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Summary

I think we all had a pretty good time this past weekend in Boston for the Marathon and the 5 mile race in Lexington, and of course the Runner’s World forum featuring Barefoot Ken Bob Saxton. We certainly had a great group of barefoot runners! It was great getting a chance to visit and run with you all! I certainly had a great time!

Story

Other barefoot runners in the Boston Marathon 2005.

8634 Rick Roeber. 49 M Lees Summit MO USA, Running Barefoot, as Hobbits often do, finished in 3:52 ! ! ! read Barefoot Rick’s run report
Unknown barefoot runner, probably finished between Rick and myself
8593 Ken Bob Saxton. 49 M Huntington Beach CA USA, Running Barefoot, finished in 4:20
5707 David M. Wright III. 40 M Winston Salem NC USA, finished 12 miles barefoot, and 14.2 with rubber-soled socks. Read Barefoot David’s run report Boston Marathon (2005 April 18) Wright
19797 Peter Yee, 29 M Randolph MA USA finished 11 miles barefoot, before going home to help his wife have a baby!
Unkown socked, but shoeless, runner, who didn’t feel much like talking with us (maybe he resorted to socks due to blisters from his shoes).

Peter and David had previous foot injuries (possibly from wearing shoes before starting to run barefoot?) that prevented them from getting enough training and conditioning of their body and soles.

Rick, David, Peter, and myself managed to stay together for a couple or three miles, at an amazing 7:31-7:45 pace! Then Rick jetted off (or maintained his pace) while Peter, David, and I slowed down to a more reasonable pace. David and I got to run together to about mile 12, where David stopped to put on his “cheaters” (socks with rubber soles).

Thanks to a call from Ted McDonald, who was tracking us in California, letting me know that Barefoot Rick was only 3 minutes ahead at the last check point. I managed to catch up for pictures of Barefoot Rick and I together in Newton.

Thanks Preston, Mark, and Lisa for a great job with the cameras in Newton, and for getting some great shots!

It’s amazing that Peter, with a previous foot injury, just finished moving to a new house, starting a new business, and his lovely wife Melissa going into labor the day of the marathon. WHEW!!! That’s a lot on your plate! No wonder you didn’t have time to get any training in. Peter finished 11 miles of the marathon barefoot, then went home to help his wife through a 36 hour marathon of labor. Congratulations on your new baby boy! And, yes, do keep his feet free and healthy. I’m amazed you managed to finish 11 miles of the marathon barefoot! Congratulations!

David, also with a previous foot injury, which wasn’t quite healed, resorted to his “cheater” socks with rubber soles after 12 miles, but still managed to stumble along and finish under the 6 hour cut-off. David, I know what it’s like to be running/walking/standing for that long. Congratulations!

As you two rebuild your feet and bodies by Running Barefoot, and, of course, appropriate amounts of relaxing, in the months to come, you, your bodies, and of course, your feet should be better, stronger, and more healthy, and you’ll also be learning from your soles how to run more gently, stressing your feet and body even less. Your next event will probably seem amazingly easy after what you accomplished Monday.

Barefoot Rick, the other Boston Barefoot Marathon veteran. Darn it what can I say? You whipped me again, by a good 23 minutes this time! You Da HOBBIT, Man! Congratulations! While I’m in Colorado for my nieces wedding this summer, I may have to find some marathon in the Midwest to challenge you again!

Well, me being a union guy, I figured I’d better take a break after 3 hours of fast running with David, and after catching up with Barefoot Rick, so I got some water, and lay down for a nap for 5-10 minutes. Twice! Or was it three times? Plus a couple of restroom breaks.

I ate plenty of orange slices that the crowds were generously handing out along the way, as well as a banana, and that helped a lot. Then I took a Clif-Shot, which didn’t feel so good in my stomach, until I ate more oranges. Guess I’ll stick with the Clif Bars, which do feel really good in my stomach. And my naps helped me a lot, so I could finish with a reasonably weak sprint to the finish line, and bettered my time from last year by more than one hour! (I really sucked last year)

The day after finishing the Boston Marathon, a couple of my hotel mates convinced me to go out for run. Just a few miles, which turned into 6 miles along the river. On the way back, we cut back over to the marathon finish line, and there a couple of people yelled out, “Barefoot Runner.” Figuring it was just more paparazzi, or yet more autograph hounds, I gave the old parade wave, and kept running. But, their yelling was persistent, and the voices sounded vaguely familiar, so I took a closer look and it was my fellow A Snail’s Pace Running Club members Bob and Bobby. Well, I can at least offer them autographs, but they didn’t have their issues of Runner’s World handy, so we just chatted. It seems that we all had a pretty wonderful time in the marathon, even if our times weren’t all that impressive, except for Farzhad, one of my hotel-mates who finished in 2:57, or something ridiculous like that, and was complaining that it seemed like a lot of work! Duh!

Thanks again to All!

Karyn, for returning the book I loaned you, and your son, for writing a terrific report about Abebe Bikila, which I will post on the website soon.

And, Mark Little… Great pictures of us and of the mystery barefooter. That’s right, the four of us were not alone! In addition to the mystery barefooter, David and I saw a socked runner with no shoes. Or was that Barefoot Rick and I? You barefoot runners all look alike! You barefooters, you should contact us, we may be able to get you sponsorships (not from the shoe companies) for you in the future!

Got to say, thanks to everyone for all the support, the beds and sofas and floors to sleep on.

Bill, for hosting another wonderful post-marathon party, and our friend Pete for hosting us Monday morning before the marathon start.

My neice, Kasey and her fiance, Geoff for cheering me along in the final two miles.

Patrick McDonough, and so many others, at The O.C. Marathon, for pacing me to a Boston Marathon qualifying finish in December.

Bob Norton and Bobby Porter, well… for being you! And for giving me even more incentive to qualify for Boston Marathon this year, to be near you!

All the people who made me feel “special” by requesting to be photographed with us.

And to all the people requesting autographs of their Runner’s World magazines (page 27, May 2005 issue) as well as Bill’s arm. It was really wonderful to finish the marathon this year with JUST writer’s cramp. Last year I had cramps all up and down my whole body!

News

Of course, a special thanks to Bart Yasso and David Wiley of Runner’s World for publishing an article featuring me in the May issue of Runner’s World that made Running Barefoot famous! And also for inviting me to be their guest at the Runner’s World Forum in the Expo on Saturday. I was truly a celebrity, at least for Boston Marathon week and weekend (interviews seem to have stopped for the moment).

Video

More thanks due to CBS TV affiliates in Boston and L.A. for putting together a wonderful clip featuring Running Barefoot and for making my dog, Herman, a TV star!

Radio

Boston Ma (2005 April 11) WBZ 1030 am

Newspaper

The Boston Globe
and

Metro Newspaper (2005 April 15) (pg. 19) for the great articles about Running Barefoot. (originally posted: http://parex.metro.st/ftp/20050415_1000005.pdf)

Lexington Minuteman for a great write-up of the barefoot runners in the Lexington 5 mile event.

And even the giant Nike has joined the bandwagon, as their “Run Barefoot” campaign was plastered all over Boston, to promote the Nike Free shoes.

And to all the people I didn’t mention here, thank you, thank you, thank you! Sorry I didn’t think of all of your names while writting this, but, in the words of Willie, “You were always on my mind!”