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My plan is to run a marathon in all 50 States. I’m always looking to add a new state to my collection. I had my eyes on the Kentucky Derby Marathon in Louisville, Kentucky for some time hoping I could work it in on my calendar.

This is a large event with almost 18,000 runners –most are participating in the half or “mini” marathon.

Every marathon has its own personality. We found this race to be fun, well organized and able to capture the personality of the city. Here is my race recap: (more…)

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I finished the New Orleans Rock and Roll Marathon in 3:36:47. I missed qualifying for Boston by 1 minute and 47 seconds!

Even though I didn’t qualify, I’m not overly disappointed with my performance. I set a personal record -beating my previous best time by 7 minutes. I think that the lessons I learned during this race will be helpful as I continue to reach for my personal best in the future.

If you take the time to analyze your race experience you’ll find valuable lessons to apply to future marathons and even other challenges in life.

“Every time I fail, I assume I will be a stronger person for it. I keep on running figuratively and literally, despite a limp that gets more noticeable with each passing season, because for me there has always been a place to go and a terrible urgency to get there.” -Joan Benoit Samuelson

Maybe you’ll be running a half or full marathon this spring. Here are three essential marathon strategies. (more…)

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One of the great things about running is the chance to continually learn new things and push past personal boundaries. It doesn’t matter if you can only run 1 mile or if you’ve finished 20 marathons.  You need to continue to learn and grow.

I recently ran the Wineglass Marathon in Corning, NY. This race has been on my radar for a long time because I heard that the course is both beautiful and conducive to setting a PR (personal record).

Over the summer I trained harder and smarter than ever before and I’m glad to say my hard work paid off. I managed to finished in 3 hours and 44 minutes. This is my fastest time yet.

Here is some advice that is applicable whether you’ll be racing your first 5k or trying to PR in the marathon. (more…)

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The North Olympic Discovery Marathon in Port Angeles Washington has been called the best boutique marathon in North America (according to their website).

What is a boutique marathon? Is boutique even a category? Googling this term didn’t yield many results.

Here’s what I can tell you about this marathon: (1) the scenery is grand, (2) parking is easy, (3) people are friendly, (4) the medals are cool, (5) and the post race food is plentiful.

Although I’ve got a few marathons under my belt I still learn something about myself at each race. Here are my discoveries from the North Olympic Discovery Marathon. (more…)

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This podcast episode deals with a lot of racing firsts.

My sister Autum ran her very first marathon. Trevor completed his first half marathon (a long anticipated event). And this was my first time going 26.2 after having a baby 5 months ago.

You may be preparing for your first marathon or going into your one hundredth race. Each time your training is going to be unique and there will be some firsts to deal with.

I want to help you be prepared for your marathon experience. Here are some tips to remember going into your race. (more…)