Would you consider golfers or NASCAR drivers athletes? Sure, they don’t have the sheer athletic explosiveness like Russell Westbrook or Odell Beckham Jr., but it would be insulting to consider that they weren’t.
Mastering a golf swing is one of the hardest things to do in sports and in order to be a NASCAR driver you have to be in shape – the less weight, the faster the car goes – but your endurance has to be through the roof.
And one NASCAR driver just proved his athleticism when he crushed it at the Boston Marathon.
It was a harrowing day on April 15th 2013.
A little over thirty thousand people lined up on the streets of Boston on Patriots’ Day to prove to the world they can complete 26.2 miles on foot.
But on that fateful day, two homemade pressure cooker bombs detonated at 2:49 pm near the finish line, killing three people and taking the limbs of 16 others.
Unfortunately for the Kyrgyzstani-American brothers, Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev, the American people banded together and the Boston Marathon continued on. It was remarkable to see the Boston people unite in a profound way under such despicable circumstances.
Six years later, the Boston marathon is bigger than ever before.
And he shocked everyone with his impressive time.
Johnson ran an impressive 3 hours, 9 minutes and 7 seconds, which equates to about an 8 minute and 45 second mile.
The even crazier part is the 43-year-old had a strong performance at the 400 Richmond Raceway in Virginia 36 hours later. He impressively finished 12th in the Richmond Raceway too.
Is it tougher to drive for 500 straight miles or to run 26 in a row?
Johnson told CBS station in Boston, “Twenty-six without a doubt.”
“I wish I had my car at Heartbreak Hill,” Johnson joked afterward. “It would have made it a lot easier.”
Johnson claimed, “What an incredible experience,” following the race.
He also wore bib No. 4848, corresponding to his iconic 48 car.
Johnson got an enormous applause and shout out from the announcer as he crossed the finish line and you can watch it here.
That was the most challenging thing I’ve ever done, what an experience! Unofficially 3:09:07 for the 🏁 #BostonMarathon #Boston2019 pic.twitter.com/1lZBH2aPvn
— Jimmie Johnson (@JimmieJohnson) April 15, 2019
Johnson got a lot of love on Twitter from his fellow NASCAR colleagues too.
Kyle Busch tweeted:
I don’t know how u do it my man!! Great accomplishment and such an inspiration to better health!! https://t.co/d4iYZb7omx
— Kyle Busch (@KyleBusch) April 15, 2019
Clint Bowyer also tweeted:
Congrats man! We’ve all watched the hard work you’ve put into this. What an accomplishment!!! 💪 https://t.co/8r5of3cX07
— Clint Bowyer (@ClintBowyer) April 15, 2019
Elliot Sadler responded:
Pretty awesome watching this video of @JimmieJohnson running around the city today while I was drinking my beer… great day for both of us … Hahahaha #Boston2019 https://t.co/KwY3s91TCW
— Elliott Sadler (@Elliott_Sadler) April 15, 2019
Legendary NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin wrote:
Congrats @JimmieJohnson. What a great accomplishment. Happy for you and everyone who helped you prepare.
— Denny Hamlin (@dennyhamlin) April 15, 2019
And when it was all over, Johnson celebrated with some beer.
I’m having beers now! 🍻
— Jimmie Johnson (@JimmieJohnson) April 15, 2019
So the aforementioned question of whether NASCAR drivers are athletes? Dang right they are.