STUDENT EXPERIENCES Four U students complete marathon in time to avoid explosion at the finish line in the Boston Marathon

Two explosions rocked the finish line of the Boston Marathon on Monday afternoon — detonating just 10 seconds apart. The Boston Globe reported at least 120 people injured and three killed — including an 8-year-old boy. The Associated Press reported at least one additional explosive device was found by police, and they executed a controlled detonation.
At least four students from the U were registered for the race, and The Daily Utah Chronicle confirmed they are all well and safe.
Marta Fay, a Ph.D. student in oncological sciences, finished the 26.2 mile race before the explosions and was in the family waiting area when the bombs went off.
“I was sitting on the curb, so I felt the explosions pretty well,” she said. “I was behind a building so I didn’t see any debris, but the explosion definitely shook me.”
Fay was able to use a cellphone to call her family to make sure they were OK.
“We didn’t know they were bombs, but you could tell it wasn’t a good sound,” Fay said. “It sounded louder than thunder, and there was no thunder forecast.”
She was able to get out of the city with her family despite closed subway stations and not being able to find a taxi.
“There was still adrenaline after the race just trying to get out of there,” she said. “[I] moved quicker than ever just trying to keep up with people and get out of town.”
Kevin Smith, a Ph.D. student in mechanical engineering, finished the race an hour and a half before the bombs went off and was at his brother’s house a quarter mile away at the time. He said the explosion sounded like cannons.
“It’s just ridiculous what happened,” Smith said. “People’s happiest day of their lives [for] some people, and their families are all there, and now they have to worry about whatever this was.”
Despite feeling unsure of the situation, Fay is undecided whether she will participate in another marathon.
“You’re not really in a correct mindset when you’re finishing a marathon, let alone finishing a marathon and then bombs go off,” she said. “You feel bad for the 4,000 people that didn’t get to finish because they closed the race. They trained just as hard, and they don’t get to finish.”
The Salt Lake City Marathon will continue as scheduled Saturday, according to Peter Handy, owner of U.S. Road Sports & Entertainment Group and the race organizer.
Handy said because it is still early and not much information is known about the bombings, organizers will wait to speak with local law enforcement to make any decisions about changes to security. He said they do not want to get ahead of themselves and jump to conclusions when making last minute plans for the upcoming race.
Sgt. Mike Richards of U Police is in charge of event security involving the race when it travels in proximity to the U and said police have not made any decisions on changing security at this point. They will meet with those involved with the marathon today.
“I’m suspecting it will be a major topic,” Richards said.