GREENVILLE – Greenville Senior High School graduate Bryce Shilt will take on one of running’s grandest stages when he competes in the 130th Boston Marathon on Patriots’ Day, Monday, April 20, 2026. The Boston Athletic Association lists this year’s race as the 130th edition and expects 30,000 participants on the historic course from Hopkinton to Boston.
For Shilt, the opportunity is the latest step in a journey that started with a simple phone call he has never forgotten.
After fifth grade, Shilt was just beginning to discover his ability as a runner. In sixth grade, he ran laps every day in gym class under teacher Mrs. Jones. Then, during the summer before seventh grade, she called with a message that helped change his path.
“She said, ‘You should try to run cross country,’” Shilt recalled. “That phone call I will always remember because I never took advantage of it. She was right, I had potential in running, I just didn’t know.”
At the time, Shilt’s athletic focus was elsewhere.
“I loved playing baseball and basketball, and I liked a little football as well,” he said.
Running did not fully become his sport until high school. Shilt said he began track as a sophomore after giving up baseball. Early on, he competed in the 400, but it did not take long for him to find his true calling in the distance events.
“I didn’t do too bad at that, but running the 1600 and the 3200 is something I really bloomed in,” Shilt said.
He credits former Greenville coach Stephanie Lind for helping shape those years.
“Stephanie Lind was my coach,” he said. “She coached me for distance at that time. She coached me through my sophomore, junior, and senior high school years.”
Now in his 10th year of competitive running, Shilt said consistency has been the key.
“I’ve been blessed, getting stronger every year,” he said.
Another major part of that growth has been training with his cousin, Allen Newbauer, who has worked with him since 2020.
“I’ve been training with my cousin Allen Newbauer since COVID,” Shilt said. “He’s been training me throughout these years.”
That work has helped transform Shilt physically as he prepared for Boston. Long a runner who had trouble adding weight, he said this cycle has been different.
“I have always had trouble putting on weight,” Shilt said. “This year I have put on 10 pounds training for Boston. Now I’m up to 160 and trying to gain some muscle.”
Shilt stands 6-foot and weighs 160 pounds, numbers he believes reflect the strength he has added ahead of the marathon.
Among his favorite races is the Freedom 5K in Miamisburg, where he delivered one of the top performances of his career.
“I raced a guy from Colorado and thanks to him I got a huge PR and set the course record there,” Shilt said. “I ran a 16:17 5K. That is the fastest 5K I have run.”
But it was last year’s Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati that opened the door to Boston.
“The Flying Pig in Cincinnati last year was very awesome,” Shilt said. “I did my first marathon there to qualify for Boston. I ran 2:45:30, and that was the first marathon, 26.2 miles, I have done. This year I want to get under that.”
He also pointed to strong half-marathon performances in 2024 and other memorable opportunities to run alongside talented local athletes, including Bennett Leyman of Ansonia and Greenville’s Isabelle Rammel, who will also be running in Boston. Shilt added that Chrystal Barton and her husband are expected to be there as well.
For Shilt, qualifying for Boston was an accomplishment in itself. He said runners must submit official race results to the Boston Athletic Association, which verifies times and race information before accepting entrants. The B.A.A. says qualifying marks must come from certified, official races during the designated qualifying window.
Now that he is in the field, Shilt has his sights set on more than just finishing.
“I’m hoping to place in the top 1,000th, hopefully,” he said. “There are going to be 30,000 people. I’m hoping to place top 1,000 for sure, but my main goal is to beat my time from last year. I want to go under 2:45, and my dream goal is to get under 2:40. That would be the perfect day.”
Away from racing, Shilt has spent the last three years working as a corrections officer with the Darke County Sheriff’s Department, balancing demanding work with the training required to reach one of the sport’s most prestigious events.
After years of building mileage, adding strength and chasing faster times, Shilt said he is eager for his Boston moment to finally arrive.
“I’m ready,” he said. “So it’s going to be fun.”
