Dustin Klein hasn’t always been adventurous. The 36-year-old runner says his love of exploration was sparked by his uncle Dale, whose annual “bro trips” provided a foundation he would continue to build on for the rest of his life.
Klein, originally from Dubuque but now lives in Altoona, works full-time as a lead business execution consultant with Wells Fargo. And on the weekends, he runs.
But running isn’t just a hobby for Klein — it’s a test. When he began running, he simply viewed it as a way to keep fit, but it wasn’t long before he found himself wanting even more. With half marathons, then marathons, and eventually even ultramarathons — any race longer than a standard 26.2-mile marathon — tucked under his belt, Klein decided to see how far he could push his own limits.
“In October of 2023, I was training for an ultramarathon, and I was running, thinking ‘wow… I’m running basically a half marathon every weekend. I’m seeing the same thing over and over again, why not spice it up a bit and run in every state?’”
The following year, Klein took it upon himself to do just that, plus a little bit more. In October, he set off on his greatest adventure yet: running 50 half marathons in 50 states — plus one in Washington, D.C. — over the course of 52 weeks.
Since then, Klein has been on a mission. For him, the challenge is less about the physical aspect than it is about the mental strength endurance running requires.
Klein says that the foundation he built with his uncle out in Colorado on early morning hiking trips through the mountains, surrounded by family, and all the physical challenges he has endured up until this point make him feel as if he has been training for this his whole life, in a way.
“I’ll be honest, I don’t know how you can train for something like that, you just kind of have to do it,” said Klein, adding: “It’s not an adventure unless something goes wrong, right?”
In terms of what keeps him going, Klein says he’s not really sure. People often ask him “don’t you get bored?” to which Klein responds with a quote he once heard read out at the beginning of a race: “If you’re ever losing faith in human nature, go out and watch a marathon.”
The words belong to Kathrine Switzer, the first woman to complete the Boston Marathon. To Klein, they embody the passion and mental fortitude it takes to run, something he sees in others at the start line of every race. Seeing this drive in others only continues to inspire him.
“It’s strangers cheering you on with smiles on their faces, encouraging signs, high-fives. It could be hundreds, sometimes thousands of people that are all together doing the same thing as you and feeling the same energy,” Klein said. “There’s really no better feeling.”
Klein’s journey will come to a close a little less than a year after it began on Sept. 14 in Washington, D.C. As the challenge runs its course (no pun intended), Klein has remained grateful.
“I am definitely lucky that I have the ability and means to complete this challenge. I know a lot of people don’t and that one day I won’t be able to use my body as I can now,” Klein said in an email. “I know I will not be young forever. So I run because I can. I don’t want to take the ability that I have now for granted.”
Norah Judson is a reporter for the Register. Reach her at njudson@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: An Altoona man’s quest to run a half marathon in every state in just one year
Reporting by Norah Judson, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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