You guys rock!

She did it! My friend, Jenny Hoffman made it: a new World Record for running across the United States in 47 days. I couldn’t be more proud, and I feel honored to have had the opportunity to play a (very) small part in it by joining her for part of her run through Ohio. Jenny’s run was all the more astounding because she tried and failed to get across in the past. Persistence pays off.

It occurs to me that until this point, I have never written very much about some of my other friends and their recent running accomplishments. These are people I trained with several times a week throughout the spring, summer, and fall of 2023. That makes them closer than most close friends. As it happens, each of them did exceedingly well in their late summer and early fall goal running events. Not that I ever had any doubts. Here are just a few of the great achievements. I will try to do this without mentioning their actual names, just to protect their privacy. Sorry if I left anyone out.

Two of them trained together nearly all the time. It helped that they were married to one another. They traveled the farthest for their goal race: the Crater Lake Marathon in Oregon. This was the most arduous event because of the overall elevation as well as the elevation gain and loss over the course. Finishing was quite an achievement, and surely a memorable one.

Three ran the Akron Marathon. For one, it was a comeback race after a major injury. For another, it was a very first marathon (a very good one!), and for the third, it was a personal best. All this during a slightly warm day on a challenging course.

One, after pacing many other events, ran one just for himself: The Columbus Marathon. As expected (by me), he ran a super time which was also a personal best.

And that’s not all. Some of my other friends that I don’t see quite so often also did some fabulous stuff. One person managed to qualify for Boston in Dayton, and another completed a Double Marathon at Run with Scissors. Besides all of us normal people, some trail ultrarunning friends are so far beyond what I can comprehend, that I hesitate to even mention them. So I won’t, other than to say, ‘All you guys rock!’

How did we all do so well? There’s little doubt that it helped to work together. Teamwork and camaraderie are nearly unbeatable. It’s all pretty amazing. I don’t know what will happen next for our tribe, but I can’t wait to find out.