Wilton Marathon Veteran Takes Aim at Boston

WILTON, Conn. – Wilton's Kristin Johnson is no stranger to running 26.2-mile races, but the Boston Marathon is one she has yet to conquer.

She has finished the New York, Disney, Los Angeles and San Francisco marathons, but Johnson knows Boston has a mystique unlike any other race.

Johnson qualified for the Boston race by running the 2010 New York Marathon in 3 hours and 44 minutes. She said she was “surprised, excited and thrilled” that she had met the requirement for Boston, knowing about its strict qualifying times.

“I’ve just heard and read so much about it,” she said. “I’m just excited to get to the line and hear the gun go off and experience it firsthand.”

In addition to running marathons, Johnson runs her own public relations business and raises three young children. “It’s definitely a juggling act,” she said. “It makes me prioritize and manage my time.”

Johnson was a diver on the Darien High School swim team and wanted to pick up a new sport after graduating from college.

“You can’t really put on a diving suit in your 30s,” Johnson said. “It’s nice as a working person and as a parent to have a sport that you can pursue with relative simplicity. You can pretty much just put on a pair of sneakers, walk out the door and start your workout.”

Even though this will be Johnson’s seventh marathon, she said she is anxious to run in one of the biggest races in the world on Monday. But superstition keeps her from revealing her targeted finish time.

“I have a time in mind, but I don’t want to say it out loud. I don’t want to jinx myself,” Johnson said with a laugh. “I just want to have a good race and feel good about myself.”

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