Boston Marathon Forecast: Cold And Rainy On The Course
BOSTON (CBS) -- Welcome to Boston! Spring is frustrating in this great city because the weather is usually gyrating up and down on a roller coaster ride. Typically, there are more cold days than balmy days especially this year. April, so far, has featured below average temperatures on 12 days and above average temperatures on only 3 days! Runners training for the big race constantly wonder what the big day will be like here. The Boston Marathon temperature variations can range up to a 20-30 degree spread from just one end of the route to the other and fluctuate more than 40 degrees from year to year.
The proximity to the cold ocean compounds the variety so the wind direction is a huge factor. You have to be prepared for just about anything and we've seen it all from snow squalls to heavy showers to searing heat and humidity. Fortunately, these extremes are relatively rare but it looks like this year's conditions will fit into that category.
Monday's Boston Marathon will likely be wet from before the start to after the finish. The only other driving rainstorm occurred in 1970. The monster nor'easter of 2007 was a mammoth rain and wind maker but much of the rain had already fallen by the time the race began. There were residual showers and blustery conditions with debris and downed limbs and trees littering the course.
After a fantastic Friday yielding temperatures near or slightly above 70, the crash commenced Saturday and the temperatures are still dipping a tiny bit more Sunday afternoon. This is unprecedented cold which has resulted in the coldest April 15th on record in terms of high temperatures over much of the area.
Boston's high temperature for the date occurred just after midnight at 38 degrees and that is 2 degrees below the previous low high temperature set way back in 1881! Worcester's temperature also beat the previous record set back in 1943. Boston's minimum temperature of the day, however, will not reach the record of 28 which was set in 1943. The villain is an anomalous strong high-pressure system transiting into eastern Canada.
Now, to the main event - the great Boston Marathon! Conditions will start out cold and misty with passing showers of heavier rain from time to time. The temperatures will gradually rise from the middle to upper 30s through the morning to the lower to middle 40s from midday through the afternoon. The milder lower 50s will probably remain just south of the marathon route. The heaviest rain in batches is most likely around midday lasting until early evening. Beware! The potential exists for some embedded lightning and thunder mainly from mid-afternoon on. Thus, runners in waves 3 and 4 will be impacted the most.
There will likely be more of a headwind through much of the morning from the east-northeast. The wind will be cranking all day even at the start for the elite runners and starting waves but the wind will increase as the day wears on and with closer proximity to Boston. Some gusts over 45 mph will be possible during the afternoon especially underneath some of the passing heavier downpours. The wind should also veer slightly to more east or east-southeasterly but it is certainly never going to be a tailwind.
In conclusion: It is going to be a challenging and difficult day on the course. There may very well be some hypothermia cases to monitor. Do your best to stay warm and dry!
GOOD LUCK to one and all!
MARATHON MONDAY FORECAST
7 a.m. Monday
Hopkinton: 36 degrees, overcast & drizzly. Wind ENE 6-18 mph.
Boston: 38 degrees, overcast & drizzly. Wind ENE 10-20 mph.
9 a.m. Monday
Hopkinton: 37 degrees, overcast, drizzly with showers. Wind E 10-20 mph.
Boston: 40 degrees, overcast, drizzly with showers. Wind E 10-25 mph.
11 a.m. Monday
Hopkinton: 38 degrees, overcast, drizzly with downpours. Wind ESE 10-25 mph.
Boston/Fenway: 41 degrees, overcast, drizzly with showers. Wind ESE 12-25 mph.
1 p.m. Monday
Hopkinton: 40 degrees, wet with possible downpours. Wind ESE 15-30 mph.
Boston: 42 degrees, wet with possible downpours. Wind ESE 15-35 mph.
3 p.m. Monday
Hopkinton: 42 degrees, wet with possible downpours. Wind ESE 15-25+ mph.
Boston: 45 degrees, downpours with embedded thunder/lightning possible. Wind ESE 15-35+ mph.
5 p.m. Monday
Hopkinton: 44 degrees, downpours with embedded thunder. Wind ESE 15-35 mph.
Boston: 47 degrees, downpours with embedded thunder. Wind ESE 15-35+ mph.
