ONE STOP-FOR RUNNERS

My first road race was a 10K event in the tiny town of Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania. That's right, Jim Thorpe, the native American Olympian whose remains lie nestled in the foothills of the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania. How did the body of the world's greatest athlete get there? You can read all about it in my first book about running, racing, friends, and running history, entitled: "Running Shorts: A Collection of Stories and Advice for Anyone Who Has Ever Laced Up a Pair of Running Shoes."

From that first race, I've run enough miles to have circled the earth over four times, around 120,000 miles at last calculation. I've run over 700 races and competed in 54 marathons, 48 under the 3:00 mark and 12 under 2:30.

Running and racing are key components of my life, and although the hills seem to be getting bigger these days, I still love the thrill of crossing the finish line, and the challenge of the long training run,as well as the burn of a fast speed workout.

But these days there's more. I truly enjoy giving back. The satisfaction of witnessing other runners, of all ages and abilities, attain their goals brings enormous joy.

My most recent book, "Personal Best," is my recipe book for runners. I tried to provide the ingredients, as well as methods of mixing them to create the finished product: YOUR personal best.

During the past four years, I have coached both a boy's and girl's collegiate cross country state champion from Penn State Schuylkill campus. Last year, my girl's state champion placed 7th, earning 1st Team All-American status at the USCAA National Cross Country Meet in Syracuse, New York.

Early this month, a local high school freshman girl placed 16th at the Pennsylvania state cross country meet after my summer of coaching sessions.

And over the weekend, one of the subjects of my book, "Personal Best," Father Chris Zelonis, annihilated his personal best marathon time by a full 13 minutes, qualifying for the Boston Marathon, after following my 12-week marathon program.

By visiting my webpage: www.muldowneyrunning.com, you can do your one-stop running shopping, if your intention is to achieve your personal best in 2015.

You can buy a book, sign up for a training plan on the webpage, or go to my training program, at bargain basement prices at: www.fiverr.com, look under 'Running Shorts.' Check out the reviews of my programs on Fiverr. I've designed programs for runners from Austria to New Zealand; from Brazil to Bosnia.

Finally, scroll through my blogs on my website, for training advice and entertaining running stories.

To me, "Personal Best" isn't just my book, it's a philosophy. You can get there. I can take you there.

I'll be happy to do so.