Ultramarathon man

From Alaska to New Jersey to Canada, Granbury resident Peter Beauvais has traveled thousands of miles — and most of them have been on foot.

Beauvais — a true example of an ultramarathoner — has successfully completed a marathon in all 50 states and several countries.

“I don’t really take many breaks,” he explained. “I’m sorta addicted to running.”

The 62-year-old athlete didn’t even set out to run a marathon until he reached his 40s. Although he considered himself a runner, his only long-distance experiences stemmed from P.E. classes and 5K and 10K runs.

“It wasn’t really something that I had set out to do, but my bucket list item had been to run a marathon for much of my life,” Beauvais explained. “I was somewhat apprehensive about it. It kind of scared me a little bit as it was much farther than I had ever run before.”

Beauvais started out training for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Most Beautiful Bike Ride — a 100-mile ride that provides breathtaking views of Lake Tahoe and its surrounding wilderness. The annual ride also raises funds for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society to explore new paths to cures.

"I completed that 100-mile bike ride and during that time, I also met some people who were just marathoners and I talked with them about it and kind of asked them which is more difficult: a 100-mile bike ride or running a marathon,” he said. “Kind of unanimously they said, ‘Oh, running a marathon. It's much harder.’ It was a scary thing for me to hear.”

After researching and more training, Beauvais set out to run the Dallas Marathon in 2004. Unfortunately, after he pulled a calf muscle, he realized his goal would have to be put on hold.

"My goal had always been to run a marathon, but with injuries, I decided maybe I would have to pick a different marathon,” he said.

In 2005, his new goal involved completing the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C., using a new training method: American Olympian Jeff Galloway’s run/walk method.

According to verywellfit.com, the run/walk method involves switching between running and walking at timed intervals. The idea is that the planned walk breaks are a form of active recovery and can be a simple and effective way to avoid injury, boost motivation for running and improve endurance.

After Beauvais successfully completed the Marine Corps Marathon, his primary goal of finishing a marathon was officially checked off his bucket list.

However, he didn’t feel like retiring his running shoes just yet.

Although he had finished a marathon — and had completed the race in under four hours — Beauvais still wanted to accomplish another goal: qualify for the Boston Marathon.

“I missed qualifying for the Boston Marathon by two minutes and 40 seconds, and in getting that close, I said, ‘I have to try this again,’” he said.

And it didn’t take long.

Six weeks later, Beauvais participated in the Dallas White Rock Marathon and successfully qualified for the Boston Marathon — even though it wasn’t his proudest race.

"I didn't follow my training plan at all,” he explained. “I made all the rookie mistakes. I went out way too fast, I didn't follow my run/walk plan like I had been training, so by the time I finished that marathon, I was more tired than I had ever been in my entire life. But I qualified for the Boston Marathon.”

Of course, Beauvais couldn’t just qualify for the Boston Marathon and not participate, so in April 2006, he did just that — finishing the race in three hours, 11 minutes and 21 seconds.

Before long, his passion for marathon running had reached new heights. In only two years, Beauvais had completed marathons in 14 different states.

“I thought, having done this many, I should set my sights on running a marathon in all 50 states since I had no intention of stopping,” he said. “I really enjoyed it and so I started looking at different times in different states trying to come up with a schedule, and that was when I was running about six to eight marathons per year.”

Finally, in 2018 — after 13 years — Beauvais completed his 50th race by finishing the Atlantic City Marathon in New Jersey.

But even after accomplishing such a rare feat, he now has his sights set on a new goal: finishing marathons in other countries.

“I’ve already finished marathons in Canada, England and Germany,” he said. “In September, I’m planning to run the Sydney Marathon (in Australia).”

Beauvais said while he keeps changing the number of countries he plans to run marathons in, he doesn’t plan to shoot for all 189 countries.

“At this point, I’m looking for an interesting place to run,” he said. “I’d really like to visit Israel sometime as they have the Jerusalem Marathon, which sounds interesting, and possibly Kenya, as they have the Kilimanjaro Marathon.”

As for now though, Beauvais is trying to take a break from running — even if the break is only lowering his training days from five days a week to three.

He said what keeps him going is the inspiration he has gotten from watching other runners succeed, like the long-ago race in which an 84-year-old completed the Fort Worth Cowtown Marathon in a little over four hours.

“That was a defining moment for me,” Beauvais said. “That’s the guy I wanna be like when I’m 84 years old, still out there running a marathon.”

He encourages other aspiring marathon athletes to give it a shot, even if they're not the fastest runner.

“Obviously, I'm partial to running a marathon, but I think it's a good goal for anybody because it gives a sense of achievement,” he said. “It doesn't matter how fast or slow you run. Anybody who completes a marathon has accomplished a tremendous goal. I admire the people who run for six or seven hours to complete a marathon because just being out there for that long shows a tremendous amount of commitment.”

Beauvais is also a member of a small running club in Granbury called the Running Bear Run Club, which meets at Hewlett Park every Saturday morning at 7:30 a.m. He encourages other Hood County residents to join the club if they’re interested.

"It's a very supportive organization and group of people,” he said. “It's small, but we always welcome new runners."

Beauvais added he hopes he can encourage more individuals to give marathon running a chance.

“It doesn't make any difference how fast or how slow you are,” he added. “If you're putting one foot in front of the other, you're a runner.”