John Burke was a runner at a young age. He ran track for Westbrook High School and when he entered the Marine Corps as an officer, he used running as a way to stay fit. While he had a childhood dream of running the Boston Marathon, he said, “Life went on and the dream dissipated.”
When he got out of the USMC, the Gorham resident drifted away from running. “I gained weight and seven years ago, I found myself weighing over 200 pounds for the first time in my life.” Burke turned to weights and cardio to shed the unwanted weight, however, his love of food and wine was still a factor. About five years ago, he turned to running again and said that seemed to be the key.
“Not only was I losing weight, but my mind was becoming surprisingly clearer with each and every mile. I was feeling less stress and pressure.” This was around the time of the April 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. It changed the Boston Marathon forever, and Burke said, “It was the precise moment I knew I had to resurrect the dream.”
Photo courtesy John BurkeOn the morning of April 16, the temperature was a chilly 40 degrees with a wind chill of 29 degrees, and wind gusts reached 30 mph. For more than 25,000 runners, including 48-year-old John Burke of Gorham, the place to be was the starting line of the Boston Marathon.
In order to run the Boston Marathon, you must qualify for it. Burke turned his focus to this. Training became a bit of an obsession. His daughter Isabelle said she was able to see the different components that went into his training from eating the right food to getting down to the lightest weight.
“My dad was running 65 miles per week to train,” she shared. He tried his luck at his first marathon in May 2016 in Ottowa, ON. “I ran a 3:39:15 on a very hot and humid day. I was happy to have completed my first marathon but dejected over missing the qualifying time by almost 25 minutes.”
The setback was frustrating but drove him harder. On Christmas 2016, he watched a documentary on the Boston Bombing and said it moved him beyond measure. He became more driven, not just by his own desires but by seeing others still suffering, either as victims or having lost loved ones. “I watched in awe as these victims picked up the pieces of their lives and I wanted to be a part of that so badly.”
The next day Burke signed up for the Sugarloaf Marathon. “It was 4 1/2 months away and it was winter; I had to get training and training hard.” He reached out to professional coach, Kurt Perham. “KP had a full schedule and no room to take on another athlete, but I wrote him a lengthy email with my story and he agreed to a phone chat.”
At the end of the conversation, KP agreed to coach him as long as he was serious and gave 100%. By race time in May 2017, he felt ready. “I finished with not only a PR but also with that coveted BQ9 (Boston Qualifier). I ran a 3:12:15.”
Burke had just 11 months to train for the Boston Marathon while staying injury free. Though he had many setbacks, he stayed with Perham and also hired a nutritionist. His daughter said, “He taught us if you believe in something you can achieve it. If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing to the best of your abilities.”
Burke definitely put in the work and went into the Boston Marathon as the best version of himself. On that cold rainy day, he got tips from some of the best runners. The women’s winner, Desi Linden, told him, “Scrap your plan and just run to enjoy the Boston Marathon!”
The race was brutal, anyone watching could tell that. By the end Burke said, “I could not think straight or use my hands. Many runners dropped out due to the cold. I adjusted my race plan the night before and decided to run 10 seconds per mile slower for at least the first 16 miles.”
He believes this helped him to stay warm at the beginning. In the end, he said, “You summon whatever you have left of mental fortitude, strength and courage. Pushing through the pain of the last five miles and 385 yards. This race took grit!”
He had many supporters that day, including his wife Diana, his parents, and extended family and friends. He also inspired Isabelle, who said, “I seriously admire everything my dad has been able to accomplish. I look up to him in everything he does and I strive to be just like him someday.”
Burke finished the Boston Marathon with a time of 3:05:57. He was 2,695 of 25,746 and 179 of 2,526 in the 45-50 Age Division. After taking a few days to reflect on his journey and what he’d just accomplished in running the most challenging Boston Marathon in history, Burke said, “I didn’t just run and didn’t just finish Boston. I raced Boston. There is a big difference. I competed. I fought hard and I never gave up.”
He said it wasn’t about racing or even running, it was about personal growth and about building character. “The brutal and unrelenting weather gave us an amazing opportunity to grow. We all suffered and so many of us came out on the other end stronger than we were when we laced up on the morning of April 16.”