A little rain and chilly temperatures didn’t keep athletes off the streets of Pittsburgh on Sunday for the 11th Dick’s Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon, including the three competitors the Tribune-Review caught up with ahead of the race.
Here’s how they fared:
A pierogi’s world record attempt
Amanda Webb, 39, of Shaler, ran the Pittsburgh Marathon dressed as a pierogi in an attempt to set the Guinness Book of World Records title for the fastest woman to run a marathon dressed as an ethnic entree. She finished the race in 4 hours, 5 minutes and plans to submit her application to Guinness.
“It got hard today, and I had to dig deep, but the people made it the most amazing experience!” Webb said in an e-mail Sunday. “I never quit for the city of Pittsburgh!”
A marathon legacy to continue
William Harrison, 69, of Beltzhoover made his 30th marathon attempt as an alumni member of the Sole Survivors, a group of runners recognized by race organizers as athletes who have participated in every Pittsburgh Marathon since it was established in 1985.
He took to the course Sunday with no training — he has a bone condition that prevents him from running regularly — as he has for every marathon since 1985. Harrison had to drop out at mile 15 because he was feeling light headed, his son William Harrison Jr. said, adding that this will likely be his father’s last race. But the streak isn’t quite over.
“I’m not going to let it die,” said Harrison Jr., 34, of Avalon.
He plans to run the Pittsburgh Marathon in 2020 in his father’s honor. And in the Harrison tradition, he said he does not plan to train either.
Paralympic athlete completes another race
Dan McCoy, 25, of the South Side competed in his fourth Pittsburgh Marathon, finishing with a time of 1:52.
“The race went well!” he told the Tribune-Review in a text Monday. “Finished in under two hours, eighth out of 25 with no injuries or bike issues, so I’d call that a success!”
McCoy competed as a hand cyclist. He works full-time as a personal trainer. He was a 2014 member of the U.S. Men’s Sled Hockey team that took a gold medal in the Sochi Paralympics.
He has his eye on future paralympic pursuits — paracanoe and power lifting among them — and plans to attend graduate school.
