It was a smooth Marathon Monday, but not without tension in Copley Square. From the memories of the bombs at the finish line, to the heightened security, to the medical tents prepared for anything, there was still a serious tone.
It was a day of reuniting shouts, and sirens.
Runners and their families and friends met in the usual place, near the medical tent at the far end of Copley Square. There are more barricades than ever before and dozens of security check points.
“We were here last year,” said Andrea Herron, who travels around the country to cheer on her son. She lives in California and said she didn’t think twice about coming back to Boston.
“I didn’t think about it very much, to tell you the truth," she said. "We were coming back and I was excited because we have family here. So I didn’t really think about feeling safe or not. A few little, fleeting thoughts.”
And those fleeting thoughts were shared by her son, Dan, who had mixed feelings about the race when he finished.
“Ah, you want the honest truth? Like, really crowded," he said. "It was like a little bit too many runners going on. We’re just kind of like dodging in and out, was not very fun towards the end. But the camaraderie amongst everyone else, and fans was worth it. I mean there was literally an Army dude or a cop like every mile. If they were going to try to do anything, good luck.”
The runners had to leave a change of clothing on the Boston Common in official clear plastic bags. But most stayed in their running shorts and t-shirts because the weather was so warm. In fact, one family was awaiting word from an overheated runner.
“He’s in the medical tent," said Kayla Carver, of her boyfriend, Eric Januszewski. "He has a temp of 102.”
Carver and friends traveled from Minnesota to cheer Januszewski on. They anxiously awaited him under the family meeting area signs. They heard he’d been released from the ice bath.
“We’re excited," she said. "He did amazing and we’re very proud. We felt safe all day and the energy has been so positive.”
Positive, and serious, inside the medical tent. I couldn’t record there, but earlier in the day when I checked in and noticed it was quiet, one volunteer said, “we don’t use the Q-word.” The bombings and hundreds resulting injuries from last year were not far from anyone’s mind. No one I spoke to complained about the added security, in fact most said it made them feel safer. Boston EMS transported a total of 41 people to hospitals, mostly due to dehydration and muscle cramping. For comparison, the high temperatures in 2012 sent 120 people to hospitals.
