In September of 2022, Milwaukee resident and New Brighton native Sean Kirkby learned his fall race, the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon, had been cancelled. A month later, after running the 40th Anniversary Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon instead, he finished as the 250,000th finisher in the event's history and earned a lifetime entry into the race.
Here's his unlikely story from an issue of The Connection that year.
Can you describe the emotions of learning the marathon you trained for was cancelled?
The day that they announced the cancellation, I had gotten up early for my longest practice run. So I was exhausted when I saw it. I sent the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel story to my family along with the text, “They tell me after I ran 20 miles this morning.”
Why did you pivot to our race so quickly. Were other options (or not running) on the table?
I was going to shrug my shoulders and move on, but there were a few other marathons around the same time. Since I grew up in the suburbs of the Twin Cities and my parents live there, I decided to go for it. It was really fortunate that it all worked out.
Any challenges after you entered our race?
The biggest challenge was that it’s been years since I had visited a lot of the spots along the race. Every mile felt so much longer because everything was unfamiliar. It was also such a beautiful route that it was almost overwhelming.
Did you know it was our 40th Anniversary race?
The morning of the race, I was watching an interview with a person who’s run it every year. I thought to myself, “Damn.”
Do you remember passing anyone (or getting passed) at the finish making you the 250,000th finisher?
I wasn’t really paying attention to who was around me because I was so looking forward to lying down, which I did in a grassy field after the finish.
What’s it like being the 250,000th person to accomplish something?
I’m happy that I was able to make it to the end, so it hasn’t really sunk in. It’s wild that the number of people who have completed the race is equivalent to a decent-sized city and an honor to be among them.
You've earned complimentary entry into the race going forward, when can we expect you back?
I wasn’t anticipating running a race for a while, but now I feel obligated to go every year. We’ll see if that happens.
If there’s anything else worth sharing about your experience, please let me know.
Thanks to the volunteers and the staff for putting on a great event!
This article originally appeared in the TCM's weekly e-newsletter, The Connection, in 2022. Subscribe to the Connection here.
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