Among the 49 registered Alaskans completing the 118th running of the Boston Marathon, Connie Best and Susan Craig have direct ties to the Soldotna area. Connie Best completed the 26.2 mile event in 4:10:41 placing 736th in her division. Susan Craig finished in 4:14:42 placing 1464 in her division. Also from the Kenai Peninsula, Karl Roming of Cooper Landing and Mike Illg from Homer. Registered from Anchorage, Ryan Beckett, who grew up in Soldotna, finished under three hours at 2:53:28, the fourth fastest Alaskan in the race.
The 2014 men’s division champion was Meg Keflezighi, the first American to win the Boston Marathon since 1983; he completed the course in 2:09:37. The women’s champion was Kenya’s Rita Jeptoo, a repeat championship in a time of 2:18:57–a new course record.
