29 Miles Joggling - David Rush for STEM

I ran my first ultramarathon. I did it while juggling. I also had a couple extra rules that made it a little more difficult.

1) If I drop a ball, the attempt is over (no pressure)

2) No stopping allowed or the attempt is over (don’t get a cramp)

3) The support crew cannot help with anything (make sure your shoes are tied well)

4) You are not allowed to be given food or water by an assistant, even if you’re still moving and juggling (have to take it with you!)

It was a pleasantly cool October morning with clouds in the sky when I took off at 9:35 AM. I ran a little too fast 9:03 first mile but then hovered around just under 10-minute miles until I broke the record 2 hours 32 minutes and 15.5 miles later. I wanted to run slow since I was going for distance instead of time which is why I was nearly 30 minutes slower at the half marathon than my juggling half best, and the marathon was over 50 minutes slower than my first (and only) marathon (also juggling, and over 5 years ago).

I had a couple of near drops at about 10 miles that would have cost me a shot at the record but was able to recover. After that, I didn’t have many issues. About 4 hours in, it did start raining with some wind gusts which didn’t make it pleasant on the witnesses, but it helped keep me cool. It made the juggling balls a little sticky, but nothing that would seriously hinder me.

I didn’t have any issues (other than slowing down) until I dropped a ball 116 laps + 300 meters after 5 hours 21 minutes and 23 seconds of continuous juggling and running.

The Camelback ironically is what slows me down the most. Without it, I run a good 1-1:30 minutes per mile faster. But with it, I have to keep my bouncing down so my cadence has to be slower and smoother. But without it, I don’t know that I could have gone more than 20 miles with no access to water, calories, or electrolytes. As it was, I drank a little over 2 liters of a mix of Gatorade, G2, and electrolytes.

By the numbers:

Laps run: 116.75

Miles run: 29

Throws: 60,000

Catches: 59,999

Ball weight: 135g

Total weight thrown: >17,000 lbs

Average mile pace: 11 minutes 9 seconds