Portsmouth's Singh plans to run a marathon in all 50 states. Here's where he stands
Portsmouth's Ranjeet Singh has embarked on a nationwide journey that started last month in Alaska, and is scheduled to end at the finish line of the Boston Marathon in April 2025.
In between, Singh, who will turn 50 in January, plans on running a marathon in all 50 states.
The journey began last month at the Anchorage (Alaska) Mayor's Marathon, crossing the finish line in 3 hours, 37 minutes, 53 seconds.
And on Tuesday, he completed the Fourth of July Foot Traffic Flat Marathon in Sauvie Island, Oregon in a time of 3:44:19.
Two states down, 48 to go.
Up next, Singh is scheduled to run the Mesa Falls Marathon in Idaho on July 15. The race begins in the Targhee National Forest and ends in the city of Ashton.
Inside how Singh passes time and gets training done
Although Singh, a software engineer, is a member of numerous running groups and will get a lot of support while he's out running in these different states, the best support comes from his wife, Eileen, who will travel with her husband in their recreational vehicle (RV) for the majority of the marathons.
"We drove together from the East Coast to the West Coast in Oregon," Eileen said. "I plan to go to most of them, it's just some of them I can't because my scheduling is not going to work. But, when I'm not there physically, I'll call him up, we'll talk to each other, and I'll remind him different things. When he asks me to research certain things I'll do that for him. I'll also make sure he wakes up on time, and remind him 'did you eat this?', 'did you buy this?', simple things that the normal wife does."
Singh flew to Alaska for the race, returned home, and he and Eileen drove out to Oregon on June 22.
After Tuesday's Fourth of July run, Singh was planning to stay Oregon for three days, work out at a local YMCA to recover his body, and then take off for Idaho.
"I know how to recover, for me, it requires three days time to work on recovering my body," Singh said. "And once my body recovers, I'll start for the next state."
The inspiration behind Singh's running
Singh started running marathons about six years ago, with inspiration stemming from three specific people, firstly Dean Karnazes, who ran 50 marathons in 50 states in 50 consecutive days back in 2006.
"His journey inspired me a lot, and than I started about thinking of running the same," Singh said. "He finished in 50 days, but I can't finish in the 50 days because I have a lot of other responsibilities to do. I'm working a full-time job also, so it's really hard to do it in 50 days."
Another source of Singh's interest in running was the inspiration from the famous father-son running tandem - Dick and Rick Hoyt, who ran 72 marathons, including 32 Boston Marathons.
Dick Hoyt, starting in 1977, pushed his son, who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at birth, in a wheelchair. The two completed more than 1,100 races, including ironman triathlons. Dick passed away in 2021 at the age of 81, and Rick, at the age of 61, passed away this past May.
"(Karnazes said) 'life is a series of pain, if you can handle the pain, you can achieve any goal'," Singh said. "So those two guys (Karnazes and Hoyt) really inspired me to do these kind of things."
Singh is most looking forward to the Chicago and New York marathons due to the large crowds, which are similar to Boston. Up to 50,000 runners participate in New York, Singh said.
"More runners, more crowd and more fun," Singh said.
On the other hand, Singh said he's heard about which marathon might be the most difficult.
"I heard Utah is a tough one because of the mountains," Singh said.
Eileen said her husband's goal of 50 marathons in 50 states is a good one.
"He's had that goal for a while now," she said. "I'm glad he's pursuing it. It's a lot, but I'm proud of him for doing that."
A look on how Singh put the 50-marathon tour together
Singh thought about where he should start the first leg of 50, and where he should officially end his journey. He chose two states that were "very interesting."
"So, Alaska I couldn't drive, so I decided I would fly and do the first marathon in Alaska," he said. "And the last one is Boston, a very famous marathon."
He will actually run the Boston Marathon twice in this journey. He is scheduled to run Boston next April, with Massachusetts being the 15th state on his list, and then plans to conclude his quest the following year with running Boston for a second time.
Singh's strategic efforts didn't stop there as the marathons in between the first and last were also very well thought out. He's basically making a circle.
"The rest of all marathons, I decided I will go somewhere on the West Coast first, and then all of the nearest West Coast states, I will keep searching the west, and then keep coming to the central and south and then the East Coast," Singh said. "That's my plan."
"And I'll be back home when I complete all of the races," Singh said. "So, I stay in the RV, I'm working from the RV. and I'm traveling in the RV."
Ups and downs of RV life
One of the number one questions about Singh's journey regards travel and how he plans to get around, especially with plane tickets not being the cheapest.
He purchased a 2003 Coachman Type C RV, made by Ford. Singh's RV is equipped with a stove, a bathroom with a shower and is almost 21 feet long, he said.
Singh took a week-long class to be aware of basic malfunctions of the RV that could surface and how to fix those issues. He said he is very prepared for issues to pop up.
"I'm cooking the food here, everything I do is here," Singh said. "On the road everything I do, but sometimes if I park at the YMCA, or a Planet Fitness, sometimes I can use their resources also."
Here is the marathon schedule
Singh has the first 26 marathons scheduled, running through October 28, 2024.
No. 4 Utah
Beaver Canyon Marathon, August
No. 5, Nebraska
Nebraska State Fair Marathon, August 26
No. 6 Washington
Tunnel Light Marathon, September 10
No. 7 Illinois
Chicago Marathon, October 8
No. 8, New Jersey
Atlantic City Marathon, October 17
No. 9, North Carolina
Outer Banks Marathon, November 13
No. 10, South Carolina
Kiawah Island Golf Resort Marathon, December 9
No. 11, Georgia
Museum of Aviation Marathon, January 14
No. 12, Alabama
Big Beach Marathon, January 29
No. 13, Florida
Tallahassee Marathon, February 5
No. 14, Mississippi
Mississippi Blues Marathon, February 25
No. 15, Louisiana
Zydeco Marathon, March 10
No. 16, Massachusetts
Boston Marathon, April 17
No. 17, Kentucky
Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon, April 29
No. 18, Ohio
Cleveland Marathon, May 21
No. 19, Michigan
Bayshore Marathon, May 27
No. 20, Wisconsin
Holy Family Maritime Marathon, June 11
No. 21, Minnesota
Grandma's Marathon, June 17
No. 22, Colorado
Aspen Valley Marathon, July 15
No. 23, Pennsylvania
Drake Well Marathon, August 20
No. 24, Arkansas
Fort Smith Marathon, September 24
No. 25, Missouri
Missouri Cowbell Marathon, October 1
No. 26, Tennessee
Nashville Marathon, October 28
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Portsmouth's Ranjeet Singh plans to run a marathon in all 50 states
