Boston smoocher wants to find the Wellesley man she kissed

[clseale]

Did you guys see this? What a cute story! I can't wait for an update. (Hopefully he's single & this article doesn't get him in trouble.) lol  

www.runnersworld.com/boston-marathon/the-boston-smoocher-wants-to-find-the-wellesley-man-she-kissed?adbid=10152754278561987&adbpl=fb&adbpr=9815486986&cid=social44942986&short_code=2wiuf

Barbara Tatge wants to find the tall, dark, and handsome stranger she locked lips with on the Boston Marathon course. (Photo courtesy of Barbara Tatge.)

As the Boston Marathon tradition goes, the women of Wellesley get all of the kisses.



But one runner—spurred on by a bet with her daughters—decided to reverse the tradition, and she smooched a Wellesley man instead.



Barbara Tatge, 54, from Lakeland, Tennessee, told the MetroWest Daily News she now wants to find her John Doe who yelled, “Call me!” as she turned away to finish the race in 4:15:21.



“I passed the girls at Wellesley and ran another mile and a half,” Tatge said. “I thought I was out of Wellesley, but I spotted a tall, good looking man. And you know how sometimes you speak before you think? Well, I darted over to him.”



She asked what town they were in—he said they were still in Wellesley—and then she revealed the dare she’d been given and that she needed a picture to prove it.



The man obliged, and the person he was spectating with snapped the photos.



“Before I knew it I was kissing him on the lips,” Tatge said. “He kissed me a couple more times. We held it so we made sure we got the pictures.”



Tatge said her daughter initiated the search for the anonymous man as a gift for Tatge's 55th birthday this week.



“I thought it was a joke, but I said, ‘Sure, whatever,’” Tatge said. “So she emailed the paper with one of the pictures.”



Tatge started running five years ago when she turned 50, setting a goal to run a marathon to mark the milestone. She was also newly single after ending a 25-year marriage and was celebrating a year of being in cancer remission.



“Running opened up a whole new social outlet for me,” Tatge said. “All of my friends now are runners, and I volunteer at a runner’s club for troubled teens.”



Last year, she qualified for the Boston Marathon with 14 minutes to spare.



“My goal [for Boston] was not to have a great time clockwise, but a great time experience-wise,” Tatge said. “But my daughters are always looking out for my best interests, and I’m always one to seize adventure.



“I don’t know that when I stepped up to the start line that I would kiss a man, but after I passed the girls at Wellesley, I thought, What the heck? I’ll kiss a guy and show my daughters that if you dare me, I’ll do it. Why not reverse the tradition?”



After the kiss, Tatge, who travels to Boston once a month for work, said she spent the rest of the race kicking herself, wishing she’d gotten his number.



On the plus side, “That stupid kiss gave my shoes wings,” she said.



Now Tatge wants to find her John Doe, who had "such a great smile.



“It would make me happy if he were available,” Tatge said. “But I don’t want to make his life miserable if he’s not.”



And if he’s reading this article, Tatge wants him to get this message: “If you’re single, I regret not getting your number.”

[CallingAllAngels]

This story makes my introverted self very uncomfortable. I hope he's single and she finds him though!

[mrshandy]

Do you really kiss random people on the lips during Boston? That's so odd. How does it work?

[clseale]

Apr 30, 2015 12:47:31 GMT -5 CallingAllAngels said:

This story makes my introverted self very uncomfortable. I hope he's single and she finds him though!

Introverted is not a word I would use to describe myself, and I still wouldn't have done this. Now, if he was standing with all of the Wellesley girls, in the middle of all of the kissing chaos, maybe. But to just walk up to a random person? Probably not. LOL

I did cringe briefly, hoping this wouldn't get him into trouble...but if he's single, what a cute story.  

[clseale]

Apr 30, 2015 12:53:10 GMT -5 mrshandy said:

Do you really kiss random people on the lips during Boston? That's so odd. How does it work?

I don't think they're all on the lips, but it's the Wellesley girls!!

[al320]

I think this is adorable.

Obviously im a little extroverted. Oops.

[shorewife]

Its pretty entertaining to watch all the men make a B-line off the course for kisses from the Wellesley girls.

[chitownbelle]

IF he's single, this is adorable and she is bound to find him because of social media. If he's not, oh boy...have fun explaining that one!
I'd go for a kiss on the cheek or something, but not this.

[pixy0stix]

This is a great way to get lip herpes.

/killjoy.

[chitownbelle]

Apr 30, 2015 15:56:22 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

This is a great way to get lip herpes.

/killjoy.

bahahaha. that is SO TRUE.

[gt7301b]

Apr 30, 2015 12:53:23 GMT -5 clseale said:

Apr 30, 2015 12:47:31 GMT -5 CallingAllAngels said:

This story makes my introverted self very uncomfortable. I hope he's single and she finds him though!

Introverted is not a word I would use to describe myself, and I still wouldn't have done this. Now, if he was standing with all of the Wellesley girls, in the middle of all of the kissing chaos, maybe. But to just walk up to a random person? Probably not. LOL

I did cringe briefly, hoping this wouldn't get him into trouble...but if he's single, what a cute story.  

Well I've kissed my share of random guys (pre-marriage), but alcohol was usually involved.  It would take a lot of day drinking for me to partake, and you know no Mr. GT.

[clseale]

Apr 30, 2015 18:05:20 GMT -5 gt7301b said:

Apr 30, 2015 12:53:23 GMT -5 clseale said:

Introverted is not a word I would use to describe myself, and I still wouldn't have done this. Now, if he was standing with all of the Wellesley girls, in the middle of all of the kissing chaos, maybe. But to just walk up to a random person? Probably not. LOL

I did cringe briefly, hoping this wouldn't get him into trouble...but if he's single, what a cute story.  

Well I've kissed my share of random guys (pre-marriage), but alcohol was usually involved.  It would take a lot of day drinking for me to partake, and you know no Mr. GT.

Haha! Oh, yes. College clseale had no issue kissing randoms. It would be more of the "Oh, hi! So let me talk to you real quick. You see I have this bet & uh, Idk, would you mind if I maybe kissed you??" that would be awkward. If he was just hanging with the Wellesley girls, I would just run up & grab him.

[taratru]

There will be Wellesley kissing in 2016, whether DH is there or not.  I plan to do all things Boston and it's a THING.  

[clseale]

Apr 30, 2015 21:21:47 GMT -5 taratru said:

There will be Wellesley kissing in 2016, whether DH is there or not.  I plan to do all things Boston and it's a THING.  

Oh, definitely!! DH has full permission to do the same when he runs Boston.

[shauni27]

I cringed when I saw it because I am awkward and uncomfortable about shit like that, but if they were both fine with it, then go on with your bad self!

[chitownbelle]

He's married!!! Bahaha

abc7chicago.com/society/wife-behind-mystery-man-in-viral-boston-marathon-kiss-photo-comes-forward/696237/

[clseale]

May 4, 2015 20:27:26 GMT -5 chitownbelle said:

He's married!!! Bahaha

abc7chicago.com/society/wife-behind-mystery-man-in-viral-boston-marathon-kiss-photo-comes-forward/696237/

Yes! Look down the page a bit. We discuss it further. We all seem to have slightly varying opinions. I'm sure that surprises no one, really. LOL