by Becky Stoppa

WASILLA, Alaska - David Johnston ran his first marathon at age 25. He completed it, but he says the experience was so painful it took him six years to run another one.Now the 38-year-old Wasilla man runs marathons almost monthly, traveling Outside for many. He’s run the Boston Marathon for the past three years, and he finished this year’s race on April 21 in three hours, 21.41 seconds, which placed him 4,626th in a field of 25,000.

And he is in training for other runs that make the 26 miles of a marathon seem like a warm-up, including the Miwok 100-K (that’s 62 miles) Trail Race, which will take place Saturday in California, and the 100-mile Resurrection Pass Alaska, coming in August.

Though he pushes himself toward a personal best in each, the races aren’t about winning, he said.

“I’ve got to enjoy running, you know, and smile a lot. I’m not the fastest person out there, but I guarantee I have the most fun,” he said.

In an interview Thursday, Johnston advised would-be-runners or marathoners to keep it fun as well.

Q. How long have you been running?

A. Since I was 8 years old. So for 30 years I’ve been running at least every other day. … I average about 10 miles a day.

Q. About how long does that usually take you?

A. Usually, I probably do eight-minute miles, so I run an hour and a half every day. And then, you know, lift weights, ride bikes. You know, I just love being active.

Q. You mentioned something earlier about a 100-mile run you’re planning to do.

A. Yeah, I want to try to do my first 100-miler this August. It starts in Hope, Alaska, Resurrection Pass. So you run across Resurrection Pass, and then you run back across it. … Last year I did the one-way, the 50-miler, and it was pretty neat.

Q. So are there water breaks or food breaks?

A. That’s the only thing with that race. When you’re on the 38-mile section, you’re on your own. So you carry whatever you need for 38 miles. But then there’s a stop at the parking lot, at the trail head. So you’ve got to carry a lot of stuff on that one.

And if that one’s successful, there is a race called the HURT 100 in Hawaii, and it’s supposed to be one of the toughest 100-milers in America.

Q. It’s called the HURT 100? Is that because of the pain it takes to run that far or does the name stand for something?

A. It stands for Hawaiian Ultra Runner Team. And I guess there’s not a single part of it that’s flat. You’re either going up or down the whole 100 miles and through Hawaiian jungles. But I’ll only do that if Resurrection is successful.

Q. What do you say to runners who’ve thought about running a marathon but maybe worry that they can’t go the distance, or to someone who doesn’t run at all but wants to start?

A. Probably the best thing is to make sure you enjoy it. You know, if you’re starting up running and you can run a mile with enjoying it, run a mile. When I’m out there, and let’s say I have a 20-mile run planned and at 10 miles I start hurting, I turn around and go home (he laughs).

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