Boston Marathon 2023 Race Recap 

Hey Mike - here's a Boston magic story. My friend Kevin was running Boston for the first time since 2010. After his post-race dinner he returned to the course with his partner and noticed that the whole race had been torn down, people were taking down the fences. The finish line was no longer lit up, there were police standing in the middle of the road chatting. And there was one lone runner powering down the race towards the now defunct finish line. She had a shirt that said "Tayla" and underneath it read "This is my first marathon!!!" Kevin said "we have to cheer for her!" So he ran to the finish line and realized they were no longer giving our medals. Her family was waiting proudly. Her marathon took her 8 hours to run. There were no medals left. Without pausing Kevin went right up to her congratulated her and confirmed there were no more medals, and then immediately took off his medal and put it around her neck. She initially protested and Kevin said "no, this is your first marathon. You have run 8 hours. You DESERVE this." She teared up and they shared a hug. He was later featured in Canada's running magazine, and the local and Canadian national news.

Tony introduced me to your videos, Kofuzi. I appreciate them so much now. Thank you for sharing my dad’s story. This was a dream finish to share it with my father after 25 years running. Thank you… I cried watching the end of this video. Congratulations on your first Boston finish!!

The fact that you walked a couple times and even stopped at one point but still managed to finish with a 3:04 is just amazing! I really hope that you will race again in Boston, as I am sure many of us would love to have you around when we finally BQ. Congrats again!

I think I speak for all Bostonians when I say congratulations on your epic journey to run Boston. We absolutely love seeing runners from all over come to our city to enjoy the atmosphere and to test themselves on one of the trickier courses out there. That's what it's all about!

Awesome job Kofuzi and 3:04 is a very competitive time. Remember, you also ran a 3:04 while holding a camera throughout the race. I'd say that is at least worth 2 to 5 minutes faster if you just focused 100% on the race and not on footage. You're capable of MUCH faster without the camera but respect to you for caring enough to race AND give the people a look at Boston and you racing at the same time.

So many great stories come out of this race every year. What a moment when Trey had you give him his medal and also Nadia running with her dad. Phenomenal recap!

I wish I had a recap like this to use as a preview for every race I do.

As someone who struggles to run even 3 minutes straight, this is the kind of inspiration I need! Thanks

Came back to revisit the memories from last year in anticipation for 2024. I skipped over the wonderful story at the end. Happy to hear for Tony, Nadia and her Dad.

Oh man, that story at the end. Incredible! Also, congrats on your Boston finish!

Love these race recaps, best on YT. So in depth. Let's gooo Mike!

I loooove your race recaps. Thank you ❤

Wait. There were warming buses? How'd I miss that? I ended up walking 2.5 miles back to my hotel in the rain, shivering the entire way while wearing my race kit. I finished about a minute or so in front of you and also got caught in that post-finish storm. This Florida man, who wore gloves throughout the race, isn't used to running in cold weather or up hills for that matter. I did all my hill training by running up and down the same causeway bridge. 🤣

I saw myself in the video! This is a really great race recap and I saw the story of Nadia and her dad the day after (it's special and beautiful). I feel so happy I had a chance to meet you out there on the race day. Thank you.

Kofuzi!!! You’re so good at making people cry by the end of your videos and this one is no exception. Congratulations again on your Boston finish! You truly inspire a lot of people 😊

I’m just soaking in all this Boston Marathon coverage! Thanks for it all and congrats again! One day Boston, one day....

Tony is a beast

I really enjoyed this episode. I have run Boston for the past 11 years and laid a huge egg on the 17th, which was my 60th birthday. It was great hearing your take on each 5k of the race. Congratulations I don't have a BQ for 2024 so I am up against the wall to get a BQ for next year. I am doing IRONMAN Lake Placid, so that makes getting my BQ a bit more difficult. My plan is to sign up for the Erie Marathon which falls on September 10th, 7 weeks after the IRONMAN. Erie historically falls on the day before Boston registration opens. Fingers crossed that all goes well and I get my BQ for my 12th consecutive Boston. Congrats again, it has been great watching your progress over the past several years. Cheers 🍻

Big up Tony. Absolute hero. Great news about Nadia’s father, how fantastic. Another highly motivating and authentic video from the number 1 doing it. Never met you, but still luv ya x

Used the nap trick in London. It was exactly what I needed.

I'm so glad you were right on the bubble as well with your time; makes me feel better. I was 3 seconds off of a specific 10min barrier. Luckily I had broken that barrier this past January, or it would've been hard to stomach. Also, that time is spectacular, it took me 5 attempts to break 3 in Boston, such a hard course to catch rhythm on, besides, you've already broken 3 and you're super fit !!

Congrats, Mike. Nicely done; be proud of your finishing time. It's tough to PR at Boston. I couldn't do it in five tries. Thanks for a great recap.

That is amazing, all through the prep to the finish and the recap. And, what a time!! We, Greeks, would love to see you some day to our Authentic Classic Marathon in Athens, held every mid November. It's where the history of marathons began 2500 years ago and were reborn during the summer Olympics in 1896. It's the same historic route, from Marathon to Athens. Come and visit!

Thank you for sharing the story Ko!. Watched the whole thing from beginning to end! hopefully I can experience it one day

I ran my first marathon last week at age 19 and boy was it brutal 😭. I recorded everything and felt so accomplished after I finished. I uploaded the race on my channel for my future review (Emanuel Advice) but Kofuzi, your camera is so stable you are the best💪🏾I will try to invest in a better camera like yours

42 minutes? Perfect time for doing my laundry today. Thanks Ko

Thank you for sharing Mike. Usually I would tell you that you are the inspiration one in the video, but this time Tony, and his fiancee's dad are the inspiration ones. Once again, congrats on completing Boston marathon!

Tony is an absolute legend!

Awesome race and even more awesome content, keep up the great videos, btw I’ve forwarded this to a couple of folks who are very impressed

Great video and story. Love what you shared about Nadia Ruiz’s dad finally running Boston. So inspiring! Thanks, Ko!

Nice job man. I use your videos to motivate me to run on days where I feel tired.

Thanks for the very blanketed coverage of Boston. My first time for the Marathon was 1990 when I was a young pup of 41yo. After the day of the race I found my way to the after race dinner at some hotel. While seated at a long table with many other finishers a tv crew came over to our table and began filming and interviewing some of us. After the dinner I made my way back to my hotel and while watching the 11:00 local news I watched myself being interviewed and basically babbling on because of my fried gray matter and fatigue.

Fantastic recap and such heartwarming stories to go along with it; brought a tear to my eye. In so many ways your marathon experience mirrored mine. That wait to start trying to keep warm and to go pee as many times as possible to avoid having to go during the race. This worked for me in previous marathons but some how Boston had a different plan for me. Despite emptying the bladder right before my wave start, I found myself having to go pee 3 times in the first half! 2015 was a cold one at 41 to 43F all the way through making that walk to start sap energy from me. The first 10K like yours was boxed in preventing me from running my usual faster start. I thought this would later make my second half easier than usual; that was definitely not the case. Well before my first half my core was starting to cold down and I’m thinking this is not good at all. This would later prove to be true. I’m a runner that typically runs very warm and stay warm for a very long time no matter how cold or wet it is. I never run with gloves or a hat on but this race I happened to have ad this two things borrowed from a friend with the intention to give it back before the start. Well I forgot to give them back and thank goodness I held on to them because I needed them for the last quarter of the race. Surprisingly the Newton hills didn’t seem like a big deal to me and when I got to heartbreak I ended up thinking “Oh! So I guess this is heartbreak hill”. Maybe I was just so numb from the cold that I though more about freezing than the effort it would take to go up the hill but then I train on hills harder than heartbreak. The final 4 miles was what hit me the hardest slowing down more and more while getting colder and colder. I was so happy to make that historic turn to Bolyston St and run that final 600m; I had long had nothing left in the tank. After getting my medal, the first thing offered to me was cold water brrrrrr. Second block was where I finally got the space blanket and half a banana which I needed to get the volunteer to peel for me because my hands were too cold to close my fingers. Took another two blocks to get out of the finishers chute. By this time I could barely walk taken little half steps; took 45 mins to get to bag check and another 10 mins to get down into the warm subway. The kind attendant waved me through a special gate and waved my fare. Despite all this, running Boston is an experience I will never forget. Oh yes, one can never forget the Wellesley College section; so much fun.

Watching these videos makes me want to start training for the Detroit marathon since it's the closest one to me.

Congrats man! It took me 3x to get this course “right”. It’s a hard course and just the experience and the crowd sucks a lot of energy out of you (but it’s still great!). I also learned to just let the hills come and not be so aggressive there. It’s an incredible experience though and worth it all! My first was in 2013, so I have a lot of emotions tied to this race. Thanks for sharing it with us.

That story at the end was beautiful. Thanks for sharing that.

Congrats on your accomplishment, Kofuzi! Is that long sleeve T-shirt available anywhere? Looks cool and would like to get my hands on one. Couldn't find it anywhere online in the UK. Cheers!

Love the way that you put all your feelings on this video … my first Boston also was so hard to my legs that I just vanished 30 ft after the finish line. This year I returned with more experience and was the Marathon of my Life. Boston take it away all of us but also give us back the reward. Congrats on your Boston 2023 🥳🥳🥳

What a wonderful documentary and recap of your first Major. Congratulations on finishing such a remarkable race. I could only dream of being able to run like you as an amateur runner. Your story helps me put my mind in the right place to achieve my run goal.

Love this video. What a completely honest account - just goes to show that marathon running is hard for everyone. Nice work 😊

Your comment about the Boston Marathon finish feeling like it's your first marathon despite having run many others rang true to me. Even on my 2nd time at Boston and 35th overall. I hope this feeling continues in the future. Thanks for taking us all on your journeys.

Congratulations! Thanks for the great recap!

Thank you for sharing the magic. You inspire!

I went through every emotion possible watching this. As a "runner" (nothing like your speed but a race is race) I've experienced everything you did on a much smaller level. I started off smiling...then I teared up..then I laughed, then I smiled again...then ultimately I felt your joy coming down "the shoot" onto Boylston. That slow motion turn you showed making that left onto it was EVERYTHING !! Love your cinematography skills. I also enjoyed your vulnerability and your hug with Tony. Saw it on the "Find your Finish" video that I posted for you on one of your other Boston videos. Maybe I'll see you at next year's Cherry Blossom as I'm in Baltimore. You're awesome! Can't wait until your next video. keep running! You inspire so many! 🥰

I was also in the first wave corral no. 6 and my time was 3:05.... I wish I could meet you bro. We must be proud of this marathon. Greetings from Mexico City.

Congratz on finishing strong the Boston Marathon, Mike! Tremendous effort & great job on recapping the race. Btw, onto next will be Berlin Marathon & subsequent next year you will be running the London Marathon, i guess?

Ever since I read Jim Fixx's seminal book on running as a student, I've been fascinated with the Boston course, even though I live on the other side of the Atlantic and don't run marathons. There's something about it, like a cycling classic where the route has a distinct character and challenge often missing in running events. Thanks for such a detailed breakdown and well done on 3.04 there. Think it's fair to say Boston, despite the net downhill is tough!

Really enjoyed the recap & congratulations on a great race!

Many thanks for mentioning all the important focuses in the route profile🎉: consumed, noted and archived🤓. in 2024 i'll definitely be there as a qualifier if i'm not lucky enough to go to London 👏🏻👟👑 !

Must admit I shed a tear or two with that story of Tony’s fiancé and her father. Heck of way to end the video.

Everyone has a story and I love hearing all of them. Thanks so much for sharing and for continuing to inspire! Great job!♥

Amazing story. Thanks for sharing this experience with us

Way to finish strong. Great recap of the race. You nailed it. I used this race as a training for comrades ultra Iin June and it was the perfect course. So most of the hills I didn't struggle on but if I was not training so much on hills I would have really suffered. The course is non stop rolling hills besides the 4 big ones. I was kinda shocked. I saw you at the buses to pick up our bags and it was rough waiting 😂. Keep up the great videos

Congrats Mike. I’m happy to hear you say it was a race you were proud of, it makes the memory of doing Boston even more special. And it doesn’t seem like it would be the full Boston experience without some type of crazy weather, so I’m glad it rained on you! Haha!

CONGRATULATIONS! What an amazing recap…every story and detail. Loved it! Such a dream of mine to run that race. Thanks for sharing your journey. Subscribed😉

Thanks for the review now i have better idea what to expect next year lol 😅👍

Congrats. And thank you for all the details and stories. This is my new favourite video of yours. … as I continue my two decades long pursuit, to experience myself

Appreciate your recap Mike, thanks for sharing. Much fun seeing the race from your perspective and your video brought back some terrific memories for me.

Really enjoyed this and what a moving story about Trey! Well done

Congratulations. Thanks for all the great content since first following you. You are an inspiration for this sixty-something, 12 min/mi pace for just a 10k, senior. No, I am not bragging about it!😊

It was a pleasure to meet you in Boston, and I love your recap, Mike! Per our conversation at the expo (and my email outreach), let me know your one-sentence answer to "Why is the Boston Marathon special to me?" My May 1 manuscript deadline is just 2 days away:-)

Great video, really shows a side of the marathon that the broadcast can't really cover

Irongirl Nadia a future Thursday guest? I’m calling it!

im glad you enjoyed it! great video, love the channel!

Maaaaan! You’re really good at this! You put the viewers inside the race! 👏👏👏🔝🔝🔝great job and congrats on the race! Cheers from Brazil! 😉

Watched ALLLLLL of it, thank you Mike this was awesome!!!!!

Damn this is so cool! Thanks for the sharing.

I was running too. Great job "summing" it up. You put me right back into the race.

I’m a stats nerd so love this video the most. Boston sounds as amazing as described, would love to be able to run it one day. One hell of a marathon….

super nice video! Great result 💪! I enjoyed reliving the day thru your video. Such a special race 💙💛🦄

This recap has all the feels! Congratulations again Mike, what a journey!

Thank you so much for the report. The race seems to be challenging but many times such ones are the most emotional. Sounds like an experience for life. Dreaming about running it one day…

Loved every second of this, Boston was my first Major, my first US marathon , ran your Sunday Shake out run, was about 2 metres from you in the Corral, should have dropped the British reserve and said hi. Like you had aspirations of 2:55 ( Berlin Qualifier ) but was so happy to Dig out a 2:58 ( I hadn't run Tokyo a few weeks ago), Really excited to be running Chicago in October, if there as another shake out run, I will hassle you for a pic, also hope you make it into London next April, may see you there 👍

People peeing all over the place is indeed, unnecessary. 😂 12:03

What you did for Tre was awesome! ❤🎉

LOVE the play by play!

So awesome Ko! Tony is an absolute legend!

Thanks for sharing Mike.

Congrats Kofuzi🎉👏🥳

Completely agree with you about how tight the pact stays together, didn’t really feel like I had space to stretch out until about 10 miles. Might not have been the result you wanted but you’ve earned that medal. It was great to briefly meet you at the finish line.

Nicely done..youre best race recap better ! Concratulations again =)

Thanks cousin Ko for the in depth breakdown of the race. Biggest question was how did it go with the Prime X but you thoroughly explained how did it go. Thank you again for bringing us along and I hope you are taking some time off to rest and plan your next adventure 🤜🏾🤛🏼

Thank you for your videos inspiring others iam doing my first marathon today in my life

Fantastic video and thanks for sharing your Boston experience Kofuzi and many congratulations on finishing in such a great time you should be very proud. I’ve enjoyed watching all the footage from this years Boston but it’s kind of bitter sweet for me. At 62 there’s no way I can make the 3:50 qualifying time for my age group ( I ran 4:08 in Chicago last year ) and having run 4 of the majors I would love to do this one but sadly it’s not going to happen so I’ll console myself by enjoying watching you guys instead. Great work. Ian 🇬🇧

Great recap, Michael! Boston is deceptively challenging but undoubtedly rewarding.

I love that you caught a brief glimpse of the woman chasing down her dog that got loose and made it all the way to the CVS parking lot. Your race day experience was very similar to mine!

I’m not sure if you do this and I’m just missing them, but have you thought about uploading these Race Recaps to your Podcast pages? I’d love to listen to your thoughts and feedback on how you ran in an audio version, especially with these sometimes going upwards of 40 minutes. Great run regardless, cheers Mike!

Great Content as Always, I'm not a runner but Hiked the Natick to Boston stretch of the Marathon route.(16m) your recap feels like what I was feeling..the last hill over the highway was tough..

Looks like you had the same weather as London last week, lots of puddles in London this year, i got very wet

Congrats again Ko and to everyone that run Boston. Hope to one day qualify. 3 women and 1 men (that I know) from my state went this year and did fantastic. So hopefully one day I get to also be one of the few Baja Californians to race in Boston.

Great recap! Super cool you got to meet Elijah too!

Nice recap! Do you remember a guy in front of you w/navy blue singlet, short and orange Nike in your video 2:36-2:40? He told me you both kept passing each other walking & running last mile. He crossed the finish line a few second faster than you, just like CIM. A lady with black singlet and short was my friend Sunny from VA in your video between 2:36-2:40. All of you are born in the same year. She crossed the finish line around 3:02:24, Matus 3:03:54, you 3:04:00. I thought this was interesting. You had my two friends in your video! 👏

Good stuff you did well Mike 👊🏼

Hi Kofuzi, weren't you planning on running this race with the adizero Adios Pro 3? I'm just wondering if you still plan on doing a "After 100 miles" review video on the Adios Pro 3? Thanks

Great recap. Your perspective on the hills is interesting. I have always found the second one (and I practice on the hills all the time since I'm a Boston local, we use the carriage roads that run parallel to the road to run on) to be the hardest based on the fact that unlike the others, you can't really see from the bottom of it where it ends because it's on a curve, which psycholigically I hate. I need to be able to see the finish before I can grit my teeth and get to work.

Overall amazing Boston content. I think we all want more

Congratulations!

💙💙💙💙💙 loved that moment when father and daughter are running together.

Great stuff 😎👍🙌🎈

Why is the top quality available 360p? Dangit RU-vid