Marathons.....They're The Coolest Place To Be!!

Whenever I am en route to the start line of a race, I go there with a sense of cautious excitement. Excited that I may see some fellow celebrities running with me but cautious that I will be spotted by some fans who will end up becoming encumbrances to my racing performance. You may be a tad confused and be thinking "Celebrities running a race? That's only in the movies!" Well, dear readers, in all due respect, the myth of the celebrity running a marathon has become a reality! No longer am I surprised to hear that a few celebrities participated in the New York, Boston, Los Angeles or Chicago Marathons (or for that matter, any marathon). With the Disney World Marathon only 4 days away and my curiosity about which fellow celebrities may turn out for the race ever increasing, I thought it might be helpful and interesting to point out some of those celebrities, athletes (in non-running sports) and even politicians who have also tackled a 26.2 mile race (for a more exhaustive list of famous persons to have completed a marathon, check out this article, but note however, that the article does not include Mr. Petes and hopefully will soon be updated).

Celebrities.

* Mario Lopez. Both as his character, Slater, in Saved By The Bell and in real life, much has been made of Mario Lopez's wash board abs and healthy lifestyle. It therefore is odd that Lopez finished the 2002 Boston Marathon in a whopping 5:41:41. Maybe Lopez was still too distraught at having seen his buddy Schreech's adult home video.

* Will Ferrell. I must admit that this one came as a surprise to me. Known for his hilarious antics in movies like Old School and Taladega Nights and for his flabby, hairy physique, Will Ferrell completed the 1993 Boston Marathon in a very respectable 3:56:12 (1 hour and 46 minutin faster than Mario Lopez). While Old School wouldn't be produced for many years, it is clear from his picture that Ferrell was certainly already dressing for the part way back in 1993.

* Peter Weller. While I have no doubt that Robocop could have been programmed to compete in a marathon and would have had no problem shooting his way to victory, Peter Weller's completion of the 1988 New York Marathon in 3:51:26 (1 hour and 50 minutin faster than Mario Lopez) was anything but a given. Good going, Murphy!!!

* Katie Holmes. No matter whether she was running towards New York's Central Park or simply away from her crazy husband, Thomas Cruise, Katie Holmes completed the 2007 New York City Marathon in 5:29:58 (12 minutin faster than Mario Lopez) giving her not only a sense of great accomplishment but also a great excuse why she couldn't attend Scientology mass that day.

* Oprah Winfrey. I heard a rumor that before finishing the
1994 Marine Corps Marathon in 4:29:20 (1 hour and 12 minutin faster than Mario Lopez), Oprah Winfrey conducted her talk show at mile 18. Leaving those spectators with tears in their eyes because of the levity of whatever subject they were discussing, Oprah then proceeded to read her book-of-the-month between miles 19 and 25*.

Other Notables: Sean "P. Diddy" Combs: 2002 New York City Marathon (4:14:54, 1 hour and 27 minutin faster than Mario Lopez); William Baldwin: 1992 New York City Marathon (3:24:29, 2 hours and 13 minutin faster than Mario Lopez); Anthony Edwards (ER): 2003 Chicago Marathon (3:55:40, 1 hour and 46 minutin faster than Mario Lopez); Freddie Prinze, Jr.: 2006 Los Angeles Marathon (5:50:49, a whole 9 minutin SLOWER than Mario Lopez!); Ryan Reynolds: 2008 New York City Marathon (3:50:00, 1 hour and 51 minutin faster than Mario Lopez).

Athletes.

* Lance Armstrong. Trading in a bike for running shoes, in 2006 Lance Armstrong still put on an incredible performance and finished the first of his two New York City Marathons in a ridiculous time of 2:59:36 (2 hours and 42 minutin faster than Mario Lopez). I have nothing else to add as I am still in awe of Armstrong's finishing times.

Other Notables: Kerri Strug (U.S. gymnast): 1999 Houston Marathon (4:12:06, 1 hour and 29 minutin faster than Mario Lopez); Lynn Swann: 1993 New York City Marathon (4:26:21, 1 hour and 15 minutin faster than Mario Lopez); Pat Tillman: 2000 Avenue of the Giants Marathon (3:48, 1 hour and 53 minutin faster than Mario Lopez).

Politicians.

* George W. Bush. While he may go down in history as the worst U.S. President ever, at least President Bush can go to sleep at night knowing that he finished the 1993 Houston Marathon in a very respectable 3:44:52 (1 hour and 57 minutin faster than Mario Lopez). Knowing how my mind tends towards the crazy during the last few miles of any marathon, I sure am happy President Bush was not president when he ran the Houston Marathon. I can only imagine how many wars he would have started upon crossing the finish line!

* Al Gore. Over the (running) course of the 4:58:25 (43 minutin faster than Mario Lopez) that it took him to complete the 1997 Marine Corps Marathon, Al Gore could be heard preaching to spectators at miles 5,10,15 and 20 about the virtues of the electric car and the impending problems associated with the melting of ice caps.

* Sarah Palin. While she may not know a single Supreme Court holding or read a single news publication, at least Sarah Palin did not get lost during the 2005 Humpy's Marathon which she finished in a respectable 3:59:36 (1 hour and 42 minutin faster than Mario Lopez; her finishing time also placed her 63rd out of 203 runners). It still remains unclear whether Palin's daughter's boyfriend will not only be forced to marry Palin's daughter but also to compete in his own marathon.

Other Notables: Mike Huckabee: 2005 Little Rock Marathon (4:39:04, 1 hour and 2 minutin faster than Mario Lopez); Michael Dukakis: 1951 Boston Marathon (3:31:00, 2 hours and 10 minutin faster than Mario Lopez); John Edwards: 1983 Marine Corps Marathon (3:30:18, 2 hours and 11 minutin faster than Mario Lopez).

I have no doubt that I have missed other famous marathoners and would ask you, dear readers, to please let me know who should be mentioned, which marathon they participated in and what their finishing time was. It is my goal to have a running (pun intended) dialogue about the increasing number of celebrities trying to be us!!



* Note to readers: None of these statements have been verified and thus cannot be said to be true.