Results/Photos

Date: Aug. 22, 2026 Participant: David Butler #353 Race: 2026 Habanero Marathon Distance: 26.2 miles

Wire-to-Wire Division Title Sealed Under Texas Heat Running the marathon distance at the 2026 Habanero Hundred, David Butler covered 25.9 miles in 6:10:56, finishing 6th overall out of 39 participants and 6th among men. Most notably, he held the top spot in the M30-39 division from the very first split to the finish line a wire-to-wire division win. The Habanero Hundred is known for its brutal conditions, starting at high noon in Texas heat that regularly pushes real-feel temperatures above 100 degrees, and this race also carries the distinction of being cupless, requiring runners to carry their own hydration throughout. Butler opened aggressively, clocking a 7:01 split for mile 2 that briefly put him 3rd overall, then settled into a steady rhythm through the first half, holding paces mostly between 11:13 and 13:56 min/mile through mile 13 (elapsed time 2:43:18). His overall placement hovered between 4th and 8th during this stretch, reflecting a competitive early pack. The back half told a different story. Mile 14 brought a significant split of 31:16, pushing his elapsed pace from 12:33 to 13:53 min/mile in a single mile, and paces from mile 20 onward stretched into the 14:0018:57 min/mile range as fatigue and accumulating heat exposure took their toll. Despite the slowdown, Butler's positioning stabilized at 6th overall for the final ten miles, and his division lead never wavered. For future starts on this course, building a reserve for the mid-race stretch particularly around the mile 14 mark could help smooth out the pacing dropoff seen here and convert a strong division win into a stronger overall finish.