Melrose Father Running His First Boston Marathon For His Son

(Editor's note: This article was updated on Tuesday at 3:40 p.m.)

According to the official Boston Marathon website, 40 Melrosians have registered to run in the 2011 Boston Marathon. For the days leading up to the marathon, we will feature some of our Melrose marathoners and encourage you to cheer each of them to the finish line!

Name: Chris Hancock

Age: 37

Marathon Experience: The 2011 Boston Marathon will be the third marathon for Hancock, and his first time running Boston. Hancock’s fastest time was in 2010, at the Bay State Marathon in Lowell, were he finished in 3:12.

Reason for Running: Hancock has two reasons for running the 115th Boston Marathon. Coming in a distant second is the sporting aspect; the Sargent Street resident’s primary motivation is to raise money and awareness for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a cause very near to his heart. Hancock’s nine-year-old son, William, was diagnosed with Duchenne four years ago. Hancock will be running in support of Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy (PPMD) and their Run For Our Sons initiative.

While most charity runners start in the third wave of runners when the starting gun sounds in Hopkinton, Hancock will be in the first. No Muscular Dystrophy organizations currently receive the sought after charity entries to the race, so in order for Hancock to fulfill his goal of running for his son, he had to qualify through running time. His Bay State Marathon time sealed the deal.

Hancock has raised some $2,500 for the cause to date.

Training Tips: When asked what advice he had for prospective Boston runners, Hancock didn’t hesitate: “Run a lot,” he said. “Mix up your routes, mix up your speed. Any given day, I’ll run anywhere from four to 20 miles.”

More information about Chris and William Hancock can be found on Chris' blog.