Sports

Richard Wall, of Avon, Completes First Boston Marathon

Despite 87-degree weather, a bruised bone injury and fatigue, he kept going.

Injury, muscle cramps, fatigue and scorching heat could have prevented Avon resident Richard Wall, 36, from completing his first Boston Marathon on April 16. 

But two things kept him pushing to the finish line of the 26-mile course.

Wall couldn’t wait to see his wife, Jennifer and daughters, Allison, 8, and Amanda, 6, at the end and, secondly, his competitive nature does not allow him to quit. They stood at mile 18, cheering, with signs.

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“Normally in my mind is, ‘don’t slow down. Stay consistent. Run smart. Have a strong finish at the end and have a lot of gas in the tank,’” Wall said. “This one was just get it done, get to the finish line, one way or another.”

Running in the 35 to 40 age bracket, he finished in 4 hours, 18 minutes, struggling with an injury. The 87-degree weather was grueling on the 22,000 runners. About 4,200 people registered for the race didn’t come because of the heat. The man who set the Boston course record last year dropped out at the 18th mile, Wall said. At one point, Wall had to walk to get the muscle cramps out.

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“People who know me know I’m intensely focused,” Wall said. “I was going to make it one way or the other.”

With the sun bearing down on Boston that day, the water being handed to runners was also warm, leaving little chance to cool off. In fact, Wall said that when a woman handed him a cup of water with ice cubes in it, it might have saved him.

In order to have enough calories to keep his energy level up, Wall had Hammer Gel handy, which is infused with carbohydrates.

In the end, Wall was happy he finished the race.

“It’s a pretty great accomplishment,” he said.

Wall qualified for the race with 3 hours, 11 minutes in the Sacramento marathon in December 2010. Next year, making the Boston Marathon will prove more challenging with a qualifying time of 3 hours, 10 minutes.

While he initially thought that after the race that it would be his last Boston Marathon, Wall said he could change his mind.

He is proudest of his first marathon — Big Sur in California. Wall chose to run on the west coast because he often goes on business for his insurance work with Hartford-based XL Group. The outdoors and the water are a draw there, he said. Placing 85th overall out of about 4,000 runners, he crossed the finish line in 3 hours and 18 minutes.

“That’s known as a very hilly, very difficult marathon,” Wall said.  

Wall took the time to independently raise $8,000 for Alex’s Lemonade Stand in honor of his wife’s younger brother, Keith, who died of neuroblastoma. He said he ran the race in his memory.

In training for a marathon, Wall swam, did sprints on a treadmill and went for long runs, often from Avon to Collinsville, starting at 10 miles and building his way up to 20. Wall said that when you train for a marathon, you never actually run the full 26 miles. Hills on Country Club and Huckleberry Hill roads helped him prepare for bigger hills. The notorious one in Boston is called Heartbreak Hill.

“The hills around here are second to none,” Wall said.

Training was tough at points and Wall said the hardest part was getting outside to run. But he had his wife and kids to encourage him, telling him to “get out and do it.”

Wall said that running actually makes him calmer throughout the day.

His first time competing in a race was in 2007 when his coworker Matt O’Connell convinced him to do the Hartford 5K. He placed in the top 30, finding a new hobby.

Wall went on to compete in many Winding Trails triathlons in Farmington, the Hartford Half-Marathon in 2008, as well as two half Ironman races — Providence 70 in Rhode Island in July 2010 and Bassman in South Jersey in October 2010. He placed third in his age group for Bassman (5:21:20), his best triathlon.

“That’s when I decided I was still in pretty good shape, so I may as well try and qualify for Boston while I still can,” Wall said.

He’s also run in the Avon Road Race for three years, once finishing in the top five. Wall isn’t sure if he’ll run in the eighth annual five-kilometer run on May 20 that starts at Pine Grove School, but Jennifer might. The couple warns anyone planning on running to practice the long hill on Stony Corners Circle that is part of the route in advance.

Wall advises anyone considering a marathon to run a 5K, then a 10K and build up the distance to evaluate if it’s something you’d enjoy.

The Bergen County, NJ native moved to Avon — what he calls a suburban paradise” — to be close to XL.

What is Wall’s next goal after doing the Boston Marathon?

“Try to break a 90 in golf,” Wall said.

Editor's Note: The original version of this article said that Richard Wall is from Long Beach Island, NJ, but he is actually from Bergen County. This error has been corrected. 

If there's something in this article that you think should be corrected or you'd like to nominate a future Patchlete of the Week, contact Avon Patch Editor Jessie Sawyer at 860-356-6339 or Jessie.Sawyer@patch.com. Join in on the Avon Patch conversation on Facebook (www.facebook.com/AvonPatch) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/AvonPatch). You can also add your own announcements and events or apply to blog on Patch. To get daily Avon Patch updates in your email inbox, sign up for our newsletter.


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