With everything being canceled due to covid-19 this year, many small businesses and local charitable organizations have seen losses on a massive scale. John Theissen’s Children Foundation has been a local charity that has done so much for the community and has been hit hard during these tough times. I told John at the end of last year when I was helping him pick up toys during the holiday season, that I wanted to run across Long Island. This was similar to a feat that John did back in 1997, and a pinnacle challenge I have always wanted to try. The idea sat in my head for a while but was something that I began to take more seriously as 2020 rolled around.

After coming back from graduate school in North Dakota, we decided to move forward on this idea and make it a reality. On July 7th, starting at midnight, I am looking to make it across Long Island, starting at Montauk Point all the way to the other side of the Brooklyn Bridge before midnight the next day. The route will follow along Montauk highway, Merrick Road, Wantagh Avenue past JTCF, on Jerusalem Ave., Hempstead Turnpike, Jamaica Ave., Myrtle Ave., through downtown Brooklyn, and then over the Brooklyn Bridge. The route totals 131 miles, and certainly holds itself to be a challenge to finish, but even moreso to finish in under 24 hours. Our goal is to raise $5,000 for the children’s foundation while also bringing about awareness to John’s organization.

Starting around mile 50 we will have aid stations every 10 miles that people/companies can sponsor, alongside opportunities to showcase support through money matching miles and unique run memorabilia sales. After John’s foundation (headquartered in. Wantagh at the 103-mile mark) we will have aid stations every 5 miles. Runners, cyclists, and spectators alike are all welcomed to join in the festivities of this run, tagging in at certain miles throughout the event. I’m looking to average around 7:30-8:00 minute pace for the first 60 miles and then 9:30 pace for the rest of the event. Ultra-Marathons like this are certainly not something new to me, having completed the Cayuga Trails USATF Trail champions back in May of 2019, and the END Trails 12 hour run in October of 2019.

More details on this event in regards to preparation, live tracking, and ways to donate will be posted on social media and ryanontherun.com leading up to the event and afterwards. I would love to have you follow along and hope to see you out there on the course. Thank you, and happy running!

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