10/12/2026
What a day.
You think 75 degrees and sunny sounds like a beautiful day to run a marathon until you hit mile 22 with a watch that died at mile 9.
All I can say is that this was one of the greatest learning experiences of my entire life.
I went into this race thinking I had a solid pacing strategy. But after my watch died and I reached the halfway point, this thing quickly turned into a dogfight with myself.
The only thought that kept running through my head was to keep moving forward, finish what I started, and somehow keep a smile on my face.
Miles 22 through 26 are no f**king joke.
Next time I approach this distance, I know exactly where I need to improve. More weekly mileage, ideally working toward doubling what I was doing, and a much stronger aerobic foundation.
It also doesn’t help that my short ass is carrying around 200 pounds. Might be time to shed a little weight.
I’m incredibly thankful for this race, this experience, and especially my family and wife, who came out to support me through what was probably the greatest internal battle of my entire life.
I need to let this one marinate before I start thinking about what’s next.
What I do know is that I have an incredible amount of respect for everyone who’s taken on the marathon distance. It’s one thing to talk about it. It’s another thing entirely to experience it.
Now I have that experience to back it up.
4:49 finish. 🏁
