So, Anybody Ever Wanted to Run Across Ohio?

K.P. Kelly is running across the state of Ohio next week. While Ohio is one of the Mid-Western States, and a little on the smallish side compared to say, Montana, it’s still an impressive feat. A fast disclaimer – my longest ever run is 101.43 miles. K.P. is doing about 2.5 times that much.

Boggles your mind? Read on. He’s doing it for a pretty cool cause. (Interview was done electronically and I’m hoping that K.P. has time to add some new comments. Mine will get interjected in between.)

 1.     Let’s start with the big question – you’re about to run a ridiculous distance. How far and why? I will be running 250 miles, from the Ohio River in Cincinnati, OH to Lake Erie in Cleveland, Ohio.  Last year, I ran this same course, and did it over six days, stopping each night to sleep.  I ran last year to raise support for terminally ill children.  This year, I am running for Get Fit Ohio, a new organization I co-founded. Unlike last year, I am not stopping over-night.  I will run (and walk a bit) for 72 straight hours, without sleep, and with carrying all of my gear on my back.

(Yikes. I now officially feel like a slacker.)

2. What got you started on your non-profit journey?  My first nonprofit was Share 4 Kids. We grant and share wishes of terminally ill children. I’ve also served on the Board of Directors of several non-profits, and help to brand and market other non-profits.  I find my life has more meaning when the work I do and the way in which I spend my time has more meaning. Spending time working with non-profits is a way to utilize my skills, ability, and my passion, for a greater good.

(Married to someone working in the non-profit sector, I understand the motivations of the folks that work so hard for very few dollars – though great satisfaction.)

3. You’re also an entrepreneur. How do you balance your time? After all, none of these are easy tasks. That is always a challenge. People never believe this about me, but the truth is that I am not naturally an organized person nor someone that time management comes easily to.  I have had to work at it.  I experiment with different ways to be more efficient, find systems that work for me, then do the best I can to stick to them,  I am not sure if balance is ever achieved, and perhaps it is not meant to be achieved. We are always leaning one way or the other. I make sure to always put people first, and go from there. At the end of the day, if I just keep pushing forward, every task gets done.

(Oh good. I thought I might be the only one with time management issues and balance problems. Looks like we have the same first instinct—take care of people first.)

4. So how did you plan your training for your run? Honestly, I piece together my training here and there.  I am not a natural runner. I don’t have a strict plan.  There really is not a way to adequately train for something like this.  I could have trained a bit better. I could be in better shape. I wish I was a bit healthier. But in the end, nothing prepares for this.  I’ve done a lot of 30 mile runs. I’ve averaged over 100 miles per week the past 2 months.  My focus has been on training to do the first 100 miles as strong as I can, and then just hold on and survive after that.

 5. What kind of plans do you have for fueling, shoe changes, etc? Do you have a crew?  I don’t have a crew. I intended to have a crew following in an RV so that I had all my supplies, did not have to carry anything, and I could shower quickly and change frequently.  Plans for that fell through.

 What I will be doing is carrying about 20lbs with me. I will have a change of shoes, several pairs of socks, clothes, first aid, my food, and all the water I can carry. I will refuel anytime I come across a gas station or store and buy Gatorade. 

 I do have people coming out a few times on the run to change out my supplies.  Our Get Fit Ohio Nutritional Director, Mary, will be with me for a portion of the run, at night, driving alongside to allow me some time to run without carrying all the gear. That will be helpful. 

 I will change my socks every few hours, and rotate my shoes every 2-3 hours.  My food/fuel is being supplied by Great Race Nutrition. Most of my diet will be gels, but I will stop along my run to purchase some food.  It is a challenge to get in all of the calories. I need to be eating around 7,000 calories per day on the run.  It will be more of a challenge being alone for most of it and carrying my own gear, but I am actually looking forward to that; being self-dependent, just me and the road.

6. Last question. How do people go about supporting you? We will have our website up Monday, which will show the live updates along my run.  The best thing to do for now is to connect with our Facebook Page, http://www.facebook.com/GetFitOH We will be posting updates there and ways to support. Our GoFundMe is http://www.GoFundMe.com/FitCleRun   The donations have been much lower than anticipated so far, but the cause has been received tremendous attention and is being shared and talked about all over social media, which will ultimately help us in helping families in need.