PARTNERSHIP IS ‘TRANSFORMATIVE’
Vision-impaired runners get boost from app in time for Boston Marathon
Erich Manser of Littleton sees the world as though he’s looking through the tiny hole of a drinking straw — a progressive genetic condition that has left him nearly blind. But this year, he’ll complete the Boston Marathon with the help of a remote set of human eyes, thanks to a smartphone app that will be free in Boston April 9-17.
“The Boston Marathon is unique in that it’s such a large field, and there’s a crowd of supporters and spectators. It’s a uniquely challenging race,” said Manser, 45, who holds the blind Ironman record. “In terms of a marathon setting, something like this is transformative.”
The city is partnering with California-based tech company Aira, which makes an app that connects users with agents who — through smartglasses or a smartphone camera — sees and vividly describes the person’s surroundings.
It typically works like a cellphone plan, providing 100 minutes for $89. But during the frenetic marathon week, it will allow people who are blind or with low vision to navigate the city more easily.
Manser, who suffers from a condition called retinitis pigmentosa, ran about 10 marathons by trailing closely behind other runners who had no idea they were guiding him. He began using a designated guide, who will also be with him this year, but he said the app will bring additional direction and color to his 18th marathon. His Aira agent will be an experienced runner named Jessica, based in Ohio.
“My approach has been to get off to the periphery while running with a guide. You’ve got company the entire way and spectators lining the course, and a water stop every mile on both sides of the road,” Manser said. “The guide might be focused ahead and strategizing the best way to pass a group, but I’ll still able to have Jessica in my ear saying ‘You’ve got a runner drifting into your path on the right.’ ”
Perkins School for the Blind in Watertown provides the app for free on its campus. People use it to help with tasks ranging from assembling Ikea furniture to reading bedtime stories to their children, said Kevin Phelan, Aira’s vice president of sales and marketing.
“We think like a set of eyes rather than a brain. It’s instant access to information,” Phelan said. “The marathon is one of those special days for people in Boston. It’ll allow for independence and mobility, and experiencing the marathon on their terms.”
Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh’s office of New Urban Mechanics will collect user metrics from Aira to measure how widely used the app will be, informing decisions about potential future partnerships, said the city’s Disability Commissioner Kristen McCosh.
“We continually look for ways to increase accessibility,” McCosh said. “We’ll definitely be studying it to see what the next steps are.”