Raley Parker releasing the kraken in Delaware.

The way it works is . . . participants complete their half marathon sometime in the month of November and we ship them out their finisher’s medal. We had 375 people participate this year!

We love seeing the running routes and race reports . . .

Photos from the 2018 MTA Virtual Half

Running the Big Island

“On the Big Island of Hawaii with Mauna Kea as my back drop and my wife supporting me I completed my MTA Half Marathon. As they say in Hawaii Mahalo (Thank you) to Angie and Trevor for putting on this event, for your wonderful podcast and your amazing community of running enthusiasts. Aloha!!” -Ferdinand Babas

From Queensland, Australia

“Completed my MTA Virtual Half Marathon today! It was a little windy but it kept me cool. It felt so good to be out there running on such a beautiful Sunday morning here in Queensland, Australia. While I was running, I thought about how all of us are just out running for the love of it, doing the virtual half in so many different locations around the world. Thanks Angie and Trev for making this event and thanks to everyone for continuing to do great things around the world with running. I love reading all of your stories and seeing all your inspirational photos of runners just doing what we love.” #kraken 🦑 -Tamara Broughton

Father and Son Run

Josh and I ran our half this morning on the Tow Path, starting in Penninsula, OH. It was cloudy and chilly, but the sun came out for a while. Josh is pretty sure that breakfast after the run was the best part! -Eric Tritten

Team Effort in Ohio

In this photo are Ohio runners Kathleen M Nofel, Sharon Boggins, Kenny Kriz, John Rzeczycki, Kristin Ostrum, and Dan Gawne. Notice the aid station bucket.

“Cold” Run in Arizona

“Completed the MTA Half this morning. It was quite cold in Arizona, 40 degrees!” 😳😂 -Teri Mosher

Texas Hill Country

“Completed my virtual half today in the very hilly Hill Country area of Texas in Hunt, TX near Kerrville. I knew it would be a slow run because of hills so we just enjoyed the scenery and the gorgeous weather. Perfect temp for running.” -Maggie Brown Landwermeyer

13.1 on Thanksgiving

“This Thanksgiving I am so thankful to have Angie, Trevor and the whole MTA community helping me to run strong and happy! Look who joined me on my MTA Virtual Half as part of the Mosier Community Schools annual Turkey Trot!” -Jaime Mack

Virtual Half in Hong Kong

I’ve had a really good run this past Sunday, feeling so happy and grateful to have discovered long distance running. Hong Kong is such a packed city and yet there is so much green space 🌳🌳🌳 to enjoy. There really should be more people sharing this fun activity here. It has taken me months to get a little more used to the elevation and it has been totally worth it.” -Vicky Sham

Half Marathon #6

“Coming from Elk Mound, Wisconsin. 25 degrees at finish with a feels like 17. This is my 6th half and I haven’t ran one since this one last year. I knew I wouldn’t be training for it but still didn’t want to miss it! Thanks for the opportunity and the podcasts which made the 2+ hours go fast.” -Sacia Davis

Gothenburg, Sweden

“Me and my husband Mikael Eydal ran the MTA Virtual Half today in Gothenburg, Sweden. It was a bit chilly and it got dark during the last 10 k but we had a great time😊. Now: chocolate!” -Solgerd Eydal

Santa Monica Mountains

“I finished my MTA virtual half marathon last week. It was a walk/run due to very steep hills. My friend and I decided just to enjoy the weather and the wonderful santa Monica mountains.” -Sonia Palm

2nd MTA Virtual Half 🤘

“My 2nd MTA Virtual Half – DONE! Took a nice 14 mile long run in prep for Dopey in 7 weeks. Thanks to Trevor Spencer and Angie Danzer Spencer for all they do for this community and for hosting this awesome event!” -Gregory Kaether, Connecticut

A Sunny Time in Massachusetts

“Ran my half today! Thanks for the motivation to keep running through this month! I also broke my streak of only running races in freezing cold rain 😂, as it was beautiful and sunny, albeit still cold, here in Massachusetts. Listened to some Hamilton and the MTA podcast on marathon history to get me through. Thanks so much Angie and Trevor for organizing this race, and this amazing community!” -Corey Zimmerman

Along the Erie Canal

“Thank you MTA for hosting another MTA Virtual Half 😎! Last year was treadmill…. This was last weekend on the Erie Canal in Rochester New York. Fall in Upstate New York is BeAuTiFuL ❗️❗️” -Marc Eigg

Hello from Austria!

“Hello from Austria 🇦🇹! I ended up running a bit more than 13.1 miles altogether…. aaaaand here’s a screengrab of my Strava upload and a picture of me doing form drills with a 2:13 marathoner”. -Lena Katharina

Sub 2 in Berlin

I ran my virtual half marathon today. Garmin said 1:58:08 , Strava 1:51…anyway, after two years of running 5:50- 6min/km and finishing the Berlin Half Marathon this April with 2:02:02 I am proud that I could reach my goal and ran the MTA Half Marathon under 2h while listening to your new podcast episode. Thanks Angie and Trevor for the inspiration. Greetings and hugs from Berlin — feeling wonderful at Flughafen Berlin-Tempelhof. -Martina Lan

Birthday Run in Western Australia

“G’day from Aveley, Western Australia to MTA land community. Did My 51st Birthday MTA Virtual Half today. Thanks Trevor and Angie for a great podcast” 👍👍👍😘😘 -Evie Sutomo Rawlins

Beautiful Day in Mississippi

“Completed on my usual stomping grounds on a multi-use trail along the Natchez Trace, steps away from my home in suburban Mississippi. I’ve just started my second try at MAF training, so it was by far my slowest time yet. After eleven miles, I decided that was enough of that, so I finished at a comfortable pace. It was a beautiful, sunny day with clear blue skies and the temp in the 60s. It was fun to stop for selfies and experience my run as part of this virtual event and to share it with you all now.” -Jamie Hurdle Ammerman

PR in Ohio!

“Finished the MTA Virtual Half Marathon yesterday in and around my little hometown in Ohio! Didn’t quite acheive my A goal but I did PR by about a minute and half. It was a seriously hard run the whole time so I was proud to push through and finish in a respectable time. I’ve loved being a part of this wonderful running community!! So proud of everyone for finishing!” -Stephen Geyer

Beautiful Views in Japan

“Finished MTA virtual half with a marathon in Japan. Fujisan Marathon has the most beautiful route I ever run!” -Khantipol Kasemsant

Harpers Ferry in the Fog

“I wanted to dedicate THIS 2nd annual MTA virtual half to my home state in beautiful West Virginia and this morning, my running sister from another mister joined me for our last half marathon of the year in historic Harpers Ferry (half marathon #14!).
Harpers Ferry is located in the Eastern Panhandle of WV. (Every spring, Dr. Mark Cucuzzella organizes the Harpers Ferry Half here and much of today’s run was on that course. It’s HIGHLY recommended.) We ran comfortably and enjoyed every bit of the scenery from the hilltops to the valleys, and released the kraken on a mile long finish up a massive hill! Many thanks to MTA for this event and all of your awesome motivation and congratulations to all of you out there crushing your goals and sharing your stories. We did it! 🍻

I used to say I’d never be a runner, but thanks to this wonderful community, I know that I have what it takes to run any goal and run strong for the rest of my life! You do too!” -Jennie Clark Brackens

First Half Marathon

Ran my half today as I had to cram it in before work @3am. Definitely found things I need to work on. All in all it was a good run at a fairly steady pace. This was my first try at this distance. Not sure I would have done it without listening to your pod cast. Thanks guys for giving me this opportunity to run the 13.1 before I go the full distance in March. I’m planning on doing the Myrtle Beach Marathon with my family and will keep listening as I prepare. -Mike Allen

Clarksville, Tennessee

“I celebrated it early this morning before work. 🏃🏻‍♀️ I have soooo enjoyed everyone’s pictures of beautiful scenic runs but I have none to share since I ran through an industrial area close to my gym. I took my selfie with OldGlory Distillery in the background however…it’s the prettiest thing out there!” -Jennifer Harper

Group Run in Michigan

“Ran my half on Saturday with a great group of friends from church. Snowy wet conditions in Michigan, but another half completed.” -Jon Major

108 Laps!

We released THE KRAKEN!! We ran indoors due to cold/snow but we got our 108 LAPS completed TOGETHER!! -Rachelle Mumford with Kim Engler and Audrey Mumford.

The Treadmill at Work

Just in the nick of time! FINALLY did my MTA virtual half this morning on the treadmill at work! Honestly, I didn’t know if I was going to get it done, I could not find the motivation over the past few weeks and kept putting it off for one excuse or another.

I don’t have any super awesome scenic pictures so these will have to do. My garmin didn’t match up with the treadmill, it was way off most of the run. Best pic is of the finish line that one of my coworkers put acorss my door when I got back! hahaha, they think I’m nuts. 😀 -Ryan Hoffman

Keep Plugging Along!

So yesterday my partner and I ran the MTA half. . . . I keep plugging along despite my torn hammy and hip impingement. But any time you challenge yourself is a good day. -Karen Kowalski with Sue

Running Tour Around Berlin

I am from Ireland but decided to run my virtual half while visiting Berlin got up early on a beautiful morning and did my 13.1 but I stopped to take a photo and my map time stopped before I realised it I had gone about 4 miles I kept going for the two hours and knew my pace. I felt the guilts as is honor system and I couldn’t prove it so ran again this morning in Cork. -Valerie O’Sullivan

Michigan’s Little Bavaria

Knocked it out in Michigan’s little Bavaria, Frankenmuth! Coming back after injury is a slow, tedious and humbling experience. Although this isn’t a PR, it certainly is a victory! There was a time I thought I never lace up again, when my feet would ache terribly after only running 2 miles . . . but today, I was relaxed and just had fun!! -Jennifer Samuelson

4 Inches of Snow the Day Before

MTA virtual half done! considering we had 3-4 inches of snow yesterday there was no sign today, it was sunny and warm. Walked the trail to the next town and back. Sore and tired and I think getting soaked three times this week I have a cold. 😕 but it was a lovely walk, calming and I got out my head for a while 😊
Some pics from yesterday to show the difference a day makes. -Sarah Jones

PR in Florida

I waited for Florida to participate in cool weather, finally had 50f in morning. Perfect for running. Got a PR. Beat my old by 10 minutes. Woo hoo!!! -Iris Alfonso

25th Half Marathon

It’s my birthday! I’m gonna run like it’s my birthday! Finished my birthday Half Marathon & MTA Virtual Run today. 2:01:55. It was too cold out to run fast, but I completed my 25th Half Marathon. Thanks MTA, I can’t wait to receive the awesome swag. I love being able to support my favorite podcast by running this race, and celebrating my 40th birthday today with this run. 😀 -Cari Masek

Single Digit Temps

Virtual 1/2 complete. Temps in single digits this morning with snow cover in Pepin Wisconsin. Burr.., -Joel Wener

Releasing the Kraken by Accident

Sooooo this happened yesterday. Which was actually an accident. I meant to only run an hour and 40 but about 80 minutes in I started running with someone and started a conversation. I lost track of the time and a PR came out of it. Well Into our conversation, i looked down at my garmin and I was at 12.8… so how could i not finish it, right? The best part? I started out on this run with other people as well and between talking to them and then the other person, it was mostly a conversational pace!!! Felt great and finally got my sub 2 half 😁😁😁. Coach Steve please don’t kill me for going extra time 😱.
I wonder if that girl that I joined on this run was actually the kraken in disguise? Guiding me. 🤔 Do you think that’s a good pick up line? “Excuse me… Are you…. the Kraken?” I’m gonna say YES.
Kraken the sub 2 with 1:54:47 😬 -Andrew Lorenzo

A Rare Sunny Day in Vermont

Grabbed a bunch of fortuitous circumstances to do my virtual half – a rare sunny day in a month of cold, grey and wet; humane temps to run in (47-50, has been averaging in the 30’s) and having had to get up early the last 3 mornings my body is still on daylight savings time which bought me an extra hour of running time before work! -Ingrid Sell-Boccelli

Hot Humid Hononlulu

Ran the MTA Virtual Half Marathon in hot and humid Honolulu, Hawaii today! 🌴☀️🏃🏻‍♀️💦🤙🏼

Half Marathon with Shelby

Today I introduced my bff Shelby to the half marathon. She’s been training with me and I’m very proud of her! Thanks to MTA for giving me a chance to run a “race” without the stresses or rigidity of an organized marathon. It means a lot that I can still have goals, train and be smart about it while I go through some intense therapies. Great job all, and cheers from Hervey Bay, Australia!

Last Minute Run in the Cold

Nothing like waiting until the last day of November to do my virtual half 🤷‍♀️ It was a cold morning on some hilly local roads but I enjoyed every step. I’ve been inspired by all of you 👊 -Angie Spencer

13 Miles on the Appalachian Trail

“Finished my 13.1 today on the Appalachian Trail with my friend Jonathan Geiman. It was a cold windy day but it feels great to get the miles in!

Thanks to all of you for sharing your photos and stories. And thanks for supporting the MTA Podcast!” 🙏 -Trevor Spencer