Not much downtime for a Central Alberta man who just got back from an almost 43 km run on the east coast.

Rory Whitbread, 36, was back teaching math and science today (Wednesday) at Lacombe Composite High School after taking part in Monday’s 115th annual Boston Marathon.

“It was an absolutely amazing experience from start to finish,” said Whitbread, who ran the 42.195 km race in three hours, eight minutes and 33 seconds.

“It was mind-boggling to see the number of people lining the course. It was incredibly loud along parts of the route, including landmarks like Boston College and Fenway Park. When I ran past Fenway with only a mile left to go, it gave me a huge push. That was amazing!”

Whitbread, who has won or placed at a variety of local half and full marathons including the qualifier in B.C. this past fall, finished the event in the top 2,700 out of nearly 27,000 entrants.

“I felt great, especially during the first half of the race,” said Whitbread, who had his wife Veronica cheering him on from the sidelines.

“I even got to thinking along the way that a personal best might be possible. However, I realized soon it wasn’t to be. I finished where I wanted to be though so I was happy with my performance.”

Not only did Whitbread take part in the grueling marathon, he also got a chance to play tourist, taking in an NHL playoff game between Montreal and Boston on Saturday before watching the Red Sox host the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday.

“It was definitely an experience I’ll never forget. Unbelievable!” said Whitbread, who plans to take part in this year’s Woody’s RV World Marathon and Half-Marathon, which goes May22 in Red Deer.

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