Sideways rain pelted 82-year-old Katherine Beiers’ glasses. Wind rattled against the two garbage bags she wore over a blue sweat suit. But the weather didn't bother the oldest finisher at the 2015 Boston Marathon.
“Oh, that was just fantastic,” Beiers said, smiling and waving to her son and granddaughter, both waiting with a dry sweatshirt outside the barricades at the finishers' chute.
Strong headwinds and a steady downpour forced Beiers to completely stop at several points, but she completed her 11th Boston Marathon in 5:53.
The elites may have finished nearly five hours earlier, but Beiers said a key to her successful race came from stealing some of their tactics. “I drafted [off] a guy for nearly three miles,” she said. “It helped me out a lot.”
The former mayor of Santa Cruz, California, said she often gets asked the secret to her running longevity. “Just keep running,” she said.
Following her own advice, Beiers hadn’t even snagged her finisher's medal before making plans for next year. “I will definitely be here again,” she said. Rain or shine.
Beside Beiers, other notable age groupers and Boston Marathon streakers earned blue and yellow medals. Here’s how they fared:
Ben Beach, 65, the longest Boston Marathon streaker, completed his 48th in a row in 5:42.
Anna Goodwin, at 18 years and 13 days, is this year’s youngest finisher. She ran 4:13.
Nona Cerveny, 66, has the longest active Boston Marathon streak for a female, finishing her 30th this year. Coming off treatment for brain cancer, she finished in 8 hours even.
Todd White, 50, is the fastest 30-year Boston Marathon streaker. He has finished under three hours every year since 2001 except 2012. Today he ran 2:56:30.
Kit has been a health, fitness, and running journalist for the past five years. His work has taken him across the country, from Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, to cover the 2016 Olympic Trials to the top of Mt. Katahdin in Maine to cover Scott Jurek’s record-breaking Appalachian Trail thru-hike in 2015.
