The night before the 128th Boston Marathon, I rode the course — out to Hopkinton, where it all starts, and back along the route to the finish line on Boylston Street.

Left: the start in Hopkinton, 26 miles 385 yards to go. Right: the finish line, lit up and empty, hours before the race.

Standing at the finish arch in the middle of the night, with the road still quiet, is a very different thing from seeing it on race day.