The Spotters' Network: The Eyes Of The Boston Marathon

BOSTON (CBS) - On a day when millions of eyes are fixed on the Boston Marathon, these are the 200+ that are most important.

They are the Race Spotwatch and Spotters' Network Team. Made up of 100+ high school and college students, they are the eyes of the Boston Marathon for WBZ-TV from start to finish.

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"They provide the color in places I can't see," WBZ-TV's Lisa Hughes said, in her third year as the voice of the Boston Marathon. "Their observations are invaluable. They make it possible for us to get information faster than any other media outlets."

Many will be assigned at each mile along the Marathon route. Some will be at the finish line, while others remain in the WBZ studios in Brighton. They are responsible for tracking the progress of runners and relaying accurate and timely information back to the WBZ control room.

"This is a tremendous amount of responsibility for these student-athletes who are involved in an award-winning broadcast," Fred Treseler, co-founder of the Spotters Network said. "Historically, they have always answered the call on race day."

The information does not just include who is leading the races and what times they pass though. They also pass along observations for Hughes and the rest of the WBZ crew. Who is limping? Which runner looks determined to catch up? Who has the biggest (and loudest) support group at a certain point?

"What they do is enhance our coverage," Hughes said. "They are the eyes in the course when the race starts."

For the spotters, their day starts bright and early at 7 a.m. at WBZ in the Spotters Network Studio. They each head to their respective mile markers, and go through separate rehearsals (broken up into three groups) before a final dry run just before race time.

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The lingo is much different than one would expect. Men are now "boys" and women "girls" to avoid any confusion. Spotters radio in to the studio as soon as they see the lead vehicle approaching, identifying themselves, what mile they are located at, and which race they are reporting. They count down how many meters away the approaching runner (or group of runners) is until they pass by, which is signaled with a "Mark NOW!"

Luckily, the runners are not referred to by name but instead the number on their bib.

The Spotters Network was founded in 1985 by Tressler and former Boston Marathon race director Tim Kilduff. This year, the spotters represent over 20 high schools and colleges from 29 different towns and six countries.

Spotters are required to attend a training session held at the WBZ studios or the participating groups schools. This year's meeting was held on April 4th, in which Hughes and WBZ-TV Sports Director Steve Burton stressed how important a role the spotters play in the yearly broadcast.

"We can't do this without you," Hughes told them.

"You are the eyes and ears on race day," Burton added. "We depend on your reports."

Hundreds of people give their all to make WBZ's Marathon coverage the best there is, and the spotters are an integral part of it all.

WBZ-TV is the only local station with live wire-to-wire coverage of the 115th Boston Marathon starting at 8 a.m. on Monday April 18th.