MUSCATINE, Iowa–Muscatine resident Megan Ash has run marathons for seven years. For much of that time, she has set her sights on running the Boston Marathon. “I started running marathons in 2016, and my thought was go big or go home–it was always my goal to qualify.”
Qualifying for the historic Boston Marathon represented no easy feat. At a minimum, runners in Ash’s age bracket had to have a time of three hours and 40 minutes or less. Because of the limited number of spots in the marathon, runners with lower times have a better chance of not getting cut, so Ash set an even more ambitious goal for herself. “I tried to at least have a five-minute buffer in case the cut-off was less,” she said.
Though Ash never had a running coach and sometimes felt her training lacked the professional rigor that other marathon runners have, her focus on improving her speed paid off and helped her earn a qualifying time at the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon in 2021. Because of the race’s timing, Ash could choose either the 2022 or 2023 Boston Marathon. She opted for the later race because it gave her more preparation time.
Though Ash had run several high-profile marathons, including the Chicago Marathon, before going to Boston, she still felt blown away by its magnitude: “It was iconic. It really was, and I’ll never be able to top it,” she reflected. Before the race, Ash enjoyed getting to meet famous runners and the warm welcome the city gave runners.
Muscatine’s Megan Ash running the Boston Marathon. Photo by Marathon Foto.
Though an experienced runner, Ash found the hills at miles 17 and 21 of the Boston Marathon the most challenging parts of any race she had experienced. Even so, she had the fortitude to overcome them, finishing the race in four hours, three minutes, and 15 seconds.
While Ash had hoped to complete the race in under four hours, she still took great pride in her accomplishment, especially because previous health concerns had forced her to stop running for a time, leading to her having to retrain herself extensively before the Boston Marathon. “I really just wanted to finish, but as I got into my training, I wanted to work to an attainable goal,” she explained.
Though barely home from Boston, Ash already has plans to compete in the Chicago Marathon, which she will run again this fall. Though she has not decided one way or the other, she thinks she may want to attempt the Boston Marathon again and try to improve her time.
Through running marathons, Ash has discovered a passion for running she never knew she had. She hopes her persistence in training and determination to reach her goals can inspire others to chase their dreams and try marathons. “I used to hate running,” she admitted. “If you stick with something that gives you drive and you want to better yourself you can do anything, and you won’t hate it anymore–I love running now.”
