Let Me Run @ TCS New York City Marathon, An interview with Jay Masanotti
October 24, 2022 by Let Me Run National
Did you know? Among the 50,000 entrants at the 2022 TCS New York City Marathon, there will be five supporting the Let Me Run mission and brand as charity runners. To be clear, it’s no cake walk! Not only have they trained and sacrificed for months on end to run 26.2 miles, they’ve committed to a fundraising goal on top of that.
Jay Masanotti is one such runner. Jay is wrestling with his own personal health challenges unrelated to his training, but he’s such a believer in the Let Me Run mission, he wanted to take on this year’s marathon and fundraising. We got the chance to catch up with him before this year’s event!
Let Me Run: Can you share more about how you’ve been involved with Let Me Run over the years?
Jay: I originally came to know Let Me Run through my wife, Jessica, who designed the Let Me Run logo in 2009. She had coached Girls on the Run and was recommended to Ashley Armistead. Interestingly, we later got to know Ashley very well through attending Selwyn Avenue Presbyterian Church. A few years ago, I was involved in the rewrite of the ES2 (elementary) curriculum.
LMR: Why is the mission of Let Me Run meaningful to you?
Jay: The mission of Let Me Run is so important to me because all that it aims to do is exactly what I could have benefitted from as a young boy. The focus on the sport of running as a platform to approach SEL topics is so effective. As has become clearer to me over the years, running is life, and life is running. I love that Let Me Run uses lessons from the road to build healthy hearts and minds in young boys.
LMR: How did you get into running?
Jay: I came to running when I needed an outlet in high school. I joined my school's team shortly after moving from NY to GA and instantly found camaraderie with my teammates. I was able to continue running competitively into college and it's always helped to clear my head and keep me grounded.
LMR: How has your training or the marathon been going? What are you most excited for with the race?
Jay: Training for the race has truly been a challenge--I almost quit in the first month! I have a chronic kidney disease that makes everything just a bit harder, from my diet to water retention to cramping. I'm so happy that I've persevered over the past 16 weeks as I feel better now than I have in almost a decade. I completed my first half-marathon last weekend and look forward to the NYC marathon in November!
LMR: What’s your favorite running advice?
Jay: My favorite piece of running advice currently is to know yourself as a runner--know your limits, your body, your strengths and weaknesses. You are not any other runner, so own what you have. Another one is to celebrate that each finish line is the starting line of the next run. Keeps me going when I don't feel quite up to lacing up again.
There’s still time to support Let Me Run and Jay’s fundraising goal. You can make a donation directly at this link: https://fundraisers.hakuapp.com/jay-masanotti?fbclid=IwAR31QBbHnyNivNleAEOLkbHwMT7e3JCXAJaQFfFIigkxQc1gWMCY_K8mR8k
