PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — Like Forrest Gump, Tim Hewitt just can’t stop running.

The Latrobe lawyer has run every Pittsburgh Marathon and Sunday will be no exception.

The 26.2 mile run is just a stroll in the park compared to Hewitt’s yearly trek to the Iditarod Invitational – a grueling 1,150 mile footrace across Alaska. He’s done it six times, winning five of them and recording a new world record this year.

“They aren’t very satisfying when you’re doing them sometimes, but they’re all satisfying when they’re done,” Hewitt said.

In the Iditarod, Hewitt runs across frozen tundra, sometimes facing down 100-mph winds. At night, he catches an hour or two of sleep before pressing on.

“It teaches you that as long as you can keep your wits just be willing to take what the trail will give you that you can accomplish almost anything,” he said.

For this, one author has called Hewitt the toughest athlete in the world, something that makes him wince.

“No, no,” he said. “I mean, I’ve won some races, but there’s an echelon way above me.”

Instead, Hewitt’s message is that if we all can’t do the Iditarod, we can achieve much more than we think possible.

“People set restrictions and limitations on themselves that they really don’t need to,” he said. “You can do so much more and I’ve seen so many people that aren’t really gifted athletes, perform at levels because they open their minds and realize that you can just do more than you think you can.”

The secret, says Tim Hewitt, is challenge. We have to challenge ourselves in our daily life to make it a happy one.

RELATED LINKS
More Reports By Andy Sheehan
Iditarod Official Website
Pittsburgh Marathon