Ian Butler seized the moment at last month’s Marathon Project running a nearly 7 minute PR of 2:09:45 and joining an exclusive group of sub 2:10 American men. Butler’s underdog journey has followed a serpentine path from high schooler who held a single Division 2 scholarship offer to a post-collegiate runner who nearly quit the sport before joining his current training group, and now a top 5 finisher in the deepest American marathon field ever assembled. But Ian’s story is much greater than the sum of his accomplishments. He suffered two traumatic brain injuries as a child — the first as a baby leaving him in a coma. Running eventually provided him an outlet and an anchor. In his words, it saved his life.