Name: Danny Horgan

Sex: Male

Age (at the time of first BQ): 29

Height (at the time of first BQ):  6’1

Weight (at the time of first BQ): 150

At which marathon did you get your first BQ? Bay State Marathon

Tell us a little about the race. The conditions were great — a little windy, but nice and cool. Because the race was part of the USATF-NE Grand Prix, a lot of sub 2:40 runners lined up to race. Those two factors led to a fast, competitive morning,

How long had you been running when you ran your first BQ? In high school, then about four years after returning to running at 25 years old.

Did you run in college or high school? Yes

What was your approximate lifetime mileage at the time of your first BQ? 10,000

How many miles did you run in the year before your first BQ? 2,600

Approximately how many races did you run in that year? 6

Did you follow a canned program? If so, which one? If not, can you give us an idea of what your training philosophy was? No, Train around the clock. You can only run for so many hours each week (especially when you haven’t built up to high mileage), so you need to find ways to get fitter when you aren’t running. Sauna sessions, hip mobility drills, zero junk food, etc.

Did you run with a running club or utilize a coach? No

Did cross training play a role in your training? If so, how? In more ways than I can list. For example, sauna sessions helped me stay adapted to the heat well into the fall.

Did speed work play a role in your training? If so, how? No.

Any other thoughts you would like to share with those of working towards a BQ? Mentally prepare yourself to do things on race day you’ve never done in training. Insecurity leads a lot of people to run their longest training runs way too hard, leaving them spent for race day. Be strong enough to know that you can put everything together when it really counts.