volunteer assistant coach for cross country and track & field at Florida Tech
Chris Cacciapaglia, a volunteer assistant coach for cross country and track & field at Florida Tech, will compete in the 119th running of the Boston Marathon on Monday.
BREVARD COUNTY • MELBOURNE, FLORIDA – Chris Cacciapaglia, a volunteer assistant coach for cross country and track & field at Florida Tech, will compete in the 119th running of the Boston Marathon on Monday.
Cacciapaglia, wearing a Florida Tech bib with the No. 197, is part of the first wave of runners, who will take off from the starting line at 10 a.m. in Hopkinton, Massachusetts.
“I’m really excited and I’m a little bit anxious or nervous,” Cacciapaglia said. “I really have never done anything this size before. I’m hoping it’ll be amazing. I hear there are people lined up all over the course, which will be awesome.”
The 26.2-mile course that features varying elevations will end near the John Hancock Tower in Copley Square.
Chris Cacciapaglia
“I don’t want to start out too fast because I know a lot of people have done that,” said Cacciapaglia.
“If you do start out too fast, there are parts of the course that are downhill, so it’s easy to do so. I just want to get a feel of the race to begin with and see where it goes from there.”
Unfortunately, Monday’s forecast is calling for less than ideal weather, which could affect Cacciapaglia’s goals for the race.
“I do (have goals), but I was looking at the weather and the forecast shows rain with a 20-30 mile per hour headwind,” he said. “I’m not sure how achievable they will be, but I was looking at getting around a 2:30.00.”
He finished second overall at the 2014 Melbourne Music Marathon at 2:45.01.
A former cross country and track & field standout at FIT, he has competed in only two marathons, ever.
He then qualified for the Boston Marathon two weeks later with a second-place finish in the Five Points of Life Marathon in Gainesville, Florida.
The Vashon, Washington native graduated from FIT with a bachelor’s degree in marine biology in May 2012. He is now working towards his doctorate in biological sciences with a focus in ecology.
The Boston Marathon can viewed live online here, nationally on Universal Sports Network and in Boston on WBZ-TV.
