FINALLY, the Finish!

I know, I know, I know.  Seriously negligent blogging in progress.  Sorry, but every now and again, life gets in the way and derails all the best intentions of blogging at its best.

But that doesn't mean it's been forgotten!

And it would be bad parenting, bad friendship, and bad neighboring if I didn't close out the books of the 2015 Boston Marathon by showing how strong Andrew, Tom, Nicole (and others) finished out this run for the roses!

So without any further ado - and save the complaints for the comments field - let's join our intrepid trio at the halfway point, running in the rain through one of the loudest portions of the course, the Wellesley College Scream Tunnel, where Barry and I were waiting to join their ranks and chronicle their conquest.

Natch, it's the perfect time for a father-son Spidey pose.

Barry desperately wanted to recreate his Wellesley chip mat tumble, but wasn't sure the females could handle another year seeing him somersault across their field of vision.  Instead, he opted for the safe, companion run.

Once upon a time, Andrew stopped to kiss all the girls.  This year, he settled for high fives. Hmmmmm.......

And right on his heels came the Senor and Senorita themselves, the father-daughter incredi-team of Phil and Alyssa Maia!  Hola, Senor!

And finally, the moment she has waited all her life to experience!  Nicole was on the other side of the metal stanchions!  For four years, she lost her voice screaming at all the runners as they passed her college halls.  This year, they were screaming FOR HER!

And not just screaming, they came wielding signs for her!

So naturally, hugs all around

Seriously, how awesome is it to have your own fan club waiting to help you get through the back half?  Either that, or this was Wellseley's E-MATH team, standing in the wrong order.

Heading down the steepest part of the course, Alyssa is still beaming away!

And then comes mile 16, where vaunted photographer John Piekos awaits every year to capture some of the best shots of the entire course.  Seriously.  The Boston Athletic Association needs to hire this guy for their official race shots.  He coined the running idiom "always know where the camera is."  But when it comes to mile 16, always know where John is, because you're guaranteed a money shot.

He catches Spider-Man coming in for his wardrobe change

And helps get him fired up for the back 10 as Captain America

Yes.  Fired up.

Tom's cheering section is sheltered from the storm

Giving Tom just the burst of inspiration he needed to pose for John

And finally, the finish line.

The First Avenger is triumphant in his super-time

His medal in place, Andrew proudly queues up for his cape

Because everyone who runs in Boston KNOWS, that real super-heroes wear silver capes

Mom and dad couldn't be prouder

Tom's turn.  Ian hurtled the gates to join dad in the winner's circle

The aforementioned silver-caped super-hero

And finally, his first 26.2 miles under his belt, Tom knows he now has the green light to wear his marathon jacket with pride.

Seriously, for anyone who stuck around to see this triumph play out for the runners in this year's marathon, give it up for the herculean efforts of the runners, as well as the friends and families who supported them all through the most brutal training winter any of us can ever remember.

Some of you may get sick of reading blogs about running and especially the Boston Marathon, but believe me, running in this 26.2 historic outing is an experience that can never be forgotten, and once you've notched your first one, it's an accomplishment that can never be taken away.

Keep on running, everyone!