There are people who run the Marathon just to finish, and then there are people who push themselves to reach new athletic pinnacles. Assistant Men’s Track and Field coach Eric Ashe falls into that category. The 25-year-old Boston University product, running for the Boston Athletic Association, came in 36th place this year with an unbelievable time of 2:21:41.
This was the first Boston Marathon for Ashe, a Hanson native who served as a captain at BU Track for two years. He qualified by running a marathon on Cape Cod.
“I knew I was capable [of the sub 2:22:00 time]. I wanted to run 2:18:00, I fell short of my goal a little bit. Overall I’m still happy with it. I want to get out there soon and run another marathon to improve my time,” said Ashe.
2:18:00 would have qualified Ashe for the US Olympic Trials, and he was on pace to achieve that time in the first half of the race, but he ran into some difficulty during the final dozen or so miles.
“I started to experience some stomach cramps about halfway through that caused me to slow down a little bit, and my legs were getting pretty tired by 17 or 18 miles so it was tough to maintain the pace.”
Now in his 2nd season coaching the Beacons, Ashe has been a huge inspiration for the athletes on campus.
“It is without a doubt that his amazing Marathon time pushes us to excel even more. Coach Ashe is a true workaholic,” said Carl Joseph, a senior specializing in the long jump and triple jump.
“[Coach Ashe] inspired me to do better in my track career by always giving pointers on how to keep my endurance and to make sure that I will be able to run my own race,” said Patrick Powell, a freshman distance runner.
“He runs with us for warm-ups and he always makes sure that we are trying our best and follow the workout. We were constantly promoting Coach Ashe through our social media and making sure that more people will know that he is trying to qualify for the Olympics,” added Powell.
Ashe knew that this running would be extra special, with the largest crowd in Boston Marathon history looking on. He was among the first men to cross the finish line and definitely made Boston proud.
“I really wanted to participate in this one immediately after what happened last year. I wanted to represent my city and the BAA team,” added Ashe.
Assistant Men’s Track Coach finishes 36th in Boston Marathon
April 23, 2014