On July 12th I ran the Utica Boilermaker 15K for the nineteenth time.
I can’t believe it when I read it. Nineteen times. I have run this race through my 30s, my 40s, and now starting off my 50s. I have run it in heat (it’s famous for its heat), in the best shape of my life, and in years where I was just happy to finish. Remarkably in nineteen Boilermakers it has never actually rained during the race — only before. The one year it rained before the race I was there with my sister! A fun memory. The weather karma on this event is extraordinary — unless you hate humidity, in which case you are in for a world of hurt. I have run it mostly alone, a few times with my sister, and now twice with my daughter.
I always set a time goal in my head. I can’t kick that habit even though as some point I will be forced to. My goal was under 1:28. I beat it by nearly a minute and a half and I felt great from start to finish. The race really flew by this year.
But the time is almost beside the point. The Boilermaker is so much more than a race result.
Table of Contents
A Funny Story From My First Boilermaker
I have to tell you about my first Boilermaker because it is the kind of story that sets the tone for everything that followed.
Instead of getting dropped off at the 15K start I got dropped off at the 5K start — which is six miles away from where I was supposed to be. I saw people at a start line… and hopped out of the car. Ooooof.
A very gracious Boilermaker volunteer named Kevin drove me in his Toyota pickup truck to the correct start. He was kind about it. He was also very clear — don’t ever do that again. I was horrifically embarrassed. Truly a noob.
I never got dropped off at the wrong start again. I have been back almost every year since — missing 2019 because of an event for my daughter, and also 2020 because there wasn’t a Boilermaker due to COVID. One of my favorite Boilermakers was the October 2021 race — pushed back from its usual July date because of the pandemic. Running the Boilermaker in the fall was surreal and really fun. The cooler temperatures, the different light, the strange joy of having something familiar back after such a long absence. That race felt like a gift. I think I smiled the whole time.
So Many Years of This Race
I ran my first Boilermaker when my daughter was two years old. I remember pushing her in her stroller to pick up my race number. The expo was outside way back then. She had no idea what was happening — she was just along for the ride the way two year olds are.
This July she was 22 and running the race beside me for the second year in a row.
We wore matching outfits. Her idea obviously LOL.
I cannot fully put into words what it feels like to run a race you have loved for two decades with the child you were pushing in a stroller when it all started. It is one of those moments that makes you understand what the years are actually for. I was so proud when she came across that finish with a HUGE smile on her face.
Utica Boilermaker Course — Why I Love It
The Boilermaker course has, let’s say, personality. It is not flat or forgiving — it has hills that test you and moments that reward you.
The course has two notable hills that every Boilermaker runner knows well. The first is the golf course hill at mile 3 — a tough early climb that tests you before you have fully settled into your race. After that hill you get to fly down the other side back onto the parkway and this year I really enjoyed that moment because I felt so strong. Flying downhill after climbing hard is one of running’s great physical pleasures.
Then there is Burrstone Road at mile 6. By that point in a July race in Utica you are hot, you have already put in significant work, and the hill arrives at exactly the moment when your legs are starting to feel the miles. It is always my nemesis. This year I did not walk a single step of it. I ran every hill on the course and felt strong doing it. That is not something I take for granted after 19 races on this course.
One of my favorite things about the Boilermaker is the city of Utica DPW truck parked on the Burrstone Road hill with a water sprinkler attached to it. On a hot July race day running through that spray is one of the simple joys of this event. It is the kind of detail that makes a race feel like a community celebration rather than just a competition.
The Volunteers and the Popsicles
The Boilermaker is one of the best organized races I have ever run — and I have run a lot of races over nearly 30 years. The volunteers are extraordinary. The water station volunteers are so kind and supportive — they cheer for every single runner like you are the most important person on the course. That kind of human warmth on a hard race day matters more than most people realize.
And the popsicles on the parkway. I look forward to those every single year. After miles of running in July heat a cold popsicle handed to you by a smiling volunteer is one of those small perfect things that make the Boilermaker feel like home.
The Training Behind the Result
I trained for this race the same way I trained for the Mountain Goat in May — with the Runna app paired with my Garmin Forerunner 265. Structured workouts, real time pace feedback, and a training plan that adapted based on how I was actually performing.
The result speaks for itself. Under my goal. Strong on the hills. No walking. Feeling great from start to finish.
Good training gives you confidence on race day because you know what your body has already done. Every hard workout, every easy run you actually ran easy, every long run — all of it is in the bank by the time you stand at the start line. You draw on it when the hills get hard.
Running It With My Daughter
This is the part I want to linger on because it is the part that matters most.
My daughter and I wore matching outfits. We ran the course together. We shared the popsicles and the water sprinklers and the downhill flying and the finish line.
Twenty years ago she was in a stroller while I picked up my race number. Now she is 22 and running 15 kilometers with me through the streets of Utica on a hot July morning.
If you had told me at that first Boilermaker — lost at the wrong start, rescued by Kevin in a pickup truck — that this is where the race would eventually take me I would not have believed you.
But here we are. Nineteen races later. Still running. Still showing up. Still finding new reasons to love this.
Will I Run It Again?
Obviously.
The 20th Boilermaker is already on my calendar. Some milestones deserve to be celebrated and twenty years of showing up to the same race in the same city with the same love for running is absolutely one of them.
I heard a quote recently that has stayed with me — running is a gift of uncertain duration. You make of it what you can.
I will continue to run the Boilermaker and anything else I can for as long as I can. I will be grateful for every single step. And I will never again get dropped off at the wrong start.
If you’re at all curious about the Boilermaker, leave me a comment below. I’m a super fan, and love to see people enjoy Utica and all this race has to offer!
Here’s a link to the race so you can start getting ready for next year! Utica Boilermaker 15k
This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase through my links, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products I genuinely believe in.