100 MARATHON MAN

Errol ran his first marathon in 1979 in Stellenbosch, South Africa. He trained for just two months before embarking on his first 26.2 miles. He ran a total of 49 marathons by the end of the 1980's, totaling almost half of his total marathons. His PR came on his 22nd marathon (that he won) when he finished the course in 2 hours 32 minutes and 40 seconds. 28 days later he raced in the South African championships. Towards the end of the 1980's Errol and Marlene moved to the United States, where he would race his first marathon on U.S. soil - the Marine Corps marathon in 1987. Errol ran his first Boston marathon 1 year later in 1988 with a time of 2 hours and 57 minutes - after qualifying at the Virginia Beach Marathon 4 weeks before in a time of 2:49:53 (Qualifying time then was 2:50).

Errol ran the least amount of marathon's in this decade. Let's take a step back though. By normal standards running 5 marathons during a 10-year span is worthy of celebration. In a whirlwind of a consulting job (with weekly travel) and the arrival of 2 daughters, Errol took a much-needed break from the rigors of marathon training (from his standards). 3 of his marathons were the Boston Marathon - in his own backyard

The 2000's were a rebuilding decade for Errol and his marathon running. Most of them took place at the Boston Marathon or in other locations in the Northeast such as Philadelphia or Cape Cod. He ran the infamous heat-striken Chicago marathon in 2007 in 3:04:45 and finished before the race was cancelled due to the heat. Errol was in tremendous shape for that marathon and decided to race the following year in Philadelphia in late November when it was cooler - and finished in 2:49:00 - his P.R. in the United States. 

The 2010's look more like the 1980's in terms of number of marathons run. With 32 marathons run in a 7-year period, he actually ran 14 of them in 2016. Impressive. Errol enjoyed exploring new places and races during this decade in 17 states and 2 countries. He ran 3 marathons with his daughters, 1 marathon that took him 74 laps around a track, 2 Comrades Ultra-Marathons (~56 miles), and a Two Oceans Ultra-Marathon (35 miles) where he received his permanent number - awarded after 10 finishes.  In 2015 he set the goal of running his 100th marathon at the 2017 Boston Marathon and on April 17th, he crossed the finish line with his 3 daughters.