BOISE, Idaho — When Mary Karen Noonan crosses the finish line of the St. Luke's FitOne half marathon Saturday, she will have completed two races upon landing the final step.
Mary Karen has traveled the United States for more than 15 years to complete a half marathon in every state. The St. Luke's FitOne checks the last box; Idaho is her last state.
Boise is a welcome conclusion to the tour, as she recently turned 66.
"It just seemed like from what we read about the city, it would be a fun place to be for a couple of days," Mary Karen said. "All my friends and family will be very happy to hear me not talk about it anymore."
Mary Karen has run several races alongside her husband Mike Noonan. He is not much of a runner himself, but enjoys the travel.
"I'm a slogger," Mike said. "I slowly jog and walk my races. You don't have to win it. You just wanna get through the finish line, that's all."
Mary Karen started running in college. She completed a few half marathons later in life.
"I realized I had a few states under my belt, so I checked if that was a thing," Mary Karen said. "I found there was a 50 state half marathon club. They track your races, make sure it’s all official, and you completed your races. I joined the club, and it mushroomed from there."
The couple is counting down the minutes to when they can celebrate the 50 state milestone.
"It just crept up on me," Mary Karen said. "I don’t think until about three years ago did I ever think I would get to this point where I would be finishing.”
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