Avoiding the finish line

Item Information

Title:
Avoiding the finish line
Creator:
John
Date:
April 15, 2013
Format:
Documents
Genre:
texts (documents)
Location:
Northeastern University Library
Collection (local):
Our Marathon
Series:
Public submissions
Subjects:
Boston Marathon Bombing, Boston, Mass., 2013
Places:
Massachusetts > Suffolk (county) > Boston
Link to Item:
http://hdl.handle.net/2047/D20264590
Terms of Use:
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Contact host institution for more information.
Language:
English
Notes:
Submission text: The 2013 Boston Marathon was my 8th time here. I've run dozens of marathons around the country and even around the world and every year upon completion of my run I go to the finish line to cheer on my fellow runners. However, 2013's Boston Marathon was different. When I finished I made my way to the finish area about 20 minutes before that fateful moment occurred. On my way to the finish I could feel, a deep prompting inside, telling me I was not supposed to go to the finish but return to the hotel for a shower. I followed the lead and went to the nearest T station and boarded the T. I made it to the hotel in Quincy and when I got to my room I noticed that my cell phone was full of messages. All my family and friends were asking if I was ok. I thought they were giving me a hard time since my finish time was 2 minutes off my goal. I finally called the last person who texted me and was told about the bombs. Naturally I thought this was a bad joke but after turning on the TV I realized that this was horribly real. My wife is a teacher and she was just getting out of school when I called her with the news. She hadn't heard and I could hear her become very emotional as I told her what happened. We were both very happy that I was the one that informed her rather than the news coming to her from other sources. Upon reflecting on the events of that day and looking at my finish time versus the timing of the first explosion, I believe that when the first explosion occurred I had just boarded the Green Line at Prudential Station. I am very thankful that the overwhelming urge for a shower was actually the Lord prompting me and urging me to go to a safe place.
Crowdsourced submission originally received via the Our Marathon "Share Your Story" page.
Notes (historical):
Contributor Name: John ; Contributor Age: 48; Contributor Gender: Male; Current Location: 16127