BOSTON MARATHON DISCOURAGES BANDITRY.

Byline: Glen Johnson Associated Press 

``Al'' has run the Boston Marathon before and nothing is going to keep him from running again this year, the 100th anniversary of the famous road race.

``This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,'' said the North Shore resident, who did not want his real name used.

Al, you see, is not supposed to be there. Like an unknown number of people who will show up, he doesn't have an official number.

Instead, Al is preparing to run unofficially as a ``bandit.'' While that has been tolerated in the past, this year it's taboo.

With a field of 38,500 expected, organizers say gate-crashers threaten the safety and efficiency of the race for the official entrants.

Roads in Hopkinton, where the marathon begins, already will be so overloaded with more than triple the usual number of runners that it will take at least 45 minutes for everyone to cross the starting line.

Organizers also expect the 26-mile, 385-yard course to take so much out of an expanded number of first-time runners that they have greatly enlarged the medical areas at the finish line.

``Because they're not officially entered, I don't know who's going to arrive when,'' said race starter Dave McGillivray. ``The rest of it is a well-thought-out event for 38,000 people.''

The 100th marathon has proved to be a lure for both veteran runners and novices. The course is considered one of the most picturesque in marathoning, and past participants invariably talk about the huge and adoring crowd that lines the hilly way on race day.

The Boston Athletic Association, which organizes the race, recognized the popularity of this year's event, so it decided to accommodate as many extra runners as it could. Normally about 9,000 qualifiers and 3,000 bandits compete.

First, the BAA lengthened the period for qualifying for the race from one year to 15 months.

Then it held three lotteries for official numbers, recognizing that the qualifying times are difficult for all but serious runners. Men between the ages of 18 and 34, for example, have to run a marathon in less than 3 hours, 10 minutes to qualify. Lottery participants merely had to pay a $50 entry fee.

The BAA, however, ran into trouble with the lottery system after an unexpectedly large number of people ran qualifying times. That meant organizers could raffle off only 5,000 slots, if they wanted to keep the field to a calculated maximum of 40,000 - the most they feel they can safely start.

Those circumstances left Al, who was unable to again run a qualifying time, and other would-be racers feeling left out. And that's prompted some to consider running unofficially.

Some expected bandits are out-of-towners who made airline and hotel reservations for the weekend of the race before they were notified that they failed in the lotteries.

Others figure that, since they began their training before the lotteries were over, they might as well forge ahead and run.

One local writer and runner, Don Allison, recently suggested an alternative for both groups.

``Why not come to town anyway?'' he asked in an article being distributed by the BAA. ``The entire marathon week will be a festive celebration of running. Participating in the ancillary events can be a lot of fun, too.''

While the BAA has no plans to throw bandits out of this year's race, it has been trying to discourage them.

``We're not so naive as to think that no one is going to show up,'' said race director Guy Morse III. ``I think it's going to be very limiting just in terms of traffic or geographic issues.''

The BAA is restricting access to Hopkinton and the starting line. Roads to the area will be shut down at 6:30 a.m. on race day, April 15, and runners will be herded into corrals limited to those with official numbers.

It also is encouraging official entrants to discourage bandits from running.

One, David Wright of East Longmeadow, wrote a letter that was published in a special marathon edition of Runner's World.

``Like most of the people who will line up in Hopkinton on April 15, I went through the grueling process of qualifying,'' he wrote. ``If you do not have an official number for the '96 Boston Marathon, please let this day be ours.''