Sports

See How the 2018 Boston Marathon May Impact Your Day, Find Info for Spectators

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The 2018 Boston Marathon will once again draw thousands of spectators to the 26.2 mile course from Hopkinton to Copley Square, and the race may impact how you get around on Monday. See info about the T, spectator rules, street closings and more. To accommodate the race, the T will make some changes to its normal service, including altering some routes, closing some subway stations. In some cases the T has added more service to move the crowds around the area. CHANGES TO MBTA SERVICES

The MBTA provided the following information:
Subway

Due to safety concerns, Copley Station will be closed for the entire day on April 16.

Sports

See the 39 Watertown Residents Running the 2018 Boston Marathon

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Watertown will be well represented in the 122nd Boston Marathon on Monday with 39 registered participants. The number of Watertown runners rose slightly from last year when 36 resident took part. The highpoint for local runners came in 2014, the year after the Boston Marathon Bombings, when Watertown had 72 entrants. The race will be broadcast on WBZ Channel 4 beginning at 7 a.m. and running until 7 p.m. A re-broadcast of the race will be shown on myTV Channel 38 beginning at 8 p.m. on Monday. For live streaming, a course guide and a finish line cam, go to CBSBoston.com.

Boston Marathon

Watertown Woman Ran Toward Danger at 2013 Marathon, Event Still Inspires Her

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Last month, Kelsey Barry ran the Boston Marathon for the fourth time. The 28-year-old Watertown resident also ran in 2013, and it profoundly changed her life. Barry was about five minutes from finishing the Marathon in 2013 when she and other runners came to a sudden stop. At first police and spectators could not provide any information, but a few minutes later word spread that a first b0mb had gone off near the finish line. Unlike others, however, Barry did not flee from the danger.

Boston Marathon

See How Watertown Runners Fared in the 2017 Boston Marathon

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Watertown had 33 runners take on and complete the 121st Boston Marathon, and three finished in under three hours. The top runner was 28-year-old Eric Wyler, who finished 364th overall and was the 336th male finisher. Watertown’s best female runner was Deborah Downs, who was the 281st fastest woman in the race. Jason Dunklee finished 177th in the men’s 40-44 age group. Here are the results for all the finishers from Watertown.

Around Town

2017 Boston Marathon: Road Closures, MBTA Impact and Prohibited Items

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People planning to go out to watch the Boston Marathon should be aware of certain restrictions this year, as well as road closures and impacts on users of the MBTA. The Boston Athletic Association (BAA) and Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) announced that spectators along the course may have to go through security checkpoints and released a list of restricted items, including backpacks, suitcases or rolling bags. Spectators can have clear plastic bags containing personal items.

Part of the 2017 Boston Marathon Spectator Guidelines announcement said:

Spectators along the course are discouraged from possessing any of the items listed below. Possession of any of these items may result in delays when passing through security checkpoints and enhanced screening. Weapons or items of any kind that may be used as weapons, including firearms, knives, mace, etc.

Around Town

Red Cross Hosting 3 Blood Drives as Boston Marathon Bombing Memorials

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The American Red Cross will join community leaders to host three blood drives on April 15 in honor of the lives changed by the Boston Marathon bombings and to pay tribute to the strength and resilience shown by so many following the attacks. The drives will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 15 at Watertown High School, 50 Columbia St., Watertown; 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Sheraton Boston Hotel, 39 Dalton St., Boston; and 2-7 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Stoneham, 1 Church St., Stoneham. In April 2013, the Red Cross sent 600 blood products to Boston area hospitals in response to the Boston Marathon bombings. Volunteers are the only source of blood and platelets for hospital patients in need of transfusions. During National Volunteer Month, the Red Cross encourages eligible blood and platelet donors of all types to donate to help ensure blood products are available to hospital patients in need, as they were to many patients in the aftermath of the attacks in Boston.

Charity

Watertown Man, Fiance Running to Help Low-Income People Find Housing

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Watertown-native Steve Farrell will take on the Boston Marathon for the second time, this time with his fiance Todd Robinson, and they will raise money to help connect low income families and individuals with housing that they can afford. Farrell, who is the Director of Communications, Development and Policy for the Metropolitan Boston Housing Partnership (MBHP), has been running for a few years, and growing up near the Marathon course he dreamed as a child of running the fabled race. When he was young Farrell would run a race from Waltham City Hall to the then Watertown Police Station in Watertown Square and then would either go home to watch the Marathon called by Chet Curtis and Natalie Jacobson or go with an older sibling to watch the race live. Farrell ran his first marathon in 2012, and this year he will be joined by his fiance, who is newer to the sport. “Our first race together was the Dorchester Firefighter 10k Memorial that fall.

Charity

Watertown Woman Running Marathon to Help Students Graduate High School

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For many years, Cassandra Rice has wanted to run the Boston Marathon, and in 2017 she will run her first one and raise money for a good cause, too. 

The Watertown resident, and 2006 WHS graduate, said she was pushed to run after the Marathon Bombings and the aftermath in her hometown. “I decided that I wanted to run many years ago, and after the events that unfolded in 2013, I was even more convinced,” Rice said. “We were all tremendously affected, and I wanted to be a part of the event that brings everyone in Boston together.” While she is not a novice runner, Rice said she is excited for the race. “This is my first time running a full marathon, although I’ve completed a handful of half marathons in the past,” Rice said.