Today's Mighty Oak

Running

A few years ago I began running, starting with C25K.  I found that I love it, and it has grown into a wonderful hobby.  I’m a member of the Pittsburgh Frontrunners, the local queer (and allies) running club.  I’ve also had the privilege of crewing the r/running ultra team three times now.

Below are some of the races I’ve run.  I’m a happy runner and my race partner and I will always be chit chatting about local history and other fun facts about the course.  Find us and we’ll keep you entertained!

UPMC Sports Medicine Pittsburgh Marathon 5K – 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019
My first race and something I return to every year.  A great way to kick off marathon weekend!
Mario Lemieux 6.6K – 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
The race supports the Mario Lemieux Foundation and you get to high five Le Magnifique himself at the finish line!
Roller Coaster Race – 2015
I ran the 5K through the park (and mostly the parking lots) and then got the bonus medal for riding 5K worth of roller coasters!
Stride for Pride – 2015, 2016, 2017, 2017, 2018, 2019
A neat little race supporting queer causes, although not the most transparent with where the money goes and doesn’t officially involve the Frontrunners.
FedEx Pittsburgh Marathon Relay – 2016
Abel Township Runners ran the marathon relay and before the race I helped a twitter friend’s nephew get over to our relay exchange!
The Great Race – 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, virtual in 2020 and 2021
The largest 10K in the state and also for charity, it’s a great fall race as long as as it’s not too hot.
EQT 10-Miler – 2016, 2017
A great fall race that follows the Half Marathon course backwards, and what was the first race I used a training plan for.
UPMC Pittsburgh Half Marathon – 2017
After running the 10-miler in the fall, I knew I was ready for the half.
Buffalo Creek Half Marathon – 2017
Was looking to cut some time off my first half from the spring.  A great course with some of the best race volunteers I’ve ever encountered!
VeteRun Half Marathon – 2018
Was part of my training for the Pittsburgh Marathon and got to run with my aunt on a super-windy day on a motorspeedway in West Virginia!  Left with a new PR and windburn.
Dick’s Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon – 2018, 2019
Had a great time running my first marathon!  Saw friends unexpectedly on the course and made new ones from Chicago!  Went back in 2019 and cut ~45 minutes off my time!
Central Park Holiday Classic – 2018
Got off a Megabus and ran a 10K in Central Park!
Spring Thaw – 2019, 2020
With the ability to change your race distance on-the-fly, I opted for the full 20 miles each time, great swag!
Yuengling Gold Rush – 2019
Ran an early morning race with friends for beer.
Philadelphia Half Marathon – 2019
A runcation to a new city to get a new PR!
The Lake Loop – 2021
The inaugural race by the newly formed Pittsburgh Track Club, overrun by a bunch of ultra runners.
Virtual Races:
Zombies, Run! Virtuals – Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Spring 2020
The Zombies, Run! virtual races are always a lot of fun.  Sometimes we do these as meetups at North Park, but I’ve also run them at dusk in a local park which is creepy and amazing!
Six to Start Virtuals:
Run the Solar System
Run to the Deep
Run Olympus Mons
The Volcano Race
Journey to the Centre of the Eye
Lewis and Clark

Track the Ripper
Six to Start does other virtual runs through RaceLink, with proceeds supporting various science charities in the U.K.  They’re fun, educational and support great causes!
Beat the Blerch – 2014, 2015, 2016
I did the virtual 10K Beat the Blerch runs and enjoyed them, but in 2017 the price jumped up and I couldn’t justify it.
Other one-off virtuals:
Jedi Challenge 2015
OUTTATIME
Jedi Challenge 2016
The 2015 Jedi virtual was to celebrate a Star Wars milestone, in 2016, the medal was too cool to pass up: the Millennium Falcon where the engine lights up!  OUTTATIME celebrated the day Marty McFly came to in Back to the Future!
The Great Virtual Run Across Tennessee – 2020
Laz puts on a virtual race, and since this is probably the only chance I’ll get to run one of his events, I signed up! Running virtually across the state and raising money for the local foodbanks.
Runnsylvania 283 – 2020
Running virtually across the state. I figured since I”m running across Tennessee, I should run across my home state as well.
Trail Relays:
Great Allegheny Passage Relay – 2018, Virtual in 2020
Our team of eight, Pace Oddity, ran from Cumberland, Md. to Pittsburgh!  We were given one of the Go Pros, so a lot of our footage showed up in the promo footage the next year.
Trail Races:
Pittsburgh 30K – 2020
My first trail race! Ran with some friends from PRANK For this fatass-style event.
Ultras:
Eagle Up – 2019
After crewing for a few ultras and with the help of my team, I decided to run and hit my goal of 100K! Listen to my podcast interview about it here!
Get Lucky 50/50 – 2020
I ran the virtual 50K after the in-person race was cancelled due to COVID-19.
Pink Lightning – 2020, 2021
I ran the virtual/fundraiser Pink Lightning 50K. All the money goes to support the theme camp of the same name on the Playa and bring running events to Burning Man!
Miakonda Trail Ultra – 2021
The PRorER crew headed to the inaugural Miakonda Trail Ultra just outside of Toledo.
Crewing:
TIS
Runnit headed to Eagle Up Ultra in 2017 and we formed the team Total Internet Strangers.
PRorER
Runnit returned to Eagle Up Ultra in 2018, this time under the banner of PRorER.
PRorER: Paces Wild
Runnit headed to the Jackpot Running Festival in Las Vegas for the 2019 meetup.
Sleepy Hollow
PRorER went to Georgia to run the 24-hour Sleepy Hollow Ultra.
Volunteering:
Liberty Mile – 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
I don’t run it, but I volunteer at the Liberty mile, passing out bibs and directing people to where they have to be!
Pittsburgh Triathlon – 2015
I volunteered at packet pickup when P3R organized the Pittsburgh Triathlon, which is where I made some amazing volunteering friends and we continue to work together!
Pittsburgh Marathon – 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
A group of us volunteer each year getting the 50,000 shirts ready for the weekend.  We have a great crew and we get better at it each year!
Clubs/Teams:
Pittsburgh Frontrunners I run with the Pittsburgh Frontrunners.  Come join us for a run in Schenley Park!
PRorER formed from the Runnit meetup of 2018 (and absorbed all of TIS) and we’ve been running together around the county ever since!
PRANK: Pittsburgh Runs At Night Klub. While training for the GAP Trail Relay, we found that we love the bonding of a long, overnight run, so we keep doing them!
PRorER Events:
The PRorER Team meets up at races, and sometimes we put on our own!
First Annual Steve Memorial 100 Meter Fun Run Marathon 5K For A Cure Charity Run Presented by TrackJack
We met up for a crazy run around Pittsburgh, a day at the museum, food, and the big event, a 100 meter dash!
B6Q
The Big Beautiful Backyard Boyce BBQ! A last-person standing race with both a Cordog (trail) and Weenie (road) loops. I crewed and ran, providing a brunch lap, mountain pie lap and then got some runs in. The PRorER Trail Parasites replaced one of the bridges in support of the Boyce Park trail system before the event.
Lauren’s Puzzle Run
A virtual (due to COVID-19), eight-hour run and puzzle competition. Run three miles each hour and solve a puzzle to put together one master puzzle by the end of the day. I won the individual division!
Race Director:
Acorn Dash  
I was the race director for the Acorn Dash; a 5K, Kids Dash and beach party as a fundraiser for the Camp Staff Alumni Association.

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