People do a lot of catching up at class reunions — most of it concerning their chosen professions, where they live, and their families.
It’s a safe bet, though, that not too many classmates find inspiration in each other to run the Boston Marathon. Yet that’s what Liz Reed and Lilli Patterson ended up doing last November at their fifth Lynnfield High reunion. And on Monday, the two of them will be at the starting line in Hopkinton when the opening gun sounds.
Patterson is down in Baltimore these days, working at Johns Hopkins, where she is going for her master’s degree while working in the Neuro ICU floor with stroke patients. Reed is at Tufts, getting a master’s degree in child studies and human development. She works at McLean Hospital in Belmont, in the obsessive-compulsive disorder junior unit for adolescents with severe OCD.
It is no accident they have both done deep dives into the brain and cardiovascular system.
“My grandfather had a stroke and lost some of his cognitive abilities as a result,” said Patterson, a field hockey player both for the Pioneers and at Northeastern, where she received her undergraduate degree. “He was never the same afterward. One of his arms was weaker than the other, and he had to hold it close to his body. It affected his ability to express himself. He had a hard time putting words together.”
Patterson will run for Team Tedy, named for former New England Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi, who suffered two strokes while still active as a player. It is her first time running a marathon.
“I couldn’t think of a better organization to represent,” she said.
Reed, a girls soccer player at Lynnfield and Tufts, is doing her running for her alma mater.
“This is my first time,” she said. “I guess you could call it my continuation of being an athlete. I’m retired from playing soccer, so this has filled the gap for me.”
Reed said she has run track before, “but never for 26 miles. It’ll be interesting to see how it goes.”
Since Patterson has never been much of a runner, both she and Reed have had quite an education in the months since they began training for next week’s race. Both have running coaches by whom they swear. Patterson’s is John Furey, who is with Team Tedy.
“He’s trained a bunch of runners, whether novices or veterans,” she said. “He has different programs, depending on your skill level. You pick one out.”
One of the things Furey does is take his runners through paces so that they can figure out when to go hard and when to ease up.
“For example,” Patterson said. “I came home the week of March 17 and ran 21 miles — my longest run. After that is when you start tapering down.”
Reed, who used to run track while at Lynnfield, has trained with Don Negerle at Tufts, and has focused more on mental training.
“He gives me all the good advice I’ll ever need,” she said. “He’s a legend around Tufts.”
To qualify, both have to raise money for their respective teams, and both say the fundraising is going very well. They will be ready. While Patterson says she’s looking forward to the race for the most part, she isn’t exactly looking forward to the weather, especially if it’s too cold.
“I hope it is a nice, pleasant day,” she said.
When it came to getting up early in the morning and training, finding the motivation was pretty easy, Patterson said.
“You just tell yourself you’re doing something extraordinary,” she said. “Every year at college, Marathon Monday was so special. It was so much fun. And now, I’m going to be able to take part in it.”
For Reed, the hills of Newton have her worried.
“Actually,” she said, “it’s the hills before Heartbreak Hill that can trip you up. That’s what I have heard. You expend so much energy there, and you exhaust yourself for the other hills.”
Her coach says not to get caught up in all the hoopla, Reed said.
“He emphasizes ‘Don’t get caught up in the cheering and the adrenaline,’” she said. “‘Just ride it out.’”
“It’s such an empowering event,” Reed said. “I’ve always loved Boston, the city. And now, to feel like you’re been working for this goal and finally getting to do it, it’s incredible.”
