There are certain things Craig Ahlquist strives to achieve. Completing the Boston Marathon – in a timely fashion – is one of them.

The 48-year-old Hooksett resident participates in his seventh marathon April 16. It will be his second attempt in Boston.

“A lot of people, the reason they run a marathon is to cross it off of this list of things they want to accomplish in their life,” Ahlquist said. “Running a marathon was one of the things I wanted to do, and I wanted it to be the Boston Marathon because it’s seen as the premiere marathon in the world.”

Ahlquist ran his first marathon in 1987, but started at too fast a pace. His body gave out at the 21st mile, and he didn’t run another marathon for 14 years.

In 2001, he took part in the Chicago Marathon to help his older brother qualify for Boston. Neither man did, though his brother was close.

After running in Chicago, Ahlquist began to feel he could qualify for Boston. The next year, the brothers ran in Chicago again, but Ahlquist left his older brother behind at mile 15 and finished the race at his own pace. His time of 3-hours and 25 minutes was five minutes off the Boston Marathon’s qualifying pace.

However, qualification times last 18 months, and when Ahlquist turned 45 on July 8, 2003, his times became valid for his age bracket, and he decided to run in the 2004 Boston Marathon.

Conditions were horrible that day, with the day’s high temperature over 90 degrees. According to Ahlquist, 10 to 15 percent of the 2004 entrants ended up in the hospital; most had trained in winter weather and couldn’t adjust.
Ahlquist finished in four hours.

“I didn’t want my time for Boston to be four hours,” he said. “I knew I could do better.”

Ahlquist doesn’t train with a coach. Instead, he and a group of local runners prepare together using a schedule they devised with help from internet training sites. Ahlquist trains with Patrick Gosselin, 36, another race participant from Hooksett.

Boston Marathon start times vary by race class, but all runners will be on the course by 10:30 a.m.

– Submitted by
Samantha Holley