Aaron Vehling

Spending 21 hours riding in a 1988 Volkswagen with three other people could give a person a few leg cramps.

To do the drive for the second time only days later, after running in the 26.2-mile Boston Marathon, might give a whole new meaning to the feeling of stiff muscles.

“I was in the back seat sprawled out,” said senior Sara Pavek about her ride back to Wisconsin from Boston after running in the race April 21. “I was so stiff and sore (from the race) … grunting when we went over bumps.”

Pavek, along with her dad, mom and boyfriend, left for Boston on Thursday, April 17, and returned to Wisconsin the following Wednesday. The race was held at noon Monday, April 21.

Although Pavek had never run in “the Boston” before, it marked the 22-year-old’s sixth marathon overall. She has run all six side-by-side with her dad.

“My mom and dad have been running since I was born,” she said, noting that her parents, both vegetarians, are in great shape and health.

Pavek ran her first marathon – the Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, Minn. – when she was 18 years old. The race is named after the restaurant in downtown Duluth that originally started the marathon, she said. She also ran in two Green Bay marathons, a Quad Cities marathon along the Illinois-Iowa border and a Fox Cities marathon in the Appleton area.

To participate in the Boston, runners must qualify before registering. She needed a time of 3 hours, 40 minutes in a previous marathon to qualify. Qualifying times are determined by what age group you are a part of, she said.

Although this year was Pavek’s first year at the Boston Marathon, she said she qualified for the race her freshman year, but had mono.

With her dad, Pavek finished the Boston in 3:43.

“The best part was I ran right by Will Ferrell,” Pavek said. Ferrell, best known for his roles in NBC’s “Saturday Night Live,” finished the marathon with a time of 3:56:12, according to the Associated Press.

While watching the news the night before the run, Pavek saw that Ferrell would be running in the event.

Then, as she was running the race the following day, she noticed the crowd ahead of her started to go nuts, she said. By pure chance, she saw Ferrell, who was running with his wife and trainer, all of whom were dressed in black, she said.

Pavek yelled to Ferrell, “Will, nice job!” but he didn’t hear her the first time. She then yelled the same thing again and he turned his head and gave Pavek a thumbs-up as she ran by.

Running the race

About 20,000 people registered to run the Boston, Pavek said, and about another 10,000 ran the race without registering.

The race started in Hopkinton, Mass., and ended in Boston, she said.

In Pavek’s previous marathons, there have not been spectators along the race’s entire route, she said. At the Boston, the sidelines were packed with people the entire way, she said. About a half-million people watched the race from the roadside, she said.

“There were so many people,” she said.

During the race, Pavek and her father wore T-shirts that they designed. Pavek’s shirt had “Daughter” on the front and her father’s shirt had “Dad.” On the back, both of their shirts had, “Sure you betcha I’m from Wisconsin,” she said.

Along the race route, Pavek said some of the spectators would yell comments such as, “Do they only have cheese there?” or “How are the Packers?”

People enjoyed the fact that two runners had come from Wisconsin to participate in the event, she said.

For Pavek, the hardest part of the run was a place referred to as Heartbreak Hill, which is a series of hills that begins around mile 20. The hill is comparable to the State Street hill in Eau Claire, Pavek said.

“When you start at the bottom of Heartbreak Hill, people are swearing and crying,” she said. “But it’s easier knowing that everyone is going through the same thing at that point.”

Although she never considered not finishing the marathon, she said miles 23 and 24 were really challenging.

“Up until mile 20, I was just having an awesome time,” she said. “The last six miles, you just grit it out.”

At every mile marker, Pavek said she checked to see if she was on pace. The last mile ended up being her fastest mile, completing it in about seven minutes.

What helped make the last mile her fastest, she said, was “the crowd was just amazing.”

Pavek’s mom and boyfriend were at the end of the route during the race.

“It’s so, so packed, even when you finish,” she said.

There were wheelchairs available for people who needed them at the finish line, she said.

“People were screaming, ‘We need a wheelchair over here!’ ” she said.

Although Pavek wanted to get a wheelchair for herself at the end, her dad wouldn’t let her, she said with a laugh.

Registered runners are timed by a chip worn on their shoes, Pavek said. The chips make timing the race more accurate by accounting for the time it takes to reach the starting line, she said.

At the beginning of the race, runners are divided into corrals. Pavek and her father were in the 12th corral with about 1,000 people per corral.

Due to the large number of people, it was a slow walk to the start, and after the start line it was more like a shuffle, she said.

“It took us nine minutes to get to the start line,” she said.

The chips in the racers’ shoes start their personal time when they cross the start line, Pavek said.

At the end of the race, runners hand in their chips in exchange for medals, Pavek said. Runners also are given Mylar blankets to keep warm, she said.

Beyond the road races

Pavek, an environmental and public health major, is originally from Dodgeville and has gone to Eau Claire for the past three years. She went to UW-Madison her freshman year and then transferred to Eau Claire.

“I love my major,” Pavek said. “I’m just really happy with environmental and public health.”

Although she’s not completely sure what she wants to do when she graduates, Pavek said she has a lot of time to think about it, because she won’t be graduating soon.

Outside of running, Pavek enjoys all sports. She said she also likes camping and being outdoors.

In addition to school, Pavek also works as a cocktail waitress at Northwoods Brew Pub.

Her mom and her dad definitely have been a major influence and encouragement in her running, she said.

“Just their love of running and being healthy and being outside rubs off,” she said. “It becomes a habit.”

Pavek has one older brother who runs as well, but he doesn’t love it as much as the rest of her family, she said. Instead, he enjoys biking.

Traci Bishop, a senior political science major, is Pavek’s best friend. They met about two years ago through mutual friends, Bishop said.

“She and I run together all the time,” Bishop said.

Bishop ran in one marathon in Chicago and plans to compete in another on May 25, she said.

“Sara’s amazing,” she said. “She’s very motivated, outgoing and she knows what she wants out of life.”

Bishop said Pavek told her the Boston was an incredible experience and one of the hardest runs she has ever done.

If a person hopes to run a marathon, Pavek said the best advice she can give is to start slow, and pretty soon the running will start to feel good.

“People who don’t think they can do it, can do it,” Pavek said. “It’s something anyone can do if they work at it.

“When you get done, it’s just an amazing feeling,” she said. “Especially since we had to cram back into the car. I had problems walking for a couple days.”