Every athlete has one race
to run for someone else.
One Medal® is a program that promotes the gift of encouragement and empowerment for people who are going through what appears to be insurmountable adversity. Every athlete has one race and One Medal® to give for someone. Who are you running for?
August 10,2025
Every step tells a story. Discover the athletes running for something bigger than themselves.
The Black Hills Ultramarathon: 50 Mile Putting the running pack on her knee she pulled out a five inch blade, “You never know when this will come in handy out there, I always run with it.” Pondering my position in the back of a sprinter van, in the remote Black Hills...
“The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” – Robert Burns The plan was to run the Panther City 13.1 marathon on February 21, 2021. The “cold” reality, in the form of an artic polar vortex, postponed the race. My One Medal honoree, a combat veteran with...
The Surfside Beach Half Marathon was my first race in almost a year. It is a fun race on the packed slopping sand along the Texas Gulf Coast. It was my first race since the initial Pandemic restrictions. It was a race with several narratives....
Earlier this week I had a chance to learn more about Gabriele “Gabe” Grunewald and her broad base of support through the use of #BraveLikeGabe . In the spirit of One Medal, the Albuquerque Dukes Track Club dedicated a weekly run to her as a form of encouragement. On...
It is not often you get to take a picture with everyone in your race. Actually, I’ve been running for nearly ten years and it has never happened. Well, until the Runoff Runoff Marathon. In a cool 42 degree haze, the headwaters of the Rio Grande to our...
The Garrity Group recently pledged and completed a virtual 5K. While I am sure the staff covers that kind of territory in a day around the office, this was a special 5K is was for someone none of us ever met, AJ AJ was born February 25, 2016. His last days were...
The Cedro Peak Trail Half Marathon was going to be a challenge. It did not disappoint. At 7,600 feet above sea level, it was higher than Albuquerque and Santa Fe. Add in a cluster of runners on narrow trails… things are bound to get interesting! I ran...
The Ironman 70.3 Boulder triathlon was for my friend Pete. His cancer treatments were successfully wrapping up about the same time this race was occurring. When I started training for Ironman 70.3 Boulder, I had a variety of plans. The progression of...
Until June 2, 2018, I could state with confidence that I never stepped foot in Dexter, New Mexico. What a neat town. It is tucked away in the Southwestern New Mexico, surrounded by the oil industry. The Milkman Triathlon didn’t offer a finisher’s medal. However, they...
The Houston Marathon looked so good on paper. It is the city where I was raised in the state where I went to school. The city is about 5,000 feet lower than where I live, thinking it would provide a natural advantage because of all the extra air. Again, it...
I remember the request like it was yesterday: “Daddy, do you have any pop tabs? My class is collecting them for the Ronald McDonald House.” Both of my daughters took great care and were quite meticulous when collecting pop tabs. As a result of the pop tabs and a...
"Why do you run?" Everyone has their own reasons. I've been running since I was 8 or 9 years old. When I was a young child I grew up on the country side of Isleta Pueblo, which is about 20 minutes south of Albuquerque, and lived in a house with my grandparents, my...
Nara finished the Steamworks Half Marathon in Durango for her mentor Melani and shared this story. I am a firm believer in mentorship to help you succeed in achieving your goals, whether they are personal or professional. I am lucky enough to know someone who has...
The following One Medal Story was submitted by Shannon who ran the 2017 Boston Marathon for her high school friend's son, Jack. I know Michelle and her sister Debbie from high school. Michelle and I were good friends and we used to hang out on the weekends going...
There are fans, friends and family. And there are people who happen to be all three. Dave was one of those rare breeds. His success was seen as a United States Marine, a husband, dad and granddad as well as a business executive who set the high benchmark of how to act...
Growing up, I remember watching Monday Night Football and hearing Howard Cosell taking about the “frozen tundra” as a way to describe the winter weather playing conditions in Green Bay and Minneapolis. Fast forward to the Sangre de Cristo mountains and the Santa Fe...
Wisconsin Ironman & New Mexico Toughman Triathlon The road to my first Ironman and half-ironman distance are dedicated to my mom and dad, respectively. Both mom and dad are great role models for my brother, sister and me. The first of the races, the 2016 New...
Feeling more confident about triathlons, I ventured to Madison, Wisconsin to participate in a training weekend for the Wisconsin Ironman (a future OneMedal story). The training weekend provided the chance for an open water training swim and a 50 mile training ride on...
For 47 years of my life, endurance running was not a regular part of my life. So, it would make sense that in my 52nd year on this earth that I give the sport of triathlon a try. Right? Wrong! Normal people don’t think like this. I digress. With several marathons,...
I am over long walks on the beach. Albuquerque’s winter provided the perfect training. The traction of fresh snow in the foothills was the closest thing I found to mimic the white sands of Destin, Florida. There was no way to really train for the camber angles or...
The Funyons. I’ll always laugh about the Funyons. Our cousin Jess had just had a baby and my sister and I arrived at the hospital to meet her. We frantically ran around the lobby looking for a baby gift. Quick - there has to be something in one of these shops. Nothing...