If I Can, I Will: William Goodge On Running 50 Marathons In 50 States In 24 Days
September 17, 2026
AI Summary
5 min readWilliam Goodge, a British ultra-runner, plans to run 50 marathons in 50 states in 24 days, starting October 3rd and finishing at the New York City Marathon. The original plan was 20 days, but a four-day buffer was added to account for travel delays and unforeseen problems. On most days he will run two marathons in two different states; on four occasions he will run three marathons in three different states within a single 24-hour period. The entire operation is built around a logistical puzzle that combines commercial flights, private jets, and van transfers, coordinated by a digital logistics company called Goodwin. Goodge describes the planning as "like a special forces operation," involving roughly 50 people across his partners and crew.
The Logistics of a Moving Marathon
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What you'll learn
- 1 (01:29) **The Mission: 50 Marathons in 50 States in 24 Days** - Rich Roll introduces the unprecedented challenge: Will Goodge will run 50 marathons across all 50 states in just 24 days, cutting the previous record time in half.
- 2 (09:35) **Logistics as a Core Challenge** - Will explains that the logistical complexity is a primary difficulty, requiring military-level precision to avoid a domino-effect failure.
- 3 (13:02) **The Core Motivation: Grief and Philanthropy** - Will reveals that his mother’s death from cancer is the fundamental driver behind his ultra-endurance career and his partnership with Stand Up To Cancer.
- 4 (24:18) **The Rise of Ultra Running Culture** - The conversation explores how ultra-running has exploded into the mainstream, attracting a new, diverse class of athletes and fans.
- 5 (33:43) **Living in the Extremes: The Luxury vs. The Grind** - Rich Roll highlights the apparent contradiction in Will’s life: a jet-setting, luxury lifestyle paired with intense, humble suffering.
- 6 (42:13) **The Mental Framework: "Can I Take Another Step?"** - Will shares his simple, powerful mental mantra for enduring extreme physical and emotional hardship.
- 7 (46:03) **Recovery Strategy: Minimalist and Pragmatic** - Will outlines his surprisingly low-tech approach to recovery between marathons, focused on efficiency and sleep.
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Show Notes
William Goodge is a British ultra-endurance athlete who just FKT'd his Australia crossing.
In October, he runs 50 marathons in 50 states in 24 days. We get into the logistics, the strange polarity of a life spent between five-star hotels and the side of a trail, and what it's like to be doubted in public.
Will is the most aura-farming, Goodge-coded ultra mog I could possibly imagine. Enjoy!
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