‘The support is second to none:’ Here’s why this professional racing driver ran the Boston Marathon
Ryan Briscoe ran the 2025 Boston Marathon.
Ryan Briscoe, 43, is no stranger to competitive sports. The Sydney, Australia native got his start in professional racing driving, competing in Europe and America. He decided to run the 129th Boston Marathon after trying to enter the historic race twice before.
“I qualified for Boston [for 2025], so I’d actually entered two times before and I’d injured myself and had traveled, so this was like third time lucky, so I finally got to do it today and it was awesome,” he said.
The best part of the marathon? Probably the friendly atmosphere and friendly encouragement, he said.
“Getting cheered on the whole way. The support is second to none, and it just gets stronger and stronger as the race goes on,” Briscoe said. The course is a grueling 26.2 miles of hilly terrain, making the race a challenging one. But the support from spectators and runners alike helped him through it.
“They helped the miles take off quickly. And even just having all the other athletes around, there’s so much good camaraderie. That’s what it’s all about,” he said.
One of the most memorable moments from the race was the Wellesley Scream Tunnel. Located around the midway point of the marathon, at Mile 13, Wellesley students line up along the marathon route to scream, kiss, and cheer on the marathoners. Briscoe said he’d never seen anything like it.
“There were a whole bunch of girls cheering ‘kiss me, I’m Irish,’ it was insane. It went on for almost a mile it seemed and I was just laughing the whole way down that stretch.”
After the race, Briscoe said he’ll spend his evening relaxing with his family and putting his feet up after a long day. He’ll also support his wife, who was also running the marathon.
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