The 13th annual Mad Marathon features two runners who have recently published books and elite athlete Chuck Engle.
Those authors will be introduced on Saturday, July 6, at the Inn at the Round Barn in Waitsfield where a Mad Carbo dinner takes place with the runners in advance of the July 7 marathon.
Chuck Engle, vice president of business development with Marathon Guide (a worldwide marathon directory) and director of partnerships at Runzy (a registration/coaching platform) will lead the evening. Engle’s list of sports includes running over 450 SUB three-hour marathons in all 50 states along with victories; a three-time Ironman world championship qualifier with 11 Ironman finishes; four times All World Ironman athlete; USAT age group national champion; three-time NCAA All American; more than 50 marathon course records; 18 Boston Marathon finishes to name a few.
Engle will be introducing marathoners Aaron Burros, author of, “Medal Monday,” along with Tom Perri, who recently published, “Running: My Salvation from Stage 4 Cancer.”
“I am ecstatic about getting the chance to visit the Mad River Valley; I eagerly anticipate giving a speech at the Mad Marathon pasta dinner held at the Round Barn Farm. The Mad River Valley remains one of my absolute favorite marathons among the over 500 I have completed. Every year, my wife and I, along with a few members of our running community, eagerly await the scenic beauty and the generous hospitality from the welcoming people of Vermont,” Engle said.
In November 2015, one of the authors Engles will introduce, Aaron Burros, fought to stay alive after being shot five times while saving his coworkers’ lives. As the blood oozed from his body, this promising professional trail runner saw his future jeopardized. Although he survived by a mere millimeter, a bullet remained buried in his right glute muscle, and debilitating PTSD would stalk him forever. What was he to do? How could he avoid a minimal life, living only to avoid the shooters still intent on murdering him?
The answer came in the form of an audacious challenge. In January 2021, Aaron Burros, #Running Servant, would begin an audacious quest of running 50 marathons in 50 states in 50 weeks to celebrate his 50th birthday. To save himself, he reached out to help others on the marathon courses.
“His book is a tale of mind-boggling challenge, loyal servanthood, and astonishing resilience, “Medal Monday.” It reveals the audacious lengths we can push our minds, bodies, and spirits to do what we never imagined,” said Mad Marathon race founder and director Dori Ingalls.
“Medal Monday” isn't just another running book -- it's carb loading for the mind and fuel for your soul. When you hit the wall, it'll give you the mental toughness to run through it,” Burros said of his book.
Through six decades of running, Tom Perri has run over 680 marathons and ultras. He never stopped running, even when he was given his initial prostate cancer diagnosis in 2018 at the age of 58, and even after it progressed to Stage 4 in 2019.
Perri made a commitment that cancer was not going to tell him what he couldn't do. Instead of giving up, he set higher goals and dreamed new dreams, while continuing to run and pace marathons around the world. Cancer became a motivating factor to make his life even better than what it previously was.
“His inspirational book, “Running: My Salvation from Stage 4 Cancer,” is so much more than just about running. It is about seeing a negative and making it a positive. It is about facing a life-threatening roadblock and making a gutsy detour to take your life in a completely new direction. It is about being positive no matter what life throws at you. And it is about friendships forged through a commonality of coping with cancer,” Ingalls said.
“I truly meant what the title implies and that is ‘Running: My Salvation from Stage 4 Cancer’ because continuing running helped me stay active and positive. Running has given me the conditioning I needed to get through all that cancer has thrown my way,” Perri said.
“I reached 200 marathons/ultras since my initial Stage 4 diagnosis. Soon on July 30, 2024, I will make five years as a Stage 4 cancer survivor. Now I ask myself, what other goals can I accomplish in my life and with running? I definitely won’t fail to make a list of goals I will try to achieve,” he added.
In addition to the carb loading pre-marathon dinner at the Round Barn on July 5, Lawsons Finest Liquid is sponsoring a free concert by The Grift at the Round Barn on July 5 starting at 6 p.m.
All are welcome for both events. To enter the Mad Marathon visit: madmarathon.com
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