Topeka-area runners ready to race in Boston Marathon: 'I didn’t think this was possible'

TOPEKA — Michael Kennett sat in the bleachers watching over the Seaman Middle School track practice on Monday. This is where he can be found most afternoons in the spring.

A young athlete approached him.

“Where does the rake go?”

“In the shed, you’ll see where the other rakes are,” Kennett responded softly.

It’s on this humble track in North Topeka where Kennett finds joy. The Seaman High School teacher helps coach the middle school in the spring and the high school cross country team in the fall.

“It’s a lot of fun. I get to be outside and I get to be around kids who want to work pretty hard and are pleasant to be around,” Kennett said.

Zach Jowers was one of those young athletes asking Kennett simple questions back in middle school. He recalled the time when he missed the mile time trial and asked Kennett if he could still join the distance squad. Kennett agreed, and thankfully he did.

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“I remember going on a run with him and talking about breaking five minutes in the mile. That was my goal in middle school,” Jowers said. “He shared that he never broke five minutes because of injury in high school. I was trying to convince him to race.”

Jowers is a freshman at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He graduated from Seaman last year after a great distance career that culminated at the state championship track and field meet as he competed in the 3,200 meters and 4x800 relay.

Following graduation, Jowers had the crazy idea of running a marathon in the summer. In June, he ran the Charlevoix Marathon in northern Michigan. Jowers exceeded his goal by finishing fourth with a time of 2:45:14.

“It was a definitely a surprise for me. I had three weeks from the end of state to the marathon.” Jowers said. “In the race, I broke away from this pack around mile 10 and I just didn’t look back.”

Two months later, Kennett was lining up at the Nebraska State Fair Marathon in Grand Island. It was a tough race, but intense training helped the Seaman teacher beat the August heat and throw down a fast time. He took ninth place overall and finished in 3:00.50.

Kennett and Jowers’ times are not insignificant. They are coveted times across amateur distance racing.

The teacher and the pupil have qualified for Monday’s Boston Marathon, the crown jewel of distance running nationally. This will be the first time either has run this legendary race.

“I didn’t think this was possible until a year and a half ago,” Kennett smiled. “Everyone knows what the Boston Marathon is and this is the peak of the hobbyist.”

Kennett will fly with his wife to New England and spend the weekend sightseeing before lacing up his shoes for the 26.2-mile course.

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Jowers will be joined by a group of cadets from the Air Force Academy. He is a part of the marathon team that trains at elevation. This will be Jowers’ first marathon since his time in Michigan and the nerves are starting to settle in when thinking about the difficult course.

“I am kind of pissing down my leg right now, I am pretty scared,” Jowers laughed. “There has been a lot of training for one race. It is pretty nerve-racking.”

Heartbreak Hill comes at mile 20 and lasts 800 meters. This stretch of the course is where the mind goes numb and doubt takes over. The strongest runners fight that wall and climb the 3.3% incline in hopes of defeating their personal goal.

Kennett’s ultimate goal is to crack the three-hour mark. He will need to average 6 minutes, 51 seconds per mile to achieve the goal. Jowers is hoping to average a 6-minute mile pace, which would finish him around 2 hours, 37 minutes.

“The time is the biggest motivator and when you hit mile 20,” Kennett said. “‘Can I hang on?’ I am pretty well trained up and this will be my seventh marathon so I know what to expect.”

“I have watched a couple of videos and we have had a few seniors that have helped us,” Jowers said. “The hills that we have here at the Academy, will hopefully prepare me if I race smart.”

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The two runners will start nearby as they are slated to begin in wave one. Topeka will also be represented by 66-year-old Kirk Johnson.

“I saw this said, ‘I’ve never known a marathon runner who doesn’t talk endlessly about running marathons,’” Kennett laughed. “I don’t really like talking about it. It makes me deeply uncomfortable. When someone does congratulate me, I really do appreciate that.”

While they never raced in the middle school mile, Jowers and Kennett will have an opportunity to run the 128th edition of the Boston Marathon against each other. The two will start at 9 a.m. CST.

Liam Keating covers high school sports for The Topeka Capital-Journal. Send stats or information to him at Lkeating@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Topeka's Michael Kennett, Zach Jowers to race in Boston Marathon