Shannon Basara, 20, is back home in the Valley from her studies at Northeastern University in Boston but that hasn't stopped her from training for the world's most well-known road race.
"I really want to run it," said Basara. "I don't want any other marathon to be my first marathon, I want it to be Boston."
Just last year, the Fresno native was on the sidelines cheering for her uncle during the Boston Marathon. She was at a nearby restaurant when the explosions rang out.
Basara said, "I called my parents and was sobbing like oh my god, I was a street over from that. So many people were hurt."
She says the bombings and manhunt gripped not only her, but the entire city. After the attack, Basara ran to show her support and decided to take it to the next level.
Basara told ABC30, "There is no other way to show how much you love that city by doing the 26 mile run."
She signed up as a charity runner with the ally foundation, to end sexual violence. Her other teammates, include some who were in the race last year.
"They went through their first marathon experience and didn't even get to finish and that's what happened to them," said Basara. "So it's going to be therapeutic for them for sure and for me just being able to run it this time."
Basara says along the grueling 26 miles, she plans to pause and remember the lives affected. She knows it'll be touching for the thousands of runners and spectators that fill the city.
"Thinking just a year ago, I was standing on the side watching all these people run and here I am doing it," said Basara. "It's going to be emotional for everyone, for the whole city."
A run, she says, will truly embrace Boston strong.
