It was an honor to be interviewed by the Dallas Morning News about my crazy dream of trying to run a marathon in every state.
I’ve completed races in 47 of them. And I’ll finish this fall by running the last three in eight weeks in North Dakota, New Jersey, and Maryland. It’s a perfect finish – a small race along a beautiful river canal outside of Washington, not far from where I got married and where my dear mother was from. And it comes at a perfect time — one week before I turn 60.
The funny thing is that I hadn’t run any of these 26.2 mile races until I was turning 50. Before that, I barely ran. Between the weather and the injuries, I didn’t really like it.
But a week after my first one, the San Diego Rock ‘n Roll Marathon, I was accepted by the New York City Marathon on my first try, and then qualified to run in the prestigious Boston Marathon, so these were good omens. I ran one or two marathons a year, and then decided to ramp it up when I turned 55.
I’ve run 40 in the past four-plus years, all as fast as I could. I’m proud that most have qualified for the rigorous Boston Marathon requirements, the gold standard for us. I keep pushing myself to try to run faster and have run PR’s (3:24 and 3:25) in the last year and a half. I average about 130 miles a month.
People ask me why I want to go out in the often bad weather and punish myself by running, especially at my age. Wouldn’t golf be better?
The answer is that I love the challenge. I enjoy running fast, hearing crowds cheering, getting medals, and seeing new places. It’s exciting and rewarding. I especially like that I’m in the best shape and health of my life.
Yes, running is hard. But often practicing law is harder. Having to write lengthy motions and briefs, conduct intense depositions, and participate in grueling trials is difficult. I’m sure that my hobby gives me greater physical endurance and mental toughness to make me a more effective attorney.
There’s more about my running here.