Sculptor Carves Runner Out Of Tree On Boston Marathon’s Heartbreak Hill

NEWTON (CBS) – Boston Marathon runners are getting some added inspiration with a new landmark along Heartbreak Hill.

A homeowner at the corner of Commonwealth and Grant avenues in Newton asked sculptor Ken Packie to turn an old maple tree in his front yard into a runner.

So Packie broke out his chain saw and got to work.

“I heard this is a brutal spot right there. I heard 20 miles is like a make-or-break mark in a marathon. I used to run, but I was a 10k guy, not a marathon runner. So, hopefully they’ll look at that and not the broken heart and they’ll keep running,” Packie told WBZ-TV.

Sculptor Ken Packie carved a runner out of a tree on Heartbreak Hill, Nov. 11, 2020. (WBZ-TV)

He’s been carving the sculpture for 17 hours so far. He hopes to be finished by this weekend.