Whirlaway Racing coach Dave Kazanjian jokingly asked that question several hours after his men's masters (40 and over) racing team won its fifth straight Boston Marathon title yesterday.
Each team is represented by its best three times. With Whirlaway, based in Methuen, losing one of its stars in Chris Spinney, of Arlington, to a broken foot about a month ago, it appeared the streak might be halted at four.
But Whirlaway got a surprise performance from 49-year-old Ephraim Ezekiel, of Lynn, who finished in 2:45:49, 13th overall among masters to make up for it. Jimmy Quadros, 44, of Lowell, led all Whirlaway masters with an impressive time of 2:41:00 and Mike Cooney, 45, of Chelmsford, finished out the top three with a 2:47:54.
Teammate John Gorman, 49, of North Andover, finished in 3:18:19.
There was a bit irony in yesterday's masters' result, especially with the team that finished second, the Colorado Fleet Team. Former Whirlaway star Ken Pliska recently moved to Colorado and runs for the team. His time of 2:33:36 yesterday placed him fourth among all masters.
In 2003, while running for Whirlaway, Pliska qualified for the Olympic Trials with a 2:20 marathon in Alabama.
"He is a great talent," said coach Kazanjian. "Of all the teams to finish second to us. It's hard to believe."
In the women's masters, Whirlaway's team placed fifth overall. Leading the way were Kathy Pierce, 43, of Chelmsford, who finished in 3:18:47; Lisa Zappala, 47, of Derry, N.H., who finished in 3:29:07; and Miae Jacobs, 48, of North Andover, who finished a respectable 3:40:41.
After winning in 2002, the Whirlaway masters women had four straight second place finishes before yesterday.
Win the women's open, North Andover's Julie Garvin ran a personal best of 3:07:50, that coming after a 3:01 at Chicago in the fall. She was running a sub-3:00 marathon through 15 miles but apparently the weather slowed her a bit.
Other top area performers for Whirlaway were Tammy Robie, 30, of Milford (3:30:59); Kim Najem, 23, of Derry, N.H. (3:44:10); Tim Vermette, 41, of Methuen (3:09:30); and Nadine Palmer, 39, of Derry, N.H., who ran a personal best at Boston (3:17:34).
Andover man not Dunne raising money for Dana Farber
Greg Dunne had two sides to his Boston Marathon story yesterday.
The tough part was the running, which thanks to headwind and cool temperatures knocked off about 30 minutes from his projected time.
What made the tough part a little easier to accept was the $12,000 he raised for Dana Farber Cancer Research.
"I will say that the crowds were so good to many of us who were wearing shirts (for the Dana Farber team)," said Dunne. "It was amazing, everywhere, people yelling for us. It really helped me in a lot of places I wasn't feeling so great."
Dunne finished in a time of 5:03:30.
"The headwind, especially when we got closer to Boston, was very, very tough," he said. "I know it impacted the lead runners. It hurt all of us.
Cancer keeps runner out of race
It was a tough day for Linda Pengeroth, of Andover. It was the 111th running of the Boston Marathon and she was at her home in Andover ... watching.
Pengeroth had qualified for the most prestigious road race in the world last year, but something slowed her down about Thanksgiving: breast cancer.
Two surgeries later, her goal of finally running her third Boston Marathon will have to wait at least a year.
"It was heart-breaking not running," said Pengeroth, a mother of three children ages 14, 12 and 11. "It's been a long few months and originally my family was very excited for me to run. But it just couldn't happen."
The Boston Athletic Association has allowed the 47-year-old Pengeroth to retain her eligibility next year.
"My recovery is going great," she said. "It was a tough day yesterday, not being there, but I understand how lucky I am."
Wellesley College remains highlight for most guys
The sound, once you get there on Route 16 in Wellesley, can be deafening.
But what is really striking about the humongous crowd at Wellesley College is the dull roar that runners start hearing about half-mile before they get to the famous college, which was attended by former First Lady Hillary Clinton.
"You hear something ahead," said Bernard Zeltich, of North Andover, who ran the course in a time of 4:03:28. "It sounds like it is coming from the woods. It was pretty amazing when you finally got to the school. You really find out what it is like to be Mick Jaggar."
Shaun Dunlevy, of Methuen, said it is very easy to let those roars from the college co-eds get to your head.
"You could hear them about half mile before you got to them," said Dunlevy. "Then you get them and the roar is unbelievable. I was like 'Wow, cheering just me?' I wish."
Paul Fallisi, 45, of Salem, N.H., echoed the words of the others.
"My favorite part was Wellesley College, no doubt," said Fallisi. "It gave me chills. Any guy would run by there with his chest out. I know I did."
Salem, N.H. man shatters personal mark
With the fear of a nor'easter killing his marathon day, Paul Fallisi, of Salem, N.H., decided to take a different tact.
He was going to embrace it.
So what happened? He ran a 3:28:58 yesterday, beating last year's mark by 20 minutes.
"I think it was because I had no expectations," said the 45-year-old Fallisi. "I went out and said I was going to have a fun. The only thing that concerned was what I was going to wear. Once I figured that out, I didn't worry any more."
Fallisi said the crazy weather, in fact, intrigued him, realizing he could be part of something special.
"I wanted to be a part of it," he said. "For me it was more fun when the elements are part of the equation; more epic. When I saw it was going to be 47 degrees I knew everything would be OK. Rain isn't the problem. It's when rain and cold are combined."
Fallisi has run five marathons in his career with this being his second Boston.
"The only part I didn't like was that I couldn't use my IPod," said Fallisi. "I had some great music to listen to, but I was afraid that I would have ruined it in the rain and my wife would have killed me."
After two decades, Methuen man gives up Sox for marathon
Since Shaun Dunlevy was a 6-year-old, he says he attended every Red Sox game on Patriots Day.
Until yesterday.
Instead, the 26-year-old Dunlevy opted to attended the other big event on Patriots Day, the Boston Marathon ... as a runner.
"I remember always leaving the Red Sox games saying I wanted to run the Boston Marathon," said Dunlevy. "I would say that every year. This year I finally did it."
Dunlevy had taken his first crack at the marathon distance in October, finishing in 4:03. His goal yesterday was to have fun and to, literally, survive. He finished in a respectable 4:18:38.
"My time could have been a lot better but it took me a half-hour to do one-mile," he said. "I started to pick up the pace from about the 18th mile. I was prepared for Heartbreak Hill. I thought it was cool. And the girls at Wellesley College were incredible, too ... It was an absolute blast."
As for him missing the Red Sox game, which Boston won 7-2, Dunlevy had no regrets.
"I didn't miss it one bit," he said.
First-timers all agree: We'll do it again
Elizabeth Weatherwax, Erin Rees and Todd Bargman wouldn't know each other if bumped into the other.
But if the three got together and talked about their experiences from yesterday, they'd sound like long, lost triplets.
The three were among thousands of finishers who claimed yesterday to be their first Boston Marathon.
"I knew it would be a good time, but it was even better than I expected because the crowd was so energetic," said Weatherwax, 29, of Methuen, who finished in 3:47:25. "I also owe my sister, Melissa (Parillo). She ran up Heartbreak Hill with me. It helped so much."
Erin Rees, of Peterboro, Ontario, turned this trip into a family junket via Salem, N.H., where she was visiting her dad, Peter Rees. A student at Trent University, where she is studying for her PhD in ecology, the 29-year-old Rees said her father, who ran the race in 2003, convinced her the Boston Marathon was a must-do event.
"I couldn't believe how organized it was with the volunteers, the aid stations, everything," said Rees, a former high school cross country runner in her native Canada. "It was so nice being a part of something where everyone is together, running, helping and watching. I want to come back next year."
Rees, who qualified via the Tuscon (Az.) Marathon last year, ran an impressive time of 3:18:43 yesterday.
Bargman said while the Wellesley College co-eds made his day, the wall-to-wall fans along the course were something he'll never forget.
"Having so many people cheering for you is the coolest thing," said Bargman, of Boxford. "I'll definitely do it again."
Bargman raised money for Leukemia and Lymphoma. His Web site is www.active.com/donate/tntma/seetoddrun.
Weather quotes
"It wasn't that bad. Before the race it was pouring out. I was scared a little bit. But then when we went to our corrals it stopped raining. Sure, it was a little windy in Boston. But other than a little rain from mile three to mile four, it was no problem."
- Shaun Dunlevy, Methuen
"It was a little colder than I liked."
- Bernie Zelitch, North Andover
"It really wasn't bad at the beginning, but it got tougher after mile 17. But all in all, after laying in bed (Sunday night), listening to the weather reports with the wind creeping through the house, it wasn't that bad."
- Greg Dunne, Andover
"I was driving down to Boston at about 5 a.m. with my brother (Jack Cashin) and it was pouring and very windy. It was not looking good. It was still looking bad when we got on the bus from Boston to Hopkinton. We got to stay in our bus until about 10 (a.m.), which was great, because a lot of people had nowhere to go in the rain. Then the rain stopped. And the wind wasn't that bad."
