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Curtis Ratzer

@curtis.ratzer

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Kansas City Half Marathon - 1:29:15 ⛲️🏙️ First run back from Chicago Marathon, just wanted to run fast and go out there and have fun! The energy this weekend was unmatched 🕺 📸: @teamgriffindor @mac_jameson @laura_aykroyd @got_payne @kcmarathon
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No words can describe how I felt running my first half marathon this past weekend. My sincerest gratitude to @sundayscaries.runclub, @runitblakc and @816runclub !!! Can’t wait for the next challenge.
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340+ ATTENDEES 🕺 8 RUN CLUBS 🏃‍♂️ 1 COMMUNITY ❤️ The KC Marathon Afterparty was the perfect way to celebrate a great day and month of racing 🤩🏁 Cant wait for the next after party! 🥳 Huge thanks to @visitjriegerco for hosting us! 🍻💃
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Chicago Marathon, you were pure joy. I am so grateful I get to call you my first marathon!!! Yes, I put in the hard work, the miles, meals, early mornings and late nights but the beautiful thing is, I couldn’t have accomplished this without the support of so many wonderful people in my life. Thank you @816runclub for being who you are: an incredible community full of beautiful and loving people! The way we show up for each other is unmatched and I am so grateful for all of you! Special thank you to @coachrandy816 and @got_payne for all they pour into this community to make it what it is. To each and every person who watched and cheered, either in Chicago or from afar, THANK YOU for your support!!! It means more than you know 🥹 To my biggest supporter, in running and in life, @laura_aykroyd, thank you for being there for me during the training block, the highs and lows, marathon weekend, and all the way through the race!! I couldn’t have made it to the start line, let alone the finish line, without you. 🫶🏻 Most importantly, thank you, God, for the gift of an injury free training block and race. Thank you for giving me an able body that is strong and capable of doing amazing things. Proud to say first marathon is in the books and so grateful to say I’ll be back for more. 03:46:21 - what a gift 🩵
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Perseverance 3:58:36 I went into this race hoping to PR my marathon, just 29 days after my previous one. An ambitious goal, and one that may have been doomed from the start. The first 7 miles were all good vibes running with Ryan Vraa and @briantdav. But as the heat kicked in and my heart rate started climbing, I made the decision to fall back from the group. Around mile 9, I took a gel and immediately threw it up. From that point on, I abandoned gels and relied on the solid nutrition offered by the incredible spectators along the course. At mile 12, I felt a pop in my achilles that brought me to a stop. The consequences of racing a marathon just a month earlier had finally caught up with me. I’ve run 26 miles within a two-week span before, but never raced them. Whatever goals I had left for the day, that moment put the final nail in the coffin. From there, the goal shifted from chasing a PR to simply surviving. Every mile became a mental battle, and I had to keep convincing myself not to DNF. It was no longer about how fast I could run, but how much I was willing to endure. What kept me moving was the incredible support from the KC community that showed up along the course. The cheers, encouragement, and familiar faces gave me the confidence to keep putting one foot in front of the other and cross the finish line. 3:58:36. Not the race I planned, but a reminder that sometimes perseverance means finding a way to finish when everything tells you to stop.
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Chicago Marathon - 3:29:40 My third marathon was by far my hardest fought, and after struggling to break through the wall in past races, I finally did it. I got an 18 minute PR and reached my goal of sub 3:30. Every inch in me wanted to cave in that last 5k but I knew that couldn’t happen. What an incredible experience. From getting a lottery entry to crossing that finish line, the 2026 Chicago Marathon was one for the books. I couldn’t have done it without the support from my family, friends, and running community throughout my training block. This won’t be my last race in Chicago. I will most certainly be back for another one. Until next time.
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Chicago Marathon 2026 - 3:30:56 (9 minute PR!) Super happy with this effort. Had some sickness roll over into race day but was able to rally after about mile 6 and gut it out #PukeAndRally Tough race but PR’d nonetheless! Massive shoutout to Team 816 and everyone who came out to support this weekend. Seeing so familiar faces along the course really helped me push through some tough miles. Y’all are truly the MVP’s, and I can’t thank you all enough! Special thanks as always to @coachrandy816 Without his continued guidance and support, this journey truly wouldn’t happen. See you next year @chimarathon , next stop @nycmarathon in 2 weeks!
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Chicago Marathon - 3:29:33 🏙️🏃‍♂️🫘 I’d be lying if I didn’t say this one stings. Took a risk and went out swinging with a goal of going under 3 hours, and it blew up right in front of me. My first mile was a 6:52, right on pace, and I immediately knew this wasn’t going to be my day. This pace felt great during training, but I was already catching my breath after the first mile. I thought I just needed to warm up and dial it back a bit, so I held on and crossed the half marathon mark at 1:32:14, on pace for a 3:05. After that, the wheels started to fall off and I was fighting to finish, run-walking the last 6.2 miles. Was it the heat? Did I taper too much? Was I just simply not ready for a sub 3? I’ll never really know. Training went great, my half marathon times had sub 3 written on it, my race predictors said 2:56. But what these metrics don’t factor in is how much you’re willing to fight when your legs are dead and you have a 10k left, and that day I didn’t have that in me. This was a very clear reminder to me that things can still fall apart even when everything aligns perfectly. But one morning doesn’t define how much faster I’ve gotten these past 4 months. This sport is a lifelong investment, and I know if I keep putting in the work, I’ll inevitably reap what I sow. Despite the race not going to plan, there are simply WAYYY too many positives that outweigh everything else. A huge one being that I’m apart of a community that will roll 70+ deep to a race 500 miles away to race and support each other. This weekend showed just how united and amazing the KC running community is, and I’m motivated more than ever to pour as much as I can into it, so blessed to be apart of it! I also raised $2,201 for Ronald McDonald House to help families and children in need. So grateful for everyone who contributed to my fundraiser, it truly means the world to me! And if you’d told me a year ago that I’d be sobbing at the finish line and still go under 3:30, I’d have been pretty stoked. Put into perspective, the weekend was pretty dang awesome. Leaving the Windy City with unfinished business and motivated more than ever. Until next time, Chicago 🤝
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Watched my friends run fast this past weekend 😮‍💨⚡️🏃‍♂️💨
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Friday October 8th! Still trying to get these out even though I have had an insane few days! lol - Race Expo and bib pickup! - lunch with friends - Brysons Office - New Balance Untamed Relays - Dinner with friends Busy day but so so fun! Let’s go! . . . #runclub #runcommunity #runcoach #runningcoach #runinspiration
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The work is done. Time to have some fun. Team 816 on three!! 1. 2. 3. ⬇️🗣️🩵
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The Kansas City teams finished 8th and 18th out of 38 teams 🔥🏁 Such a fun event with @newbalancerunning 🏃‍♂️ #chicagomarathon #newbalance #marathon #running
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