In weather unfit for man, beast or Manny Ramirez, a hardy contingent of runners from sunny Hawai'i braved wind and rain to complete yesterday's 111th Boston Marathon.

"Abysmal," said 45-year-old Eric Sanders of Honolulu. "Horrible."

Sanders was referring to his own uncharacteristically poor performance in the race — "poor" of course being a highly relative term for Boston qualifiers — but he could just have easily been talking about the wet, bone-chilling conditions that prompted the traditional Patriot's Day Red Sox game to be delayed by two hours.

According to the Boston Marathon Web site, 42 of the 50 Hawai'i runners expected to compete completed the race, led by Lyman Perry, 40, of Volcano, who finished the challenging 26.2-mile course in two hours, 54 minutes and 36 seconds.

Also breaking the 3-hour mark was Eric Neilsen, 41, of Kailua, Kona, who recorded a time of 2:56:08.

Rani Tanimoto, 31, of Kealakekua, was the first female finisher from Hawai'i, crossing the finish line at 3:09:51.

Also, two-time Honolulu Marathon wheelchair division winner Masazumi Soejima of Japan denied Ernst Van Dyk a record-tying seventh consecutive title in Boston. Soejima, 36, took the lead in Mile 4 and never looked back en route to a 1:29:16 finish.

The rains largely subsided by the time the race got underway in suburban Hopkinton, but the temperature, about 46 degrees at the start, dipped as the day went on.

"The rain was the worst (Sunday) night and the roads were all wet when we started," Sanders said. "It was really, really windy. It just seemed like conditions got colder and colder."

Having tracked weather conditions in Boston a week in advance, Sanders knew he was in for chilly weather and he prepared as best he could.

"I wore every stitch of clothing I own," he said, laughing.

Sanders' race attire yesterday included two hats, a long-sleeve running shirt, two jackets, running tights and sweat pants.

"I worked up a sweat early on, but by the time I got to the finish, it wasn't enough," he said.

Sanders ran much of the race with Carlos Fuentes, a 53-year-old marathoner from Waikoloa. Sanders said both he and Fuentes suffered cramps and blisters.

"By mile 10 it felt like I had already run 18 miles," said Sanders, who finished a half-hour off of his usual pace at 4:10:03. "I walked most of the last 5K. It was just a bad day."

Sanders didn't blame the weather for his personally disappointing performance. He did concede that he may have been worn down running his third marathon in six months.

Sanders qualified for Boston by finishing well at the Chicago Marathon in October. He also ran the Honolulu Marathon in December.

Despite everything, Sanders said his first Boston Marathon was an enjoyable overall experience.

"The crowds were awesome," he said. "It's just an awesome race. I have no complaints."

Reach Michael Tsai at mtsai@honoluluadvertiser.com.