Jason Haight is back at work in the Royal City, but his thoughts are back in Boston.
Haight, who is the City of New Westminster's manager of business operations, returned to work Wednesday after running in Monday's Boston Marathon. While he felt it was inappropriate to bring his medal to work, he donned his race shirt to honour those injured and killed in the bombings that took place near the finish line.
"I am not wearing it in celebration," he said. "I am wearing it in support of the memory of the folks in the race."
Three people died and more than 170 were injured after two bombs exploded near the finish line.
"My heart goes out to all the people affected by the explosion, the families of the deceased, the people who were hurt physically and emotionally by seeing and being part of the blast," he told The Record.
The April 15 Boston Marathon was Haight's seventh marathon and his second running of the Boston Marathon.
"I am quite confused on how I am feeling," said the North Vancouver resident. "It's a mix of triumph and tragedy."
Haight praised the efforts of the organizers and the thousands of volunteers who make the marathon so special for runners.
"The fans were loud, exuberant and encouraging," he said. "It was incredible experience. They were so encouraging and inspiring."
Haight remembers turning on Boylston Street, the final stretch of the 26.2-mile course.
"You see the finish line. You can't read the time clock but you can see it," he said. "Your legs are wooden. You are running on adrenalin."
After running the challenging course that includes uphill and downhill sections, Haight was exuberant as he crossed the finish line.
"I was so happy I didn't even look at the time clock," he said. "I was drinking in the moment."
Once past the finish line, volunteers and race officials ensure the runners are healthy, provide them with a blanket, drink and banana - and give them their medal.
Haight remembers stopping about 20 feet past the finish line, savoring the moment and watching other runners cross the line. Doing the "athlete shuffle" that comes after running a marathon, Haight said he started to walk back toward the finish line to ask someone to take his photo - but then decided against it.
"I remember saying, enough is enough. I have had my moment," he recalled. "I basically turned around."
Haight turned around, shuffled down the street and was about 200 feet from the finish line when he heard an explosion. Because it was Patriots Day in Boston, some people initially thought a cannon may have been sounded as part of the day's celebrations.
Unaware of the tragedy that had just taken place, Haight walked the short distance back to his hotel, where he sent an email to his wife to let her know he'd finished the race and clicked on the TV to see who had won the marathon. Instead, he saw the tragedy that was taking place mere blocks away.
"I just sat on the edge of the bed watching the chaos. I was in so much disbelief. I couldn't believe this was just occurring - I was just there," he said. "The whole night I sat in the hotel and watched for about three hours, until I couldn't take it anymore."
On reflection, Haight concluded that if he'd gone back to the finish line to have his photo taken, he would have been in the area where one of the bombs exploded.
Back home, Haight's wife had to leave work as she was having a hard time focusing after hearing the news of the bombings, and trying to deal with a flood of calls and emails from family and friends who were concerned about Haight's safety.
"I saw police along the whole route. I saw police on motorcycles going up and down the course. I felt they had done as good a job as you could possibly expect," he said. "It was first class. You had no fear for personal safety."
Prior to the race, he had decided it would be his final time taking part in the Boston Marathon. While he's taken part in other races, he said the Boston Marathon is something special.
"It's got the most prestige," he said. "It's like the Olympic Games for athletes."
Those sentiments are echoed by New Westminster resident Sue Fry, who has ran the Boston Marathon eight times, most recently in 2009.
"It's a fantastic marathon," she said. "It's so sad and tragic that something like this could happen. When you see that finish line, who would ever think a bomb would go off?"
Fry has participated in many marathons, with Boston being among her favourites.
"It's a very sad day," she said.
