Fountain Park doesn’t look or feel much like the route Boston Marathoners will be taking in October.

But that won’t stop Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church Minister of Music Matthew Frable from participating in the race virtually. This is the second time Frable has run the marathon from afar, the first time was in 2020. He circled the park that year, too, finishing the 26.2-mile race in 3 hours, 47 minutes.

The 125th Boston Marathon takes place Monday, Oct. 11. Frable and some 70,000 virtual runners will participate Saturday, Oct. 9. Frable will run in Fountain Park.

While running virtually doesn’t require qualifying, it does necessitate registering to participate. He will receive a medal for participating.

Since he will be running in Fountain Hills, Frable has arranged to have Extended Hands Food Bank at the park so spectators can donate non-perishable food items.

“Last year we had a fairly good turnout, and we collected food then,” Frable said. “It is kind of a run for charity.”

Frable ran the Boston Marathon in 2018 during one of the worst weather events in the history of the race.

“It was rainy, cold and windy,” he said. “It was miserable. Training now in the Phoenix area is quite a bit different.”

Training in the desert can make it difficult to prepare for marathons. Runners must qualify for runs such as Boston, New York and Chicago, all occurring in the fall. Meaning training for those events in Arizona happens in the hottest time of year in the valley.

Frable said he prefers training early in the day, but in the depth of summer just about any time of day can be uncomfortable.

Frable has run two other marathons, one in North Carolina and the other in Mesa. He has been running about seven years.

He hopes to best his last year’s time and has been running about 45 miles a week. As you build up to the event, Frable said, you increase that to about 55 miles a week.

Frable said he will run on his own, starting about 6 a.m. Oct. 9.

“I am not sure my family will be there for the start,” he said. “But they’ll be there at some point.”

Frable lives in Mesa with his wife. They have three children.