Joe Perry, the Six Marathon Man — Part 1

In a six-part series on CKSN, Wallaceburg native Joe Perry will chronicle the journey of how he “accidentally” competed in six major marathons that spanned three continents.

By Joe Perry

I accidentally completed the six World Major Marathons.

My adventure began in the fall of 2013.

To train for my upcoming second World’s Toughest Mudder, I figured I’d sign up for a local marathon. In the year before that, I ran a 10k, a 10 miler, a half marathon, and a 30k, so the marathon distance was the next logical step.

I managed to get through the race without making any wrong turns. I considered that itself a victory. When people saw my 3:22 time, they congratulated me on qualifying for the Boston Marathon.

Little did I know this was the beginning of another journey.

Since this Boston Marathon thing seemed like such a big deal, I decided to apply and sure enough, my time was good enough to get me into the 2015 race. By now I had a sense of how significant this race was, so I decided to put some training into it. Along the way, I made some new friends. Meeting Wes Hoyt was a highlight of this event (from Team Hoyt).

I ran a 3:21 and re-qualified for the next Boston Marathon.

I went on to run Boston three years in a row — 2015, 2016, and 2017. I just loved it. Doing the Boston Marathon itself with its long history, passionate fans, and the challenging course gets even better when you add in a layer of Team Hoyt. It gives me goosebumps.

Talking to Dick Hoyt was the best. So humble. So easygoing. He would talk to anyone. I remember the two of us taking an elevator ride together that first year. He didn’t act like a celebrity. He wanted to hear my story. Such a great man.

Unfortunately, the last time I ran Boston in 2017 the race didn’t go well for me. It was far too hot for this Canadian and I failed to re-qualify. Along with Bryan Cowden and fellow Team Hoyt pal Adam Rundell, we found another marathon in Massey, Ontario. I missed my Boston Qualifying (BQ) time there by a couple of minutes. My Boston streak was over.

However, as I later learned, that wasn’t the end of my marathon journey.

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Stay tuned for Part 2 of Joe’s six part series.