Whether It’s 5 Years or 5 Decades, Running Streaks Take Dedication

Welcome to the Running newsletter! Every Saturday morning, we email runners with news, advice and some motivation to help you get up and running. Sign up here to get it in your inbox.

I like to think of myself as someone who enjoys running and spend a lot of time running. But I’ve got nothing on run streakers, meaning those who run at least one mile every day. The current longest official streak is being run by Jon Sutherland of West Hills, Calif. He’ll hit 50 years on May 26, 2019. He’ll have two years and 39 days more to run if he wants to break the record set by Ron Hill, who ended his streak last year.

On Nov. 26, Scott Partenheimer, a German teacher at Haddon Township High School in Haddon Township, N.J., hit five years. I’ve known Partenheimer since high school, and have run into him dozens of times at local races and running events — and had no idea he had set out on a streak of his own. So I asked him about it. Here’s our conversation, lightly edited.

JAM: How did the streak start?

SP: It was 2013. I had just qualified for the Boston Marathon for the second time. I was looking for a new goal, and Runner’s World was promoting their holiday run streak where you run every day between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, and I thought that would be my next goal. New Year’s Day came and I kept going. At the end of 2014, I thought, well, shoot, I’ve come this far, I might as well keep going. I figured as long as I’m healthy, why quit?

JAM: I’m guessing the shortest run you’ve done on the streak is a mile.

SP: Yeah, I’ve done plenty of those.

JAM: What’s the longest?

SP: The longest was 31 miles when I did the Dirty German 50K in 2014.

JAM: What’s the worst run you had?

SP: The day my son was born, I had a half-hour of sleep and it was almost 100 degrees outside in August, and all the nurses are trying to encourage me to get sleep. I said “No, I have to do this.”

JAM: Do you find this daily commitment time consuming?

SP: At most it’s going to take me 10 minutes to run the mile, and another 10 minutes to get dressed and undressed again. I figure it’s 20 minutes. I can find 20 minutes in a day. There have been plenty of days where I ran the bare minimum of one mile when I don’t want to run, but running the streak just forced me to get out there. It’s gotten to the point that if I give up the streak I want it to be a good reason like I broke my leg or something ridiculous, not I just don’t want to run that day. It might feel good not to run that day but I know I’ll regret it the next day.

JAM: How long do you think you’ll streak for?

SP: I could see myself doing it for as long as I’m healthy. The top guys, they’re all at 45 years or so. I could easily see myself doing 45 years.

JAM: Have you met any of those longtime streakers?

SP: Yes! Robert Kraft. He’s this singer-songwriter and lives in South Beach in Miami. Not only has he been streaking for more than 40 years, he’s been doing eight miles a day. He’s like Forrest Gump — random people will come run with him. I got to run with him and talk to him and he’s just a phenomenal guy. That was definitely one of my best runs.

Are you doing a running streak? Let me know! I’m on Twitter @byjenamiller.