OIT’s D’Amico Runs Ninth Marathon
Domenick D’Amico of the Office of Information Technology will run his ninth consecutive Boston Marathon April 16.
In 1997, Domenick D’Amico, business manager of the Office of Information Technology, turned 29 and decided he wanted to run at least one marathon before hitting 30. A decade and 23 road races later, D’Amico will run his ninth consecutive Boston Marathon next Monday.
After a successful run in the Cape Cod Marathon, D’Amico took on both the Las Vegas and Boston Marathons in 1999. Since then, his finishing times have continued to qualify him for the next race. “It feels rewarding to know that you are actually able to complete a marathon,” he says. “And qualifying for the Boston Marathon makes it that much more special.”
D’Amico has also put his knowledge and skill to good use by coaching the Brookline-based Marathon Sports Running Group. The 100 regular trainees, running options six days a week, and an annual trip to Hopkinton for a practice marathon run keep D’Amico busy.
“My best advice would be to know the course,” he says. “When everybody thinks of Boston, they always think of the uphill sections, but the first 16 miles are mainly downhill.” The problem, he says, is that many runners expend too much energy on the downhill portion and become tired too soon.
After every race, D’Amico heads to J. P. Licks for a coffee frappe. And he has one more tradition after the big finish: “I have always found Chris Parks and the BU Band, and they’ve played a couple songs for me.”
Brittany Jasnoff can be reached at bjasnoff@bu.edu.