Henderson man perseveres to qualify for Boston Marathon
This is the plan: He will run the course of 26 miles and 385 yards of twisting roads into the center of Boston. He will stare down Heartbreak Hill between miles 20 and 21 with the glare of someone who worked too long and too hard to let it impede his pursuit.
He will travel through those eight Massachusetts towns like Hopkinton and Ashland.
And when the finish line at Copley Square is in sight, when he is close to concluding the world’s oldest annual marathon, Eddie Saiz won’t for a second deny all the rushing emotions sure to hit his final strides.
He will let go at the sight of his family, of his wife and twin 3-year-old sons. He will have conquered his greatest challenge yet.
“A heck of a special moment,” he said. “I guarantee I’ll be a mess and in tears. It’s going to be surreal. I want to do well. I’ll be in a lot of pain and pushing myself to the limit. Ultimate elation for the accomplishment.
“I’m not a professional athlete, but this is my Super Bowl.”
The Holy Grail
His is a story told often, of the long-distance runner with dreams of qualifying for the Boston Marathon, one of the most famous road racing events, which will be run Monday.
The first was run in 1897. Its history is rich with success stories and failures and tragedy.
It’s the Holy Grail for most who dare to attempt the human condition of running such a distance, of a commitment that tests the physical and mental side of one’s psyche.
Saiz is a graduate of Foothill High and UNLV, a resident of Henderson who works as a business analyst for the Parks and Recreation Department in North Las Vegas. He is 34 and will be running his 12th marathon.
Took him some time to qualify for Boston.
Time being the operative word.
The standard for males under 35 is three hours.
Saiz first came close in 2019, when his body shut down the final three to four miles and he crossed in 3:01:55.
“Devastating,” he said. “As close to a buzzer beater in sports as I’ll ever get.”
He tried again in 2021, suffered cramps at mile 23 and finished in 3:02:24.
“After that, it became almost like a burden to me,” he said. “Each time I missed, it became more mentally difficult to break through.”
Another attempt in February 2022: 3:03:55.
Just grueling.
But he had the fitness. He had the drive and desire. He just needed to get out of his own head. Needed to stop thinking about things so much.
It was during a bus ride to the start line for a marathon at Mount Charleston in April 2022 when he finally did. When he realized it was just another day, another race, that he knew what to expect, what the journey would entail.
“It was a paragon shift in my way of thinking,” Saiz said.
He ran a 2:52:06 to easily qualify for Boston.
Just crushed it.
And now he is there, at the place of an inaugural winner in J.J. McDermott and an imposter in Rosie Ruiz, of a bombing in 2013 and a race cancellation in 2020 because of the pandemic. Of all such success and failure and history and tragedy associated with the event.
That feeling, moment
“I started marathons mainly to prove to myself that I could do hard things and qualify and get that badge of honor,” said Saiz, who ran track and cross country in high school. “But now I want my sons to be inspired — that they one day can do hard things. It’s the kind of thing every recreational athlete dreams of.
“To have this opportunity — to overcome and accomplish this and to get that medal … It’s going to be something I’ll never forget, something I have never experienced before. That feeling. That moment.”
He’ll be a mess, tears and all.
Well-earned ones at that.
Ed Graney is a Sigma Delta Chi Award winner for sports column writing and be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com. He can be heard on “The Press Box,” ESPN Radio 100.9 FM and 1100 AM, from 7 to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday. Follow @edgraney on Twitter.
