Maniac questionnaire Name: Jason Howard Maniac #: 2378 How many marathons / ultra marathons have you run? 4 marathons What was the first race you ever ran? (Any distance) In 2001 I ran my first three-mile physical fitness test for the Marine Corps. Actual first race was the Okinawa City Marathon. What was the first marathon you ever ran? What year did you run it? Did you have fun that day? How long have you been a runner and why did you start running? I have run regularly since I joined the Marine Corps in 2001, but didn’t start doing more than three miles on a regular basis until 2009. Why did you decide to become a Maniac? Or what inspired you? All of my friends think I am crazy, and I have nearly given up on begging everyone to come run marathons with me. I figured this would be a great place to meet insane people like myself. Of all the races out there in this world, which one would you most like to run? Boston, as long as I qualified. The Ice Marathon in Antarctica is a very, very close second though. If you could run a marathon / ultra accompanied by anyone either living or deceased, who would you choose and why? Honestly, I would love it if anyone in my family was a runner. It would be great to share the runners’ high with my family. What was you most memorable marathon and why? Has to be the Okinawa City Marathon. Although it was 6 hours long, 4 of which were absolutely grueling, I knew I was addicted. If someone asked you to pick a race for him or her that they could run a PR at, which race would you suggest? Not too knowledgeable in this department yet. My PR came this weekend at Knoxville, but I have only started training in January, so I think I am going to continue to improve for a little bit. What was the furthest you’ve ever traveled for a race? I drove 8 hours to get to Knoxville on Saturday, ran the race on Sunday, and after a very quick shower, got in the car and drove 8 hours back to South Carolina Sunday afternoon. This weekend I am going 12 hours each way as I travel to Indiana. Do any of your non-running friends or family members thing that you’re crazy for running as much as you do? What are some of their comments to you? Every single person I know thinks I am crazy. Half of them just don’t understand and ask when my legs, toes, or feet are going to fall off. The other half really think it is cool, but are afraid to start the journey. I tell them they can just start with a 5k and move up. The biggest thing is just getting out there and being a part of the environment. If personal obligations or finances were not an issue, how many marathons would you run in one year? 80-90 From what race did you receive your favorite finishers medal? Okinawa was my favorite so far. It was my first actual marathon and it had this cool looking pineapple in the middle of it. Plus it is the only gold one I have so I kind of felt like the champion. Where do you keep your finisher medals? I display them in my living room. I am going to start talking to others though and see what they do. They mean a lot to me and I want to display them in an interesting fashion. Do you wear your race t-shirts? What do you do with the ones you don’t wear? I wear them a lot in my training runs. The only one I don’t really wear is my Okinawa city one, because it is a little small. Maybe when I lose 15 pounds or so. If you could put on a marathon anywhere in the world, where would you have it? I would like to do one along the fabled route of Pheidippides. I would start at the Battle of Marathon and finish in Athens. Maniac Yellow, or Maniac Black? Maniac Yellow!!!!!!!!! What is your favorite pre race meal? Post race meal? I had some Wheaties Fuel I believe before the last couple races. That was nice and didn’t cause any uncomfortable full-stomach feelings. Afterwards, I am usually craving Mountain Dew and Taco Bell. It has to be a fountain Mountain Dew though. What is your energy gel of choice? Sport drink of choice? Power Gel and Powerade. Which race would you never run again and why? So far, I would all of them again. What was the most challenging race or combination of races you’ve ever done and why? The Okinawa City Marathon was the most challenging because in the three months leading up to the event, I only ran a total of 12 miles in training. What is a typical training week like for you? How many miles do you run? Any cross training? I just kind of run what feels good. I run to and from work a lot which is 7.4 miles and every once in a while I run around the airfield which measures 11.5 miles. I just recently got a fuel belt so that I can carry water and start doing some serious training. Do you have a training partner? If so, who is it? Just my Garmin. I have a friend who finally signed up for the Marine Corps Marathon with me. Hopefully he will start training with me. What kind of shoes do you train in? Do you race in a different shoe? I wear Nikes during both. What are your short-term running goals? I want to meet more runners and get more involved in the community as well as make it through this grueling stretch where I scheduled 4 marathons in 4 weeks. 2 done, 2 to go. What are your long-term running goals? I want to achieve the Titanium Level within the Maniacs, qualify for Boston, and run a marathon in all fifty states as well as all seven continents. Assuming you have time, what do you do for fun other than run marathons? I play on Facebook way too much. Other than that, I spend a lot of time doing car washes and grill outs as I am working on raising money for the ING Run for Something Better charity. Who is your favorite Super Hero? Superman, Wonder Woman, Main Maniac (with cat on head), non Maniac Beauty? Of those provided, I would have to go with Superman, but the Incredible Hulk is a pretty cool dude as well. |