Only months after beginning serious long-distance running, Orillia-area resident Rick Ball has landed a starting spot in the granddaddy of all marathon races.

Competing May 11 at the Mississauga Marathon, the 42-year-old father of two posted a time of 3:17:38, and in doing so qualified for the 2009 edition of the Boston Marathon.

“I still can’t believe it and I have to pinch myself that I have actually pulled this off,” said Ball, during an interview with Orillia Today the day after the Mississauga event.

With his wife and mother-in-law cheering him on at the finish line, Ball finished 93rd in a field of 1,387 runners.

“The ironic part was I was wearing bib No. 93. How cool was that,” said Ball.

He added that he became emotional as many people lining the running route cheered his name as he pushed himself toward the finish line.

“There was a huge crowd and my name was on the front of my bib, so they were chanting my name. When I heard that, I started sprinting toward the finish,” said Ball.

He finished well under the Boston Marathon qualifying time of 3:20:59 set for able-bodied male runners.

As a single-leg amputee, a Toronto Transit Commission employee could have qualified for the Boston race in the Mobility Division. This would have allowed him to finish a qualifying race in less than eight hours.

 “But I didn’t want to do that. I wanted to qualify as an able-bodied athlete,” he said.

Recently, Ball was featured in an edition of Orillia Today, where his recovery from a 1986 motorcycle accident was documented.

Ball lost part of left leg below the knee in the accident.

The motorcycle he was driving collided with a load of lumber that had fallen off a pickup truck on Highway 12, near where the West Ridge Plaza is now located.

He spent considerable time in hospital recovering from his injuries and later took up bicycle riding in a bid to strengthen his legs.

Having not run even a five-kilometre race in his life, Ball approached veteran marathon runner Roger DePlancke last fall, indicating he wanted to run in a marathon.

Ball then began training and steadily built up his endurance

On Sunday in Mississauga, race conditions were ideal and Ball was able to get off to a strong start.

 “Right about at the 30-kilometre mark I was starting to get some soreness in my leg, but I kind of ignored it and kept on running,” said Ball.

Unfortunately, his training partner, veteran marathoner Roger DePlancke, finished the race 10 minutes off the qualifying time.

“Roger realized he wasn’t going to qualify for Boston in Mississauga, so he backed off so he didn’t wreck himself,” said Ball.

But there are other qualifying races remaining in the marathon season and Ball feels confidant DePlancke will find himself amongst the thousands of runners  in Boston in 2009.

Ball and DePlancke have become close friends in recent months, having forged a strong bond through training.

For his part, Ball said he owes a lot to DePlancke for getting him to this point in marathon running.

“He has not only talked to me about physical approach to running but the mental approach as well.

Stuff like you have to prevent yourself from going out to fast at the start,” said Ball.

Years from now, he said the Mississauga race will serve as a significant milestone in his now-developing running life.

“This is probably going to be the biggest race of my entire career. First, because it was my first marathon and also because I was able to qualify for the Boston Marathon,” he said.