He Ran the Highest Marathon Ever—at a Cost

British adventurer Joshua Patterson has set a new record by running what's believed to be the highest marathon ever—26.2 miles up Cerro Uturuncu, a 19,700-foot volcano in Bolivia. The grueling ordeal, which took more than 11 hours to complete, pushed Patterson to his physical and mental limits as he battled steep inclines, rough altitudes, unpredictable weather, and a flare-up of a gastrointestinal condition, per his account for Outside. The final 6 miles featured a 35% incline at 18,300 feet. "The altitude was unbelievably brutal," writes Patterson, 36. "Even after seven years of endurance challenges, nothing had ever hit me like this. ... I was shattered, every single ounce of my body broken; mentally, physically, emotionally. I felt like an empty corpse." Patterson, who took up running after a friend's life-altering accident, says nothing in his past had prepared him for this feat.

The run, which began one morning in September at 3am after eight days of acclimatization, was as much about personal meaning as athletic achievement. Patterson carried a flag bearing the names of his godson Archie, who'd died of SIDS, and 183 other children who'd died prematurely. "With all negatives considered, I'm still proud," Patterson notes. "Summiting with the flag with all of the children's names on it was a shared act of remembrance. It brought up a lot of emotion and gave me the ability to process it, and to honor Archie in a way I hadn't been able to before." The physical toll has lingered, with Patterson reporting ongoing cognitive and metabolic issues weeks after the run. "There comes a point where it isn't worth risking your health," he writes. "I want longevity, and I need to go back to square one and figure out what that looks like for me." More here.