To prepare for the 26.2-mile marathon, she ran 50 to 60 miles per week. Twice a month she would trek up and down the steep hill at Gate's Pass Radio Towers. And she trained with two 20-mile runs in 16 weeks, with her boyfriend driving alongside giving her water every five miles.

Irene Topor, special education professor at the University of Arizona, ran the Boston Marathon for the second time Monday, just four days before her 44th birthday. Her finishing time: 4 hours, 3 minutes.

"Next to none, the Boston Marathon is the best marathon there is," Topor said.

Topor became serious about running in 1988. She was friends with a group of people at the YMCA who enjoyed running together.

"It made it more fun to train," she said. "Runners bond really easily. They know what we've gone through to get to that point."

Topor joined the 38,706 people who entered the race, which is in its 100th year, said a spokeswoman at the Boston Athletic Association Marathon Office. Ninety-three percent of those who ran the race finished.

Topor said that even though she ran the marathon in 1993, this year was beyond what she ever expected.

"So many people are willing to run or walk the distance. It's no easy feat," she said. "The race gets painful toward the end, but it's such a good feeling when you know you've done something difficult. Your self-esteem rises."

Topor said she worried that some difficulties she had in February would set her back for the marathon. She was sick for two weeks and had to go out of town, giving her four less weeks of training time.

"It wasn't enough to set me back. I have never not finished a marathon," she said.

Topor, who works in the Special Education and Rehabilitation Department, preparing teachers to work with the visually impaired, said that although many of her friends are not runners they are interested in her hobby.

"My department is very supportive," she said. "They gave me a party and decorated my door. It really makes a difference."

Heartbreak Hill, at the marathon's 20-mile mark, is considered the most treacherous incline, but Topor said it did not give her any problems.

"Most people are already kind of sore from running so long, but I trained on hills," she said. "My body and legs acclimated to it. Heartbreak Hill was nothing compared to the radio towers."

With the Boston Marathon over, Topor's training continues.

"I'm running America's Finest Half Marathon in San Diego, and I plan to run the Boston Marathon again in the year 2000," she said. "I can't just run two hours a day and be happy. I need a goal. It's a discipline."