Highlands Ranch runner Dave Bell just completed his 400th marathon at the Steamboat Marathon last weekend, making him the Colorado state record holder for the most lifetime marathons. Dave has completed five circuits of all 50 states and serves as the Vice President of the 50 State Marathon Club. He is also a member of the Marathon Maniacs and has been inducted into the club Hall of Fame. This is a criteria based award and to qualify one has to reach two of the possible four criteria as well as being a member in good standing for three consecutive years;
- 51 Marathons Per Year For Three Consecutive Years
- Five Time 50 States Finisher
- 99 finishes of a 100 Mile distance
- 333 Lifetime Marathons / Ultras
We caught up with Dave to ask him a few questions on what makes his marathon career so special.
You just completed your 400th marathon. Congratulations! For many runners, training for even one marathon seems difficult. What motivates you?
Well, I have several things that motivate me and I hope that what I do also motivates others – not necessarily to run a marathon, but to not be afraid to push themselves farther than they think possible in whatever physical endeavor. Also, despite having now completed 400, I still get a great sense of accomplishment every time I cross that finish line. Mostly though, is the realization of how much I would miss the challenge of running a marathon and how much I would miss all the incredible, wonderful friends I’ve made over the years of running marathons – friends who feel like family to me. Also, I want to point out that while part of my motivation is about the goal a finishing a marathon, I’m not motivated by always hitting a certain finish time, I’m more about the experience and about having fun with my friends. So while I do enter every race with a finish time in mind, but I don’t let that dictate the day.
When was your first marathon?
My first was the Steamboat Marathon, June 4, 1995. I was inspired by a friend’s story of running the Comrades Marathon (really ultra marathon) in South Africa. So my first one was a last minute change from planning to run the event 10K and I had no clue about training or what it would take to run a marathon! It was a tough day, but I was able to finish.
What is your favorite marathon?
Typically I prefer small to mid sized marathons, but my favorite has to be the Marine Corp Marathon in Washington, DC despite there being 25,000 or so runners. There is just something special about running through the nations capital and past the monuments, the White House, the mall and the capitol building. Plus you have the Marines at aid stations and handing out the medals at the finish.
Other favor events include Mesa Falls (ID), Fargo (ND), Flying Monkey (TN), Vermont City, Surf City (CA), Yakima River Canyon (WA), Mississippi Blues and American Discovery Trail (CO).
Do you have a favorite marathon medal?
Well, there are really too many to pick from, but I really like it when events come up with unique, custom designs. A recent favorite was at the 2015 Mississippi Blues where the medal was the shape of a guitar with small chain with a guitar pick attached.
How far have you traveled for a marathon?
I’ve yet to travel internationally (my only international race was Vancouver, BC where I ran the 1/2 back before I did many marathons). So being a 50 state finisher means Alaska and Hawaii would be the the greatest distance I’ve traveled to date for a marathon.
What was your worst experience?
I’ve only had one or two experiences where the race was a disappointment. One in Nevada where it was very poorly organized (the event no longer exist) and then a couple years ago in Little Rock where due to poor race management I did not get to finish. However, most of my worst experiences are more about travel issues (delayed or cancelled flights, hotel issues, etc).
How many marathons do you complete in a year?
My biggest year was in 2007 when I completed 38 marathons, but I typically do about 25 a year now – so basically about 2 per month.
I’m sure many runners wonder how do you do it? The costs, the time commitment, the extensive travel, the planning involved seem daunting.
It does take a lot of planning and watching for the best travel deals. I typically plan anywhere from 6 to 12 months in advance and keep a couple of spreadsheets to help track my plan; one for the races I’m registered for or thinking about/planning on running and another spreadsheet for the travel things I’ve booked and what I still need to book. While I’ve been blessed to have an income that allows me to travel and run many marathons, I do have to keep a pretty tight budget in order to run as many as I do. Thus, the importance of finding those good travel deals and it also helps that I have made many friends who also travel a lot for races so I often share hotels and when possible cars, etc.
Have you ever dealt with an injury?
Fortunately I’ve never had an injury so severe that I could not run. A few nagging issues with tendonitis here and there, but I’ve always been able to still run.
Do you have advice for runners thinking about training for their first marathon?
I would suggest that if possible, to get involved with a group training program or at least find a friend to train with. One of my mantras to those who have not run a marathon is that if I can do it, so can you. I’m a bigger guy and not really built for running marathons, nor a fast runner. But I’m over the mental hurdle of saying that I can do it, which is just as important as anyones ability or training. The other advice is to not set your goal for the first one too high where you could very well be set up for disappointment. I realize this is hard for really good runners, so yes it is fine to have a time goal, but make it more about the experience than hitting a certain finish time.
Was reaching #400 your goal or do you have a larger goal in mind?
Reaching 400 was just the next milestone in my marathon “career”. I plan to keep doing them as long as I can, physically and financially. While I will hopefully reach other milestones along the way, my only real goal going forward is to keep my month streak going. Currently, I have done at least one marathon or ultra for the past 131 months and I would like to continue that streak as long as possible. I’ve also branched out a bit more in the past couple years at longer distances and hope to add a 50 mile race finish in 2015.