Next Race: To The Altar Love Stands Out In Crowd At Bloomsday

Patrick Tabak has a message for the masses who plodded up Doomsday Hill:

Becky said yes.

Tabak gathered a crowd throughout the race as he sat, perched on a camp stool, clutching a single red rose and searching the passing crowd for the woman he’s known for seven years and dated for two. His feet dug nervously into the loose gravel.

Painted in red, green and blue on a white painter’s cloth the size of a bed sheet, the sign staked to the hillside read, “I Love You, Becky McKimmey. Will you Marry Me?”

Other women were ready to step in had McKimmey said no. Tabak was greeted with applause, hoots and catcalls during his two-hour wait.

“That would be so awesome,” one teenage girl said.

As the runners gave way to walkers, Tabak spotted a pink cap among the Bloomies.

“That’s her, it’s her, there she is!” he shouted, drawing a crowd.

After a few seconds, he sank back on the camp stool.

“No, wait. False alarm,” he said.

“I can’t believe you did that to me,” said a kid, stomping his foot and merging back into the Bloomies.

Another crowd gathered 15 minutes later, when McKimmey ran from the throng, threw her arms around Tabak and opened the small, black-velvet box he handed her.

“Did she say yes? Did she say yes?” asked a beaming retiree who was watching the race near Tabak.

“Hey, everybody!” the stranger yelled, waving his arms madly. “She said yes!”

Tabak then joined his fiancee for the rest of the trek to the finish line, promising to return for the sign.

“I’m not a litterer, I’m a lover,” he declared.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo