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A Massachusetts-based engineer doesn’t plan on getting much sleep until Sunday.
Waltham resident Tom Hanlon, who works as a mechanical engineer for a medical device company, is on his way, running 250 miles from New York City to Boston.
Departing from Times Square at midnight early Thursday, Hanlon, an ultrarunner, aims to set the fastest recorded run between the two major cities and end at Boston Common around 3 a.m. Sunday.
The New Hampshire native is so passionate about running that he’s tacking on an extra 30 miles to get to 250 for the total route. Still, he thinks he has a “shot” of breaking the fastest recorded time from New York City to Boston of 75 hours and 55 minutes, which ultrarunner Sebastian Chiu set in May.
“Whether I stop or not, the clock keeps running,” Hanlon told the Herald via phone on Wednesday morning, after he chuckled that he was at work instead of resting up for the thrilling adventure ahead.
Hanlon’s goal is much bigger than just running the 250 miles. He is using the run to raise awareness about suicide prevention and $10,000 to support the Jason R. Flood Memorial, a cause that honors his close friend who died in 2016.
“Ultra running is something that I have fallen in love with,” Hanlon said, “but to be honest, it has always felt like a selfish sport, especially some of these big races. This is a way for me to take my passion and use it for a cause that is really special to me.”
“It’s kind of emotional,” he added.
Jason Flood died by suicide at the age of 18 in November 2016 after a battle with undiagnosed depression. He and Hanlon shared a close bond as friends, attending Pinkerton Academy together in Derry, N.H.
The memorial fund raises awareness for suicide prevention, educating teens and young adults on recognizing warning signs and connecting them through music and athletics.
“It’s almost embarrassingly humbling. I don’t know how else to explain it,” Jason’s father, Doug Flood, told the Herald about Hanlon’s attempt to run 250 miles and raise funds for the cause.
Flood, who works in Cambridge, added that he knew his son’s friends were “high quality individuals,” and that it is “humbling” that they are still supporting the family and believing in the foundation’s mission.
“I just want to grab any old-timer who says ‘Kids today are soft’ and just tell them to pay attention,” Flood said. “Some of these kids today are way beyond what we were as kids. I get some aren’t, but there are plenty of overachievers.”
Hanlon, 28, has averaged 80 to 85 miles a week of running heading into this mega run, which will require him to traverse through the dark of the night while tired.
He said some of his closest friends will be his main supporting cast, meeting him every 25 miles with fuel, liquids and new shoes. Others will run various lengths alongside him.
“Everyone is running for something,” said Hanlon, a three-time Boston Marathon finisher.
“People have healed,” he added, “but I want to make sure that at the end of the day, nobody is forgetting about Jason and what he meant to all of us.”
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