This week’s recommendation comes from:
Laurie Speranzo
Mathematics Fellow
Laurie says, “Living just outside of Boston, one of my favorite days each year is Marathon Monday! Watching people who have spent years training to complete 26.2 miles is humbling! There are some aspects of the race that are truly awe-inspiring.”
Read about the first woman to run the race (even though women were not allowed to in 1966): Endurance sports – Bobbi Gibb is the first woman to run the Boston Marathon (espn.com)
There was a legendary father-son duo who competed for over three decades as a team, the father running and pushing his son’s wheelchair: Russell Hoyt On His Father And Brother’s Boston Marathon Legacy | WBUR News
And the math geek in me loves to look at all the numerical ways to analyze the race. Do you know the average ballpark number of competitors? And seriously, someone has won TEN TIMES? The Boston Marathon in numbers (olympics.com)
Fun fact, everyone: Even though the numbers site is from the Olympic committee, the Boston route does not qualify for world records because it does not meet Olympic standards! A world record route must have the same start and finish line and the elevation is too great. Anyone who has heard of Heartbreak Hill, a steep hill a few miles before the finish line, knows how painful it is! Why Olympic Organizers Didn’t Include the Boston Marathon Route