soldiers participating in something called the tough ruck 2013 started monday's boston marathon before the other runners. they ran in full combat gear carrying 40-pound military backpacks to honor comrades killed in iraq and afghanistan. they immediately sprang into action, aiding victims, pulling off debris, assisting medics, and saving lives. one of the men was carlos arredondo. mr. arredondo became an antiwar activist after his son was killed in iraq. during the chaos, he, too, sprang into action and helped save the life of another man's son captured in this amazing photo. their story is among the most viewed and e-mailed on the "new york times" website. the second awesomest thing came from our twitter fan, skylar hill. a growing group of online organizers are showing support for the people of boston through the act of running. thousands of people have logged into this google dock sharing how many miles they ran and why.