Locals to run in Boston Marathon one year after terrorist attack

Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Ron Rosati's name.

After finishing the Boston Marathon a year ago, Joe Windeknecht was celebrating his first finish in the historic race.

His time of 3 hours, 14 minutes was 10 minutes over his intended goal, but he didn't let that ruin his excitement of having completed the strenuous course.

As he celebrated his achievement just blocks from the finish line, two loud bangs changed his mood from joy to panic.

It was a terrorist attack that has left an indelible mark on Windeknecht, a Jackson resident who departed for Boston early Saturday to compete once again, and the rest of America.

Andrew Johnson, above, and Joe Windeknecht, right, will be among the local runners participating in the Boston Marathon on Monday. Windeknecht ran in last year’s event that was marred by a terrorist bomb attack. (Adam Vogler)

Windeknecht and close friend Andrew Johnson will be in the field of 36,000 runners in Monday's Boston Marathon.

Windeknecht competed in high school cross country at Central and later competed in short distance races until the age of 22, when he began feeling burnt out.

He spent two decades away from the sport.

Windeknecht said he resumed running five years ago at age 42, but this time felt the need to challenge himself by running longer races, such as half marathons.

"I used to do all of the 5K and short distance races around town, and they were fun, but not challenging enough," Windeknecht said. "Eventually I thought I'd try a half marathon and see if it would be as bad as I had heard about, as far as draining your body goes."

After finishing his first 13.1-mile half marathon, Windeknecht realized the wear a half marathon could put on a person's body. He told himself he would try one more half marathon and get faster, but would never consider doing a full marathon.

His second half marathon went much smoother than he anticipated. Windeknecht reduced his time considerably and set his sights on a goal he never thought he would be able to accomplish -- running a full marathon.

"My next half marathon was a lot easier because I trained harder and got faster," Windeknecht said. "By the end of that one it became an almost obsession to get faster and run longer distances just to see if I could do it."

Windeknecht competed in his first marathon in Memphis in December of 2010, and he covered the course in 3 hours, 25 minutes -- 20 minutes under the time needed to qualify for the Boston Marathon.

In order to qualify for Boston, there are two factors to take in to account.

First, a runner must compete in a marathon certified by either the USA Track and Field Association or the Association of International Marathons.

The next factor is time. Classes are split up by gender and age group. Each class is assigned an allotted time in which participants must complete the race in order to be eligible.

Windeknecht met both standards, which led to his presence in Boston on a tragic day.

A year after the terrorist attack, the day of the bombings is still fresh in Windeknecht's mind.

"I remember it like it was yesterday," Windeknecht said. "We heard the first one go off, but it just sounded like a cannon or something, signaling the 4-hour mark in the race. I remember everyone cheering, but I really didn't know what it was actually for. At that point nobody was real excited or overreacting like something bad happened; we just went along like nothing had happened. We were just happy to finish the race."

Thirty seconds later, a second explosion rang throughout the streets of Boston. By that time smoke began to billow over the buildings of the city. Windeknecht said he still wasn't sure what had happened, but reality set in when two girls ran by him with their hands in the air, shouting at the top of their lungs.

"They ran right by me and were obviously shaken up," Windeknecht said about the first time he realized bombs had been the cause of the loud explosion he heard blocks from the finish line. "I heard them and many others say, 'Get back, two bombs just went off, we're under attack.' I didn't know what to do, we were all a little unsure."

Emergency response teams rushed to the scene. Windeknecht said he was overwhelmed and everything seemed to be a bit of a panic.

"They were telling us to go back to our hotels and just stay there, but everybody was going crazy just pushing people out of the way and telling us to get away from the scene," Windeknecht said. "I was still looking for my group and had anticipated they had already finished but still wasn't really sure."

Little did Windeknecht know, his friend, Ron Rosati, whom he had trained with before the marathon, had finished a minute before the first bomb went off. Windeknecht said Rosati turned around in awe, grabbed his camera and snapped a shot of the horrific scene.

The two would not see each other until they met at the hotel four hours later. Windeknecht said police and other authority officials were pushing back the crowd, making it impossible to know if his friend had survived.

"Those were some of the scariest moments of the whole experience," Windeknecht said. "Not knowing what to do, where to go or who was still alive are memories I'd rather not relive."

The other two runners Windeknecht had travelled with did not have a chance to finish the race. Windeknecht said they, along with 10,000 other racers, were forced to stop after the bombings occurred.

Those who could not finish the race will have the chance to finish what they started one year ago. For the first time in its history, the Boston Marathon has expanded the field -- 9,000 more than normal -- to allow for those that did not finish last year's race.

Some are worried about the overflow of traffic this will create and just how safe the streets will really be. Windeknecht is not among those concerned. In fact, he expects Boston to be the safest place to be once Monday morning rolls around.

"I think it's going to go smoothly," Windeknecht said. "Boston will be the safest place to be and they've got everything planned out. They have been sending us email after email so that we know what we can and can't bring. We will be ready once we get there. I don't have much concern."

Windeknecht knew he wanted to go back to Boston once he returned home. He said his main reason for going back is to see his friends cross the finish line as they were supposed to in last year's race.

"They all wanted to go back, and so did I," Windeknecht said. "It's going to be surreal to see all of those people cross the finish."

He's also going back for the newcomers like Johnson, a Jackson resident and good friend.

"A big reason [I'm going back is] because of what happened last year," Windeknecht said. "But also because of my close friend Andy, who had the opportunity to qualify. I promised him I'd go back with him if he did it, and he did, so here I am. I'm really not questioning my decision to go just because of what happened last year. I'm more excited to run a faster time and to see what Andy can do. This will be a marathon unlike any other for me."

Johnson, 38, is relatively new to the sport, having only run in three marathons. Johnson qualified for the Boston Marathon at the Rock n' Roll St. Louis Marathon in October of 2012. Johnson said Windeknecht has helped him during his training.

"He's a great guy and really motivational when it comes to running," Johnson said about his teammate and running partner. "He encourages a lot of the local runners and kind of acts as a coach to some of them. He's the kind of guy you want to have around in a race of this magnitude."

In the past year, the two have been training together to conquer Boston. Johnson said Windeknecht knows the course well and his given him plenty of pointers to be as prepared for as possible come race day.

"We've talked about it some and you'll hear anyone who has run in it say that the first two-thirds of the course make you want to relax and think it's easy," Johnson said. "Joe tells me I can't think that way because the next seven miles you see hill after hill, so it really is all about the pace you set and how well you can control your speed without draining your energy."

The duo said living in the hilliest part of Southeast Missouri gives them an advantage they hope will pay off in the Boston Marathon.

"In some of my other races, I've really noticed that it seems to be an advantage living in a hilly place like this," Johnson said. "Living in Southeast Missouri, me and the others I train with are taking advantage of having these hills. That's one of the best things you can do for marathon training."

Last year, Johnson, who works a swing shift at Proctor & Gamble, was asleep when the bombings occurred. He woke up just after the bombs went off, not knowing what had happened. Instead, he was looking to see what kind of times his friends had made.

"I got on the computer to check on times, and as soon as I opened a web page breaking news was popping up. I really didn't know how to react." Johnson said.

Johnson soon found out that while some of his friends had not finished, they had all survived the bombing, including Windeknecht.

"It was a huge sigh of relief," Johnson said. "You always want to see them get good times, but when something like this happens, your main concern is, 'Are they OK?'"

While the two men may not be worried about their safety, their wives are. Johnson said his wife, Beverly, is concerned but also proud of what he has accomplished.

"I think she's a little concerned knowing what happened last year as anyone would be," Johnson said. "But she's also excited for me and proud that I'm able to go. I'm sure she will miss me, but she supports me no matter what."

Windeknecht and his wife, Rhonda, will be attending together.

"The first thing my wife said to me after I told her I was going to run another Boston was that she wanted to go with me," Windeknecht said. "So we booked a flight for both of us and have decided to make it something we could enjoy together."

No matter the outcome, Windeknecht and Johnson are happy to have the honor of running in the Boston Marathon on such an important anniversary. Their heads will be held high as they cross the finish line.

"It's hard to tell how I'll be feeling at this point -- I may just be happy to cross at that point," Johnson said, referring to the sights where the bombs exploded. "The closer I get to it [I think I will] have a sense for how serious things were and what this will mean to a lot of people.

"It's not just another race, not even another Boston. A Boston Marathon is a big deal, but this one is going to be special."