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Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR and PHOTOS BY RENEE DEKONA HOPKINTON If you wanted a choice viewing spot for the start of the 110th running of the Boston Marathon, you had to […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR For those saltwater anglers not tied to their TVs or radios for the Red Sox-Yankees showdown, these next few days are shaping up as a perfect fall […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Autumn officially commenced Thursday, one day later than usual, and it may be a sign that the striped bass season may go a bit longer this year. […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Don't expect this weekend to be as pleasant as last. Ophelia has been mighty slow to make up her mind, but saltwater anglers can expect, at the […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR TRURO - All in all, it's been a delightful stretch of days for saltwater anglers, and the weekend is looking good, too. Just remember to pick and […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Say goodbye to the sogginess that has plagued the region most of the week, courtesy of hurricane Katrina, which thankfully moved north and west of the Hub. […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR There's still almost a month of summer left - fall doesn't officially kick in until Sept. 21 - but the signs are already appearing that could signify […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Midday high tides through the weekend may not be the most advantageous but, on the other hand, it means fishermen could do well on either side of […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Dog days, indeed. The weather has been humid with temperatures hovering in the 80s and low-90s. And the water temps, unfortunately, have risen accordingly, putting bass off […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR After today's scorcher, look for cooler weather to return for the weekend, which should drop the temperature of coastal waters a bit, which may trigger a bit […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR After the midweek bout of heat and humidity, it's nice to be back in a cooler, drier flow of air. Best of all, the fish that had […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Bluefish continue to establish a flourishing presence in these parts, from the inner Boston Harbor area down to the North and South rivers. Blues are feistier than […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Mid-morning highs for the weekend suggest anglers might want to be on the water for the pre-dawn incoming tide. Water will be cooler, too. Larger bass have […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Look for more than 200 anglers from local veterans hospitals to be harassing fish in the waters of Quincy Bay and Boston Harbor next Wednesday. Thanks to […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor Youth sports remain an important community anchor in the city of Boston and in its suburbs. Just look at the number of programs there are for the […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Lucky 7? If Lance Armstrong wins an unprecedented seventh-straight Tour de France - his last, he claims - it won't be luck that gets him there. Rather, […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Cancer survivor. Cycling king. Next up for Lance Armstrong: rocker hubby? For the past year, Armstrong has been living with the pressure of not only being the […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR It's been 75 years since Scottish tea magnate and America's Cup figure Sir Thomas Lipton arrived for a grand tour of the Massachusetts Bay sailing community. Lipton […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Beginning today, we've entered what is considered to be the busiest boating/fishing holiday of the year. And given the wet and stormy early season, there's a tremendous […]

Byline: THOMAS CAYWOOD and MICHAEL O'CONNOR It's no secret the Russian economy has been sucking wind for years, but few economists could have predicted that President Vladimir Putin might resort […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor Shoving off from the dock at the Esplanade, the crew hoists sail and maneuvers past a causeway/breakwater out into the open ocean. OK, it's not the Atlantic […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor Shoving off from the dock at the Esplanade, the crew hoists sail and maneuvers past a causeway/breakwater out into the open ocean. OK, it's not the Atlantic […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Fittingly for the first official weekend of summer, the heat and humidity have returned. The higher temperatures, especially today and tomorrow (which could see 90-plus) should continue […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR GREENVILLE, Maine - The North Woods have been a recreational playground for Massachusetts outdoors enthusiasts since Maine was still part of the Bay State back in Colonial […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR He's been a Red Sox fan for most of his 43 years, so imagine how excited Brad Faxon was to be at Fenway Park yesterday, lashing liners […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor For the majority of Eastern Massachusetts outdoors enthusiasts, the thinking is there is little to explore or enjoy in the wide swath of the commonwealth between the […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Summer officially begins Tuesday, but for any angler worth their waders, the fishing season began as soon as the ice thawed. OK, it was mostly the hard-core […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Our coastal anglers tend to concentrate on striped bass and bluefish, the BMOC of saltwater prey in these parts. And with good reason. Stripers and blues are […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor Tom Brady arrived in Foxboro the same year his head coach did and thus is one of the few Patriots who've been around since the Bill Belichick […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor Richard Seymour attended the Pats' charity golf event yesterday at the Belmont Country Club, but the defensive end still wouldn't address his holdout. "Like I said (Sunday), […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor The sailboat came heeling up the inner harbor with a bone in its teeth, the big sloop looking good, as hot and heavy as the southwest wind […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR The Great Red Tide Attack of 2005 has shut beds and flats from Maine to Martha's Vineyard, with both shellfishermen and state fisheries officials aware that concentrated […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Can this really be another of those years when we jump right from winter into summer? Given this week's mid-July temperatures, it may be hard to remember […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor Don't just pick up your ball and go home. Work out your problems. That's the advice the Brookline-Jamaica Plain Pop Warner program has for its cousins in […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor The Eastern Massachusetts river, which meanders through the suburbs and into Boston and its harbor, was polluted for generations, dammed up, mistreated and ignored. Eventually, a public-spirited […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Fishing and kids are a pretty good match. At least that's what John Hoffman preaches at The Fishing Academy, his Brighton-based group that links angling, education and […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor Climb up to the widow's walk and aim your telescope across Massachusetts Bay at the eastern horizon: Soon enough you see the billowing spinnakers of the Global […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor Looking to hit the trail - hard? Here's a selection of primo destinations for offroad pedalers with a penchant for defying gravity. Comments by elite downhiller Karen […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor Shin guards? Check. Knee protectors? Check. Elbow and forearm pads? Check. Impact gloves? Full-face helmet, including jaw guard? Check and double-check. OK, let's go for a bike […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor Don't be surprised if you see more people on your favorite walk next weekend, be it suburban footpath, state park guided hike, or White Mountains backcountry journey. […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR NORTHBORO -- For Alex Latzka, wading knee-deep in the Assabet River the other day was a two-fer: he could participate in his environmental science class and bring […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Attention anglers: It's stocking fish by truck, not fish-truck STALKING. The Massachusetts Division of Fisheries & Wildlife conducts one of the most ambitious stocking programs in the […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Tyler Hamilton has climbed some cruel hills in his journey from Marblehead to the Tour de France and Mount Olympus, but the suspended cyclist now faces his […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor It may look like a dusty, dilapidated wasteland beneath a highway and next to a railroad track, but all Noah Stockman asks is that you look to […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR We're less than six weeks from the official start of summer, and the kids have been clamoring to get outside with their little friends. Suddenly, for some […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor Those tankers rolling along the Commonwealth's back roads aren't only oil trucks and transports carrying strange chemicals. Some of them are full of fish - trout and […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor The local mountain biking community is one of the most dedicated when it comes to maintaining and protecting trails. That zeal stems from lingering mistrust of the […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Stonehill won the Division 2 national title in 2003, and last year lost only three games. But that trio of setbacks was enough to keep the Chieftains' […]

Byline: Michael O'Connor For a winner, Keith Foulke looked pretty lost in the wake of the Red Sox' 6-5 victory over Oakland yesterday. Foulke got the improbable win, thanks to […]

Byline: MICHAEL O'CONNOR Tonight the slick Celtics take on the prickly Pacers in a Game 7 showdown and the question is: bloodbath or bubble bath? "We showed we can win […]