The Boston Marathon, Inside-Out with Coach Basilio Mendoza and Orlando "Hundo" Montalvo

This is such a fun chat with two of my RGV friends, Coach and Hundo. They drove 38 hours straight from Mission, Texas to Marlboro, Mass. on April 11. By the 13th, they were setting up 10-foot-long interlocking barricades that weighed up to 30 pounds apiece, alongside 70-something local women. The RGV duo were not volunteers. They were paid $350 per day to work on the course and to do operations. The days were long and hard, but memorable as they worked behind the scenes at the world's oldest annual marathon. Mendoza, a retired high school coach from Donna High School ISD, first began working behind the scenes as a volunteer in 2019. From there, he returned each year, but as a paid worker. Mendoza gained experience to help him direct South Texas International Marathon, a point-to-point race that goes through cities along the US-Mexico border. Montalvo is a retired high school science and engineering teacher who coached the Sharyland High School robotics team. He is also an accomplished ultrarunner. Here is their recount of working behind the scenes at the 128th Boston Marathon.