I sat down with Rob Simmelkjaer – media veteran, runner, and CEO of New York Road Runners – for the latest episode of The Future of Running. The full transcript is below.
From ESPN to the TCS NYC Marathon, Rob Simmelkjaer is reshaping what running can be – on and off the course. As the CEO of New York Road Runners, Rob isn’t just overseeing one of the world’s most iconic marathons – he’s steering the future of the sport itself. In our conversation on The Future of Running podcast, he shared the stories, philosophies, and innovations fueling that vision.
Here’s what stood out most.
1. “Storytelling is the new superpower.”
Rob’s media background – anchored by executive roles at ESPN and NBC – deeply influences how he sees the sport. To him, running is rich with human drama: comebacks, heartbreaks, first steps, final sprints.
“We’re not just putting on races. We’re telling stories–powerful ones.”
That conviction gave birth to East 89th Street Productions, NYRR’s new in-house media studio. It’s creating original content that captures what makes running so personal and profound–from the elites to the everyday athlete. The goal? To elevate the voices and moments that might otherwise go unseen.
2. “Final finishers deserve the spotlight.”
NYRR’s first major production, Final Finisher, shifts the lens away from the front of the pack.
It highlights the runners who finish last–not because they’re slower, but because they embody the grit, determination, and heart of the sport.
“That’s where the soul of the sport lives–in perseverance and human triumph.”
For Rob, honoring these athletes is about redefining what success looks like in running–and expanding who feels seen.
3. “We’re in the middle of a running boom.”
After years of uncertainty during the pandemic, something unexpected happened: running came back stronger.
Social running surged in NYC. New run crews formed. Community runs multiplied. It wasn’t just about fitness anymore – it was about connection.
“There’s a cultural momentum behind running right now. We’re seeing it in every borough.”
And NYRR is meeting that moment–not just with events, but with storytelling, digital tools, and grassroots engagement.
4. Beyond Race Day: Creating a Year-Round Home for Running
Despite hosting one of the world’s largest marathons, NYC lacks a true centralized home for the sport. Rob wants to change that.
“We have the RUNCenter. We partner with The Armory. But I believe we need more – more spaces, more tracks, more places where running lives year-round.”
NYRR is actively working with the city to refurbish public tracks and create community hubs for the sport–particularly in underserved neighborhoods. Rob’s vision? A living, breathing headquarters for running culture in the heart of New York City.
5. Carbon Neutrality: “Why wait for 2040?”
When Rob arrived, NYRR had a 2040 target to achieve carbon neutrality. His response?
“Why wait?”
That urgency birthed Team for Climate, a first-of-its-kind program that lets runners offset their carbon impact by fundraising for sustainability. It launched with limited spots–and sold out in minutes. It’s not just a feel-good initiative. It’s a model for how major races can lead on climate, starting now.
6. “Inclusivity starts with access.”
To expand the sport, Rob believes you have to break down its first and most invisible barrier: perception.
“Too many people don’t even see themselves as runners–because they’ve never been shown how to start.”
NYRR’s programs now go beyond events, offering year-round resources, coaching, and entry points for new runners – particularly in communities historically left out of the sport.
7. “Running is free therapy.”
The number one reason people give Rob for running?
“Mental health. That’s what I hear over and over again.”
Running provides clarity, release, and rhythm–especially in a city that never slows down. NYRR’s Mindful 5K and youth wellness programs are leading the way in framing running as a powerful tool for emotional and psychological resilience.
8. “You don’t need to ‘look’ like a runner.”
One of Rob’s core beliefs is reshaping the narrative around who gets to be called a runner.
“If you’re moving forward, you’re a runner.”
Whether you’re a sub-3:00 marathoner or finishing your first mile ever, NYRR wants every runner to feel ownership of the sport – and to see themselves reflected in it. That means diversifying imagery, telling new stories, and building programs that meet people where they are.
9. “Social media is a blessing – and a burden.”
Platforms like Strava and Instagram can build community–but they can also amplify comparison. Rob reminds runners to stay grounded.
“Everyone gets the same medal. Whether you finish in 2:45 or 8:45, your story matters.”
It’s a reminder that running isn’t a leaderboard–it’s a lifestyle. And that lifestyle is most powerful when it stays personal.
10. “A Global Platform for a Global Sport”
Rob sees running as more than a pastime. He sees it as a massive, global entertainment category that’s just beginning to realize its potential.
“There’s an opportunity to create more of a global consumption platform for the sport.”
From a dedicated streaming service to a centralized hub for marathons, documentaries, and athlete storytelling, Rob envisions a digital space where the emotion of running is broadcast to the world – not just on race day, but year-round.
Bonus: The Future of Running is… You.
When asked what excites him most, Rob didn’t hesitate:
“The future of running is you.”
Whether you're lacing up for your first mile, cheering on your community, or dreaming of the finish line in Central Park – you’re part of what’s next.
And if Rob has anything to say about it, what’s next is going to be bigger, bolder, and more inclusive than ever.
Listen to the full episode of The Future of Running wherever you get your podcasts.
The Future of Running is brought to you by Laurel – the AI-powered race platform delivering near real-time tracking, personalized content, and next-gen race experiences. From timing and safety to storytelling and live alerts, Laurel is redefining how runners, spectators, and directors connect–before, during, and after race day.
Phil Dumontet
CEO, Brooksee
The full transcript is available below. We’ve cleaned up and formatted the full conversation with Rob Simmelkjaer, CEO of New York Road Runners, to make it easier to read and share.
Dive into the insights from our Future of Running podcast episode - now live and online.
Phil Dumontet (00:03.507): Welcome back to the future of running. Today's episode is an exciting one because few races embody the future of running quite like TCS New York City Marathon. And let me tell you, this race holds a special place in my heart.
I've run it more than any other marathon. This fall, I'll be racing up for the eighth New York City Marathon and I'll be running for Team for Kids, which I'm very excited about. I'll also work my 20th marathon overall. And as I say, few races compared to the energy of New York. So our guest today understands that magic better than anyone. Fresh off the RBC Brooklyn Half, one of America's largest half marathons, it's an honor to welcome Rob Simulcare to the show. Rob, welcome to the future of running.
Rob Simmelkjaer (00:43.15): Thank you, Phil. It's great to be here. like the, your listeners can't probably see, but you're wearing a New York City Marathon 50th anniversary jacket. So we love the brand placement.
Phil Dumontet (00:52.181): I have to. It's one of my favorite jackets. wear it quite often. awesome. Well, Rob, of course, the CEO of the New York Roadrunners, nonprofit behind the New York City Marathon and over 60 annual adult and youth races, making them a driving force behind the global running community. Before joining New York Roadrunners, Rob had an incredible career in sports media, leading at ESPN, NBC Sports, even founding his own media venture. So today's conversation is going to be a really exciting, exciting one as we dive into where the future of running is headed.
Let's start with your journey Rob. So before New York Roadrunners you had an incredible run in media like I mentioned. What's been the most unexpectedly useful skill you've brought into leading in a nonprofit in an endurance sports world?
Rob Simmelkjaer (01:40.62): Well, you know, there's a lot of things in common between what I did in the media world. It was sports media, know, ESPN, NBC Sports, and what we're doing here at New York Roadrunners. I think the biggest crossover, though, for me between those two things has been content, you know? And one of the first things I saw when I came to New York Roadrunners, and I knew it already from having run a couple of marathons and followed the marathon and know what the event is. Just the sheer number of stories that we have to tell at New York Roadrunners. I really believe from the outset of my time here that we have a better repository of stories than just about anybody in the world of sports because, yeah, the NBA's got four teams left in the tournament, let's say, and yeah, there may be some stories around thes really highly paid professional athletes playing basketball or football or whatever, and some of them are really inspirational. But we have 50,000 plus people who are lining up at the starting line of the TCS New York City Marathon, not to mention all of our other races. And the vast, vast, vast majority are making no money to be there. So the question is always why, right? Why are they there? Why are they doing this?
Why are they putting themselves through the training and the challenge and the effort to do what they're doing. And that's just a fundamentally fascinating human story. Each and every one of them is, to be honest, because each and every one of them has some motivation that would be really interesting to understand as to why they're doing it. And some percentage of those stories, to me, are like Hollywood feature films. And so one of the things we're trying to do is tell as many of them as we can. So that's why we started a podcast, Set the Pace. That's why we are now embarking even more down the content road with a new production house that we've just launched East 89th Street Productions and a new film that's coming out this summer So that's I think where the crossover has been greatest is I think my background in media allowed me to see the incredible storytelling opportunity that we have here and we're starting to take some steps toward telling them
Phil Dumontet (04:01.044): I'm excited to talk a little bit more about East 89th Street production because I don't know there's anything like quite like that in our in our world. So we'll definitely circle back to that. But on the flip side, what's something you didn't see coming and had to learn on the job?
Rob Simmelkjaer (04:15.288) This is the first non-profit I've ever worked for and I knew that it would be different. It's always different when your primary objective is making a profit versus having an impact. That's one of the things that drew me to the job was how much I love that, right? How much I love, you know, every quarter or, you know, or year checking in on the impact you've made versus the profit that you've made. It's a beautiful thing to be able to do and call your job. So that's been a big change. think that what was unexpected to me was maybe the passion that people have for what we do and the opportunity that we have. I I didn't know walking into this job in the end of 2022 that I was really walking into the very early stages of a huge boom in running didn't really see that coming. Looking back now, I can see that maybe I should have seen it coming because a lot of the things I talked about then in terms of the opportunity that we had coming out of the pandemic was the fact that so many people had started running during the pandemic because there was nothing else to do. So many people had made it a part of their lives. so I could sense that maybe running was poised for a period of popularity, but I was not expecting this. The thing that I didn't really appreciate coming into the job was how much running would become and has become a social activity, a group activity for people that really is bringing people together in the way that it does. Because most of my life, Phil, I've actually been a little more of a run-alone guy. I ran cross-country in high school. That was a team.
But since then, I really had never been on any kind of a running team, other than once when I ran the marathon in 2013 as part of Fred's team, which was an amazing experience. So that was the only experience that I'd ever had running as a part of a group. But I just didn't realize that we'd be seeing this explosion of clubs and groups and crews and all this stuff that has made running as big as it is. So that's been a pleasant surprise.
Phil Dumontet (06:20.34): So cool.
Phil Dumontet (06:38.42): That's been amazing. And I think to your point, nobody expected and at least I certainly didn't expect it. It almost was delayed a little bit after the pandemic, right? We knew we all kind of took up running, but we weren't sure when it would hit exactly. And to your point, it was 2022 when we finally started seeing those, all those tailwinds. And I was the same way, Rob, too. Cross country, indoor, outdoor track, kind of solo runner. And I liked that time as an outlet to be on my own. But I don't need to tell you, but now one of my favorite things is just going through the city and seeing all the run clubs on all the different bar corners. And it was never like that. It was just unbelievable. It really wasn't.
Rob Simmelkjaer (07:15.116): That was not a thing that existed in 2019 New York City. And it's incredible. And we hope it lasts. Whatever brings people joy and community. And we're just thrilled that it's happening through running. And it really has created an incredible opportunity for us at New York Roadrunners. And I talked to my team. The week before I'm talking to you here, Phil, we had a senior management offsite.
Phil Dumontet (07:33.372): Absolutely.
Rob Simmelkjaer (07:44.63): You know, I get my senior leaders together and we talk about the future of the organization for a couple of days. And, you know, one of my big messages in that meeting was, let's not miss this opportunity that we have because we have an incredible opportunity. Running has never been more in the social conversation than it is now. So how do we make sure we as an organization are taking advantage of that, that moment in time to really maximize our impact and what it is that we do?
Phil Dumontet (08:15.476): Beautifully said. And speaking of impactful moments, one intriguing fact about you, Rob, that I learned is that, you know, back in 2019, before you were within your Roadrunners, you founded a digital video interview platform. And I think this story is so powerful. If I understand it correctly, you were inspired by a personal moment when you received an old photograph from your late grandfather.
Carl Simmelkjaer as a young man, and this photo really sparked desire to hear his voice and his stories, and it led you to create this platform focused on creating and discovering and preserving all these different interviews. So I'd love to just ask if you could take us back to one impactful moment during your time here at New York Roadrunners, small or big, that you think about, that you would want to share with us.
Rob Simmelkjaer (09:01.772): Yeah, there are a lot because I have the great privilege of having a lot of beautiful interactions with people as part of this job. I think most of them occur at the finish line of races because I think that is one of the most special places you can be in New York is at the finish line of the TCS New York City Marathon or one of our other races. And I am constantly getting very sweaty hugs and embraces from people at those finish lines. And I take them. I take the sweat. It's OK. Because people are expressing their appreciation of New York Roadrunners and what we do. And I think that for me, I mean, there's so many. I always do have to put the Kayleigh Williamson video and the moment that Kayleigh.
Phil Dumontet (09:33.236): You have to. Comes with a job.
Rob Simmelkjaer (09:58.638): Crossed the finish line in 2023. As people might recall, she was the first known individual with Down syndrome to complete the New York City Marathon. And when she crossed the finish line, and it was well into the evening during what we call Final Finishers, the party that we have for the back of the pack finishers of the marathon, the moment of...pure joy and exhilaration that she had and the moment that she experienced. But even more than what she experienced was the way that our documenting that moment went around the world. And the last time I looked, was like 40 something million people had viewed that video. And the impact that that made on so many people around the world, this young woman crossing the finish line of a marathon was incredible.
That's one that I have to say is really always stands out to me as a special moment that we've created here through what we do and through the incredible work of an incredible young lady and her friends and family. But there are so many. know, we I'll give you another one. Recently, we we had we started a new middle school running program here a couple of years ago. We gave a grant to the New York City Public Schools and started this program and it was really the outgrowth of some strategic conversations we'd had. And at our mindful 5K race out in Queens, I got to meet a couple of the teams of runners, middle school runners that had been created because of that grant. And it was incredible to see these groups of young people and talk to them about running and why they loved it and what being a part of this meant to them. That was incredibly impactful for me.
And it was at a race that is the race that we created since I got here, the Mindful 5K, which is a race to really talk about mental health and the impact of mental health, the impact of running on people's mental health and the positive attributes of running for mental health. So that was kind of a moment where a lot of things came together. The emphasis on mental health, creating this new race, a middle school running team competing at that race. That was a pretty awesome moment for me.
Phil Dumontet (12:12.818): Full circle.
Phil Dumontet (12:22.708): That's beautiful. Thank you for sharing both of those. To someone who's never run a New York Roadrunners race, and of course, as we were sharing, there's no demand problem in running. Of course, we've got so many tailwinds, but if someone hasn't run a New York Roadrunners race, why should they? What are they missing?
Rob Simmelkjaer (12:39.692): When you run one of our races, you don't just feel like you're running, you don't just feel like you're running a race, but you feel like you're the star of a huge event. You feel like you're, I think every one of our runners feels like a pro because of the attention to detail, the amount of effort that our team puts in to make every race feel incredibly professional and the way that it is run, the way that it is organized.
Rob Simmelkjaer (13:09.684): Obviously you're there with for our smallest races, maybe 5,000 runners, right? And for our bigger races, tens of thousands of runners. So the event always feels big, but I think the way that we put them on and the just the incredible quality of what our events team in particular produces makes everyone feel like they're a professional athlete, even if they're just running their first 5k. So I think that's why to run one of our races is it's just different than any other race I've ever run in. I've run lots of races around the country and I've run a couple other majors as well, major marathons, and they're really great and special. But there's just nothing like New York and I think there's nothing like the way that we put on events in New York.
Phil Dumontet (14:01.332): The energy is real. Everything you're describing, can attest to as well. Having been fortunate enough to run 42 New York Roadrunners races. I think going back since I was in high school in Van Cortland Park and now having run seven of the New York City marathons and the entire course is incredible. And Brooklyn's actually was some of my favorite moments, but entering Central Park, you truly do feel like you are the star of your own show and all of New York is there for you, cheering you on. So it is incredible.
Phil Dumontet (14:31.286): You talk about seizing the moment, Rob. I feel like that's such a great way to say it in terms of this next great running boom with your team. What's one thing you're genuinely excited about on the horizon for New York Road Runners?
Rob Simmelkjaer (14:46.488)
I think there are a few things I could point to. One thing that just jumps to mind, going back to content, we're doing some really cool new things in that arena now. We have our first documentary that's coming out in June. It's a co-production with Tribeca Productions, which is connected to the Tribeca Film Festival. And this documentary is called Final Finisher, and it really tells that story of four runners who are more back of the pack type runners for very different reasons and their journey to the finish line of the TCS New York City Marathon and what is so special to them about having that not just be a finish line but a festival, a party that celebrates them. So I'm really excited about the opportunity to tell that story and really make that big step forward in terms of our storytelling and we've got
We got more things down the road planned on the content front, which I'm sure we'll talk about. So that's one. I think the technology work that we're doing right now to try to bring more people into the Roadrunners community in ways other than just running one of our races. We have a full year mobile app now that just launched in March. the features and the roadmap for that app is something I'm really excited about because I just think we have an opportunity to really create a global community of people in the Roadrunners ecosystem, people who've run one race with us ever, will have a chance to stay a part of the Roadrunners community forever and continue to run with us in different ways. So that's something that really excites me. And then on the impact and the community side, we're gonna have our third kids kickoff race, but this year we're rebranding it the TCS New York City Marathon kids kickoff. It's a kids only race.
That will happen before the marathon. And I'm really excited about this because I think we have the opportunity to grow this into something that will be a really special moment on the annual calendar of running in New York City. And other cities have done this. know, London Marathon has what they call the mini marathon before the day before their marathon, which has, you know, 15,000 kids running. And it's phenomenal. We have kids races all year long, but I want this to be fun. Our signature kids race, a race that kids will always remember running in. They run past the finish line of the marathon right in Central Park. And I want to create that because that's creating memories and creating a generation of kids. know, Mo Farah, first time he ran a race was in that mini marathon in London. So I'd love to have a kid cross our finish line of our, you know, kids kickoff and have a kid like that go on to do amazing things in running and in life.
Phil Dumontet (17:42.599): It's so inspiring. to your point, I have a four and a half year old son and he participated in his first timed race yesterday here at the Boulder Boulder yesterday. And he, can I tell you Rob, he was wearing his medal all day afterwards in his pajamas. I think he even slept in it. And it's, it's, it's amazing to start that young. I hear that you guys are expanding that even further. So would that be ages two to 18, like the Times Square kids run taking a page out of the success but just before the marathon? Cool.
Rob Simmelkjaer (18:12.226): That's right. That's right. We have three different stages, know, one for the little ones where there's, you know, sprinting a couple, you know, a couple hundred yards or less sometimes to the timed but non-competitive for the older kids to the times competitive for the oldest most competitive runner. it's that's how we set our kids races up. And we're really excited to see that grow.
Phil Dumontet (18:37.332): Well, speaking of the next generation, it's a perfect segue. We'd love to hear your perspective on how do we make large-scale races even more relevant to younger generations.
Rob Simmelkjaer (18:49.858)
Yeah, think that giving them a place to participate is part of it. I think that's why what we do at so many of our races is so special. have kids running alongside the adults in Times Square, the Times Square Kids Run, which is adjacent to the United Airlines NYC half. We have the same thing in Brooklyn. You know, the RBC Brooklyn half has a boardwalk kids run happening right near the finish line. So...
I think creating those moments where the kids are not just running their own thing, but they're running alongside the adults and they can literally see the place where they aspire to get some day, which is running in one of these big races. think it's incredible because, you know, kids always have the ability only to become what they have seen. You know, that's just a fundamental part of life is you can't, you can't really be it if you've never been able to see it. And that's really what we want to do is give kids the opportunity to see the thing that they might want to be someday, you know, a runner conquering one of these big challenges.
Phil Dumontet (20:03.442): Well said, yeah, it's so inspiring to actually see it and set that example. So a lot of my questions, of course, are around the future of running and the kind of theme for this mini series. So we'll shake things up a little bit and look to the future. What's your hot take in running? Rob Simocare's hot take, something you believe to be true that most people might not agree with yet. He's smiling.
Rob Simmelkjaer (20:28.066): That's pretty funny. I have to be careful how hot my hot takes are sometimes, Phil, because they end up making news and my staff will be like, what? You said what on the podcast? Yeah, yeah, exactly. Just between us. I'll say one thing. I sit on the board of the Abbott World Marathon majors. And as you know, we're expanding. We just added Sydney.
Phil Dumontet (20:33.524): We can always edit it down afterwards, Rob. That's why Liv is here.
Rob Simmelkjaer (20:57.022): There may be a couple more added. And that's great, you know, but I think there's really an opportunity there with the global appeal of marathon running to create more of a global consumption platform for the sport. So, you know, think about a streaming platform or something like that, where marathons and content related to marathons and running and distance running lives, because it is such a global phenomenon. know, it's not just here.
In New York or in the United States, you've got people taking the sport up everywhere. And that's one of the things that's great about ABB at World Marathon Majors is that it brings running around the world and it creates runners everywhere it goes. So I think that's something that it does really well and I think very much kind of adjacent to that is creating content to inspire people to run and to tell them how to run and where to run and you know, travel, lifestyle, and all the things that go with running. So I think there's an opportunity there, and it's something that we talk about at the majors sometimes.
Phil Dumontet (22:08.628): Exciting – global consumption platform for the sport, you're right, does not exist and such an opportunity. And of course, New York Roadrunners is doing so much, you know, like you said, with set the pace podcast and now with East 89th Street productions, as well to move in that direction and actually just interviewed Donna Stone just about two weeks ago. And of course, we had a really great conversation about a lot of this as well. So I appreciate you sharing that.
Looking further ahead, what do you want New York Road Runners to be known for 10 years from now?
Rob Simmelkjaer (22:41.27): Yeah, we talk about this. I joke around that one of my goals as CEO of New York Roadrunners is for no one to ever ask me again whether it's a full-time job. You whether... You know, it's becoming less and less, which is good. I think we're making progress. occasionally I do... Someone who doesn't know the sport of running because they just may not know how much we do. I think there are still some folks out there who...
Phil Dumontet (22:52.628) Do people still ask you that? Good, good.
Rob Simmelkjaer (23:06.85): I think we put on the marathon and then we go away for 11 months and then come back and put the marathon on again. And one of the things that we talk about at Roadrunners is part of our strategic plan that we created. One of the five key components of that plan is what we call telling the whole NYR our story. Letting people really understand the breadth and the scale of everything we do from the 40 races a year we put on to the 200,000 kids we've got in our Rising New York Road Runners program.
I think that getting people to understand the full scope of what we are and what we do is a big part of it. But where I'd like to see the organization in the future, and I'll throw a couple of things out there. I first of all, I'd love to see us produce more kids who are going to college and getting an education through running, and maybe a couple who make it somewhere amazing, like the Olympics or. You know, finish on the podium of a major marathon, you know, creating some of these life stories from New York, from the ranks of the kids that are in our rising program, that's something that I would love to see us do. And then, you know, I think there's an opportunity also for us to have a home in New York. You know, I think we have the RUN Center in New York where people come to pick up their bibs, but I'm starting to think more and more about a vision. To have a real home of running in New York. We've got the Armory, which is incredible, and we're a partner of theirs. They're amazing. But I think there's space for more. think there's an opportunity for more kind of places. We need more places to run in New York. We're talking to the Department of Parks in New York about refurbishing tracks and things like that. We do that with Randall's Island. We do that with the Armory.
Rob Simmelkjaer (25:01.102): Places to run, I think, are key in an urban environment like New York. Kids need a place to go run, a place that's safe and a place that will encourage them to put down their devices and go run and be active. And that's so much of what I think we want to do here.
Phil Dumontet (25:19.86): That's very exciting to hear and gosh, I always love running at the Armory. But to your point, it feels like there's just such a demand. of course, space is so limited being in an urban setting, like you mentioned. But having that community hub and that even more space where we can gather to run, unplug, be together is really inspiring to hear that on your road map. So thank you.
Awesome. Well, I know we're at the end of May now. We were catching you in between your obviously Brooklyn half and then the of course the the mini coming up in a week and a half. But we're closing out the mental health awareness month. And I know New York Roadrunners has done so much on this front. It's one of my key themes of the podcast and in terms of where running is heading in that, you know, running is as much mental as it is physical for so many people, myself included. I know you share that mindset. I'd love to hear your perspective. How has the conversation around mental health and mindset evolved in the running world over the last five to 10 years?
Rob Simmelkjaer (26:23.468): Yeah, thank you, Phil, for the question. It's definitely, I think, very much at the forefront of the running conversation right now, which I love. And that's been a big goal of mine here in this role. When I ask people why they run, you know, it's the most simple, basic question I can ask someone. Why do you run? The answer I get overwhelmingly is about the way it makes someone feel, not physically, but, psychologically, know, how they feel relaxed, how they, it's free therapy, quote unquote. Like that's the number one answer I get. If this was Family Feud, the number one answer, free therapy. That's the number one answer to why do you run? And yeah, and like it makes sense, right? And I know it because I've experienced it so much myself. I know the impact that running has, and other exercise does too.
Rob Simmelkjaer (27:20.206): But there's never been anything like running for me in terms of clearing my mind, pressing the reset button, helping me feel like anything's possible, giving me a positive attitude, and just getting my day started the right way. I talk all the time about how I run in the morning, and I have a phrase, win the morning, win the day, where whenever I've gotten that good run in the morning, the day almost always goes well. And the more and more I talk about it, like, and we as an organization talk about it, the more I feel like it's becoming just kind of like almost accepted as part of the conversation of why you run. And that's great because that's gonna bring more and more people to it. People who feel like they need something. Everybody out there is struggling at one time or another with something, know, whether it's hopelessness, just a bad mood, something more serious like depression. Like everybody is going through that stuff at some point in their lives and so.
If it becomes like college, common knowledge out there in the world that running can help with that, that's an amazing thing. That really will change so many people's lives. And I'm very, very excited about what we have been doing and what we will continue to do when it comes to having that conversation.
Phil Dumontet (28:40.66): Couldn't agree more, Rob, and I often think about running when it comes to the mental aspect as also providing that confidence. I mean, you've noted it in terms of anything is possible, right? But you take on a challenge, whether it's a 5K or a marathon and something you never thought was possible. And the beautiful thing is that confidence does not stay confined to that one vector. It spills over to all areas of life, your relationships, your professional life, you know, and for me, that is something that I just find so powerful within the sport and something that's so great to hear you talking about it more and others as well.
Rob Simmelkjaer (29:17.39): 100%, I mean it's really that mentality of keep going. That is what this is all about. That's what running a marathon is all about. And while I sometimes do say that we shouldn't overemphasize marathon running because running a 5K is still running. If you run three miles, that's amazing. And it's great. And running in any form is awesome. But the thing that I do find is interesting about the marathon and special about it is just the sheer challenge. Of completing that thing, know, and the training and everything. Somebody who manages to get through 26.2 miles, I'm gonna bet on that person to do anything. I just, you give me two people I've never met before and a challenge, and you tell me, if you tell me one of them has run a marathon and the other one, I don't know anything else about them, but this one has run a marathon, I'm betting on that one, right? I'm betting on that one because I know, you got it, I know that they are gonna have the fortitude.
Phil Dumontet (29:57.875): Yeah, exactly… tells you so much about their character, yeah.
Rob Simmelkjaer (30:16.952): … to keep going. And in so many things in life, that's really what it takes is to just keep going. You're going to hit a wall or two or five, but you just keep going. And that's the way you find success in so many things.
Phil Dumontet (30:33.022): Beautifully said, so true. And I'm curious a little bit more about your personal experience here too, running a marathon like you said. Has there been a moment for you personally, maybe during the Tokyo Marathon, I know you ran for team for kids or another run, when you realized just how mental this sport was and what got you through it?
Rob Simmelkjaer (30:52.216): Well, I ran Berlin last September, and that was the first time I'd run a marathon in 11 years. I had not planned to run any more marathons after 2013. I ran New York for the second time. I kind of hit my time goal. I had a beautiful day. It was an amazing experience, and it was my second time running a marathon. I was like, okay, I'm good. I had a perfect day.
Rob Simmelkjaer (31:18.912) I did it, I didn't see myself as like someone running marathons all the time. But then, of course I got this job and came in here and I'm surrounded by it all the time and it was just hard for me not to think about running another one. So I started training last summer for Berlin and had a great run of training, felt pretty good, got pneumonia, like a walking pneumonia in September.
Early in September, about three weeks before the race. And I was like, my God, this is a disaster. was coughing like crazy, really short of breath all the time. And I was really wondering if I was gonna be able to get through it. But I just kept going as we just talked about, ran the Bronx 10-Miler a week before Berlin, ended up having an incredible day, which convinced me that I was ready to give this a go, flew over to Germany.
Phil Dumontet (32:08.472): Wow.
Rob Simmelkjaer (32:16.12)
had this incredible run. was running with a coach of ours named Roberto Manget, who was my pacer that day. And we were going at a really good clip, but man, in the last few miles, I just cramped up. My legs tightened up, my hamstrings and quads cramped. I had to pull off the course a couple times to stretch. And I was like, my god, I may DNF this thing. I ended up walking in. But... You know, I got encouragement from Roberto and then also another Road Runners member who just recognized me and was just kind of like pulling for me, you know, and kind of like helping pull me along to the finish line. And these two guys got me believing enough that I could get there, that I managed to push just hard enough and I ended up breaking my PR by like a minute from 11 years prior, right? Which, you know, just based on how much older I was, I felt was a pretty good accomplishment. So, that was one I won't forget because I think I struggled more in that one than I maybe had in any of the other ones. My first one was really rainy and terrible weather, so I struggled that day too. But yeah, that was special, you know? And then Tokyo was just a fun day. You I just went out, I didn't have any big time goals and ran with our board chair, Nenna Lynch. The two of us had a great time together, but Berlin really helped teach me that other people really can pull you through to the finish line of one of these races. And it is great to run with people, friends or a team or whatever it is, just to help you get there. when things get hard, it is hard to be alone. And it's easier to give up when you're alone and there's no one there holding you accountable and no one you have to answer to, really. So it's good to have some support out there.
Phil Dumontet (34:06.964): Accountability partner. Absolutely. And such a powerful reminder of the support from the spectators and especially at a TCS New York City Marathon as well that, you know, that high five could be enough to keep, you know, give you that energy to pick things up again. Those hilarious signs we see. For me, I remember it was enterin Central Park and of course, after that hill coming up was a challenging section of the course. For whatever reason, I decided to do airplane arms going down some of the hills in Central Park and the crowds just started cheering me on. And I picked up my fastest finishing miles that I ever would have expected. And you just get these unexpected boosts from other people to your point all around you, whether they're running with you, they're part of the crowds. So it is such a inspiring part of our sport.
Rob Simmelkjaer (34:53.73): Yeah, spectators should not underestimate how much impact they can have for the runners. mean, really can, especially when you see someone struggling, you really can change their day by giving them that support that they need.
Phil Dumontet (35:08.372): That's right, for all the spectators listening, play such an important role. Well, one question I wanted to ask you, Rob, when we're speaking about mental health, you know, we're talking about all of these exciting things in terms of potential, you know, global live streams, expanded community hubs. But there is this, you know, question on in terms of social media's influence. And it's so powerful in that it could be such a inspiring platform by seeing, you know, what other runners like yourself, others like you are doing, you said, setting that example. But with the rise of kind of social comparison via Strava and Instagram, how do races like yourself and your corners think about, how you talk about goals and success and achieving with more social comparison than ever?
Rob Simmelkjaer (35:54.21): That's a good question. think that it's definitely a double-edged sword, the social side of what we have going on and running right now. It's hugely inspiring, and it's so amazing to put your run on Strava and get those kudos and those comments from people. It really does inspire so many people to get up and run and to put in their best effort, because you love it when...
Rob Simmelkjaer (36:22.254): You post your Strava race and like you got like, you know, 10 medals and, you know, ribbons and people are congratulating you on a great run. So it does give you a lot of inspiration to go out there and get it done and try your best. But then, yeah, there's also a negative side to some of what we see out there. mean, some of the running quote unquote influencers, you know, they're either pointing the camera at themselves a lot of the time, which, you know, we like to think of running as more kind of looking outward as opposed to always just inward, know, and focusing on the community and not always on ourselves. So there's some of that that can be negative. And I think also there is a comparison element. you know, we just really try to stress that it doesn't matter. Like I say this all the time in terms of like your finishing time or whatever, it doesn't matter. We give the same medal to the runner who finishes in 2.45 as the one who finishes in 8.45. I have a riddle. What's the difference between that two and a half hour medal and that nine and a half hour medal? What's the difference? And people are like, what's the? No difference. It's the same metal. you know, I try to give that... Exactly, exactly. It is. I mean, I would need to stop for a burger and fries and, you know, I don't know how they do it, to be honest. Some of the runners, it takes a tremendous amount of fortitude. So, it's perhaps even more impressive that you're on your feet for nine hours, to be honest with you. Same. It's incredible.
Phil Dumontet (37:49.16): Exactly.
Rob Simmelkjaer (37:49.302): I think Road Runners has, if I may say so, and this isn't me talking about me, it's our team and the tradition of Roadrunners, I think we are one of the best out there in terms of really celebrating those runners no matter where they come from. We celebrate those final finishers, not just at the marathon, but at so many of our races, and I think people really, it means something to people. We had an incredible video recently of a woman, think she was in her late 70s, maybe 79, her name was Mildred, and she ran her first ever half marathon in her late 70s. And she crossed the finish line, and our unbelievable social media team did a great job of capturing that moment. Her astonishment as she crossed the finish line that she had done this, and talking about how that felt. And this thing, again, Phil, another incredibly viral video that people were just bananas for this. It was such a great story. It was on the Today Show. It was on Good Morning America. It was everywhere because people love this. so that is therefore net-net, I think social media is a net positive. But yeah, you know, I think people have to just remember what we're doing here. know, we're not here to break records. We're not here because faster is better. We're here because what's better is moving in the first place. And I think people, by and large, understand that.
Phil Dumontet (39:17.46): That's right. That's a great way to say it. Well, we've talked about the community aspect of it, the mental aspect, which I really appreciate your perspective on Rob. And then I want to shift gears a bit to the other kind of three themes of our podcast for the future of running, is technology, sustainability and inclusivity.
Diving in first with the tech side, and I know you've mentioned this a bit in the beginning of our interview, but I often talk about what I call the running paradox. And that's that it is the most participated sport globally, yet still one of the least watched. And of course, New York Road Runners is doing a phenomenal job changing this and pushing this forward. But when you look at, you know, say about a million or plus viewers at the TCS New York City Marathon. It's our Super Bowl, right, in our industry. It's still a fraction of the viewership for something like the Masters maybe. Why do you think running struggles as a spectator sport and how do we make it more exciting and accessible to watch?
Rob Simmelkjaer (40:21.088): It struggles, and I don't know that it bothers me that much that it struggles, to be honest. I think of our races as, quite frankly, I think of the participatory side of it first, and I think of the kind of professional, like, competitive side where there's a winner and there's prize money. It's important, but it's not what I emphasize when I think about our sport.
Rob Simmelkjaer (40:51.18): That said, I think there's opportunity to grow it. And I think it comes down to telling stories because I think that if people feel invested in these runners, they'll be more interested in what happens to them. And I worked at NBC Sports for eight years and I was lucky enough to be a part of the Olympic broadcast of NBC for three different Olympics. I anchored three different Olympics on different platforms of NBC.
And I know that the secret to the success of that was the stories that we would tell about these athletes. some, you know, whatever it was, a track and field athlete, a swimmer, a gymnast, you care so much more about their performance when you knew something about them, what brought them there, and what obstacles they overcame to get there. So the storytelling to me is still a big part of it. I think we need to make sure that we're not focused so much on the stories of the professional athletes. know, some of them are great, too. But it's the everyday athletes where the really interesting stories live in so many cases. emphasizing more of that in our broadcasts and talking more about that side of what's happening at a marathon and not so much who wins. I think that's an opportunity to be honest because I ran two New York City marathons. I can't tell you who won either of those races. I don't remember. I have no idea. They were a long time ago, but I don't remember who won them.
Rob Simmelkjaer (42:15.566): I'd have to go look it up, right? And I think that's true of most people who run marathons. So the winners are all the people who finish that race, and that's a lot. That's a lot of people. So I think that's kind of the way I look at it. And that's not to be defeatist about whether we can get big ratings with the marathon, but you know, the Olympics, they only come around once every four years. And so people are really interested in track and field and things like that when they're a part of the Olympics. But that's once every four years. To get them to be interested,
Phil Dumontet (42:24.776): That's a great point.
Rob Simmelkjaer (42:45.236): I know, six times a year with every major and all that. It's tricky to do and most Olympic sports do not do that successfully. So it's just the way it is.
Phil Dumontet (42:55.996): Makes sense, but leaning into that human narrative and the storytelling piece within the broader context across the board. And of course, final finishers, right at debuting at the Tribeca Film Festival is such a great example of exactly that and how you guys are continuing to push that forward. So I appreciate that.
Rob Simmelkjaer (43:13.314): Yeah, I mean with Final Finishers, we're really, we are basically telling the stories of the people who finished last, right? And among the very last to finish, like we are, that's what we've decided is gonna be our first big story as a content production organization. Not the winners, it's not the winners. I don't think there's a winner barely shown in this film, which is gonna debut in June, because that's not where the,
Phil Dumontet (43:32.276): It's not the winners. It's not the elite fields. Yeah.
Rob Simmelkjaer (43:43.15): For us, where the real story and the human drama and the inspiration lives. mean, don't get me wrong. Some of these elite runners, they're incredibly inspiring. To be able to run a marathon in two hours and five minutes, like, that's insane. But it's not as relatable in a lot of ways as the guy like Martinez Evans, who I was talking to earlier today, who's featured in the film, who went to a doctor in 2012, and the doctor...
Rob Simmelkjaer (44:12.344): Told him that he was fat and if he didn't turn around, he was gonna not live much longer. He was overweight, obese, told him he was really living on borrowed time. And Martinez told his doctor that, you know what, you called me fat, I'm gonna show you, I'm gonna run a marathon. And the doctor laughed in his face. Literally laughed in his face. And Martinez went out and he got on a treadmill, first time he tried to run on the treadmill, fell off the treadmill.
Rob Simmelkjaer (44:42.166): Literally went to the ground and less than 18 months later was at the finish line of a marathon, right? So like those stories are unbelievable. That's in the film, that's in the film. So, and that's just one of many and they just, mean, Phil, that is a gift that we'll keep on giving because we have an nearly unlimited supply of stories that are that good and better at the starting line of the marathon in New York every year.
Phil Dumontet (44:49.908): That's incredible. And that'll be in the documentary as well.
Phil Dumontet (45:09.204): Not even scratching the surface. Exactly. Yeah. Yeah. Amazing. Well, let's talk about sustainability. Obviously, New York Roadrunner is also at the forefront of this. whether it's, of course, there's the compost bins, there's paperless waivers, there's a lot of kind of standard setting type of initiatives. But how is New York Roadrunner's rethinking sustainability as a year round commitment?
Rob Simmelkjaer (45:36.014): When I came in to this job, one of the first people I kind of pulled aside for just a little one-on-one chat was a woman named Allie Kraskulo, who's our Director of Sustainability at New York Roadrunners. And the two of us started chatting, and she told me that New York Roadrunners had made a commitment to be net zero in terms of carbon by, I think it was 2040. And that's a pledge that we've signed. I said, okay, 2040, I said, well, why can't we do it sooner than that? Like, let's go faster. That's way too far out for me. Like, we've got to be able to go faster than that. And so we started batting around some ideas and we came up after, you know, a couple of trials and errors, we came up with something called Team for Climate, which is a brand new thing. It's now in its second year at New York Roadrunners. And it's essentially an exclusive way to get into the TCS New York City Marathon.
Rob Simmelkjaer (46:35.062): And some of our other most popular races like the United Airlines NYC half and the RBC Brooklyn half. And the commitment that the runners are making is to raise funds to help us offset or even prevent the carbon emissions from our race. And we're not just talking about the carbon that we ourselves are creating with our vehicles, you know, the things we're doing around the city to set up the race and all of that, although that's part of it. But no, we're talking about the carbon footprint of every single runner who comes from all around the world to get to the marathon. And so we launched that and it's been an incredible success right out of the gate. We sold out of the spaces in minutes. This year we've got a full class coming back for the marathon and they're all people who have demonstrated their commitment to sustainability and to helping work to make the planet better.
Rob Simmelkjaer (47:32.366): So we're going have this incredible team this year of committed runners helping us achieve this. And I think, I can't say, but I think we're going to beat 2040 by a lot because we want to be there as soon as we possibly can be. so Team for Climate is a big step forward for us in that area. We do so many other things, obviously, in terms of our waste diversion. And we're using more reusable cups now at races, clothing donations at the starting lines of our big races -- things like that just to minimize the impact that we have on the city. But I'm very proud of Team For Climate. I think it's something that has been a huge leap forward for us and for the industry because nobody else has really done anything like that. And so I think we're lucky to have a race with so much demand to get into that we can do something like that. But I think every race should be thinking at least about how they can be as sustainable as they can be because we don't want to be improving people's lives through running while damaging the planet with the other hand. So, you we want to make sure we're being positive in everything that we do.
Phil Dumontet (48:37.49): And it's again about seizing the moment like you started this interview with. It's like, your governor's is such an amazing position to seize that moment with the climate as well. And you guys are doing that. And now that's for the TCS New York City Marathon specifically for the team for climate, or is that throughout the entire year in terms of other races as well at this point?
Rob Simmelkjaer (48:57.878): Other races, the United Airlines NYC half and the RBC Brooklyn half, and I think we're looking at adding more races as well.
Phil Dumontet (49:05.428): That's awesome. Awesome.
Getting into inclusivity, and of course, inclusivity is a cornerstone at New York Roadrunners. I do want to ask this question to you, and I'd to ask my guests, what's one often overlooked barrier that even the most well-intentioned races miss? How are you working to break it down, and who do you think is still missing from the start line?
Rob Simmelkjaer (49:31.918): You know, I think that a barrier that a lot of races miss is just what it takes to get to the starting line in the first place. you know, the A, the inspiration and idea to run, and then B, just the knowledge of how to start, how to train, how to get ready to run a race. For those who run a lot, it may not occur to us. How hard it is to get to the starting line, especially if you're first race. If you haven't grown up in a family that runs, you don't have friends who run, it's not something you've been exposed to. Running even a 10K is about as realistic in a lot of people's minds as going to the moon. They're just not even thinking about something like that. It doesn't even occur to them as something they would do. So I think just getting in people's minds in the first place about running a race and then knowing how to get there, how to run, where to run, what shoes to buy, how far do you run the first time you run? If you can only run a quarter mile, okay, do you just give up? How do you go from, how can you run walk your way to turning into a runner? The different paths that exist because a lot of people, just see the end result of a runner. Maybe they...They do have a friend or they do see someone running and they say, yeah, that person just ran a 10K in 50 minutes or whatever. And they just do the math in their head and they're like, well, that's never gonna be me. I'm never gonna do that. There's no way. But explaining to them the path that you can take to getting to the finish line of a race like that, no matter what your time is. There's a lot of different ways to get there. Yeah, you may be born a runner and it's just easy for you out of the gate. You may have to… you know, run a quarter mile and then walk a quarter mile or whatever. Like there's lots of different ways to get there. And I just think that people believe that when they see others doing it. And that's where the community element really comes in for people to have others show them that they can do it.
Phil Dumontet (51:47.059): All these different paths. Yeah, that's really powerful.
Okay, so we're gonna wrap up with our last section here on some advice and leadership and then we'll move into Phil's Fast Five and we'll close it out for today. Of course, we have race directors listening of all sizes on this podcast as well. So you're in such a unique position, Rob, as CEO of New York Roadrunners. And of course, with your previous experience at NBC and ESPN,
I want to ask you, you've seen both the race world and the broadcast world, what's one lesson race leaders should steal from sports media?
Rob Simmelkjaer (52:29.966): Good question. mean, I think, hate to be repetitive, but I think it goes back to what I was saying about the storytelling aspect of it. I think that people relate to stories. And if you show people great stories that happen in your race, it'll make them want to run your race. It'll give them a sense of what's special. it doesn't have to cost a lot of money. mean, we're lucky at Roadrunners. We have a whole team that's dedicated to capturing these stories. Telling them on our social platforms, but even a small race can grab an iPhone and get out there and record the finish line and talk to people who finished the race, ask them why they ran and who they are and what makes them love running. I think any race can do that, right? So it doesn't take a lot of resources. And that's the kind of thing that makes your race more than a race. It makes it something that's a special event in people's minds..
Phil Dumontet (53:25.554): And even asking the question, why do you run? As you mentioned earlier, and potentially even asking it when you're registering for your race, we've seen there can be such tremendous stories that come through when simply asking that question and then reaching out afterwards. And it doesn't cost much, like you said, to feature those stories. Repository.
Rob Simmelkjaer (53:42.584): That's exactly right, yeah, and then you've got your material right there, then use that to start telling stories. Joe Smith said he runs in honor of his friend who passed away or did whatever, he's, okay, now you've got a story and you know who Joe is, you know his bib number, and you can ask him to go deeper on that.
Phil Dumontet (54:04.052): Yeah, so it's right at your fingertips really within your own community and race population. What's one piece of actionable advice moving beyond this really powerful human storytelling element, but one other piece of actual advice you'd give to fellow race leaders who are listening, who are trying to build, you know, a really kind of lasting race and a great experience for their participants.
Rob Simmelkjaer (54:29.464): Yeah, I think just being really focused on the whole experience, not just the starting line to the finish line, but like everything about your race, everything about the entire experience, from signing up to getting your bib to, you know, where to go, when to go, the information that you give out there to, you know, what your social media looks like and how you talk about your race there, to the experience after the race, you know, what happens after the finish line, what kind of...Festival or event you have to make people you know and you know feel like it was more than just the race Nobody likes to finish a race and then not feel celebrated in some way. I think people really want to feel Celebrated whatever the distance is and giving them, you know, whatever it might be a gift or a Little bag or whatever it might be to make them feel like they they were celebrated right I think is really great and and to make it more than just a race but an experience for them.
Phil Dumontet (55:29.822): Focus on the participant experience. Yeah, makes total sense. Let's have a little fun here on this last question before we go to the fast five. What's one unexpected partner or brand you'd love to collaborate with at the New York Roadrunners and why?
Rob Simmelkjaer (55:45.646): I'll talk about one that we do collaborate with that was somewhat unexpected and we love it. Recently, we did a deal with Shake Shack. Last year, had a Shake Shack partnership that came up and our great strategic partnerships team did this deal. it's so great. It's just such a fun one to talk about because literally everybody showing up with a medal or a bib and a Shake Shack would get a burger, right? And I mean, what's better then after running a marathon than a Shake Shack burger. Nothing is better than that. it was like the perfect combination. It's like chocolate and peanut butter together for Reese's Pieces. It's just the absolute perfect combination of what a runner wants and what they're gonna get through that partnership. So I've always really loved that one. gosh, I think there are so many.
Phil Dumontet (56:14.032): Exactly. Perfect. Yeah.
Phil Dumontet (56:25.16): You're craving it afterwards. Yeah.
Rob Simmelkjaer (56:39.426): potential creative partnerships that we could have out there, but that's one that I'm proud of.
Phil Dumontet (56:44.446): I love that. Awesome. All right, we're get into the Philz Fast 5, kind of quick lightning round. First thing that comes to mind for you. So we'll kick things off with the first question. First race you ever ran and the one you'll never forget.
Rob Simmelkjaer (56:59.586): Well, I mean, I think the first race I ever ran was a mile in eighth grade, you know, in my gym class, right? I just literally running. And I remember running pretty fast and thinking, wow, this is pretty good. I guess I'm reasonably fast. I really enjoyed the mile. I enjoyed the last quarter mile so much. Like that sprint to the finish just felt like dramatic and like fun. And I think I really fell in love with the mile.
Phil Dumontet (57:06.836): Nice.
Rob Simmelkjaer (57:28.11): At a young age and and and still love running that distance So that's kind of the first one that I can never remember was just a school thing in terms of organized races outside of school You know, I ran some little 5k's and stuff But I mean listen the one I'll never forget to get to your question. It was my first marathon the 1997 I'm dating myself New York City marathon, which was the rainiest marathon in the history of the marathon it poured rain like you wouldn't believe. But you know what I remember what's special to me and will always be special to me about that race is that my parents came out to see me that day and it was and a lot of friends to but my parents came out and they they stood in the pouring rain up on upper first Avenue to catch me going uptown and then they went over to Harlem to catch me going downtown and just how special that was for me.
Phil Dumontet (58:14.995): Wow.
Rob Simmelkjaer (58:24.782): To have them out there watching me run. And then when I ran my marathon in 2013, many years later, I ran right past my old apartment at the time, and my daughter, my oldest daughter, was there with my brother. And they were there to give me a high five on the race course as well, which is something I'll never forget. So I think it's the people you see and who are there supporting you that makes it really special.
Phil Dumontet (58:51.42): Yeah, absolutely. Isn't it amazing how you have that mental picture almost frozen in your mind? You could still picture the high five with your parents. You still picture passing your daughter. I have those moments on the course and that's where I saw this person. And it's something you never forget to your point.
What's one running related myth you wish we'd all stop believing?
Rob Simmelkjaer (59:14.36): I think that you have to You have to be like us you have to be a runner like it like you're like people are born runners or not runners You know, I think that's one. I think a lot of people just feel like you know you're born with a certain body type. You're just not a runner, you know, you're not meant to run I've seen so many people with body types You never would have naturally thought would be runners and they and they get it done they make it happen and they get out of the sport what they
Rob Simmelkjaer (59:43.948): want to get out of the sport, right? So I think this idea that people are born runners or not runners is one that I think we'd like to see go away because I think a lot of people still feel, just look in the mirror and they're like, that's not a runner, right? And there's no reason that has to be the case.
Phil Dumontet (59:58.963): Right? Yeah, I appreciate you saying that because it's a limiting belief and you often hear that, well, I'm not a runner, right? And then you close yourself into this box unnecessarily, where you can really just start at any level and don't have to look a certain way. yeah.
Rob Simmelkjaer (01:00:12.546): That's right, that's right. It's like the self kind of limitations that we put on ourselves, yeah.
Phil Dumontet (01:00:19.632): Exactly. Yeah, become self-fulfilled prophecies if you don't break them. Okay, strangest or most surprising thing you've seen on race day.
Rob Simmelkjaer (01:00:31.232): I'll never forget in 1997, back in the day, the New York City Marathon had something called the world's longest urinal. And it was a, must have been a hundred foot long trough, basically, that men would just walk up to and use as a urinal. And it was just out there in the open and...
Rob Simmelkjaer (01:01:01.076): And it was, I thought nothing of it at the time. thought, well, this is efficient. Everybody just gets there and does what they gotta do. And it was a little bit like state of nature kind of a thing. You felt pretty, it was definitely not feeling that civilized, but it got the job done. it was primal, it was primal, but it worked and it was efficient. And at some point along the way, obviously it became like a little too, I don't know, a little too weird to have, but.
Phil Dumontet (01:01:18.068): Primal, yeah.
Rob Simmelkjaer (01:01:28.76): But I joke around about that a lot because when I look at long lines at the porta potties sometimes with men and women on these lines, I'm like, why don't we just bring back the world's longest urinal? Wouldn't that be more efficient than what we're doing with all these porta potties? yeah, like a lot of marathon runners, sometimes I get a little bit obsessed with the bathroom side of marathons because it's a big deal. mean, everybody knows when you run a marathon, timing your bathroom visits is huge to having a good day.
Phil Dumontet (01:01:43.38): That's hilarious. Yeah, it is a big deal.
Phil Dumontet (01:01:57.715): Right. It really is. so tricky to figure that out. that's I hadn't heard about the world's longest urinal. So thank you for teaching me that. Hopefully I could find some pictures online after that. OK. If you weren't leading the New York Road Runners, what would you be doing right now?
Rob Simmelkjaer (01:02:08.078): I'm always happy to share that, yes.
Rob Simmelkjaer (01:02:17.504): I probably would be doing something else in sports. I love sports. I love the world of sports. If I could do anything other than the job I have, I probably would be coaching. I'd love to coach. I coach my daughter's softball teams. And I love coaching young people. So if money were no object and I could do whatever I wanted, I probably would be coaching teams somewhere, because I really love doing that. I just love the impact you can have on young people.
Phil Dumontet (01:02:42.088): Love that.
Phil Dumontet (01:02:45.982): Beautiful. All right, last one. Finish this sentence for me, Rob. The future of running is...
Rob Simmelkjaer (01:02:54.252): I think the future of running is you. I think whoever's listening to this, it's you. You're the future of running. And whatever you do, whatever you choose to do, whoever you choose to bring to the sport and bring with you and inspire people to run, it's you. You're gonna make it what it is, whoever you are listening to this podcast.
Phil Dumontet (01:03:00.232): Beautiful.
Phil Dumontet (01:03:21.352): Thank you so much for that. We've gone way over. This has been an amazing conversation. Rob, I appreciate your time. In terms of staying connected, you know, there's over a hundred episodes with Unset the Pace, New York Roadrunners official podcast. Of course, we're all going to be tuning into the final Finisher's debut. How can people stay in touch with you and what are some other ways to stay connected with New York Roadrunners?
Rob Simmelkjaer (01:03:43.17): Best thing to do is to go to our website, nyrr.org, to follow us on our social channels, because we do a really good job of keeping people up to date. So our Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, which is actually growing for us, all those places, NYRR. And yeah, just follow us.
Also download our app. Download the app. We've got a new app out there as well. So download the app and you can help. You can follow runners and our races and see what's going on there as well.
Phil Dumontet (01:04:02.574): It's been an absolute pleasure.
Phil Dumontet (01:04:13.041): It's an awesome app. downloaded it myself and I actually absolutely love it. Awesome. Well, it's been an absolute pleasure today, Rob. Thank you so much for your time. Really appreciate you sharing all the great stories here, your vision for us. I've learned a lot. I'm sure our listeners will as well. So it's been a pleasure having you. Thank you again. Appreciate it.
Rob Simmelkjaer (01:04:27.704): Thank you. Thanks Phil, appreciate it.
