Chattanooga runner going for his 26th Boston Marathon

Bud Wisseman, a long distance Chattanooga runner, is a Boston Quarter Century Club member. The club consists of only 65 runners and is an extremely prestigious group.  To be a member of this group, you must have run 25 or more consecutive Boston Marathons.

Bud said he started running in 1978 and running marathons is just part of the runners mind set.

"I started running back in 78 when the running boom was going pretty much everybody that runs regularly and gets into races starts thinking about marathon."

Qualifying and running in one Boston Marathon is a feat on its own, but one just wasn’t enough for him.

"I just wanted to go back so it just started and after that it was 5 10 15 20 and here we are today with 25 down and hoping to do one more."

Of course, having run 25 consecutive races, he was there 2 years ago when the bomb went off, but thankfully, he was no where near the blast.

"Being old and slow I was a couple of miles down the course when the bomb went off had no knowledge."

Bud said this year is going to be the first year he goes up to Boston without his wife since she just recently had surgery.

"So for the first time she wont be there and I think I have run 53 marathons and she has only missed 2."

 Bud said he isn’t as fast or as confident as he use to be and being apart of the quarter century club is great but wants to hold off making it 26 at east until he finishes the race.

"You never know when its going to end right now I have less confidence then I did the first time I run it can I really do it one more time."

He did his final training run this weekend over at Chickamauga Park, and I ran the whole way with him. Somehow I survived…so he may not be quite as confident as he used to be, but I am confident he will finish number 26.  Good luck, Bud up in Boston.