Rob Simmelkjaer: New York Road Runners is a non- profit organization with
Rob Simmelkjaer: a vision to build healthier lives and stronger communities through
Rob Simmelkjaer: the transformative power of running. The support of members and
Rob Simmelkjaer: donors like you helps us achieve our mission to transform
Rob Simmelkjaer: the health and well- being of our communities through inclusive
Rob Simmelkjaer: and accessible running experiences, empowering all to achieve their potential.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Learn more and contribute at nyrr. org/ donate.
Speaker 2: Thank you, New York. Today we're reminded of the power
Speaker 2: of community and the power of coming together. Athletes, on
Speaker 2: your mark.
Speaker 3: The first woman to finish for the second straight year
Speaker 3: here in the New York City Marathon is Miki Gorman, a smiling
Speaker 3: Miki Gorman. And why not? 2: 29:30, the time for good advice.
Speaker 4: Look at the emotion of Shalane Flanagan as she comes
Speaker 4: to the line. Pointing to his chest, pointing to the
Speaker 4: USA, he so proudly wears across his chest. A great day
Speaker 4: for Meb Keflezighi.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Hey everybody, and welcome to Set the Pace, the official
Rob Simmelkjaer: podcast of New York Road Runners, presented by Peloton. I'm
Rob Simmelkjaer: your host and the CEO of New York Road Runners,
Rob Simmelkjaer: Rob Simmelkjaer. And if you're getting this episode on the
Rob Simmelkjaer: day it drops, then the first thing I want to
Rob Simmelkjaer: say is happy Thanksgiving. Hope everybody out there is having
Rob Simmelkjaer: a great holiday with friends, with family. I think we
Rob Simmelkjaer: all have a lot to be thankful for. Certainly those
Rob Simmelkjaer: of us at New York Road Runners. So much to
Rob Simmelkjaer: be thankful for this season. Thankful for great running all
Rob Simmelkjaer: year long, great racing, a phenomenal TCS New York City
Rob Simmelkjaer: Marathon. And most of all, I can just say as
Rob Simmelkjaer: our CEO, we are thankful for all of you, the
Rob Simmelkjaer: members of our running community, our members, our runners, everybody
Rob Simmelkjaer: out there who's been a part of our community this
Rob Simmelkjaer: year. We thank you. We're thankful for you, and we're
Rob Simmelkjaer: thankful that you have been able to engage with us
Rob Simmelkjaer: and get something out of what we do this year.
Rob Simmelkjaer: The power of running, we always talk about it. Hopefully
Rob Simmelkjaer: you have felt some of that power this year. And
Rob Simmelkjaer: we're thankful to have been a part of that with
Rob Simmelkjaer: you. Also, I'm thankful for my co- host, Becs Gentry.
Rob Simmelkjaer: She's not with us today, as she is quite rightly
Rob Simmelkjaer: on vacation. That's right. She is vacationing from completing her
Rob Simmelkjaer: incredible feat around the around the world marathon tour last Wednesday, seven
Rob Simmelkjaer: marathons on seven continents in seven days. She just did
Rob Simmelkjaer: a phenomenal job. It's incredible. I can only imagine the
Rob Simmelkjaer: exhaustion she must have felt at the end of that,
Rob Simmelkjaer: but also the elation. She'll be back with us next
Rob Simmelkjaer: week and I can't wait to talk to Becs about
Rob Simmelkjaer: this adventure, hear all about it. What an incredible accomplishment.
Rob Simmelkjaer: So congrats, Becs. We're thankful for you and we're thankful
Rob Simmelkjaer: that you came through that amazing adventure safe and sound
Rob Simmelkjaer: and did such a great job. So I hope you're having
Rob Simmelkjaer: a restful Thanksgiving with your family and friends and all
Rob Simmelkjaer: of that. Well, this coming weekend's a quiet weekend for
Rob Simmelkjaer: us at New York Road Runners. We're not in the
Rob Simmelkjaer: turkey trot business here. I'm sure many of you are
Rob Simmelkjaer: out there running turkey trots here on Thanksgiving Day or
Rob Simmelkjaer: maybe over the following weekend. So for those who are
Rob Simmelkjaer: doing your turkey trots, good luck. Enjoy. It's such a
Rob Simmelkjaer: fun thing to do to get some calories burned off
Rob Simmelkjaer: and get your metabolism up for that Thanksgiving feast. So
Rob Simmelkjaer: hope everybody has a great turkey trot, whether it's a
Rob Simmelkjaer: race or just to run with friends or family. But
Rob Simmelkjaer: Road Runners is quiet this weekend, but we had a
Rob Simmelkjaer: really busy and great weekend, the weekend before Thanksgiving, so
Rob Simmelkjaer: some early turkey trots we had going. And we had
Rob Simmelkjaer: a couple of them. First of all, I had a
Rob Simmelkjaer: great time on Sunday, heading back to my old stomping
Rob Simmelkjaer: grounds Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx for the New
Rob Simmelkjaer: York Road Runners Cross Country, 5K this past Sunday. It
Rob Simmelkjaer: was the first time I'd been to Van Cortlandt since
Rob Simmelkjaer: I ran cross- country at Horace Mann School back in
Rob Simmelkjaer: the 1980s. Yes, that's right folks. It was the eighties.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And man, it was incredible to go back there and
Rob Simmelkjaer: it was so much fun to go back there with
Rob Simmelkjaer: my daughter, Julia. The two of us took on that
Rob Simmelkjaer: 5K course and man, I think that I had somehow blocked out how
Rob Simmelkjaer: incredibly difficult that cross- country course is. You know how they say
Rob Simmelkjaer: that these really hard things that we go through, we
Rob Simmelkjaer: somehow managed to either forget or think of them more
Rob Simmelkjaer: fondly so that we'll be convinced to do them again?
Rob Simmelkjaer: Well, that's how I felt running that cross- country course
Rob Simmelkjaer: on Sunday. The hills in those woods are so massive.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Somehow I had blocked those out. And Julia was looking
Rob Simmelkjaer: at me halfway through this race like, " What are you
Rob Simmelkjaer: doing to me right now?" It was such a hard
Rob Simmelkjaer: race. It was like three and a half minutes or
Rob Simmelkjaer: more off of her 5K PR because it was so
Rob Simmelkjaer: challenging. But at the end we had such a great
Rob Simmelkjaer: time. And it was such a really old school race.
Rob Simmelkjaer: People just went out to the field, lined up a
Rob Simmelkjaer: loose starting line. No timing at the start. You just
Rob Simmelkjaer: go and run. And the only timing was at the
Rob Simmelkjaer: finish. It really brought me back to the early days
Rob Simmelkjaer: of running for me. Of course, the cross- country tradition.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And the early days of New York Road Runners, which
Rob Simmelkjaer: really started out in the Bronx as a much more low-
Rob Simmelkjaer: key running operation than of course we are now. And
Rob Simmelkjaer: so it was really fun to experience that and it
Rob Simmelkjaer: was great to see folks up there. We also had over 1,
Rob Simmelkjaer: 000 kids running with Rising New York Road Runners. It's one
Rob Simmelkjaer: of our biggest youth events of the year, and the
Rob Simmelkjaer: buses were lined up and down Broadway. A great turnout
Rob Simmelkjaer: of kids from all five boroughs of New York. That
Rob Simmelkjaer: was awesome to see as they all got in a
Rob Simmelkjaer: run before their Thanksgiving holiday. So congrats to everybody, adults
Rob Simmelkjaer: and kids, who ran in the Bronx on Sunday. It
Rob Simmelkjaer: was really a great day. Then, back in Central Park,
Rob Simmelkjaer: we also had more than 6, 700 runners completing the annual
Rob Simmelkjaer: Race to Deliver 4Miler to Benefit God's Love We Deliver.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And it was a great event. It raises money for
Rob Simmelkjaer: God's Love We Deliver, a great organization that cooks and
Rob Simmelkjaer: delivers medically tailored meals to New Yorkers affected by severe
Rob Simmelkjaer: illness such as heart disease, HIV, cancer, and COPD. This
Rob Simmelkjaer: year the organization will work with more than 24, 000 volunteers
Rob Simmelkjaer: to deliver more than 5 million meals, all free of
Rob Simmelkjaer: charge, to more than 17,000 New Yorkers. And so it's
Rob Simmelkjaer: a great race, a great event to benefit a phenomenal
Rob Simmelkjaer: cause at the perfect time of year as we get
Rob Simmelkjaer: into the holiday season. So thanks to all the runners
Rob Simmelkjaer: who came out to support the run to our Rising
Rob Simmelkjaer: New York Road Runners participants and parents and all the
Rob Simmelkjaer: volunteers who made a great morning. The winners, by the
Rob Simmelkjaer: way in Central Park for the women, it was Lauren
Rob Simmelkjaer: Sapone with a time of 24: 28. Non- binary winner was
Rob Simmelkjaer: Sean Rankin with a time of 25:44. Sean runs with
Rob Simmelkjaer: Dashing Whippets. And for the men it was Jeremy Arthur
Rob Simmelkjaer: with a time of 20 minutes and 45 seconds. Jeremy
Rob Simmelkjaer: also runs with Dashing Whippets. So congrats to all the
Rob Simmelkjaer: finishers of both of our races this past Sunday. No
Rob Simmelkjaer: matter what season of life you're in, Peloton has everything
Rob Simmelkjaer: you need to keep your running on track. From challenging
Rob Simmelkjaer: classes and training programs to outdoor runs and walks, we've
Rob Simmelkjaer: got you covered whatever your level. Whether you're gearing up
Rob Simmelkjaer: for a race or in- between events, unlock your personalized
Rob Simmelkjaer: training plans, expert coaching, and a community that supports you
Rob Simmelkjaer: every step of the way. Find your push, find your
Rob Simmelkjaer: power at onepeloton. com/ race- training. Every November two of
Rob Simmelkjaer: New York City's most iconic events take over the streets
Rob Simmelkjaer: of New York City and captivate viewers worldwide. Of course,
Rob Simmelkjaer: one of them is the TCS New York City Marathon
Rob Simmelkjaer: that we all know about. Well, the other is happening
Rob Simmelkjaer: this week, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. On this special
Rob Simmelkjaer: Thanksgiving episode of Set the Pace, you're used to hearing
Rob Simmelkjaer: about the details behind producing the marathon. But today we're
Rob Simmelkjaer: going to take you behind the scenes of the Macy's
Rob Simmelkjaer: Thanksgiving Day Parade with Kathleen Wright. She is the powerhouse
Rob Simmelkjaer: production director of that parade and she'll share everything it
Rob Simmelkjaer: takes to bring this quintessential New York City tradition to
Rob Simmelkjaer: life. And for today's member moment, Meb's going to be
Rob Simmelkjaer: here to introduce us to the champion of the first
Rob Simmelkjaer: Every Woman's Marathon, New York Road Runner's member, Khia Kurtenbach. Khia
Rob Simmelkjaer: will tell us what it felt like to be the
Rob Simmelkjaer: very first woman to cross the finish line where some
Rob Simmelkjaer: of her personal heroes, including Kathrine Switzer and Des Linden
Rob Simmelkjaer: were waiting to celebrate her. And then for today's Meb
Rob Simmelkjaer: Minute, Meb will be here to talk about thankfulness, specifically
Rob Simmelkjaer: how thankful we should all be for what running does
Rob Simmelkjaer: for us.
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Rob Simmelkjaer: Well, you know if you listen to this show that I always say the TCS New
Rob Simmelkjaer: York City Marathon is the best day of the year in
Rob Simmelkjaer: New York City. My guest today may be one of
Rob Simmelkjaer: the few people in the city who could maybe have
Rob Simmelkjaer: an argument against that, at least maybe a tie. Kathleen
Rob Simmelkjaer: Wright is the director of production operations and the woman
Rob Simmelkjaer: responsible for orchestrating the magic behind the Macy's Thanksgiving Day
Rob Simmelkjaer: Parade. From the floats and the balloons to the clowns
Rob Simmelkjaer: and the marching bands, Kathleen's team handles it all, making
Rob Simmelkjaer: sure every detail is perfect for millions of spectators, both
Rob Simmelkjaer: in person and of course on national television. What began
Rob Simmelkjaer: as a volunteer opportunity has turned into a dream job,
Rob Simmelkjaer: leading one of the biggest holiday events in the world.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And much like the marathon, the parade is complex. It's
Rob Simmelkjaer: a logistical masterpiece that transforms the city streets. Kathleen's here
Rob Simmelkjaer: to share with us how she and her team make
Rob Simmelkjaer: it all happen year after year on Thanksgiving. Kathleen, it's
Rob Simmelkjaer: nice to meet you. How are you doing?
Kathleen Wright: So nice to meet you as well. I'm so excited
Kathleen Wright: to talk about this with you. Big fan of the Road Runners and the
Kathleen Wright: New York City Marathon. So excited to dive in.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Thank you. And you have a good perspective on these two big New York City
Rob Simmelkjaer: events. You've run the marathon a few times, now you are "
Rob Simmelkjaer: running," in charge of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. So
Rob Simmelkjaer: it's definitely a fun argument, which is a better day,
Rob Simmelkjaer: but there's certainly both big days for New York City.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Tell me a little bit to start about just the
Rob Simmelkjaer: history of this event. It's been going on ever since
Rob Simmelkjaer: I can remember and I imagine well, well before.
Kathleen Wright: Yeah, so the first parade was in 1924. So we
Kathleen Wright: are right at that 100- year mark. The parade was
Kathleen Wright: canceled for three years during World War Two, so we're
Kathleen Wright: celebrating our 100th parade in a couple of years. But every
Kathleen Wright: single year has been just a new, fun experiment of
Kathleen Wright: how we can honor the tradition of those 97 parades
Kathleen Wright: that have already gone by, how we can make the
Kathleen Wright: 98th just as fun, just as exciting, just as inspiring
Kathleen Wright: of all of the parades that have come before it.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And Kathleen, I imagine a lot of people, and I
Rob Simmelkjaer: thought this for a long time, would just think Macy's
Rob Simmelkjaer: is the sponsor of the parade, kind of like TCS is
Rob Simmelkjaer: the sponsor of the New York City Marathon, but not
Rob Simmelkjaer: necessarily realize that you're a Macy's employee. Your team works
Rob Simmelkjaer: for Macy's. You guys stage the event. Macy's is putting
Rob Simmelkjaer: this thing on, not just sponsoring it.
Kathleen Wright: That's right. I work for Macy's. I am on the
Kathleen Wright: Macy's Studios team and there are 50 of us that
Kathleen Wright: work year- round on Macy's events. So that includes not
Kathleen Wright: only the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, but also the Macy's
Kathleen Wright: 4th of July Fireworks and a few other iconic events
Kathleen Wright: like the Flower Show here in New York City. And we are
Kathleen Wright: so proud that we are able to continue this tradition
Kathleen Wright: and continue working on this iconic event that is so
Kathleen Wright: beloved by New Yorkers and Americans across the country.
Rob Simmelkjaer: It really is just a staple of New York and just as Macy's
Rob Simmelkjaer: is, so the two really do go together. People ask
Rob Simmelkjaer: me this all the time about the Marathon, so I'll
Rob Simmelkjaer: ask you regarding the parade. When do you start planning
Rob Simmelkjaer: each year for the Thanksgiving Day Parade?
Kathleen Wright: Our team typically starts planning about 18 months in advance.
Kathleen Wright: So that's everything from my role of thinking about the
Kathleen Wright: logistics of what worked the last parade, what do we
Kathleen Wright: update, what do we improve? Who are the new partners
Kathleen Wright: that we can bring in? How are we designing the
Kathleen Wright: next cool, new float, the next incredible, giant character balloon?
Kathleen Wright: So all of that work starts about 18 months in advance.
Kathleen Wright: We're always thinking about the parade in the back of
Kathleen Wright: our minds.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yeah, that's very similar to Marathon. We are currently thinking
Rob Simmelkjaer: about the 2026 Marathon on our end. So obviously '25's coming
Rob Simmelkjaer: right up, but we've got conversations about '26, so that's
Rob Simmelkjaer: about two years in advance for us. '26 is a big
Rob Simmelkjaer: one for us. It's a big anniversary. You guys have
Rob Simmelkjaer: a big anniversary as well coming up, so I'm sure
Rob Simmelkjaer: the work goes even further out when you've got a
Rob Simmelkjaer: big thing to celebrate, like the 100th Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Kathleen Wright: Yeah. So the 100th is coming up in 2026. We already have our
Kathleen Wright: eyes on that. So we are right now simultaneously thinking
Kathleen Wright: about the parade that's coming up just next week; the
Kathleen Wright: 2025 parade, which will be our 99th; and then the 2026, when we'll celebrate
Kathleen Wright: 100 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parades.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Wow, that's amazing. Another big thing in 2026 because it's
Rob Simmelkjaer: going to be the 50th anniversary of the Five- Borough
Rob Simmelkjaer: New York City Marathon in '26, and then just a
Rob Simmelkjaer: few weeks later the 100th Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. So that's going
Rob Simmelkjaer: to be a great month of November in New York in a couple
Rob Simmelkjaer: of years. That's pretty exciting.
Kathleen Wright: I completely agree. I have always said that November is
Kathleen Wright: my favorite month in New York City for that exact
Kathleen Wright: reason. So that'll be a really fun one in 2026.
Rob Simmelkjaer: So I think another similarity between the Marathon and the
Rob Simmelkjaer: Thanksgiving Day Parade is how many volunteers it takes to
Rob Simmelkjaer: put the event on. We rely on about 10, 000 volunteers
Rob Simmelkjaer: to support the runners going from Staten Island to Central
Rob Simmelkjaer: Park. And I know, I've been to this parade a
Rob Simmelkjaer: few times, I know how many people volunteer. I also
Rob Simmelkjaer: know, similar to Marathon, how sought- after some of these
Rob Simmelkjaer: volunteer positions are. Being a clown or holding a float,
Rob Simmelkjaer: those are prime assignments for volunteers.
Kathleen Wright: Yes, we have about five volunteers that volunteer with us
Kathleen Wright: on Thanksgiving morning. And I think that so much of
Kathleen Wright: that tradition of the original Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade back
Kathleen Wright: in 1924 carries on with us today in that so
Kathleen Wright: many of those volunteers are Macy's colleagues, and their friends,
Kathleen Wright: and family. So we've really kind kept that rooted in
Kathleen Wright: the tradition of the Macy's family really continuing on, volunteering
Kathleen Wright: their time on a holiday to come together and celebrate
Kathleen Wright: Thanksgiving together. And I think that's in part why it
Kathleen Wright: is such a coveted spot to be a part of
Kathleen Wright: the parade and join and celebrate with us. It really
Kathleen Wright: is a wonderful family entertainment event on Thanksgiving morning.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right. So let's talk about the balloons. And the
Rob Simmelkjaer: first thing I want to ask is the process for
Rob Simmelkjaer: getting to be a balloon. You've got cultural trends that
Rob Simmelkjaer: come and go. Maybe one year the Transformers are really
Rob Simmelkjaer: popular and then it's some anime character, but then you've
Rob Simmelkjaer: got the standbys, like the ones who seem to always
Rob Simmelkjaer: be there. I think Snoopy, right? Is Snoopy kind of
Rob Simmelkjaer: an evergreen balloon? I feel like Snoopy is never going
Rob Simmelkjaer: to really go away. I hope not. What is that
Rob Simmelkjaer: process of deciding what balloons are going to make the
Rob Simmelkjaer: cut every year?
Kathleen Wright: So every year we are always looking at for what
Kathleen Wright: is the best in entertainment, what is the most iconic,
Kathleen Wright: fun, what's new and fresh, but what is also traditional?
Kathleen Wright: Like that's Snoopy character balloon. And we work very closely
Kathleen Wright: with our partners to incorporate those characters and then make
Kathleen Wright: sure that we are really matching the essence of those
Kathleen Wright: characters to ensure that we are representing that character to
Kathleen Wright: exactly what they were designed to look like in their
Kathleen Wright: original state. So I think some of the really fun,
Kathleen Wright: new balloons this year, there's six new giant balloons in
Kathleen Wright: the parade. We have Minnie Mouse for the first time
Kathleen Wright: ever, which is so exciting. We've had a few different
Kathleen Wright: iterations of Mickey. So Minnie is now in the parade
Kathleen Wright: for the very first time.
Rob Simmelkjaer: I'm amazed that it is Minnie's first appearance. That's amazing that it's
Rob Simmelkjaer: her first appearance in the parade. So good for Minnie. Congratulations.
Kathleen Wright: Got it.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Girl power.
Kathleen Wright: Exactly.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Love it.
Kathleen Wright: Exactly. Girl power. We're very excited about that one. And
Kathleen Wright: when we started that process, it was so important that
Kathleen Wright: we were making sure that Minnie really looked like Minnie.
Kathleen Wright: And I think that that's really part of where the
Kathleen Wright: art and science of our balloon team design really comes
Kathleen Wright: together because it is a science to design these balloons
Kathleen Wright: and to make sure that they are aerodynamic and have
Kathleen Wright: enough lift to fly down the parade route. But it
Kathleen Wright: also has to look like Minnie. And our designers and
Kathleen Wright: our creative teams are so talented and making sure that
Kathleen Wright: we are representing Minnie exactly as she should be represented.
Kathleen Wright: So it's a really, really interesting process to see that
Kathleen Wright: art and science come together to really develop and design
Kathleen Wright: those balloons.
Rob Simmelkjaer: What else is new this year? I'm curious.
Kathleen Wright: We also have a new Spider- Man balloon this year. Spider-
Kathleen Wright: Man has been in the parade before, but we have
Kathleen Wright: a brand new balloon this year in Spider- Man. We
Kathleen Wright: have a character Noorah from The Elf on the Shelf
Kathleen Wright: series. She's a wintery fox and she's really fun, really
Kathleen Wright: pretty. Her tail is painted like the Northern Lights. I
Kathleen Wright: think she's going to be a real fan favorite on
Kathleen Wright: the parade route. We have Gabby from Gabby's Dollhouse. Another,
Kathleen Wright: I think a really fun character. I think a lot of the
Kathleen Wright: kids are going to be so excited about her being
Kathleen Wright: in the parade. We have a new Goku balloon this year. Goku
Kathleen Wright: has been in the parade for the last few years,
Kathleen Wright: so another superhero character that's going to be on the
Kathleen Wright: parade route. Really so many fans of Goku that we're so
Kathleen Wright: excited to see. And then we also have a new PAW Patrol character.
Kathleen Wright: So Chase has been on the case, on the parade
Kathleen Wright: route for several years and now we have Marshall who
Kathleen Wright: will be joining us, and-
Rob Simmelkjaer: Marshall's the Dalmatian if I'm not mistaken, right?
Kathleen Wright: Got it. Yes. So a really fun character. We're really
Kathleen Wright: excited to see fly On Thanksgiving.
Rob Simmelkjaer: I still know my PAW Patrol characters five or six
Rob Simmelkjaer: years after the last of my children was watching that
Rob Simmelkjaer: show, so I'm proud of myself on that. But I always liked
Rob Simmelkjaer: Marshall so I was partial to Marshall.
Kathleen Wright: Yes, very good
Rob Simmelkjaer: And so, a night that a lot of New Yorkers
Rob Simmelkjaer: know about, and people who are every year attendees to
Rob Simmelkjaer: the Thanksgiving Day Parade, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, know
Rob Simmelkjaer: about, but some non- New Yorkers may not know is
Rob Simmelkjaer: the night before, which is really in a lot of
Rob Simmelkjaer: ways kind of the ticket that so many people want.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Where you get to go and watch the balloons get
Rob Simmelkjaer: to be inflated. There's streets I think that are closed
Rob Simmelkjaer: on the Upper West Side, near Central Park West, and
Rob Simmelkjaer: the inflating of the balloons is a big, big tradition.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Can you talk about that night and how long it
Rob Simmelkjaer: takes? How many people are involved in that? And how
Rob Simmelkjaer: can someone, if they want to check that out, get
Rob Simmelkjaer: a chance to see the balloons get blown up?
Kathleen Wright: Yeah. So the balloon inflation event I think is something
Kathleen Wright: that makes the Thanksgiving Day parade so special because it
Kathleen Wright: is that sneak peek. It's that look behind the curtain.
Kathleen Wright: How does this all come together? How do these balloons
Kathleen Wright: all get inflated and then make their way down the
Kathleen Wright: parade route on Thanksgiving morning. So on the Upper West
Kathleen Wright: Side, we inflate all of the balloons in the lineup.
Kathleen Wright: Starting on Wednesday morning. It takes us about eight hours
Kathleen Wright: to inflate the entire lineup of balloons. And we have
Kathleen Wright: a team of about 150 balloon technicians and inflation team
Kathleen Wright: members that are inflating the balloons throughout the day. And
Kathleen Wright: that event is open to the public from 1:00 to 6: 00
Kathleen Wright: PM on Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving. You can join
Kathleen Wright: the line on 72nd Street, starting at noon to get
Kathleen Wright: in line, get your spot. 72nd Street in Columbus is
Kathleen Wright: where you'll enter. And then we'll take you around the
Kathleen Wright: queue line. You'll see all of the balloons as they're
Kathleen Wright: inflated. And then there's also the added bonus of seeing
Kathleen Wright: some of our floats in the parade get assembled on
Kathleen Wright: Central Park West. So it truly is that behind- the-
Kathleen Wright: scenes look at how the parade is made and built
Kathleen Wright: that day before.
Rob Simmelkjaer: I love it. I've actually never had a chance to
Rob Simmelkjaer: go see that. I've been to the the parade, I've been
Rob Simmelkjaer: on the streets. I've had a chance to be in
Rob Simmelkjaer: the bleachers with my kids a couple of times as
Rob Simmelkjaer: well, but I got to make a plan to get
Rob Simmelkjaer: down there and watch that inflation event. That sounds like
Rob Simmelkjaer: a lot of fun. Kathleen, there's something called a balloonical
Rob Simmelkjaer: that I've been hearing about and I'm trying to understand
Rob Simmelkjaer: what this is. I know self- driving cars are a
Rob Simmelkjaer: thing in the world now, but balloonicals these things, they
Rob Simmelkjaer: basically don't need holders. Is that right? What is a balloonical?
Kathleen Wright: So a balloonical is part of the magic of Macy's Studios. When
Kathleen Wright: we were tasked with trying to find another fun and
Kathleen Wright: new creative element that could be a part of our
Kathleen Wright: parade, we created balloonicals. And they are self- driving inflatables
Kathleen Wright: that make their way down the parade route. So this
Kathleen Wright: year you will see a few baby Dino Balloonicals that
Kathleen Wright: accompany the Dino and baby Dino Sinclair balloon. So they
Kathleen Wright: will be traveling down the parade route in front of
Kathleen Wright: that giant balloon. And then we also have a... If
Kathleen Wright: you're familiar with the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series,
Kathleen Wright: there is the Stinky Cheese. So the Stinky Cheese is
Kathleen Wright: a balloonical that goes in front of the Diary of a
Kathleen Wright: Wimpy Kid balloon. So they're really fun and just cool
Kathleen Wright: new elements that you'll see on the parade route.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Are they like drones out there, doing their own thing?
Rob Simmelkjaer: Are they tethered?
Kathleen Wright: They're not tethered. So there is actually a person inside
Kathleen Wright: of it that kind of controls it with almost like
Kathleen Wright: a stick shift that drives almost like a remote control.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Like a little blimp kind of a thing? Wow.
Kathleen Wright: Kind of. But they're on the ground, so they just drive
Kathleen Wright: on the ground in front of the balloons.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Fun, fun, fun. I love it. There's so many similarities,
Rob Simmelkjaer: Kathleen, really between the Marathon and the Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Another of course, is the fact that you're both a
Rob Simmelkjaer: live event for people who are there watching in person,
Rob Simmelkjaer: as well as a made- for- television event with millions
Rob Simmelkjaer: of people around the country watching it live. My daughter
Rob Simmelkjaer: is obsessed with getting up to watch it. In fact,
Rob Simmelkjaer: I'll tell you a funny story, Kathleen. And some listeners
Rob Simmelkjaer: can probably relate to this. We have an annual kind
Rob Simmelkjaer: of a battle in our household about Thanksgiving morning and
Rob Simmelkjaer: what to do because I... Of course, this won't surprise
Rob Simmelkjaer: you given what I do for a living love a
Rob Simmelkjaer: good turkey trot.
Kathleen Wright: Of course.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And so there's a great five- mile turkey trot not
Rob Simmelkjaer: far from my house. And so I'm up and out
Rob Simmelkjaer: the door and I'm running on Thanksgiving morning, burning some
Rob Simmelkjaer: calories, getting ready for that turkey. But my daughters are like, "
Rob Simmelkjaer: No, thanks." They want to lie in bed and watch
Rob Simmelkjaer: the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. So I know this argument
Rob Simmelkjaer: probably plays out across households all around America, especially running
Rob Simmelkjaer: households. But I just want you to know that that's what
Rob Simmelkjaer: happens in my house.
Kathleen Wright: Yeah, that makes perfect sense. I'm certainly not going up
Kathleen Wright: for a jog on Thanksgiving morning, but I feel like
Kathleen Wright: I'm running around all morning, making sure that everything... Checking
Kathleen Wright: off all of my boxes and making sure that everything
Kathleen Wright: is up and running. And I think that you said it,
Kathleen Wright: there's so many similarities between these two events. As someone
Kathleen Wright: who's ran the marathon before, I'm always looking at all
Kathleen Wright: of those logistics, and all of those things that happen
Kathleen Wright: in the lead up. The busing operation alone of getting
Kathleen Wright: so many people from point A to point B. Getting
Kathleen Wright: all of our participants from costuming up to the starting line
Kathleen Wright: feels to me very similar to when I get off
Kathleen Wright: the ferry in Staten Island and get on a bus
Kathleen Wright: and get over to the starting line. So there's so
Kathleen Wright: many logistical similarities that are so fun for someone who's
Kathleen Wright: in operations and logistics. And I think it's just so
Kathleen Wright: great to see that two iconic, amazing events in New
Kathleen Wright: York City that are so alike and so special.
Rob Simmelkjaer: How do you balance that in- person experience for the
Rob Simmelkjaer: live spectators and the television experience? I know there's that
Rob Simmelkjaer: stage right in front of Macy's, which is the main
Rob Simmelkjaer: stage, where a lot of the acts will stop and
Rob Simmelkjaer: perform. And there's bleachers there. So that seems to be
Rob Simmelkjaer: where a lot of the made- for- TV stuff happens.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And then obviously you've got cameras all along the route
Rob Simmelkjaer: showing their balloons.
Kathleen Wright: Yeah, so I think that one of the great things about the Macy's
Kathleen Wright: Thanksgiving Day Parade is that you can experience it in
Kathleen Wright: so many different ways. Whether you're standing on the side
Kathleen Wright: of Central Park West, or on 6th Avenue, or you're
Kathleen Wright: tuning in from home, you're still going to see and
Kathleen Wright: feel that excitement of parade morning. You're still going to
Kathleen Wright: see those giant balloons, you're still going to hear those
Kathleen Wright: bands playing. There's so many different special effects on our
Kathleen Wright: floats this year that I think will really translate, whether
Kathleen Wright: you see them live and in person on the streets
Kathleen Wright: of New York or if you're tuning in and watching
Kathleen Wright: from home. And I think that that is what makes
Kathleen Wright: the parade so special is that no matter how you're
Kathleen Wright: watching it, you're going to feel it. You're going to
Kathleen Wright: feel like the holiday season is really starting and you're
Kathleen Wright: going to love it.
Rob Simmelkjaer: I will give you this, you guys get a lot
Rob Simmelkjaer: of spectators, three million spectators and just two and a
Rob Simmelkjaer: half miles of New York City Street. That's pretty good.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And I'm not surprised. It's obviously such a sought- after
Rob Simmelkjaer: thing. And then of course, a huge television audience as
Rob Simmelkjaer: well. So a lot of fun for everybody involved. There's
Rob Simmelkjaer: also of course, what you, I'm sure have to do,
Rob Simmelkjaer: as well as we do, which is the partnerships that
Rob Simmelkjaer: you must have to have with the city of New
Rob Simmelkjaer: York, the NYPD, and Department of Transportation, and all those
Rob Simmelkjaer: things as well. We couldn't possibly come close to putting
Rob Simmelkjaer: the marathon on without the incredible partnership we have with
Rob Simmelkjaer: the city. For you guys, I know it's the same way.
Kathleen Wright: Yes, completely agree. It's such a great partnership working with
Kathleen Wright: all of those city agencies, whether it's NYPD, DOT, the Mayor's
Kathleen Wright: office. All of them are so involved in helping us
Kathleen Wright: coordinate this event and making sure that it's not only
Kathleen Wright: safe, but also special and wonderful for everyone watching. And
Kathleen Wright: I think that there's so many different elements of our
Kathleen Wright: parade that couldn't happen without their partnership and coordination. And
Kathleen Wright: one of the stories that I love to tell about
Kathleen Wright: the parade that I think is the thing that you
Kathleen Wright: don't realize has to happen in order for the parade
Kathleen Wright: to happen. We work so closely with the Department of
Kathleen Wright: Transportation on our route preparation for the parade route because
Kathleen Wright: in order to fly our balloons down Central Park West
Kathleen Wright: across Central Park South, down 6th Avenue, we have to
Kathleen Wright: turn every single traffic light out of the street so
Kathleen Wright: that our balloons can fly. And so we work really closely with them. We
Kathleen Wright: do several walk- throughs throughout the fall to look and
Kathleen Wright: identify all of those different traffic poles. Which way do
Kathleen Wright: they have to swing? How much time is it going
Kathleen Wright: to take us on that Wednesday night before the parade
Kathleen Wright: morning to do this in the dark of the night? And it's one of those things that I don't think people
Kathleen Wright: necessarily realize has to happen. Of course, a balloon can't
Kathleen Wright: fly down the street with anything in its way, but
Kathleen Wright: that I think is one of my favorite parts of
Kathleen Wright: our coordination with the city.
Rob Simmelkjaer: I noticed that the first time I went to see
Rob Simmelkjaer: the parade, standing on 6th Avenue. And I was just looking
Rob Simmelkjaer: up 6th Avenue and I was like, " Something looks different." And
Rob Simmelkjaer: I realized, " Wait, there are no traffic lights on this
Rob Simmelkjaer: entire avenue," and for obvious reasons. It's actually amazing that
Rob Simmelkjaer: you can even do that. Who knew that they even
Rob Simmelkjaer: swung that way? But that's something that had to happen
Rob Simmelkjaer: just to make this parade possible. What time did the
Rob Simmelkjaer: streets close? What time did all the streets close, but
Rob Simmelkjaer: the night before the marathon? Sorry, a marathon. See, I
Rob Simmelkjaer: can't get out of my head? Before the parade.
Kathleen Wright: So it's a rolling closure based on how quickly we're
Kathleen Wright: doing those route preparations. So we start uptown at around
Kathleen Wright: midnight on the Wednesday before, so 12: 00 AM Wednesday, we
Kathleen Wright: start our route preparation for uptown, so that we can
Kathleen Wright: ensure our floats are positioned and our balloons are in
Kathleen Wright: position. And then on that overnight of Wednesday evening into
Kathleen Wright: parade morning, we roll that street closure down to 34th
Kathleen Wright: Street as we go. So it's a very coordinated effort
Kathleen Wright: of making sure that streets are closed so route prep
Kathleen Wright: can happen. All to get us ready before our 8:
Kathleen Wright: 30 AM step off on Thanksgiving morning.
Rob Simmelkjaer: I love it. What is your day like on Thanksgiving
Rob Simmelkjaer: Day? What time do you have to get on site?
Rob Simmelkjaer: It's funny, I love asking you these questions because these
Rob Simmelkjaer: are all the questions that people ask me about the
Rob Simmelkjaer: marathon. Are you there overnight? Do you get to get
Rob Simmelkjaer: a few hours sleep before you show up for the parade?
Kathleen Wright: I get a few hours of sleep and everyone always
Kathleen Wright: asks like, " Oh, you must be so tired," but you're
Kathleen Wright: working off of adrenaline. It's one of my favorite days
Kathleen Wright: of the year, of course. And it's just exciting. You
Kathleen Wright: can't sleep when you're this excited. So my day typically
Kathleen Wright: starts at around 3: 00 AM. I'll start downtown near
Kathleen Wright: 34th Street, making sure that our grandstands down near 34th
Kathleen Wright: Street are all installed. We have some marching band rehearsals
Kathleen Wright: that take place that early in the morning. I eventually
Kathleen Wright: will make my way uptown to the starting line, start
Kathleen Wright: seeing our participants start to arrive, maybe rehearse the opening
Kathleen Wright: number a few times. And then once the parade begins,
Kathleen Wright: I am everywhere. I'm on a golf cart, I'm kind
Kathleen Wright: of up and down the parade route, just making sure
Kathleen Wright: that everything is running smoothly, checking in on our volunteers
Kathleen Wright: and our operations teams. And when you get home, there's
Kathleen Wright: a nice turkey dinner waiting for you, and it's a
Kathleen Wright: great day.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Yeah, the timing of it is great because you're wrapped
Rob Simmelkjaer: up and ready to get home to have dinner, so
Rob Simmelkjaer: it's a beautiful thing. Okay. What about the celebrities this
Rob Simmelkjaer: year? I've got to ask this for my daughters. Who
Rob Simmelkjaer: are the big stars that we can all look forward
Rob Simmelkjaer: to seeing perform in the parade this year?
Kathleen Wright: Yeah, we've got a great list of stars. I think
Kathleen Wright: some of my favorites. We have Idina Menzel, who's going
Kathleen Wright: to be performing on our new Wondrous World of Wildlife
Kathleen Wright: float. That's a float by the Bronx Zoo that is
Kathleen Wright: new to this year's parade, and just so stunning. We
Kathleen Wright: also have Rachel Platten who will be performing on a
Kathleen Wright: new float. She will be on the Rao's Pasta Night float,
Kathleen Wright: which I think is a great one. Of course, for
Kathleen Wright: runners too. A little pasta dinner the night before a
Kathleen Wright: long run. We love it. We also have Bishop Briggs,
Kathleen Wright: who's going to be on Wednesday. Wednesday's Feast, that's another
Kathleen Wright: one that is in partnership with Netflix. And who can
Kathleen Wright: forget Santa Claus, of course, the biggest celebrity of the
Kathleen Wright: day. Kind of closing things out for us at the end of the parade.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Oh, I'm already excited about this. Okay, this sounds great.
Rob Simmelkjaer: I'm going to definitely have to watch the replay after
Rob Simmelkjaer: I get back from my turkey trot, so I can
Rob Simmelkjaer: catch all of that. Because that sounds amazing. All right,
Rob Simmelkjaer: so you've run the marathon and you've put on the
Rob Simmelkjaer: Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. So what is the biggest similarity,
Rob Simmelkjaer: Kathleen, do you think, between these two events? What do
Rob Simmelkjaer: you think they have most in common?
Kathleen Wright: I think that one of the biggest things they have in common is the fandom. You said it at the
Kathleen Wright: beginning of this, the New York City Marathon is one
Kathleen Wright: of the best days to be a New Yorker, to
Kathleen Wright: be outside, to be in New York with millions of
Kathleen Wright: other New Yorkers. And I think that that is the
Kathleen Wright: same feeling that you see on Thanksgiving morning. People are
Kathleen Wright: just excited to be there. They're excited to be cheering
Kathleen Wright: on the people who are in the parade or in
Kathleen Wright: the marathon. And there's a sense of community on those
Kathleen Wright: days that is truly unmatched, I think anywhere. Not only
Kathleen Wright: in New York, I think anywhere. And I think that
Kathleen Wright: the fact that both of these events are in New
Kathleen Wright: York, as a New Yorker, maybe I'm biased, but I
Kathleen Wright: do think that that is what makes these events so
Kathleen Wright: special is that sense of community when you're out on the
Kathleen Wright: street just with your friends and family and even strangers,
Kathleen Wright: and just being in it together.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Well, I'll tell you, and that sounds right to me. I completely agree. We
Rob Simmelkjaer: both like to have good weather. That makes a big
Rob Simmelkjaer: difference. Weather makes a huge difference. I know for you
Rob Simmelkjaer: guys especially, the key is not to have a lot
Rob Simmelkjaer: of wind. I know that's always a big factor. People
Rob Simmelkjaer: are looking a day or two in advance to see
Rob Simmelkjaer: if the balloons are going to be able to fly
Rob Simmelkjaer: at their maximum height or whether you're going to have
Rob Simmelkjaer: to bring them down when the wind is high. So
Rob Simmelkjaer: I wish you guys low winds this year, a sunny
Rob Simmelkjaer: day. I know that makes a big difference.
Kathleen Wright: Yes, we are keeping our eyes on the weather. I
Kathleen Wright: try not to look too far in advance. And we've
Kathleen Wright: got all the teams in place to ensure that rain
Kathleen Wright: or shine the parade will march on.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Well, I always say that the TCS New York City Marathon
Rob Simmelkjaer: is the best day of the year in New York.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And the only time anyone ever says, " Ah, but what
Rob Simmelkjaer: about?" Is always the Thanksgiving Day parade. The Macy's Thanksgiving
Rob Simmelkjaer: Day Parade. So maybe we can call it a draw.
Rob Simmelkjaer: How's that? Do you want to settle for that?
Kathleen Wright: I like that. I'll settle for that.
Rob Simmelkjaer: The two best days of the year in New York
Rob Simmelkjaer: City, the TCS New York City Marathon and the Macy's
Rob Simmelkjaer: Thanksgiving Day Parade. Kathleen, so much fun talking to you
Rob Simmelkjaer: about this. I wish you luck with the parade this
Rob Simmelkjaer: year. We'll all be watching it live or on television.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And thanks for keeping up an amazing tradition. It's not
Rob Simmelkjaer: always easy to keep up these traditions. There's sometimes expense
Rob Simmelkjaer: involved and it can be hard, but Macy's has kept
Rob Simmelkjaer: going. It's up there with Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree and
Rob Simmelkjaer: all the special things that make New York over the holidays
Rob Simmelkjaer: magical. So thank you so much for what you do
Rob Simmelkjaer: and what Macy's does, and we can't wait.
Kathleen Wright: I can't wait either. Thanks so much. It's been so
Kathleen Wright: great talking to you.
Rob Simmelkjaer: All right, thank you so much Kathleen for joining us
Rob Simmelkjaer: on today's episode, and we hope you have a great
Rob Simmelkjaer: Thanksgiving Day Parade. For today's member moment, we're excited to
Rob Simmelkjaer: chat with Khia Kurtenbach, who recently made history by winning the
Rob Simmelkjaer: inaugural every Woman's Marathon in Savannah, Georgia this past November.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Since 2019, Khia has been a familiar face in the New
Rob Simmelkjaer: York Road Runners' community completing an impressive 31 races. Khia
Rob Simmelkjaer: works in finance by day, but nights and weekends, it
Rob Simmelkjaer: is all about running. From her early days as a
Rob Simmelkjaer: swimmer to becoming an NCAA Division III cross- country champion.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Very impressive. Khia, here with us today to talk about
Rob Simmelkjaer: how running has become such a big part of her life.
Meb: Thanks, Rob. Welcome to the (inaudible) , Khia. How are you?
Khia Kurtenbach: I'm good. It's great to be here and it's great
Khia Kurtenbach: to meet you.
Meb: It's pleasure to meet you. Well, congratulations. You have come
Meb: from a running family. Your mother has been running the
Meb: Grandma's Marathon since 1980s. Tell us about what it's like
Meb: growing up with your mother as a marathoner.
Khia Kurtenbach: Yeah, my mom has been running marathons for decades. I
Khia Kurtenbach: think she started running marathons, like you said, in the
Khia Kurtenbach: eighties. And when I was growing up, it was a
Khia Kurtenbach: family event. Every fall she would run a marathon and
Khia Kurtenbach: my dad would load my sister and I in the car and we
Khia Kurtenbach: would drive from spot to spot along the course of
Khia Kurtenbach: whatever marathon she was running to cheer for her. And
Khia Kurtenbach: I remember always just being so proud of my mom.
Khia Kurtenbach: And also how much fun it was to cheer her
Khia Kurtenbach: on as she was running marathons. And I was not
Khia Kurtenbach: a runner growing up, but her approach to sport, and
Khia Kurtenbach: wanting to be competitive, and just be an athlete I
Khia Kurtenbach: think really inspired me to do the same. And then
Khia Kurtenbach: when I got into running in college and then after
Khia Kurtenbach: college, it was just supernatural to want to do marathons
Khia Kurtenbach: after seeing how much fun she had doing it over
Khia Kurtenbach: the years.
Meb: So much fun she had. But you were also by accident,
Meb: you were training as a runner. But you transitioned from
Meb: swimming to running late in your high school career and
Meb: quickly found success. How did your experience as a swimmer
Meb: influenced your approach to distance running and what challenge did
Meb: you face in adapting to the new sport so rapidly?
Khia Kurtenbach: So when I first started running, it was really difficult
Khia Kurtenbach: because when you're a swimmer you don't hear yourself breathing.
Khia Kurtenbach: And even though I was very cardiovascularly fit, because swimming
Khia Kurtenbach: is also somewhat an endurance sport, it was kind of
Khia Kurtenbach: scary to me when I first started running. I would hear
Khia Kurtenbach: myself breathing hard and that really freaked me out. So
Khia Kurtenbach: at first I actually didn't like running at all. And
Khia Kurtenbach: I think that's true for a lot of swimmers. Swimmers
Khia Kurtenbach: when they first try running really don't like it because
Khia Kurtenbach: it's kind of a mental adjustment, both hearing yourself breathe
Khia Kurtenbach: and feeling the pounding. But when I was a senior
Khia Kurtenbach: in high school, one of my best friends was on
Khia Kurtenbach: the track team and she was like, " Come do track
Khia Kurtenbach: with me. It will be so fun." And I gave
Khia Kurtenbach: it a shot and went out for the track team.
Khia Kurtenbach: And after a couple of weeks I was like, " Wow,
Khia Kurtenbach: this sport is so much fun. Where has it been
Khia Kurtenbach: my whole life?" And totally just fell in love with
Khia Kurtenbach: running that first season of track in high school.
Meb: Can you give a little perspective of how similar or
Meb: how different they are? Because people see me as a
Meb: marathon runner, " You're going to be a great swimmer," and
Meb: I can't swim save my life. So how has that
Meb: has been for you?
Khia Kurtenbach: I think they're actually pretty different. The training is totally
Khia Kurtenbach: different. In swimming, you can swim for hours and hours
Khia Kurtenbach: and hours and not really get hurt. And in running
Khia Kurtenbach: it's so much more important to manage your mileage and
Khia Kurtenbach: ramp up slowly. And the pounding is just a lot
Khia Kurtenbach: harder on your body, so you have to think totally
Khia Kurtenbach: differently about how much you can train, and how to
Khia Kurtenbach: build up to that. I do think the thing that's
Khia Kurtenbach: similar is the mindset. Both swimmers and runners, you have
Khia Kurtenbach: to have a long- term perspective on your goals. It's
Khia Kurtenbach: not about even necessarily what am I going to accomplish
Khia Kurtenbach: this season or this month, but more you think in
Khia Kurtenbach: months or even years timeframe about your goals and how
Khia Kurtenbach: you'll step towards them. So I think that's very similar,
Khia Kurtenbach: the mindset and how you think about goal setting, and long-
Khia Kurtenbach: term goals. But the training is actually super different.
Meb: That's great to hear. Your journey from a novice runner
Meb: to NCAA Division III cross- country champion and now successful
Meb: marathoner is remarkable. How was your perspective on running evolve
Meb: on early days at the University of Chicago to running
Meb: five TCS New York City marathons?
Khia Kurtenbach: Well, when I first started running in college, I was
Khia Kurtenbach: really lucky because I basically knew almost nothing when I
Khia Kurtenbach: first started running in college. And I had a really
Khia Kurtenbach: great coach and teammates who taught me lots of things,
Khia Kurtenbach: and helped take a long- term approach to my starting
Khia Kurtenbach: to run, and think about building up. So I'm really grateful to
Khia Kurtenbach: them that they really developed my running career in college
Khia Kurtenbach: over a couple of years. And really brought a lot
Khia Kurtenbach: of joy to the sport for me. I had so much
Khia Kurtenbach: fun with college running, it was honestly some of the
Khia Kurtenbach: best highs of my life. But college running also comes
Khia Kurtenbach: with a lot of pressure and intensity. And after college
Khia Kurtenbach: I was almost a little bit ready to be done
Khia Kurtenbach: with running, but then I moved to New York and
Khia Kurtenbach: I just found such an amazing community here, that the
Khia Kurtenbach: club scene in New York is so much fun. And
Khia Kurtenbach: I met so many great people and they just kind
Khia Kurtenbach: of pulled me into marathon running. So I can really
Khia Kurtenbach: thank the Dashing Whippets, which is the team that I
Khia Kurtenbach: run on in New York, for keeping me in the
Khia Kurtenbach: sport and for really helping me build a lot of
Khia Kurtenbach: excitement towards marathon running.
Meb: Well, we are so grateful you didn't give up running. You
Meb: just won the Every Woman's Marathon with a time of
Meb: blazing, 2 hours and 26 minutes. What did it feel
Meb: like to win this race at the inaugural of Every
Meb: Woman's Marathon?
Khia Kurtenbach: It was so much fun. It was really, really cool.
Khia Kurtenbach: There was a lot of my personal running heroes at
Khia Kurtenbach: the finish line. Des Linden and Kathrine Switzer in particular.
Khia Kurtenbach: I remember when I was a kid, my mom talked
Khia Kurtenbach: about Kathrine Switzer being someone who inspired her in marathon running.
Khia Kurtenbach: And so it was really cool to meet her at
Khia Kurtenbach: the finish line. And my mom got to meet her
Khia Kurtenbach: at the finish line too, and she cried when she
Khia Kurtenbach: got to meet her. So that was really, really cool.
Khia Kurtenbach: But honestly, it was just so much fun. I think
Khia Kurtenbach: that Marathon brought a really good vibes. It was very
Khia Kurtenbach: inclusive and it was really oriented around any woman should
Khia Kurtenbach: come and run this marathon and we're here for you
Khia Kurtenbach: to help you finish it. And so, I just loved the environment
Khia Kurtenbach: of the day and it was so much fun to go out there and run hard and be with a
Khia Kurtenbach: bunch of women accomplishing their goals.
Meb: So being student of the sport, seeing your mom run, and meet Kathrine Switzer and to see Des
Meb: Linden, your hero or your role model, how was that
Meb: interaction meeting everyone all at once?
Khia Kurtenbach: It was pretty overwhelming actually, but also really fun. I
Khia Kurtenbach: remember I was in college when Des won the Boston
Khia Kurtenbach: Marathon. And I remember sitting in my chemistry class watching
Khia Kurtenbach: on my phone the marathon while she was winning. So
Khia Kurtenbach: she's someone who's really inspired me over the years and
Khia Kurtenbach: I looked up to her. So it was great to
Khia Kurtenbach: meet her. And it was really cool to meet everyone
Khia Kurtenbach: at the finish and also just overwhelming and inspired me
Khia Kurtenbach: to want to go run more races.
Meb: Well, that chemistry class and inspiration by Des Linden. So
Meb: now, like a lot of runners, you work on a
Meb: finance. Do you think there's a connection between the mindset
Meb: of someone who works in the finance and a long- distance runner?
Khia Kurtenbach: Well, I think that anyone can bring the lessons that
Khia Kurtenbach: they learn from sport or from running to their careers
Khia Kurtenbach: and their jobs. Things like, I talked before about not
Khia Kurtenbach: just thinking in the short- term, but thinking about your long-
Khia Kurtenbach: term goals, and planning step- by- step, how you're going
Khia Kurtenbach: to achieve and get there to those goals. I think
Khia Kurtenbach: that's definitely something that I've learned from sport and then
Khia Kurtenbach: been able to apply to my career. I think there's
Khia Kurtenbach: other things that I've learned from athletics like teamwork and
Khia Kurtenbach: how much having a good team around you that supports
Khia Kurtenbach: you and believes in you is also something that you
Khia Kurtenbach: can cultivate in your career and your job that makes
Khia Kurtenbach: everyone better.
Meb: Excellent. And sometimes when I was at UCLA, I remember
Meb: to just learn formulas when I go for distance run.
Meb: So while you exercise and you studying for something, do
Meb: you do that occasionally for your business?
Khia Kurtenbach: I actually think it's nice to be able to have a separation between your career and
Khia Kurtenbach: then your hobbies. I always like to think that you
Khia Kurtenbach: can't always be crushing it in every aspect of your
Khia Kurtenbach: life. Sometimes things are going to go badly for you.
Khia Kurtenbach: It's not always going to be your day. And it's
Khia Kurtenbach: nice to be able to have multiple things. So if
Khia Kurtenbach: one thing is not going so great for you, then
Khia Kurtenbach: you can have a great day with running or vice versas.
Meb: Well, you've been a winner on both sides, on your
Meb: workforce and then also at Every Woman's Marathon. So congratulations and thank you for
Meb: being with us.
Khia Kurtenbach: Thank you. It was great to meet you.
Rob Simmelkjaer: Thank you so much, Khia, for joining us and for
Rob Simmelkjaer: being a member of New York Road Runners. Congratulations on
Rob Simmelkjaer: the win. We will see you down the road. All
Rob Simmelkjaer: right, now it's time for the final part of our
Rob Simmelkjaer: show, today's Meb Minutes.
Meb: Thanks, Rob. As we spend time to reflect on what
Meb: we are thankful for, remember to be thankful for running
Meb: and all it can bring you. Running is a gift and it is
Meb: important to be thankful for every step you take. Whether
Meb: it is a tough training day or a race, remember
Meb: that each run is an opportunity to challenge yourself, grow
Meb: stronger, and appreciate your body's ability. Gratitude helps you stay
Meb: motivated and reminds you why you love the sport, especially
Meb: when you have come back from injuries. Like for example,
Meb: I used to say, " I can't believe I'm running without
Meb: pain," because now you don't take the running ability for granted.
Meb: Because you are running smoothly and without pain. Whereas before,
Meb: if you've been injured, it's a dark place to be.
Meb: So when you running freely without injury, you got to
Meb: be thankful.
Rob Simmelkjaer: And that does it for another episode of Set The
Rob Simmelkjaer: Pace. I want to thank our guests today, Kathleen Wright,
Rob Simmelkjaer: the director of production operations at Macy's, and Khia Kurtenbach, winner
Rob Simmelkjaer: of the inaugural Every Woman's Marathon. If you liked this
Rob Simmelkjaer: episode, please make sure you go ahead and subscribe, rate,
Rob Simmelkjaer: leave a comment for the show wherever you listen so
Rob Simmelkjaer: others can find us as well. Happy Thanksgiving everybody. Enjoy
Rob Simmelkjaer: those turkey trots. Enjoy the miles. We'll see you next week.