Marathon fans can keep track of their favorite runners in this year's Boston Marathon through text alerts on their AT&T phone.

With the AT&T Athlete Alert Program, folks across the US can receive updates on friends, family members or any other of the 26,000 registered runners participating in the April 20th event. Consumers who text RUNNER to 41234 or sign up at www.baa.org will receive updates on their runners at the 10K, half-marathon and 30K marks as well as at the finish line.

[Image courtesy of Boston Athletic Association]