Today’s runner spotlight ran the 2021 Chicago Marathon as part of the Ronald McDonald House Charities team. Less than a week later, Greg Booth jumped into the Columbus Marathon and ran a personal best.
Hi, I am Greg Booth. My wife Kristi and I have a son Devon (26), and daughters Taylor (23), Tristin (18), and Tylar (14).
Why did you start running? I’ve always exercised, mostly weight training but I would also play softball, basketball, and football to stay in shape. I would run a little but never really consistent. After I tore my ACL playing basketball I decided that I’d stick to running in a straight line. Lol. Then a few years ago a friend of mine asked me to run the Hot Chocolate 15K. I enjoyed it so much I decided to sign up for another race, then another, etc. Eventually, I joined the CRC Dublin running group to train for my first marathon. And I’ve been hooked ever since.
Favorite thing about running? The best part about running is the running community. The friends and the positive support from runners make it easy to continue to train.
Favorite race(s) in Central Ohio? My favorite Central Ohio races are the Columbus Marathon because it was my first marathon but also it’s our hometown marathon. I’m going to try to run at least the half marathon every year. I enjoy the Columbus 10K, I’m mean it’s the oldest road race in Central Ohio how can you not enjoy that. And I always recommend the CapCity Half Marathon because the energy and celebration at the end are second to none.
What advice would you give to someone just getting started? My advice for anybody just starting to run is to enjoy it. Pace doesn’t matter, distance doesn’t matter, just run. Enjoy the time, enjoy getting a little better every day, and enjoy the ability to run. There may be a day that you can’t run so until then enjoy every step no matter the pace.