“I was definitely happy I was done, because I was also trying to get them all in under four hours. I kept thinking about the last several miles, and this was the last time I needed to run a marathon in under four hours, so that kept me going,” said 50 State Marathon Club runner Andrea Kovach.
In January of this year, Naperville resident Andrea Kovach became the newest member of the 50 States Marathon Club after running a marathon in all 50 States.
“I like to travel, so it was an excuse to go see all of the state and every time I went to a state, would try to go and do some small touristy thing,” said Kovach.
That touristy thing turned into a decades-long expedition. Her first marathon was the Chicago Marathon in 1997, with her 50th state crossed off the list at the Maui Oceanfront Marathon in Hawaii on January 19th. Back in the 90s, Andrea started off running 5K races, but a letter in the mail she received one day changed her course.
“So I had run a 5K, and I got a brochure from the Leukemia Society team for training. It said we will train you to run a marathon, and so I thought since my husband’s playing tennis on Saturdays, I’m going to go and train to run a marathon on a Saturday morning, and that’s how it all started,” said Kovach.
Kovach running at a steady pace
Kovach has been able to run each of the 26.2-mile races in under four hours. Her final time in Hawaii was three hours and fifty-seven minutes, where she was showered with support from start to finish.
“There were nine of us, including myself, who all went, and it was awesome having my whole family there, supporting me and cheering me on,” said Kovach.
Every state offers its own unique experience, but races like the Boston Marathon and the Rehoboth Beach Marathon in Delaware were standouts where Kovach felt confident and challenged.
“Boston is a hard race because it is very hilly and starts later in the day. So you have to plan out your breakfast and nutrition, and then you’re sitting around for several hours before you start,” said Kovach
“The scenery [in Delaware] was really nice. We got to run on a boardwalk and through waving tall grass. The highlight was after the race because I got to have a lobster roll and yummy french fries,” said Kovach.
More races to come for Andrea Kovach
The 50-state milestone is not the end of Kovach’s marathon journey. She has now run 74 marathons in total since 1997 and has plans for more in the future. Her next race will be the Revel White Mountains Marathon in New Hampshire on May 4th.
“If you train, anybody can run a marathon and everybody’s always surprised that I have run marathons and have run that many, but if you put your mind to it, you can do it,” said Kovach.
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