Hope runner recounts bombing

SANDPOINT — Wracked by exhaustion after completing the Boston Marathon, Mike Ehredt’s first reaction was confusion when he heard an explosion blast through the streets.

Seconds later, a second explosion unleashed a sonic assault that the Hope resident compared to a volley of fireworks.

After the initial cacophony, the people around him paused and scanned their surroundings in bewilderment, Ehredt said. The once-steady stream of finishing runners dried up like a river suddenly dammed, leaving the finish line a deserted and eerie landscape.  

At that moment, police vehicles and ambulances roared into the scene. Volunteers arrived to direct Ehredt and the other bystanders and marathon runners away from the immediate area.

He knew something was very wrong, Ehredt said.

“It’s a crazy world,” he said later, as he reflected on the day’s events in his hotel room. “My only hope is that that craziness never reaches Sandpoint.”

Later, Ehredt learned how close he had come to the explosions that claimed the lives of at least three and injured more than 140 others. The distance of a city block may have made the difference between life and death, according to Ehredt. If one of his sponsors hadn’t suggested he change his clothes a block away minutes before the explosions occurred, Ehredt can’t say for certain what would have happened to him.

“It’s just one of those bizarre flips of the coin that you find in life,” he said. “It was just by chance of fate I was away from the explosion.”

The ugliness of the bombing was heightened by the day’s previously idyllic nature, Ehredt said. When he began the race, the weather and conditions all seemed to promise a great day ahead.

“Boston was everything everyone said it was, and it felt great to finish the race,” he said. “The day couldn’t have been any more perfect, and then it was all shattered.”

He crossed the finish line about 40 minutes before the explosions occurred and allowed himself a much-needed breather. After he finished, Ehredt moved to the corralled area just past the finish line, where runners could collect food, drink, awards and medals for their participation. When he decided he wanted to change his clothing, one of his sponsors, Margot Moore of Hyland’s Active, suggested he use a changing area about a block away.

Shortly after they reached the location, the detonations occurred.   

The situation quickly turned surreal. As Ehredt shuffled past the blast sites, he noticed a building he had visited only a day earlier had been turned into a smoking husk. All around him were confused and panicked people.

At first, Ehredt didn’t know how to feel.

“Honestly, it will probably all hit me tomorrow,” he said. “But almost immediately, I felt this deep sense of sadness that someone would do something like this.”

Although many areas had been cordoned off by the time Ehredt escaped the scene of the chaos, he was able to make his way back to his hotel room. After his harrowing experience, he’s simply looking forward to returning home by Wednesday to his partner, Kootenai Elementary third-grade teacher Peggy Gaudet.

 As a longtime enthusiast of endurance running, Ehredt, a 52-year-old trainer at Sandpoint West Athletic Club, waited 33 years to participate in the Boston Marathon. Throughout his career as a runner, he has participated in seven marathons and run across the country several times as member of Project America Run.

Despite his first Boston Marathon experience, he intends to return next year. Nevertheless, the memories of his successful first run will always be tinged by its tragic outcome.

“The sun is still going to come up tomorrow,” he said. “And hopefully, it will be a better day than it was today.”