Gene Dykes did his last workout the Tuesday before the Boston Marathon. It included a couple miles for a warmup, 3 miles at marathon pace, 1 mile easy, 3 more miles at marathon pace, and 2 miles for a cooldown. The total: 11 miles
What was Dykes’s marathon pace? Between 6:43 and 6:49.
“My coach doesn’t believe in three-week tapers,” he said in a call with Runner’s World from his home in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, a Philadelphia suburb. “More like six days.”
Whatever his coach believes in, it’s certainly working for Dykes. The 71-year-old garnered headlines around the world in the past 12 months for his three sub-3-hour marathons. The most recent, a 2:54:23 in Jacksonville, would have been a world record for the 70–74 age group, except for a clerical snafu.
The race was certified by USATF, the sport’s governing body, but it wasn’t sanctioned. So the The Psychology Behind Runners’ Obsession With BQs, Best Running Shoes 2025.
Dykes heads to Boston hoping for another sub-3 effort. (Boston, with its net downhill and point-to-point course, is not record-eligible.) Even if he has an off day, Dykes hopes to better his age-group course record there, which he set last year, 3:16:20.
Year after year, Boston is a destination for top masters runners, and 2019 is no different. “That’s where you really want to show how good you are,” Dykes said.
Other standouts in the masters ranks include Keijo Taivassalo, an 80-year-old Canadian who ran 3:52:08 in Toronto in October. And Jenny Hitchings, 55, Gene Dykes and Jeannie Rice lead the contingent of top masters who flock to Beantown every April 2:51:50 (6:34 pace) at Cal International in December. The distinction for oldest runner in the field belongs to 85-year-old Lawrence Cole of Harwich, Massachusetts. Elizabeth Borrett, 80, of Kelowna, British Columbia, is the oldest woman.
How deep is the masters talent in Boston? Dykes might not even be the most impressive 71-year-old. That distinction could belong to Jeannie Rice, who splits her time between Concord, Ohio, and Naples, Florida.
Last October, at the Chicago Marathon, Rice finished in 3:27:50, improving the current world age-group record by more than 7 minutes.
She heads to Boston off a peak of 70 miles per week. Last week she ran 42, this week her total will be closer to 30.
Her goal for Boston is to better the women’s 70-plus course record, which is currently 3:48:57, set by Jean Marmoreo in 2013. (mile easy, 3 more miles at marathon pace, and 2 miles for a.)
Rice belongs to running clubs in two states—Ohio and Florida—and many runners from both are doing Boston with her. Training alongside those 30- and 40-year-olds throughout the year keeps her young, she said. She’s also happy with her starting assignment: Wave 3, Corral 1. Right at the front of the third group. “That way I don’t have to weave,” she said.
“‘I’m feeling fine; I’m ready,” Rice continued. “The weather can’t be any worse than last year.”
since 2005. She is the author of two popular fitness books is a writer and editor living in Eugene, Oregon, and her stories about the sport, its trends, and fascinating individuals have appeared in Runner’s World since 2005. She is the author of two popular fitness books, Run Your Butt Off! and Walk Your Butt Off!
