She had the running gear, the appropriate training and a qualifying time to enter the Boston, the nation's premier marathon.

But Teri Price said it was a bracelet - and the spirit of a fallen hero - that helped her race to a personal best Monday morning.

Price and training partner Michele d'Hemecourt were among more than 26,000 athletes to start the 26.2-mile race in downtown Boston, but likely the only two to be running in honor of Kristine Fairbanks.

"It was awesome - what an experience," Price said. The 46-year-old came in with a 3:51:33 finish, a personal best and in the top 500 in her division.

The 28-year-old d'Heme-court finished in 3:32:44, an 8:07-per-mile pace, good for the top 1,600 of all women athletes entered.

Price said she got a call from Fairbanks' husband the day before, providing a great mental boost.

The pair are continuing a fundraiser for the Washington Chapter of Concerns of Police Survivors, an organization that helps surviving family members of killed law enforcement officers rebuild their lives.

The two are accepting donations through a Web site (www.krisfairbanks.org) through May 1.

Price said she hopes to be able to give a check to Eugene Secor, president of the Washington Chapter of Concerns of Police Survivors, at the Medal of Honor and Peace Officers Memorial Combined Ceremony in Olympia on May 8.

Fairbanks was killed Sept. 20, 2008, near the Dungeness Forks Campground when she confronted a man, later identified as 36-year-old Shawn M. Roe of Everett. After he shot and killed county resident Richard Ziegler, Roe fired at Clallam County Sheriff's deputies, who returned fire and killed the Everett man.