The Passionate Runner's Ultimate Bucket List

Running remains a uniquely-embraced international pastime, pervasively transcending race, age, social status, fitness experience, and physical skill level. Inherently, the ultimate beauty and allure of running emerges from the sport's simplistic nature, the endless pursuit of personal performance-based or health-related goals, and the unrivaled gratification upon crossing literal and figurative finish lines. Inevitably, the shared experience of running masterfully unites its participants, inspiring a unique reverence for the greatest time-honored traditions, venues, athletes, and performances throughout the sport's storied history. For the passionate runner, creating a lifelong "bucket list" will undoubtedly serve as an invaluable source of education, motivation, and entertainment. The following suggestions remain merely a guide to building a personalized "running bucket list." Please feel free to post additional ideas in the article's comments section. I'll see you at the finish line!

PR Pursuit: Arguably, the most common individual goals emerge in the form of personal records. Running a specific distance faster than ever before (or the best at a certain age) undoubtedly validates our training, fuels our future racing journey, and provides an overwhelming sense of personal accomplishment. Establishing time-based goals for each respective distance generally serves as the greatest source of motivation and subsequent achievement. Our short-term goals should remain realistic and relative to age, training, and skill level; however, never be afraid to strive for a "dream time" down the road. Tracking the results of each race and workout, also serves as an essential tool for performance comparison, program design, and goal assessment.

Distance Darlings: In addition to time-based goals, many runners gear their training towards distance-related accomplishments. From aspiring 5k-ers to determined ultramarathoners, simply running farther becomes a new challenge and triumph, unto itself. Subsequently, the 26.2-mile marathon still remains the gold standard of competitive running, serving as the ultimate tradition-laden test of passion, perseverance, physical fitness, and mental toughness. Safely training towards mileage-based PRs spanning a day, week, month, or year serves as an additional bucket list option.

Spectator Sport: Few athletic events possess the excitement, tradition, and competitiveness of track and field. The following list serves as a guide to the quintessential spectator experiences of our sacred sport at its finest: the Olympic Trials, Olympics, U.S. Indoor/Outdoor Championships, World Championships, NCAA Indoor/Outdoor Championships, Penn Relays, Kansas Relays, Texas Relays, Drake Relays, Mt. Sac Relays, Boston Marathon, New York City Marathon, Chicago Marathon, London Marathon, Prefontaine Classic, and Boston Indoor Games.

Track-Towns: Without question, a vacation or visit to one of the following "running-meccas" will emerge as a cathartic, awe-inspiring experience. The greatest runner's world-tour destinations include Eugene, Oregon; San Francisco, California; San Diego, California; Chicago, Illinois; Washington, D.C.; New York City, New York; Utica, New York (home of the National Distance Running Hall of Fame); Washington Heights, New York (home of the National T&F Hall of Fame); Boulder, Colorado; Boston, Massachusetts; Portland, Oregon; Sydney, Australia; Paris, France; London, England; Athens, Greece; Osaka, Japan; and Berlin; Germany.

We are Witnesses: Experiencing firsthand the recent once-in-a-lifetime talents of the sport's greatest athletes, such as Usain Bolt, Haile Gebrselassie, Kenenisa Bekele, and Paula Radcliffe, remains a rite of passage to fully appreciate running in its most spectacular form.

Bucket List Locales: Build a personalized, lifetime race roster. Whether it be qualifying for the Boston Marathon or experiencing racing nirvana in the Honolulu Marathon or Big Sur International Marathon, select a number of local, national, or international races to add to your bucket list. Other ambitious suggestions include running a race or marathon in each of America's 50 states, the world's "six" continents, or planning a city or statewide run.

New Horizons: Transform conventional running by expanding personal horizons, in the form of a duathlon, triathlon, speed golf, ultramarathon, obstacle course run, relay race, or trail running. The sky is the limit!

The Family that Trains Together: Lastly, training, racing, or planning a race-centered excursion with a current or future family member, significant other, friend, or fellow enthusiast may serve as an invaluable inclusion on the passionate runner's ultimate bucket list. Joining or starting a local running chapter, volunteering on race day, and inspiring others to walk, jog, or run offer similarly rewarding opportunities to expand the world's most timeless pastime.