Within a month of Kyle Larson winning his third NASCAR Cup Series championship, the California native is venturing into a different type of racing—a marathon.
Larson is making his marathon debut December 6 in the California International Marathon that starts near Folsom Dam in Folsom and ends at the California State Capitol in Sacramento.
“Getting to compete in Sacramento where I was born and raised is special,” the 34-year-old Larson said.
Running never interested Larson until a couple of his friends began pursuing it. That’s when the father of three decided to commit to the athletic event that had always frustrated him.
“Once your body stops hurting all the time, then you learn to enjoy it and enjoy the process,” Larson said. “Then when you’re training, you want to go compete in a race.”
Since Larson began training for the marathon his longest run has been 16 miles.
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“In good weather that day, I think it was like around a nine-minute pace,” Larson said. “Your heart rate’s low and then in the final four miles you crank it up to marathon pace. So, for me, in good weather, that’s around a 7:30 to 7:40 pace. Doing that pace for three and a half hours or whatever it will be is gonna be challenging.
“I would like to be sub-3:30 (finish the marathon in under 3 hours 30 minutes) so I think that’s around eight minutes. I feel like that’s achievable, but I just don’t know what my body’s gonna do the final six, eight miles, and what my legs and all that will feel like.”
Due to Larson’s heavy race schedule, he never felt he was lacking in physical fitness since he was race fit. Even with his training for his first marathon, he doesn’t feel any different.
“I’m sure I am, but nothing stands out to me,” Larson said. “I just enjoy doing it.”
Larson notes that being race fit is more important than being in the gym every day, but it’s all beneficial.
A North Carolina native, Deb Williams is an award-winning motorsports journalist who is in her fourth decade covering auto racing. In addition to covering the sport for United Press International, she has written motorsports articles for several newspapers, magazines and websites including espnW.com, USA Today, and The Charlotte Observer. Her awards include the American Motorsports Media Award of Excellence, two-time National Motorsports Press Association writer of the year, and two-time recipient of the Russ Catlin award. She also has won an award in the North Carolina Press Association’s sports feature category. During her career, Deb has been managing editor of GT Motorsports magazine and was with Winston Cup Scene and NASCAR Winston Cup Scene for 18 years, serving as the publication’s editor for 10 years. In 2024 she was inducted into the NMPA Hall of Fame.