Boston Marathon

Spencer Bernstein is officially the youngest entrant in the Marathon. His focus will be on Preston Settles, a friend who unexpectedly collapsed on a basketball court and died in 2022.

Growing up near Commonwealth Avenue in Newton, watching the thousands of athletes participating in the Boston Marathon was a springtime tradition for Spencer Bernstein. Ever since elementary school, entering the race was something that lingered in the back of his mind as a worthy goal once he was old enough. Now, he finally will be. 

Bernstein will officially be the youngest athlete in the race, turning 18 on April 15, the day of the Marathon. But he’s not interested in celebrating. 

Instead, Bernstein will be focused on Preston Settles, a friend who died at 15 after collapsing during a basketball game in 2022. 

A lasting memory

Bernstein met Settles, another Newton resident, in fifth grade when the two joined a hockey team at the same time. Both were new to the team and to the sport, bonding easily. 

“I was more of a shy kid, but Preston was the exact opposite. He would talk to anybody,” Bernstein told Boston.com.

While Bernstein and Settles had attended different schools and stopped playing hockey together by high school, they still found time to catch up. 

“We didn’t see each other as much, but when we did it was like we were back in the locker room, like no time had passed. It was just like, ‘Here’s Preston, he’s going to make me smile and laugh,’” Bernstein said. 

He remembers the flurry of texts he got on that February day, when Settles was first hospitalized. He remembers visiting his friend in the hospital the day before Settles died. He remembers the bewilderment, the fear that came with Settles’s collapse and that still remains.

Settles was a prolific athlete who was thought to be totally healthy before the incident. He spent a total of 22 days unconscious at Tufts Medical Center and Boston Children’s Hospital before doctors told his family that he would not be waking up. 

“I think what was super special about Preston was that he was literally friends with everybody,” Bernstein said. “That really showed at the funeral service… the church was jam-packed with kids. It was really breathtaking to see how many people were there and how many people he had touched with his personality.”

Hundreds of people filled Trinity Church Boston for Settles’s funeral in March 2022. U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley opened the service’s time of remembrance.

Settles had a disease known as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, which causes part of the heart muscle to dangerously thicken and impact blood flow. Many people with this condition do not experience any symptoms. 

“That’s what’s so scary about it, and so personal. You never really know when something like that is going to happen. He was feeling perfectly fine before the game… that could happen to any young athlete,” Bernstein said. 

As Settles’s memory lingered, so too did Bernstein’s longtime interest in the marathon. Last spring, he realized that he would finally be old enough to participate in 2024. Running in Settles’s memory was a no-brainer. 

Bernstein had trouble at first. He applied to run for multiple charities officially associated with the Marathon, but was rebuffed every time. He was told that the charities did not want to add the pressures of marathon training to the life of a teenager, or that he would not be able to raise the necessary minimum of $5,000. 

“That kind of added a bit of fuel to my fire,” he said. 

Eventually, with the help of representatives from Bank of America, Bernstein was able to secure a spot in the race to raise money for the Preston Settles Memorial Fund. He created a GoFundMe page with an initial goal of raising $7,500, which was surpassed in 24 hours. Now, it has raised almost $15,000. 

A new challenge

Bernstein, a senior at Dexter Southfield School in Brookline, is no stranger to competition. He is captain of the school’s varsity basketball and golf teams, and has always been interested in pushing his body to the limit. 

But long distance running is a new test, and training came in fits and starts. Last spring, Bernstein would run a few miles every so often when he remembered that he had committed to the Marathon, he said. It was not until last fall that he consciously started to “build a base,” with long runs reaching 16 miles. 

Bernstein took the winter off to focus on basketball, knowing that he would have to “hit it hard” once the season ended. He has been training intensely for the past six weeks. Bernstein tries to go on three or four shorter runs (between 4 and 6 miles) during the week, while tackling longer runs (now around 18 miles) on the weekends.  

He battled minor physical impediments, like a twisted ankle and shin splints, but avoided major injury. The biggest hurdles are mental. Bernstein knew his training regiment would be unusual, and that he would have to overcompensate after basketball season. But he cites the support of his friends, family, and school community as essential factors in his success thus far. 

Now, the training is something to cherish in and of itself. 

“As I started running longer and longer, I found myself able to reflect and have a lot of time to myself. I found myself with a super clear head. I started to enjoy running the more I did it and the better I got at it,” he said. “I’ve come to love this training so much. I would have never imagined myself being able to go out and run 18 miles but now I look forward to doing that.”

With just a few days to go before race day, Bernstein is not nervous. Instead, his excitement builds up more and more each day. 

When asked about the fact that he will be running his first marathon on his 18th birthday, Bernstein downplays its significance. Others have suggested that he wear something on Monday to show that it is his birthday, perhaps a crown or a sign affixed to his bib. 

Bernstein has no interest. 

“It’s just very lucky that this falls on my birthday, but I really want this day to be about Preston,” he said. “That’s what I’m running for… I can celebrate my birthday after.”