In just a few weeks, Geoff Alonso will run his first 50K— a feat he could have hardly imagined three years ago, when he set about running a humble 5K. Not bad for a guy who used to hate the sport!
Geoff, a former college tennis player, always viewed running as part of his conditioning, but not necessarily a passion activity. Then 4 and ½ years ago, he had his first kid and noticed the pounds piling on. He headed back to the gym, but wound up feeling unsatisfied. It was then that he decided to set a goal for himself—run a 5K.
“I did that first one, finished and thought, ‘Okay, what’s further?’” he said. So he set about to run an 8K next—then a 10K—then a 10-miler and half-marathon.
“I wasn’t very fast, but I knew I could still control if I finished,” Geoff said. Each time he did, he challenged himself with a further distance.
“Could I?” he asked himself each time he extended the mileage.
He could. On Sept. 27th he’ll run the Flat Rock 50K, in Independence, Kansas. He’s looking forward to finishing, “and a beer afterwards,” he laughed. Geoff first learned out about Orange Mud via Twitter. A fan of products focused on people, he wound up talking to CEO Josh Sprague in the ordering process.
When Josh learned Geoff was from Kansas, Josh revealed that he was as well. He was headed home for a visit, and told him he would go ahead and deliver the hydration pack Geoff had ordered himself.
A few days later, Josh delivered, both the pack and on his promise. He fought through a Kansas snowstorm to do it, but he delivered the pack to Geoff’s door. “Amazing,” Geoff recalled. “Not many companies will hand-deliver their stuff in a snowstorm.”
Geoff digs the way the pack rides, and how it doesn’t interfere with his running. He’ll be using one in a few weeks in Independence.
We wish him luck in the Flat Rock 50K!