2015 for "John The Typical Marine"

John The Typical Marine likes to have a new challenge every year. For 2015, he ran the 40th Marine Corps Marathon while barefoot and juggling.

Just before he started the race, he is interviewed by Comcast SportsNet (CSN).

25 OCT 2015, anchor Jill Sorenson of the Comcast SportsNet (CSN) interviews John The Typical Marine. John also recorded the interview with his chest mounted camera, as shown below. The other runner he addresses is Gabriela, a "witness" runner, who intended to help prove this unique event.

An Accelerated Video of the Race

On 25 OCT 2015, John The Typical Marine ran the 40th Marine Corps Marathon while barefoot and juggling. This is a compressed video of the first 22 miles, until the batteries ran out for the 3rd time.

My finish was captured by CSN

Since my camera batteries ran out, check out my finish with the below Comcast SportsNet video. Along with tender feet, my legs were unusually sore due to odd strides while juggling and running barefoot though enormous crowds. Note: My race time was about 13 minutes faster than the clock time since I crossed the starting line later.

My Marathon finish by CSN (at 5 minute mark)

Race Details

On Sunday, 25 OCT 2015, I attempted to set a Guinness World Record by running the 26.2 mile Marine Corps Marathon (MCM) in a special way. The race started in Northern Virginia near the Pentagon, wound through the scenic District of Columbia past many monuments along the National Mall, and then ended back in Northern Virginia.

The marathon was SUCCESSFULLY run (bib # 15593) in an unusual way as I ran it barefoot while juggling three objects during the entire race. Guinness has a page noting this world record attempt at: Fastest Barefoot Marathon Joggling

Lessons Learned:
1. I ran it too slow to qualify for the Guinness World Record as their Benchmark minimum time for all new marathon records is 5 hours, but my time was 6 hours 5 minutes. In 2010, I ran the same marathon in bare feet (WITHOUT juggling) in 3 hours 55 minutes so expected better.
2. My first approach to provide evidence of the event was to have 3 witness runners to run alongside, however we got separated and I ended the race solo.
3. The second (backup) approach was to record video of the event with a GoPro. However, its batteries ran out faster than calculated by its online charts. So I had to stop several times, disassemble it, and replace many batteries and memory cards, adding 1/2 hour.
4. Hard to avoid, but it was drizzling rain most of the marathon. This caused softened soles of the feet, soggy juggling bags, and darkness that hampered juggling, adding another 1/2 hour.
5. Hard to avoid, but I did pick up a rare cold just before the event from my adorable 4-yr-old son, adding another 1/2 hour or more.

I intend to repeat this event, learning from the above lessons, in order to qualify for the official record.

This event was done for the charity Marine Reconnaissance Foundation (MRF). See my page on MRF at: Marathon while barefoot & juggling