Joe Bell ran seven marathons before achieving a qualifying time for the Boston Marathon.
Then, when he finally did run fast enough to qualify for the 2013 event and paid to enter, his wife was due with the couple’s first child on the day of the race. That was the year the event was rocked by a pair of pressure cooker bombs near the finish line that killed three people and injured several hundred others.
Bell again qualified and paid to enter the 2015 Boston Marathon, but this time, his wife was due with their second child the day of the race.
Not to be denied, the third time entering has been the charm for the Columbus resident. He plans to run in the iconic race Monday morning in the Greater Boston Area.
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“(Having kids) kind of became a change in lifestyle,” Bell said. “I just kind of kept it up.”
Bell, 38, grew up in Lexington, Kentucky, and played soccer at Transylvania University in Lexington. He took 10 years off from running, they began running again in 2009.
Since then, Bell has run more than 30 marathons.
“The original goal starting back up was the Boston Marathon,” Bell said. “I kind of made it one of my first goals as a runner to qualify and to run in the race.”
Bell’s personal record is 2:48:55 in 2014 in the Columbus (Ohio) Marathon.
“I’m going to be out there (in Boston) for the experience,” Bell said. “I’m not expecting to PR or be anywhere close to 3 hours, honestly. I’m getting a little nervous looking at the weather. It’s forecasting for 40s and thunderstorms. It’s not as bad as last year when it was in the 30s, but cooler is definitely better than hot for me.”
Bell is one of five Columbus residents who are entered in Monday’s race. Although the Mill Race Marathon is a qualifier for Boston, all five of the Columbus qualifiers ran their qualifying times in the Carmel Marathon on March 31, 2018.
Because an overabundance of runners beat the original qualifying standard (which varies by age and gender), the qualifying line was drawn at those who bettered their standard by at least 4 minutes, 52 seconds.
“I was excited that I qualified, but even more excited when I actually received my entry,” Leslie Weaver said. “As a runner, it’s always a goal. Plus, the older I get, it gives me something to strive for. It has such history, and it’s a great race.”
Weaver, the former head girls cross-country coach at Columbus East and now an assistant coach at Columbus North will be running in her second Boston Marathon. She first ran there in 2009.
Meanwhile, former North cross-country and track athlete and current Purdue junior Nina Bouthier will be running in her first Boston Marathon and only her second marathon overall. The Carmel Marathon was the first for Bouthier, who is a member of Purdue’s running club and finished 11th in last year’s National Intercollegiate Running Clubs Association half-marathon.
“I had trained to hopefully qualify (for Boston), but I didn’t know if I would,” Bouthier said. “I think it will be a great experience going out there, but it will be great to PR. I’ve definitely been training really hard.”
Like Bell and Bouthier, this will be Matthew Greer’s first Boston Marathon. In fact, it’s his first trip to the city.
Greer qualified with a 3:04:10 at last year’s Carmel Marathon.
“At Carmel, that was the goal for me — to qualify,” Greer said. “I wanted to be a little closer to 3:00, but the goal was to qualify.”
Tyler Stillwell will be running his second Boston Marathon in three years. He has run about 25 marathons and finished fifth in the 2017 Mill Race Marathon and sixth in last year’s Mill Race.
Stillwell’s personal best is 2:58:54 at the Illinois Marathon in Champaign.
“It’s hard to go to Boston and get a personal best,” Stilwell said. “You run your personal best to get to Boston, and then when you get to Boston, it’s all about enjoying it. I think I’m more excited now just because I know what the race is like, and I know what to expect, and I know what the crowds are like. The way I describe it is, it’s a 26-mile party, and it’s fun.”
Another area resident, Luke Inman of North Vernon, will be running his third Boston Marathon. He ran qualifying times for those races at the Mill Race Marathon.
Inman ran 2:45:48 at Boston in 2015 and 3:21:58 in 2016.
“In that (2016) race, I just went out too fast and really paid for it,” Inman said. “I’m just going to learn from that experience and be patient to start the race.”
Inman finished fourth in last year’s Mill Race in 2:45:29. He qualified for Boston with a 2:39:35 at Indianapolis Monumental Marathon in November.
“The training has been good,” Inman said. “I’ve been fortunate enough to make it through training and be healthy. Boston is always fun to do, and you always want to run a PR, but where Boston’s course is and the hills late in the race, it’s tough to do. The main thing is to trust the training and be patient at the start and take it mile-by-mile.”
Weaver has the same plan for the race that begins in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, and finishes 26.2 miles later in downtown Boston.
“My plan is to go and enjoy the race,” Weaver said. “Of course, I always strive to do my best and I have put in the training for this race. But the Boston course is very unique. You have to race smart, or you will suffer on the back half. The amount of spectators on the course is awesome, and there are some really iconic parts — Wellesley College, Boston College, the Newton hills, and finishing down Boylston (street). Right now, there’s a chance of rain in the forecast. With all that said, I plan to take in every mile and make the most of the day.”
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What: Boston Marathon
When: 10:02 a.m. Monday
Where: Hopinkton, Massachusetts, to downtown Boston
Who: Roughly 30,000 official entrants, including Columbus residents Joe Bell, Nina Bouthier, Matthew Greer, Tyler Stilwell and Leslie Weaver and North Vernon resident Luke Inman
TV: NCBSN will broadcast beginning at 8:30 a.m.
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