#BqChat left a void.

#BqChat was a Twitter-based venture that brought me considerable joy. It resulted in quality time spent with my wife and gaining many unanticipated friendships. However, the effort needed to “do it right” took a toll. Family, work, the honey-do-list, running, and content developer/host of a scheduled Twitter chat. Something had to give. In the Spring of 2017, I moved on from my chatting ways. It didn’t take terribly long to realize the lack of a creative outlet. My hope is this site will quench that thirst. The home page focusing on quality book reviews (of the running variety, of course). A thumbs-up emoji (👍) at the top of a book’s review reflects it’s inclusion on my favorites list. A lack thereof doesn’t mean it’s bad. More about me:

Systems Engineer (25+ years medical device). Syracuse University graduate. Fortunate to have found my better half in life. Native to upstate New York. Home is 3+ acres in the Granite State. While it’s possible my fastest race may be behind me, I do still find myself competing. A 2:44 marathon at age 51 is a favorite feather in my cap. Still on my bucket list? Four continents remain with marathons I’m yet to visit.

Regarding my race information below, BQ (*), NYC Qualifier (**), and Berlin Qualifier (***) assertions are based on those qualifying standards AT THE TIME OF the finish result. Another notable, I never seriously raced a sub half marathon distance until I turned age 51 (really). Also, below I indicate some age-graded scoring. From a RW source: “…In running, age-graded scoring is based on how fast you run (by correcting it to what your speed would have been at your prime age) and a percentage value of the world record for your gender. …Performance standards listed on the USATF site give approximate comparative levels…”:

• 100 percent = world record
• 90 percent = world class
• 80 percent = national class
• 70 percent = regional class
• 60 percent = local class

Race résumé:

•  50K:
  1. Anytime50K.
•  Marathons (top 3 in bold, PR indicated):
  1. 2012 Baystate;
  2. 2014 Maine Coast (17th overall) *;
  3. 2015 Boston (bib: 8201);
  4. 2015 Somerville Road Runners – 24 Hour Ultra Around The Lake (place: 21). Additional link listing all included events (Wakefield, MA, July 2015);
  5. 2015 Baystate *;
  6. 2016 Maine Coast (24th overall) *;
  7. 2016 Chicago *;
  8. 2017 Boston (bib: 7213);
  9. 2017 Berlin *;
  10. 2018 Boston (bib: 6856) *;
  11. 2018 NYC *;
  12. 2019 Boston (bib: 7551);
  13. 2019 NYC *;
  14. 2021 London *;
  15. 2022 Toronto Waterfront (name: Alff), *, **, ***;
  16. 2023 Tokyo (bib: 38022), *, **;
  17. 2024 Boston (bib: 3504), *, **;
  18. 2024 Millinocket (bib: 1927), *, **;
  19. 2025 Sugarloaf (bib: 1002), 2:44:00 PR, *, **, ***. Age graded time (51): 2:25:41, Age graded score: 84.39%.
• Half marathons (limited to 1:27 net times or better, top 3 in bold, PR indicated):
  1. 2013 Wallis Sands;
  2. 2014 Michelob ULTRA Boston (bib: 15);
  3. 2017 Wallis Sands **;
  4. 2018 Loco Races – Rockfest **;
  5. 2019 Loco Races – Portsmouth **;
  6. 2021 Seacoast Half **;
  7. 2022 Seacoast Half **;
  8. 2024 Loco Races – Rockfest, 1:20:41 PR. Age graded time (51): 1:11:40, Age graded score: 81.45%.
• 15Ks:
  1. 2025 Frank Nealon Boston Tune-Up 15K, 56:48 PR. Age graded time (51): 50:17, Age graded score: 81.37%.
• 10Ks (PR in bold):
  1. 2025 Robert Burns 10K (7th overall), 37:16 PR. Age graded time (51): 32:51, Age graded score: 81.31%.
  2. 2025 Hanover, NH Turkey Trot 10K (7th overall), 38:08. Age graded time (52): 33:20, Age graded score: 80.11%.
• 5Ks (PR in bold):
  1. 2025 St. Paddy’s 5k (bib: 359), 18:30 PR. Age graded time (51): 16:09, Age graded score: 80.36%.
  2. 2025 Cupid’s Chase 5K, 18:36. Age graded time (51): 16:14, Age graded score: 79.93%.
• Boston wave 1: 2017, 2018, 2019, 2024.
• 14 BQs, 10 NYC Qualifiers, 2 Berlin Qualifiers.
• World Marathon Majors 6★ (name: Alff, Richard).
• Guinness Book of World Records: Most people to earn a 6★ medal at a single marathon (2023 Tokyo Marathon).
• 2015 Mount Washington Road Race (finisher #157).
• RRCA Coach: Certification.
• Athlinks: Profile. The following are Athlinks limitations against my race results. Per Athlinks:
  • 2023 Tokyo 26.2 results cannot be claimed.
  • 2025 St. Paddy’s Day 5K source data didn’t include actual ages, just age divisions. As such, Athlinks assigns each person their lowest possible age in their division for the race (ie, my Athlinks profile has me appearing as age 50 for the race, I was 51).
• Club: Dirigo Racing Club.

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A local, favorite run destination: Rye, NH USA.