Welcome to our series – Multiple Marathon Monday. This series is intended to help the current and potential runners interesting in running multiple marathons out there in the planning and traveling of your series of marathons. Thanks for reading and good luck!
Multiple Marathon Monday – Michael Wardian
If you have raced one of the many marathons in the US or read marathon racing news, then you have most likely read or heard about Michael Wardian. He is one of the most amazing runners that I have met or read about it. I thought for today’s Multiple Marathon Monday, I would write about of the supreme Mega Marathoner – Michael Wardian!
Michael Wardian
There are many amazing things about Michael. One of the most impressive things to me is that he is not a “professional” runner in the sense of being paid as a full-time runner. He has a regular full-time job and does his training and running on the side. He has had some incredible performances for a full-time, professional runner – that he has turned out these times and events while holding down a non-running, full-time job makes it it even more outstanding and incredible.
From mikewardian.com
I have had the privilege of running in a few of the races he has run (and won, in some cases) – though I was a good distance behind him! Two of those races were the early editions of the National Marathon in Washington DC. Another was one of the North Face 50 mile events. He has run events from short distances all the way up to 100 milers and multi-stage races. His marathon times place him as an elite runner and as a winner in many of the large marathons around the US. Some of the things that set him apart from his running colleagues is the fact that some of those wins have taken place on back-to-back days and he runs ultras. It is rare to find someone who has such tremendous times in 100 milers who runs elite times in the marathon and vice versa. He is a runner that runs for the love and joy of running and does a ultra-human performance while doing so.
Career Highlights
- First marathon – Marine Corps Marathon in 1996 – 3:08
- 5K PR – 14:55
- 10K PR – 30:55
- 10 Mile PR – 51:25
- Half-Marathon PR – 1:06:30
- Marathon PR – 2:17:49
- 50 Mile PR – 5:21 (50 mile split during the 2010 Comrades Marathon)
- 100KM PR – 6:53:17
- 100 Mile PR – 15:34
- Back-to-back Marathon Examples – Hartford Marathon (2:22:18) and Mount Desert Island Marathon the next day (2:32:36); 2:21 marathon followed by a 3:02 50K the next day
- 1st Place Winner at the National Marathon (5-time winner)
- 3rd place finish at Marathon des Sables (Morrocan Desert stage race) – 23:01:09 – fastest time every by an American
- 3rd place finish Badwater 135 (26:22:01)
- Former record holder for fastest marathon while pushing a jogging stroller – 2:42:21 (he lowered that in the same marathon where the new record was set – his time in that race was 2:34:37)
- Former record holder for a treadmill marathon – 2:23:58
- Won the US National 100K Championship in 2008 with a time of 6:56:57 and raced the Boston Marathon a week later with a time of 2:28:35
- Here are more of his race results
As you can tell, those are some tremendous running accomplishments. That he has done all of that while working a full-time job as a International Shipbroker and as a devoted husband and father of two makes it all the more amazing. His Marathon Maniac exploits certainly are something to be admired. I remember at the first National Marathon (which I was in as well), he won the race but had to leave before the awards ceremony to fly to Knoxville for the Knoxville marathon the next morning where he placed 3rd! The running is hard enough, but then you think about the logistics and travel involved in all of his races as well and that just raises it even more to the unbelievable! Great job, Michael! You are an amazing runner!
