At 8 years old, Madison Rahschulte was running alongside her parents in 5K races near the family’s home in Lawrenceburg, Indiana. By the time she was 9, she proved too fast for either of them to keep up.
Madison had clearly taken a liking to races, so when she heard her parents talking about the 50 States Half Marathon Club, she was quick to chime in, expressing her desire to run a 5K in every state.
Her dad, Scott, told her it wasn’t practical. But inspired by what Madison was learning about her home state in school, they decided to tackle a race in every county instead.
“We thought we could make it fun,” Scott Rahschulte said. “We wouldn’t have to go too far, just drive and hour or two, run a race in the morning and then we’d have the rest of the day to do whatever that county has to offer.”
Since beginning the challenge in the summer of 2014, they’ve learned about the Battle of Tippecanoe (Madison’s favorite), explored the former capital in Corydon, and run through Marengo Cave.
With 37 counties under her belt, Madison holds a 5K PR of 21:51 and seven first-place overall female finishes.
Her goal is to reach all 92 counties in five years, just before she starts high school. In order to do that, she’ll have to run roughly 20 counties per year over the next three years.
To make sure she gets to all of them, she’ll be starting with those that host only one race per year, such as Newtown, Benton, Vermillion, Orange, and Starke, and she will finish with the larger counties that hold races more frequently.
Perhaps the biggest challenge in all of this is working out the race calendar. Between family obligations and Madison’s commitments to soccer, her school’s archery team, and academic clubs, it can be tough to find the time to race.
“I’m on race sites every night,” Scott Rahschulte said. “It drives my wife crazy.”
But thanks to her dad’s diligence in scheduling and supporting her, Madison remains on pace to accomplish her goal—and stick one thumbtack after another in the big map of Indiana hanging in the Rahschultes’ home.
While it’s nice to tick off another county on the list, Madison said, “The best part is just working to be my best and trying to improve.”
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