Meet The RI Man Training To Run 7 Marathons In 7 Days On 7 Continents
What do you get when you combine two of the things you love to do most? Pure joy? I will soon find out. I love to run. I love to travel. This coming January I'm going to smash the two together like cymbals by doing (better yet, attempting) the World Marathon Challenge - 7 marathons on 7 continents in 7 days. That's right. A marathon each day for a week in a different part of the world with long flights in between. Day 1: Novo, Antartica. Day 2: Cape Town, South Africa. Day 3: Perth, Australia. Day 4: Dubai, UAE. Day 5: Lisbon, Portugal. Day 6: Barranquilla, Colombia. Day 7: Miami, Fla.
I will be the first ever from Rhode Island to try it. My wife is coming with me for support. And I'm so excited I can't stand it. This will be the fourth annual race. Only 12 runners entered the first year when the crew flew commercial. More than 55 runners from around the world are expected to give it a go this January, and the race director is spoiling us with a private plane, lay flat seats and better food. That's what you get for $40,000 per person!!! So we're looking at 183 miles of running, and at least 45 hours of flying, plus our flights from Boston to Cape Town and home from Miami. Fly, run, repeat. No hotel stays.
There is a certain level of euphoria that comes from each part of this adventure. Of course I'd love to be able to spend time in each city doing the tourist thing, but obviously that's not going to be possible. I've been told by previous participants that I'll most likely be consumed by running, eating, recovering and sleeping. However, Amanda hopefully will get a chance to site see in a few locations. Not Antarctica. Nothing to do but keep warm, take in the beautiful landscape and watch us run. Not Colombia. Too dangerous. But during the remaining stops she hopes to breeze by a few tourist attractions, eat a local meal, take photos, etc. We will only be in each city for 10-12 hours so she won't have time for too much.
Training for the trip has taken on a life of its own. A total of 60 runners entered the first three years and only one (1) did not finish so the pressure is on. Long runs, hours at the gym, meal prep, rest, lots of stretching and mobility work. Add it all up and it feels like a part time job. Plus, we're trying to raise money to cover the cost of the trip and to donate to three local charities. So we've been busy with letter writing and sponsorship campaigning. We joke that it will be great once the trip is over so that we can have our lives back. At the same time, how many people can say they experienced all 7 continents inside of 7 days. Stay tuned for updates...
To learn more about the trip and follow Nick and Amanda's adventure: