Track coach Cassidy McGowan ran the Boston Marathon this last Monday and shared his experience–as well as obstacles encountered–to accomplish this feat.  His time was 2 hours, 57 minutes, which equates to an average pace of 6:45 a mile.

Q. When did you first start training as a runner? 

A. I have been running for 20 years and started training for this particular marathon in January. If you want to have a decent performance,  you should plan at least three months ahead. 

Q. When was your first marathon and how long did it initially take you to train for it?

A. First marathon was when I was 23, so 16 years ago. I have run eight marathons prior to the one on Monday. Running a marathon seems to get easier when you get used to the training and strategies and nutrition required on race day. 

Q. Is this your first time participating in the Boston Marathon?

A. This is my second Boston marathon but first time  back to the full  size of 40,000 runners since 2019 due to COVID. There were tons more fans as well. There was a rolling start back in October 2021 ,but this most recent one  had everyone start together like a traditional Boston.

Q. What was your first thought when you signed up for it? 

A. I was pretty happy  and filled with an abundance of gratitude because I qualified, and I got to partake in such a prestigious event. It felt really good. I can’t fully describe the feeling. 

Q. What keeps you motivated when it gets tough while running?

A. It helps physically. The quickest way for your body to decay is to not use it. I like the mental health aspect, and it helps you focus on the day–wherever you want to run and its motivation. It draws me to the sport to be a role model for my children and athletes here at NDA. When I tell you to go run, I am also going to run.  

Q. What was your favorite part of the marathon this year?

A. My favorite part was finally finishing and not feeling like I don’t ever want to do that again because this was the first time I felt that way. I’m just grateful that God granted me the gift to do this. I must have passed thousands of people. You can hear people yelling for you, and I got to meet winners of the marathons. I got great advice from one of them to start slower and pace yourself on the first half when it’s downhill and around mile 16 you can pick it up. The bus ride also is a lot of emotion. I was sitting next to someone from Brazil and people from all over the US and the world. Everyone is making significant sacrifices in their lives for this, and a lot of people are doing it for charity which is amazing. There were also some people affiliated with NDA there which was amazing as well. 

Q. One thing you will never forget about this year’s marathon?

A. I will never forget seeing my kids since they were there this time and seeing them at mile 17 was very very very special. Two of my kids said that they wanted to run when they never really mentioned that before. Plus you are running with hundreds of people which is just incredible. A big memory that I won’t ever forget is the Heartbreak Hill at mile 20 which was absolutely brutal.