Crime & Safety
Greenfield Police's Own Marathon Man
Greenfield Police officer Mark Thoreson, the GHS police liaison, completed in his second Boston Marathon on Monday and battled the heat and humidity to place in the top 300 of 2,086 men in his age division.
troublemakers, if you get in trouble on campus, it’s best to just throw your hands up and cooperate.
Because if you’re thinking about running – literally – be prepared to stay on the go until you reach say, Mequon. Or maybe Burlington, if southwest is your chosen escape route.
Though his current 40-yard dash times are not known, know this: You’re not going to outrun 43-year-old officer Mark Thoreson, the high school’s resource officer.
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Thoreson completed Monday’s 26.2-mile Boston Marathon in 3 hours, 20 minutes, 14 seconds, placing him 1,845th out of more than 22,000 runners. He finished 1,682nd among all men and 298th in his age division, which consisted of 2,086 participants.
Thoreson’s personal goal was to finish in less than 3 hours, but the weather conditions did not cooperate. It was 73 degrees at the start of the race and 87 when he finished. As many as 2,800 runners needed medical attention.
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“I had to adjust my goals to a reasonable pace. (Race officials) were even recommending that people run slower,” Thoreson said.
Nearly 27,000 runners – 15,504 men and 11,152 women – qualified for the race. And of the 22,480 that ran, 21,554 finished.
It was Thoreson’s eighth marathon in nine years and the second time in the last three years he’s competed in the prestigious Boston race. A few years ago, he rediscovered a love for running he had while in high school, and while it’s a great way to stay fit, marathon training requires a huge time commitment.
Training for the Boston Marathon took about four months as Thoreson built up his mileage and speed. At one point, Thoreson logged 70 miles in one week. But the effort is worth it, said Thoreson, who plans to run the Boston race again.
“It’s just amazing,” he said. “Because they’re all qualified runners, they’re all running at a fast pace. It’s a big group of runners running together. The spectators are unbelievable. They cheer, play music, hand out water, spray people down and give out orange slices. The crowd support they have is amazing. They’re cheering for you basically from the get-go."
Thoreson has been with the Greenfield Police Department for the last 19 years, and as the high school’s liaison officer, he assists students and staff in police matters.
“I try to guide (students) in the right direction in life,” he said. “Basically, I’m trying to keep kids out of trouble.”
And for the high school student who didn’t get that memo: don’t bother breaking out your running shoes.
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