While any marathon may see a handful of celebrities running the race, the Los Angeles Marathon is certainly among the top marathons in the US for high celebrity participation rates.
Due to the proximity to Hollywood and the fact that this large marathon often draws a field size of upwards of 15,000 runners, the LA Marathon tends to have quite a few notable celebrities among the field of participants as well as spectating the event.
This year, popular DJ Diplo took to the streets of Los Angeles, taking on the 26.2-mile race with the goal of beating Oprah Winfrey’s marathon time.
Oprah Winfrey made waves in the running community and beyond when she completed the Marine Corps Marathon in 4 hours, 29 minutes, and 20 seconds (4:29:20) back in 1994.
To this day, 29 years later, many celebrities and everyday runners alike set their sights on beating Oprah’s marathon finish time.
Indeed, it’s likely that on the starting line of almost every marathon in the United States, there is at least one runner who is thinking of the iconic marathon performance and striving to beat Oprah‘s marathon time.
At the 2023 Los Angeles Marathon, 44-year-old Diplo was among those vying to outperform Oprah’s marathon performance.
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He smashed that goal, beating Oprah’s time by over 34 minutes.
According to the results link for the LA Marathon, Diplo’s official marathon time was 3:55:11. Note that Diplo’s real name is Thomas Pentz.
Interestingly, despite the fact that Diplo ran the marathon in an impressive time that many seasoned and well-trained runners would be envious of, the DJ reported in his Instagram post that he had not run longer than 11 miles in training, which is why he decided to rely on LSD to get him through.
“The most I ever ran was 11 miles so I did what any normal person would do and took LSD,” Diplo notes.
Therefore, perhaps the most unique aspect of Diplo’s marathon performance was not the fact that he ran a solid sub 4-hour marathon, but the fact that he hydrated with what he calls “LSD water.”
While most marathon runners hydrate with water, electrolyte beverages, or sports drinks, LSD water is rarely, if ever, on the slate for the hydration and fueling plans for marathon runners.
Diplo‘s LSD water is essentially what it sounds like; water enhanced with drops of LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide).
According to the Mayo Clinic, LSD is a drug that belongs to the class known as a hallucinogen that can alter your perception of reality, increase impulsive behavior, induce tremors, raise blood pressure, and increase heart rate among other symptoms.
According to Diplo’s video of his marathon race experience on his Twitter account, his LSD water contained five drops of LSD per bottle.
Note that Marathon Handbook does not recommend using LSD, particularly when training for or racing a marathon.
Diplo was paced by Greek-American Olympic runner Alexi Pappas.
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He credits Pappas for his success, writing:
“Huge thanks to the Olympian Alexi who paces me, shout out my knees which will never be the same, and my kids for waiting for me at the finish line.”
Diplo certainly took a unique approach to running a marathon, but it’s undeniable that he had a solid performance that impressed many runners and non-runners alike.
