Guts to Glory

A Walk for the Record Books

By Patrice Malloy

Ginny Turner crossing the finish line at the Antarctica Marathon in 2007 and setting a new Guinness World Record.

It was a banner day for Ginny Turner at the eighth Antarctica Marathon held February 26, 2007, on King George Island located just off the coast of the Antarctic Peninsula.

Wrapped from head to toe in polar-appropriate attire, Turner pumped her fists triumphantly and flashed a huge smile as she passed under the event’s finish banner.

It was there, on what is known as the “Last Continent,” that the Hillsboro, OR, resident accomplished a hard-won and far-reaching goal.

Turner, a 54-year-old grandmother of six, and one of the most unlikely record-breaking athletes on the planet, had just nailed the Guinness World Record for the shortest duration of time for a woman to complete seven marathons on seven continents. She finished her seven-on-seven quest in 131 days, beating the prior record of 141 days which was set just hours earlier.

“I was absolutely elated when I crossed the finish line because I knew what I had just done,” said
Turner, who ironically finished last with a time of 8:30:35. “I felt like I literally went around the world twice, and I did. I just wanted to shout it out.”

But Turner knew that a celebratory shout would have not been a good idea: There were not many people around to hear her. “All but one of the other participants had gone back to their ships. And most of the race crew was on the course packing up supplies,” she said.

The main reason Turner did not want to be showered with an avalanche of Guinness-worthy high fives is that she had to keep her new world record a secret, at least for
a while.

Although she more than suspected the record was hers, Turner had no way of knowing if other women on the expedition had the same goal in mind. She knew that shipmate Jeanne Stawiecki, 56, of Charlton, MA, unofficially set the record earlier that day, bettering the previous record by 89 days. For a little over three hours, Stawiecki held the new world record. Until Turner crossed the finish line.

A while back, Turner had learned that she and Stawiecki were vying for the same world record. A systems engineer for Nike, Turner did some quick calculations, entering marathons in Europe and North America just prior to the Antarctic race. She figured that if her math was correct, she would have a shot at the record — in fact, all she had to do was finish.

“It was part of my strategy to keep quiet and not tell anyone outside of family, close friends, and my team at work. I swore everybody to secrecy. I also wanted to make sure the paperwork with Guinness was complete before I announced it.” Turner said. She was required to submit more than 250 pages of documentation to Guinness World Records’ UK-based headquarters.

One accomplishment she did let out of the bag was that the Antarctic finish marked the finale of her goal to complete a marathon on every continent twice, one of only two women in the world to do this as of this writing.

It was a day for the record books in the weather department as well. Participants endured what race officials later described as the worst race conditions ever — perfect Antarctic weather. “Perfect if you are a fur seal,” joked Turner.

Blowing snow, temperatures in the high 20s, 40-mph wind gusts, and a wind chill in the mid-teens was just the tip of the iceberg. Participants also had to navigate through rocky glacial streams, up and down a glacier, and pass through the grounds of Russian, Chilean, Uruguayan, and Chinese research bases.
“Out of all of the marathons I’ve done, this was the hardest,” said Turner. “There was a point that I thought my eyeballs would freeze.”

But Turner was in step with a hardy crowd: Of the 188 starters, 145 finished the grueling course.

A veteran of 105 marathons on all continents and in all 50 states, Turner says she wants to prove that you don’t have to be
fast to win.

“My goal is to inspire more people to walk marathons, [and] I also want my grandchildren to be able to say that grandma holds a Guinness World Record.” she said.

For more information on the Antarctica Marathon and Half or other destination marathons, visit www.marathontours.com.