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Boston Marathon could be postponed to the fall


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If it's not going to be on Patriots' Day, it may as well be on a Saturday or a Sunday, rather than creating a special one-time Monday holiday in September.

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I thought that Indigenous People's Day would be a better bet, but that's taken by the Head of the Charles. Each event takes up enormous blocks of space, each is booked out years in advance. After Patriot's Day, we get into graduations and reunions and other events that have been rescheduled into May. Hard to find a time that works in the weekend calendar.

They probably had to find a time where bookings were low already ... not an easy feat in the fall when people are moving into and out of college, parent weekends, leaf peeping trips scheduled well in advance are in full flower, etc. Sunday and Monday are possibly the only slack booking days they could find.

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but the Chicago Marathon is, according to the linked article.

Indigenous People's (Columbus) Day == Monday, October 12
Head of the Charles == Saturday and Sunday, October 17-18

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Is the only responsible day to reschedule the race.

September is too warm. The average high temperature in Boston in mid-April is about 58. The average high in September starts at 77 and declines to 67. Heat kills. I'd know (and one of Adam's best headlines). September 28, which at least has an average high below 70, is Yom Kippur, and with the race passing through Newton an Brookline, that probably gets vetoed. Putting the race in September puts people at risk.

This leaves these weekends:

October 3-5: Still warm, and the Twin Cities marathon (a 10-largest-in-the-US race)
October 10-12: Chicago marathon, as well as the BAA 10k. Probably don't want to conflict with another Major Marathon race.
October 17-19: HOCR. Otherwise it would be a good option. I wonder if the HOCR would push back a week. It would be tough to run both events at the same time, although a HOCR Sat-Sun, Marathon Monday would be quite a weekend in Boston.
October 24-26: Would be a good, although it also would go up against the Marine Corps marathon (also a top-10 race). The average high temperature on Oct 25 is equal to the average high temperature on April 19.
Oct 31-Nov 1: NYC Marathon
Nov 7-9: This weekend would probably work as well, although the weather is colder (54 average high), although still only marginally colder than April 15 (56 average high). Temperature data from here.

October 5, 19 or 26 would all work. The 19th would probably be best if not for the HOCR; I wonder how much of their schedule is baked in. November 9 would be late, but doable.

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Would elite runners be able to do back-to-back weekends? That could restrict a few weekends as well.

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Weekend days rather than a Monday, and no conflict with Yom Kippur. Late enough in the month to avoid the worst heat.

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That was explained above

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Or, better yet, check out a local hotel and see what is available.

Chances are: nothing much, a room here or there.

College parent weekends happen then. I can think of at least three competing cycling events happening on that weekend every year. Rooms book out YEARS ahead.

It has to be during the slackest times if there is any hope of anybody getting to stay over in the entire area.

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It is too hot for a marathon in September in Boston anymore. In the past few years, I have found it challenging to train for fall bike events late in the month due to the heat.

This is also a hot year and it is only March. Unless there is a dramatic change in conditions we are in for a replay of 2012.

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The October weekends either have competing local events (Head of The Charles) or other major marathons.
If last weekend in September is too likely to be too warm, then it will have to be Nov 7-8 or 14-15 (unless they dare to split the difference and use Veterans Day (Wednesday this year))
The remaining weekends in November are the high-travel weekends before and after Thanksgiving

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I expect an announcement by the weekend.

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Kenyans have dominated the race forever anyway.

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It's a declared public health crisis. The BAA should just be told "No Marathon. If you don't like it, then you can go pound sand."

And we don't need to discuss the how and when of rescheduling it now - those are details that can wait.

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Probably as a courtesy to the BAA with an eye to the tourism & other money it brings in-state. BAA will have a lot easier time holding onto to registration fees and sponsor deposits if it's a case of postponement with new date set as opposed to "um yeah, postponing, feeling cute, might reschedule later, IDK...."

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They should hold it somewhere suburban ... somewhere like Reading!

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Usual sources.

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