BLIND MAN RAN MARATHON USING SMART GLASSES THAT ALLOWED VOLUNTEERS TO GUIDE HIM IN REAL TIME

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Blind Man Ran Marathon Using Smart Glasses That Allowed Remote Volunteers to Guide Him in Real Time

By Lexi Lane  Published on April 19, 2026 05:30PM EDT

 

A blind man used smart glasses and virtual volunteers to guide him to the finish line of a marathon.

 

Clarke Reynolds, a Braille artist who works under the name Mr. Dot, ran the Brighton Marathon in England on Sunday, April 12, using Ray-Ban Meta Wayfarer smart glasses and an app called Be My Eyes.

 

Be My Eyes connected Reynolds, 45, with people around the globe who could see where he was going and help direct him along the running route.

 

"I am now the first blind person to run a full marathon while being supported by volunteers using smart glasses and Be My Eyes," he said, according to Fight for Sight.

 

Added Reynolds, "My aim in doing this was to really push the boundaries of what this technology can do for me as a blind person, and I’ve done that."

 

The pre-selected users across the globe logged on and could see what was ahead of Reynolds, which allowed them to guide him appropriately.

 

"I love the idea that up to 300 people from all over the world — from Croydon to Kansas and Belfast to Bahrain — helped me to achieve it," Reynolds said.

 

Reynolds was also partially supported by a trained guide runner, Alaistair Ratcliffe, who ran alongside him as an additional safety precaution, as connectivity sometimes stopped along the marathon path.

 

The man ultimately finished the 26.2-mile marathon in under six hours and 20 minutes.

 

Reynolds was diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa, a group of rare eye diseases that affects the retina, according to the National Eye Institute.

 

When he was six years old, he learned he had lost sight in one eye, and Reynolds later had to leave school at age 14 due to kidney issues, per Fight for Sight.

 

As an adult, Reynolds worked as a dental model maker and "loved it." However, a few months into the job, he noticed he "had a dark shadow in the good eye," but he thought he just "needed stronger glasses."

 

Reynolds was 32 when ophthalmologists told him he was going blind and that he had to surrender his license. "Deep down in my head, I thought I would lose sight, but not in my 30s. I thought it would be more in my 50s and 60s," he said.

 

Despite ups and downs in his life, Reynolds still works to inspire others. He has incorporated Braille into his passion for art, and he visits schools as Mr. Dot to encourage kids to embrace their creativity.

 

"I believe Braille should be part of the national curriculum because it transcends all the subjects: math, English, science, history, art. It's perfect, it's great," he said, according to Fight for Sight.

 

Reynolds used the Brighton Marathon run to raise thousands of dollars for Fight for Sight, which researches various eye conditions.

 

"We are so proud of Clarke. What he has achieved is extraordinary," Eleanor Southwood MBE, Fight for Sight's Director of Impact and External Affairs, said.

 

"We are so grateful to him for his support and to everyone who has so generously sponsored him," she added.

 

Though Reynolds previously took part in the London Marathon, he felt he was "free to safely put the tech to test in this very unusual way" at the Brighton Marathon.

 

"They’ve really kept me going on this incredible journey. It’s been one of the best experiences of my life," he said. “By running a marathon and using the tech in a way that hasn’t been done before, I’ve raised awareness and sparked so many conversations, which I hope will help to challenge society’s ideas about what blind people can do."