Like father, like son: BMW Dallas Marathon winner Aaron Sherf makes his dad, a longtime competitor, proud

The Dallas Marathon has always been part of Aaron Sherf’s life. His dad, Cary, has completed the annual Dallas footrace 38 consecutive years.

On Sunday, Aaron, 30, of Norman, Okla., made his running poppa proud by winning the 49th edition of the BMW Dallas Marathon in 2 hours, 31 minutes, 21 seconds.

“It’s always fun to come back to Dallas,” said Aaron, who grew up in South Garland until his family moved to Arizona when he was six. “It feels good to finally win it.”

Conditions started cool in the mid-50s but quickly warmed into the 70s as the sun broke through the fog by mid-morning. Many of the front and middle of the pack runners set personal bests before conditions became more challenging.

Logistically, the race seemed to go smoothly, starting with a high-energy sizzle video and pyrotechnics at the start and an emotionally charged finish line, energized by Mark “Hawkeye” Louis, of KSCS, 96.3FM fame.

“Everything worked out perfectly,” said executive race director Marcus Grunewald. “I guess I have a race director’s high. I don’t want it to end, but at the same time, I’m looking forward to next year.”

Sherf, who placed third overall in 2016, found himself in fifth place at the halfway point. He said he intentionally ran a slower, more conservative pace to account for the unseasonably warm conditions. At Mile 16, he caught a glimpse of the leader.

That gave him the boost he needed to kick his pace up a notch. He secured the lead by Mile 18. Though he began to struggle at Mile 24, he credits relay runners including the boys high school relay anchor, Will Muirhead of Lovejoy for helping stay strong.

As he turned toward the finish line in front of Dallas City Hall, he saw the pedestrian bridge with a banner, notifying runners they were 100-meters from the finish line.

“Oh my gosh!” Sherf said. “It was so amazing. It almost turned into a track meet.”

posted Sunday December 15th
by Debbie Fetterman