Peter Ledingham from Sudbury area qualifies by 7 seconds in his first marathon!

"I really thought I wasn't going to make it. I tried to put in a bit of a kick on the final stretch but there was just nothing there."
— PETER LEDINGHAM

read more...

Boston Qualifiers

Boston-bound!

Here are a few quotes from our previous online STWM Surveys

"My pace bunny, Dan, (3:45) was superb. I qualified for Boston because of him."

"My daughter signed up first which gave me the idea. I failed a stress test after running only 1K, was hospitalized and had heart surgery on 21 May 08. I decided in mid-June to run and by early July signed up. Now, I have a Boston qualifier. Thanks."

"I can't comment objectively as I improved by personal best by 15 minutes and qualified for Boston! Thoroughly enjoyed it."

"This is my first race where I qualified for the Boston Marathon. The flat course, aid station frequency, entertainment, crowd support, made this event my favourite marathon. I will definitely run this race again!"

Eligibility

The Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon is a registered AIMS Marathon, certified by Athletics Canada—which makes a great "Flat, Fast, Traffic Free, Boston Qualifier."

NEW — Boston Marathon has changed qualifying times and the registration date for 2012 Boston Marathon.

Please go to their website for the most up to date information: www.bostonmarathon.com.

"Very well run race! I loved all the water stops. They were effectively staffed. Nice course. I qualified for Boston for the first time (after 15 years of trying). What more could I ask!"
— Kevin Florey, Northville, Michigan

"This is the second time I've ran the Scotiabank Waterfront Half Marathon and I love it just as much, and maybe even more!"
— S.O., Toronto, ON

Top

For those going to BOSTON in April...

Boston COURSE TIPS from the experts at RUNNER'S WORLD — Insider tips for running the Boston Marathon smarter and faster than you ever thought possible

Welcome to Bawstin

For those of you who have never been to "Bawstin", this is a good guideline. I hope you will consider coming to "Beantown" in the near future. For those who call New England home, this is just plain great!

Information on Boston and the surrounding area:

There's no school on School Street, no court on Court Street, no dock on Dock Square, no water on Water Street. Back Bay streets are in alphabetical "oddah": Arlington, Berkeley, Clarendon, Dartmouth, etc.
So are South Boston streets: A, B, C, D, etc. If the streets are named after trees (e.g. Walnut, Chestnut, Cedar), you're on Beacon Hill. If they're named after poets, you're in Wellesley.

Massachusetts Ave is Mass Ave; Commonwealth Ave is Comm Ave.
South Boston is Southie. The South End is the South End. East Boston is Eastie. The North End is east of the former West End. The West End and Scollay Square are no more; a guy named Rappaport got rid of them one night. Roxbury is The Burry, Jamaica Plain is J.P.

How to say these Massachusetts city names correctly:

**Say it wrong, be shunned**

  • Worcester: Wuhsta (or Wistah)
  • Gloucester: Glawsta
  • Leicester: Lesta
  • Woburn: Wooban
  • Dedham: Dedim (like denim w/ a D in the N pace)
  • Revere: Re-vee-ah
  • Quincy: Quinzee
  • Tewksbury: Tooks berry
  • Leominster: Lemon-sta
  • Peabody: Peabuddy
  • Waltham: Walth-ham
  • Chatham: Chattum
  • Stoneham: Stone-em
  • Waban: Wah-ban
  • Holyoke: Hole-yoke

Definitions:

  • Frappes have ice cream, milkshakes don't.
  • If it is fizzy and flavored, it's tonic.
  • Soda is CLUB SODA.
  • "Pop" is Dad.
  • When we want Tonic WATER, we will ask for Tonic WATER.
  • The smallest beer is a pint.
  • Scrod is whatever they tell you it is, usually fish.
  • If you paid more than $6/pound, you got scrod.
  • It's not a water fountain; it's a bubblah.
  • It's not a trashcan; it's a barrel.
  • It's not a spucky it's a sub.
  • It's not a shopping cart; it's a carriage.
  • It's not a purse; it's a pockabook.
  • They're not franks; they're haht dahgs. Franks are money in France.

Police don't drive patrol units or black and whites they drive a "crooza".
If you take the bus, you're on the "looza crooza". It's not a rubber band, it's an elastic. It's not a traffic circle, it's a rotary. "Going to the islands" means Martha's Vineyard & Nantucket. If something's good, it's "pissa". If something's really good, it's "wicked pissa".

The Pat's = The Patriots
The Sox = The Red Sox
The C's = The Celtics
The B's = The Bruins

Things not to do:

  • Don't pahk your cah in Hahvid Yahd. They'll tow it to Meffa (Medford) or Slumaville (Somerville).
  • Don't sleep in the Common. (Boston Common)
  • Don't wear Orange in Southie on St. Patrick's Day.

Things you should know:

There are two State Houses, two City Halls, two courthouses, two Hancock buildings (one old, one new for each).

The colored lights on top the old Hancock tell the wetha:
"Solid blue, clear view...."
"Flashing blue, clouds due...."
"Solid red, rain ahead...."
"Flashing red, snow instead...." (except in summer; flashing red means the Red Sox game was rained out)

Route 128 is also I-95 south. It's also I-93 north.
The underground train is not a subway. It's the "T", and it doesn't run all night (fah chrysakes, this ain't Noo Yawk).
Order the "cold tea" in China Town after 2:00 am you'll get a kettle full of beer.

Bostonians... think that it's their God-given right to cut off someone in traffic.
Bostonians...think that there are only 25 letters in the alphabet (no R's).
Bostonians...think that three straight days of 90+ temperatures is a heat wave.
Bostonians...refer to six inches of snow as a "dusting."
Bostonians...always "bang a left" as soon as the light turns green and oncoming traffic always expects it.
Bostonians.. .say everything in town is "a five-minute walk." (Pronounced "wok")
Bostonians...believe that using your turn signal is a sign of weakness.
Bostonians...think that 63-degree ocean water is warm.
Bostonians...think Rhode Island accents are annoying.

Top