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Why I’m Running: ‘I remember I did not want to stop’

Paige Stoner watched the Boston Marathon every year on TV and always dreamed of running it herself.

Paige Stoner is running the marathon after finding her love for running and watching it every year since 2011. Paige Stoner

By Mihiro Shimano

October 10, 2021

In our “Why I’m Running” series, Boston Marathon runners share what’s inspiring them to make the 26.2-mile trek from Hopkinton to Boston. If you’re running the marathon, you can share your story here.

Name: Paige Stoner
Age: 25
From: Pottsville, Pa.

I remember the moment when I first realized my love for running.

It was the summer of 2007 and I had just finished fifth grade. I was on vacation in Long Beach Island, N.J. with a friend and her family. One evening, we walked to the beach and for no reason in particular, I took off running. I had only intended to run a hundred yards or so down along the water, but for some reason, I could not get myself to stop running. I loved the feeling of my bare feet coasting along the packed sand, occasionally getting soaked by a wave, the cool breeze coming off the water, and most of all, the sensation of feeling freer than I ever had before.

I don’t know exactly how far I ran that day, but I remember I did not want to stop. I wanted to run until my body wouldn’t let me go any further. I guess I should have known then that the marathon was in my future.

Fast forward to 2011, when I was a freshman in high school. That was the first year I watched the Boston Marathon on television. I remember watching Des Linden duke it out with Caroline Kilel and Ryan Hall racing fearlessly from the gun.

Since that day, I’ve always tuned in on Patriots’ Day and dreamed of toeing the line myself. On Oct. 11, I’ll get to experience Boston in a new way and hopefully, make my first right on Hereford Street, left on Boylston Street.

Editor’s note: This entry may have been lightly edited for clarity or grammar.