THE BOSTON GLOBE

Passersby hurled beer cans and insults at Neil Weygandt during training runs. In the late 1960s, most people thought he was crazy for wanting to race 26.2 miles. But he liked the challenge and the camaraderie of running marathons. On Monday, Weygandt will run the Boston Marathon for the 44th consecutive year, the longest such streak. Since he started, the marathon has evolved in once-unimaginable ways. Streets cluttered with runners have replaced beer cans as obstacles.