Marathon yesterday, setting a personal best time of two hours, 49 minutes and 26 seconds.

Eaton, who just over a year ago suffered a serious soccer injury which kept him off the road for several weeks, was one of only two Island runners to crack the three hour barrier.

The other was Coral Beach waiter Luc Laurent, who had only arrived in Boston on Sunday evening having been kept busy by last week's XL Capital Bermuda Open tennis tournament.

Laurent finished in 2:59:36, some way off his best of 2:45 which he ran in Nice, France, ten years ago.

Thirty-year-old Eaton took almost eight minutes off his previous best, run in Bermuda in January.

"I am going to take a rest until this time next year when I'll do Rotterdam or London,'' he said after the race. "It's too hard on your body.'' Front Street Mile champion David Dunwoody, who ran 2:48:53 in his only previous marathon in New York last November, had been expected to lead the Bermuda contingent and was on course for a good time when he went through the half-way mark in 1:18:02.

But he eventually finished in 3:04:01.

Also failing to break three hours was Cal Steede, who just two weeks ago clocked 2:52:35 in Paris and had been hoping to duck under 2:50 yesterday. He finished in 3:19:04.

Leading Bermuda's six women was triathlete Tanis Browning-Shelp who crossed the line in 3:38:08, seven minutes ahead of close friend Rose Jones who clocked 3:45:58.

Among those who failed to finish was Mid Ocean News running columnist Joe Pagnam who had been documenting his training schedule in his weekly articles.

Pagnam said he was among many in the field of 12,700 who suffered on an unseasonally warm day, and he eventually pulled out at 21 miles.

"I felt great until 15 miles then I had to walk/jog until Heartbreak Hill.

After that hill my legs were shot and I was dehydrated,'' he said last night.

Glennis Butterfield also pulled out and it's understood Roddy Bassett suffered the same fate.

On Sunday, Bermuda residents Neil Redburn and Sheryl Richardson finished the London Marathon in 4:29 and 4:39 respectively.

Bermuda's Boston finishers, with finishing time and half-way time in parentheses, were as follows: Chris Eaton 2:49:26 (1:23:08) Luc Laurent 2:59:36 (1:21:42) David Dunwoody 3:04:01 (1:18:02) Cal Steede 3:19:04 (1:22:33) Vernon Tankard 3:32:03 (1:34:26) Guy Kelly 3:34:07 (1:46:50) Andy Shelp 3:36:08 (1:37:33) Tanis Browning Shelp 3:38:08 (1:45:03) Brian Peck 3:42:06 (1:51:04) Rosemary Jones 3:45:58 (1:46:43) Rhianon Pedro 3:48:55 (1:53:16) Eddie Benjamin 4:03:23 (1:54:32) Donna Pagnam 4:08:12 (2:01:18) Dorothy Gilchrist 4:14:16 (2:01:51) Ed Gomez 4:23:11 (1:53:16) Katie Durkin 4:44:05 (2:17:23) DNF -- Joe Pagnam; Glennis Butterfield; Roddy Bassett.

Full race report, see Page 24.