Keith Lundquist will be running his third consecutive Boston Marathon this year, aiming to stick around his mark from last year. Credit: Keith Lundquist / For the Monitor
Jeffrey Tobine, First Boston Marathon, second overall
Tobine lost 120 pounds to run his first 5K in 2022. It was a long journey just to get there.
Little did he know he’d run a marathon, let alone two majors. First, he ran Chicago and now he’s running the local course in Boston.
He works as a realtor for Tobine Realty Group and owns Capital Mowing and Property Services locally. He still finds time to run despite all the plowing and landscaping he’s done over the past few months.
He’s running the marathon to fundraise for Tedy’s Team, started by former Patriots player Tedy Bruschi after the star linebacker suffered a stroke. The organization aims to support stroke and heart disease and help reduce deaths from stroke.
For Tobine, strokes and heart issues have affected many in his family, and one of his good friends had a heart issue that necessitated an artificial heart valve.
“My goal is to be on point with my fueling, stay consistent with my pacing and finish,” he said, looking forward to Monday. “Ultimately, my goal is to finish, but I do have a time in mind. But the time doesn’t really matter, it’s the journey that gets me there.”
His family will be cheering him on for the cause and he can’t wait to see the constant parade of spectators as he runs by.
Tobine’s fundraising page can be found here. (givengain.com).
