This month, I got a fresh reminder that humans are absolutely insane – in the best way possible.
It’s refreshing to say that, because for what seems like a decade, it feels like every other headline would just stop at the word “insane.”
But on April 20, I had the honor of running the Boston Marathon for the second time – and I got a healthy serving of humble pie from athletes who are, quite frankly, on another planet.
Let’s start with Boston’s 2026 winner, John Korir. On a 40-degree day with ideal racing conditions, Korir absolutely smashed the Boston course record, going 70 seconds faster than any athlete before him to break the tape in 2:01:52. I’ll save you the calculator; that’s a pace of 4:39 per mile. If we ran a race, the guy would lose me in, no exaggeration, less than half a lap on the track – and that’s if I was having a good day.
Even crazier: On a course that features almost exclusively downhill running for its first half before transitioning to brutal hills in miles 16-21, he negative-split the race. As in, he ran FASTER over the punishing second half – by nearly two full minutes.
Two days earlier, as I was picking up my registration and race number, the Boston Marathon Expo treated visitors to another ridiculous feat.
Having already set the women’s 100-mile world record two months earlier, 44-year-old Ashley Paulson set up a treadmill in the middle of the expo and proceeded to demolish the women’s 100-mile treadmill record. She started running at 3:46 a.m. and continued throughout the entire expo, chatting with guests as she maintained a 7:40 pace and finished in 12 hours, 47 minutes and 10 seconds.
The previous record was nearly 90 minutes longer.
Not to be outdone, the London Marathon on April 26 sent even more records through the shredder. For the first time in an official marathon, not one, but TWO athletes broke the two-hour barrier, with Sabastian Sawe averaging an absurd 4:33 per mile to finish in 1:59:30 and Yomif Kejelcha crossing second in 1:59:41.
These accomplishments are incredible, and 10, 20, 30 years from now, I’ll be thrilled to say I remember watching them happen. But you know what’s even cooler to see?
Headlines and social media feeds that are now full of clips showing off the very best side of humanity, instead of the latest doom-and-gloom apocalypse-adjacent incident. Yeah, I’m aware this is because my phone is listening to me, watching my recent searches and tailoring my every interaction online. Right now, whatever – I don’t care.
Take, for instance, a runner who injured her leg around mile 25 of the marathon, but absolutely refused to drop out. Instead, she crawled on her backside, using one foot and her hands – FOR A MILE – to turn the corner on Boylston Street and follow an electrified crowd to the finish.
I saw plenty of famous faces take on the famed 26.2-mile course, from former Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara to Chelsea Clinton and formerly-stranded astronaut Sunita Williams.
Finally, I saw the story of Aaron Beggs of Northern Ireland and Robson de Olivera of Brazil, who teamed up and put aside dreams of their own personal-best times to help fellow racer Ajay Haridasse, a Northeastern University student (go Huskies!) who’d just collapsed, through the last 1,000 feet of the race.
Take it from a guy whose job is to report the news each week. THESE are the stories this world needs. And I’m so glad they’re back on my phone.
