Marathoners Up For Challenge At Course Considered 'The Church Of Running'

BOSTON (CBS) – The 2017 Boston Marathon is just days away, and the excitement is building for runners looking forward to getting onto the iconic course.

Darrell Young from San Jose calls the course "the church of running."

He's not alone in his praise of what is arguably the most famous foot race in the world.

Lisa and Pete Deacon are from England. This is their first time visiting the United States and they came here specifically to run the marathon.

"We absolutely love Boston, it's brilliant, it's a really welcoming city that has made us a part of that thing that is the Boston Marathon" said Lisa Deacon.

Shawn Wellersdick came up from North Carolina. He's looking forward to the challenge of the race after just beating throat and neck cancer.

He has a tattoo on his calf showing a runner breaking through a ribbon symbolizing cancer survivors.

Shawn told us the memories of his grueling treatment will help him get through the toughest parts of the race, especially Heartbreak Hill.