The marathon hat trick is a goal that some committed distance runners aim for but few have achieved.
The hat trick includes running at least 100 marathons, a marathon in all 50 U.S. states and a marathon on all seven continents. Fewer than 60 runners have completed the feat, and only three of them are Black. Of those three, two are from St. Louis and even attended the same elementary school.
Their story is now a film, that screens Wednesday evening as part of the St. Louis International Film Festival.
Tony Reed, who directed the documentary short, is also one of the runners in the film. Along with St. Louis native and fellow graduate Lisa Davis, they buck the myth that Black Americans don鈥檛 run long races.
鈥淚 always saw running as representing freedom and not setting limits on myself,鈥� Reed told St. Louis on the Air. He started running in 1976 after having been diagnosed with prediabetes. Since then, he鈥檚 run an average of three miles per day. In 2004, he co-founded the , of which he currently serves as executive director.
It was while traveling the country to run marathons that he met Davis, an ultra runner and Marine veteran from St. Louis. Their parallel life stories and love for running drove Reed to direct the documentary.
about being questioned as to if she was mistakenly in the wrong race. 鈥淚 have been asked point-blank to my face if I were in the right place,鈥� she said. 鈥淚've shown up for [100-mile races], one after the other being the only African American there. [Other runners would question], 鈥榃hy is she here?鈥� And when I finish, I finish well. It's like 鈥極h, OK, I guess [Black people] can do that.鈥欌��
In 鈥淲e Are Distance Runners,鈥� Reed connects his passion toward running to the memory of his great-grandfather Benjamin Coleman. 鈥淸My great-grandfather] lived the first 25 years of his life as a slave. 鈥� I could see him wanting to go further, but the slave master was telling him, 鈥榊ou cannot go beyond the gate and you cannot run,鈥欌�� Reed said.
For more about 鈥淲e Are Distance Runners: The Marathon Hat Trick,鈥� including how famed St. Louisan Dick Gregory inspired both Tony Reed and Lisa Davis, listen to St. Louis on the Air on , or , or by clicking the play button below.
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What:
When: 7:15 p.m. Nov. 15
Where: Alamo Drafthouse Cinema (3700 Forest Park Ave., Saint Louis, MO 63108)
鈥�鈥� brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by , , , and . is our production intern. The audio engineer is . Send questions and comments about this story to talk@stlpr.org.
