West Palm Beach resident Abraham Hausman-Weiss, 28, is getting ready to lead the marathoners off at the Palm Beaches Marathon this weekend. He is competing in a wheelchair and hopes to finish in under three hours, or about a 6:50 pace.
Hausman-Weiss started racing on Flagler Drive during last year’s Palm Beaches half marathon. He now belongs to several run clubs and said he is excited to tackle a full marathon in the community where he trains. In October, he finished his first full marathon at the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C., alongside his younger brother.
Basketball was his first sport. He was a member of two national championship teams at the University of Alabama. He was born with spina bifida and has used a wheelchair since he was 17 months old.
His wife, Sole, is running her first 10K on Saturday. Hausman-Weiss said she was not running a full mile when they started training and now runs sub-10-minute miles.
Hausman-Weiss said wheelchair racing relies more on core and arm strength than people might expect, and that the fatigue feels much like what a runner feels after a long race.
