Mission Accomplished

4:20:12. That’s what I ran in today’s Boston Marathon and it feels great! Well, aside from some very sore legs and a touch of post-race nausea. But that’s just temporary — the memory of completing this historic marathon will endure.

It’s quite a course. The infamous “Heartbreak Hill” is actually the culmination of four hills collectively known as the Newton Hills. Yes, they’re tough but it’s more their placement than the hills themselves — they stretch from mile 16 to 21 which is classic “Wall” territory.

I accomplished my main goal which was to run the entire course without stopping to walk. And when I got to the hills I wasn’t about to let Heartbreak Hill either break my heart or, more importantly, my spirit. The other thing I’ll never forget was the amazing crowd support. People were out in force from Hopkinton to Ashland to Framingham to Natick to Wellesley to Newton to Boston. They were amazing and loud.

For the first time I wore my name on my shirt during a marathon just to see if it would help. You see people do this all the time but I thought people calling out my name might get annoying — especially when I felt lousy and wanted to quit. But I wrote ”Father Tim” on a piece of tape figuring I could always peel it off if it got bad. It was awesome. I heard more calls of “Go Father Tim” than you can imagine and it really helped push me along.

It was most vocal around Boston College. Sure, the students thought I was a Roman Catholic priest but they were rooting hard and I had fun blessing them with my right hand as they yelled out my name. BC is also right along the route of Heartbreak Hill so the timing was perfect.

And in the end I raised over $3,000 for global nutrion through my alma mater, Tufts University. Thanks to my many sponsors and for those who supported me in prayer. I couldn’t have done this without you. Okay, lets be honest, I could have. But it wouldn’t have been nearly the experience it was. You guys are the best!