The gatekeeper

Brookline Police officer Jimmy Riley is on his feet again for the 112th Boston Marathon, his 30th or 31st (it's hard for him to remember for sure). The first runners have not yet reached his post on Beacon Street near Coolidge Corner, so he's letting elderly drivers and one plainclothes officer who flashes his badge to drive through the barricades before the wheelchairs get here.

Traffic is a problem, Riley says, but the event shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone in Massachusetts.

"It's been the same route every year for 112 years," he says. "This is advertised in the local papers and on TV, so it's no secret."

This race is different, Riley said, because it starts at 10 a.m. rather than the traditional noon, a change made thanks to a particularly hot marathon that exhausted so many runners that local hospitals had to set up mobile stations.

Now, the weather is perfect and the sky blue, which may be a boon to runners but a headache for local cops. Revelers get rowdiest when the temperature lets them get out and barbecue. On a day like today, Riley says local college students are likely to get out of control.

"As a cop, you pray for rain," he said.