My 24 Hour Marathon Challenge: Running with a Social Impact
I Ran a Marathon in 24 Hours and Dedicated Each Mile to a Victim…
Last Saturday I did the 24 Hour Marathon Challenge, inspired by Beau Miles. 1.1 mile. Every hour. Starting Saturday, at 7 am. Ending Sunday, at 7 am. A total of 26.2 miles.
The concept is to do a mile every hour for 24 hours, and in between each hour, you do tasks and chores around the house, things that you’ve been putting off for far too long. I remember watching this video back in March, at the beginning of my quarantine. “Crazy, but I’m intrigued!,” I thought. I’ve never come close to doing a marathon, but the idea of dedicating an entire day to running and completing tasks that I’ve put off for so long sounded very appealing.
2020 has been a crazy year as we all know it. The horrendous killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd (sadly) sparked the fire that the Black Lives Matter and modern-day Civil Rights movement needed. Ahmaud Arbery’s death forever changed me. I think about him every single time I run now.
I wanted this marathon challenge to have meaning, way beyond myself. Well, my passion for running and social justice came knocking on my thinking cap, and it hit me! I decided I would be:
1) Collecting donations for the Equal Justice Initiative, a highly praised non-profit that works to end racial inequality and more.
2) Dedicating my run each hour to a victim of police brutality and/or violence. I’d spend the 1.1 mile run, and the rest of my hour listening to heart warming stories about these wonderful individuals and learning more about who they were from their families via YouTube.
I publicized this crazy idea of mine and in 5 days, WE were able to donate $920 to the EJI!
In the end, this was one of the best and most empowering experiences of my life. The 24 Hour Marathon Challenge was HARD, but well worth the gruesome pain in my knee and sleepless day that I faced. Being able to learn more about the stories of each one of these beautiful beings was heartbreaking, knowing that their lives were ended short, but also my main drive to completing this challenge and continuing the fight against racism, hate and violence.
I’m not a so-called “running influencer” or a competitive athlete with thousands of followers but I thought, “even if I collect $50 from friends and family to donate towards a cause, that’s something!” When donations and support for my big weekend came flowing in, I couldn’t believe it. It goes to show that we’re capable of so much more than we initially tell ourselves.
I challenge YOU, to be creative and think of fun ways that you can incorporate your passion with a social cause. We have so much more power and influence than we believe do.
Below are the individuals who I dedicated 1.1 miles to:
Breonna Taylor. Ahmaud Arbery. George Floyd. Rashard Brooks. Elijah McClain. Gregory Johnson. Tony McDade. Tamir Rice. Trayvon Martin. Sandra Bland. Michael Brown. Freddie Gray. Oscar Grant. Walter Scott. Alton Sterling. Atatiana Jefferson. Andres Guardado. Oluwatoyin Ruth “Toyin” Salau . Karina Vetrano. Mollie Tibbetts. Darrius Stewart. Loreal Tsingine. Rosalita “Rose” Longee. Vanessa Guillen.
