Around the World in Seven Days

Here at Pyxl, we encounter plenty of projects that challenge our minds. But with the exception of a few nerf gun wars and scavenger hunts, we rarely test our physical limits. One of our own Pyxlites, however, recently found an extreme way to push his own mental, physical and emotional limits by signing up for, training for and completing the 2018 World Marathon Challenge.

That’s right, on February 5, our very own founder, Brian Winter,  completed the challenge of a lifetime, finishing his seventh marathon in seven days on all seven continents as he crossed the finish line in Miami, Florida.

“The World Marathon Challenge was a challenge beyond anything I could have ever imagined. I originally thought the toughest part of the challenge would be completing a marathon 7 days in a row. I quickly realized the bigger challenge was the unpredictability we faced as we traveled from continent to continent—the lack of sleep, the unknown meals, the massive weather changes and the always-changing start times. I’ve always felt like the best way to get the most out of yourself, and this life, is to put yourself into interesting, uncomfortable and challenging situations. The World Marathon Challenge certainly did that for me.” – Brian Winter

I’m intrigued, tell me more about this race.

By completing the challenge, Brian is now a member of the prestigious 7 Continents Marathon Club™ and Intercontinental Marathon Club.

Here’s how the World Marathon Challenge worked:

• All seven races were the classic marathon distance: 26.2 miles (42.2 kilometers)
• 35 men and 12 women crossed 16 time zones between the start in Antarctica and the finish in Miami
• Competitors traveled nearly 24,000 miles in the air
• Race locations included Novo, Antarctica; Cape Town, South Africa; Perth, Australia; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Lisbon, Portugal; Cartegena, Columbia; Miami, Florida
• In some cases, the runners had less than 14 hours to recover before the next marathon
• Courses varied dramatically, ranging from running on blue ice in Antarctica to European cobblestone streets in Lisbon to concrete seaside boardwalks in Cape Town 
• Temperatures fluctuated wildly, from 5 degrees Fahrenheit in Antarctica to 75 degrees Fahrenheit the next day in South Africa

A long time coming.

Twenty-two years ago, Brian challenged himself to run his first marathon. Since then he has completed over 50 marathons and ultra marathons, including five marathons in five days in five U.S. states, the American River 50-mile trail race, the Javelina Jundred 100-miler and the TransRockies 120-miler (a 6-day stage race gaining over 24,000 feet during the event).

Brian’s training for this race started months prior to the start of the Challenge. He has been pounding the pavement since October with the World Marathon Challenge as his primary focus. At the peak of his training, he logged 120 miles in a single week and racked up a total of 600 miles over the last three months.

What’s next? Brian’s next challenge is to compete in the Triple Crown of 200-mile trail races—the Bigfoot 200 in Washington state, Tahoe 200 in California and Moab 200 in Utah, later this year, “Finding new challenges that push the limits mentally, emotionally and physically, has always been a driving force for me.”

Who’s up to join him on the challenge?

You can follow Brian’s journey across the world at his blog www.bwinter.com or Instagram @brianwwinter.

Updated: Apr 13, 2022