Jess Hayden
It’s never too late to set and achieve intimidating goals—at least, that’s how Jess Hayden, who recently finished her project of completing a marathon in all 50 states, lives her life.
Hayden, the retired executive director of the Susquehanna Folk Music Society, started the project in her 50s, and it took 11 years to complete. That’s an average of more than four marathons per year, an impressive feat for someone of any age.
“For me, goals and projects are really important,” Hayden said. “They empower us, and just moving them forward makes us feel so good.”
This project turned Hayden into what’s called a “50-stater” in the marathon community. No matter if she were in Maryland, Montana or Alaska, she often ran into fellow 50-staters who she recognized from other races.
The marathoners she met were diverse, ranging from their teens to their 80s, in all shapes and sizes.
“That’s one thing I really like about running in marathons in particular,” she said. “If you’re physically able, through some really strategic planning and running a little bit every day, and using a good marathon plan, just about anyone can run a marathon.”
Hayden, who lives in New Cumberland, completed her first marathon in 2014 right at home in Harrisburg. She wanted to keep at it, and instead of doing the same marathon every year for the rest of her life, she decided to see the country and experience the myriad cultures that make up our 50 states. With the help of running friends, family and—most of all—her husband John, Hayden raced in places like Salmon, Idaho, Storm Lake, Iowa, and Hilo, Hawaii.
For Hayden, her husband was an integral part in the success she had reaching her goal, though it wasn’t through running that he helped her achieve it.
“My philosophy about exercise so far in life is when the urge to exercise hits, I lay down until the feeling passes,” John said.
Still, having spent his career as a mechanical engineer, John’s knack for logistics was extraordinarily helpful. Ahead of races, he would help her map out her course, ensuring she’s training for the right kind of elevation and terrain. Sometimes, she’d run two marathons in one weekend to keep travel costs down, so he made sure she was eating enough at the right times.
“If you’re burning 5,000 calories in a weekend, it’s hard to imagine how much food you have to eat,” he said.
On the ground, John would drive her to the start line, pick her up at the finish line, and support her in between. He’d take her to packet pick up the day before the race and generally make sure all her ducks were in a row so she could focus on being healthy and finishing her goal.
For Hayden, that all made a difference.
“I can say this now that I was never injured in a marathon,” she said. “I never had to stop a marathon. So, I was really happy about that, because there were definitely people I saw that were pulled off the course for injuries.”
Hawaii was Hayden’s last race, completed earlier this year. Her husband retired in January, so it was a double celebration, with a dozen or so friends and family staying with them at an Airbnb near the course. Her daughter even surprised her by running the race with her (it was her first marathon). By the end of the race, the news spread.
“There was another 50-stater beside me that was finishing up,” Hayden said. “So, everybody on the course knew who we were, and, at the end, there were people there cheering.”
For Hayden, running marathons was never about finishing fast.
“Most of the time, I just wanted to be comfortable,” she said. “I wanted to keep on going.”
Not all races were great. Those with less crowd support, or those in poor weather, stick out to Hayden as some of her least favorites. A marathon in Detroit, running through a divided highway and industrial warehouses, wasn’t as interesting as, say, running through bucolic terrain or interesting architecture. But regardless of the locale, Hayden learned a lot about herself along the way.
“Towards setting and achieving goals, we show ourselves and others what we’re capable of,” she said.
Now that she and her husband are retired, new projects are coming into play. Hayden hasn’t run long distances since her last race, but she still does CrossFit daily, is working on a big gardening project, and is even planning on traveling for swing dancing.
For his part, John is spending more time organizing in the community, an effort informed in part by his travels around the country. Take Storm Lake, for example. There, the meatpacking industry has helped employ a range of diverse refugees and immigrants. “There’s a lot to learn from a place like that,” he said.
He learned a lot about his wife through the process, too.
“Jess has a lot of grit and endurance and stick-to-itiveness,” he said. “She put her doubts aside, which are actually relatively persistent, but overcame those and continued to run.”
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