stefaan engles sets world record with a marathon a day for one year :O

today stephaan engles completed his 365th consecutive marathon when he crossed the finish line of the carretera de les aigues marathon in barcelona, spain, today. according to news accounts it eclipsed the prior record of 52 consecutive marathons set in 2009. there aren't too many details of his accomplishment in the brief cnn new story. it seems unlikely that the marathons were actual "events" - probably 26.2 mile runs each and every day with official races spaced in at weekly intervals?

still, it's an impressive accomplishment - and gives new meaning to regular long runs! to put his mileage in perspective, he ran 9,569 miles in seven countries during his year long event! a few years ago, i ran three consecutive 50ks - which was part of a stretch when i ran 13 marathons and/or ultras in a 12 week span. it was major logistical challenge in addition to the actual physical one of running them week after week.

i really admire engles' perseverance. he compared the daily marathons to a "regular job" - day in, day out. "I am running just as Joe Average goes to work on Monday morning, whether or not he feels like it."

congratulations stefaan engles!