Have you ever driven 100 miles nonstop? Maybe some of us have. How about running 100 miles nonstop? Well, Neal Yasuda has. In fact, running ultra distances is Neal’s passion.
Neal didn’t run in high school; in fact, he wasn’t even a fast walker. In college, Neal dabbled in running, with classmate Lambert Yamashita joining him, only to justify eating afterwards. Neal did bike tour camping for over 10 years; this included multiple century bike rides. Somehow, this wasn’t challenging enough.
Neal’s wife, Marian, ran with her mother so when her mom left Hawaii in 1992, Marian needed a new partner. That year, Neal ran his first Honolulu Marathon and has run every one since, except for two. He was out of the state for one Marathon, and he developed a calf injury while playing tennis at one of our Class of ’69 reunion activities so had to miss a second Marathon.
After his first Marathon, he started running seriously and began running ultra distances. Standard UltraRunning distances are 50 miles and 100 miles. Runners must complete the course usually with a maximum finish time of 30 to 36 hours, depending on the course. It’s not unusual for more than half of the participants to not finish an entire 100-mile distance.
While training for a 100-mile run, Neal ran 20 miles from Pālolo to Hawaii Kai then to Ala Moana Park, the start of the Honolulu Marathon. Without breaking stride, he continued on to complete the Marathon for a total of 46 miles.
When Neal is not running ultra distances, he volunteers as a race director, planning staff, carpenter, pacer or whatever is needed for races such as the Maunawili Run with the Pigs, Peacock 55 Mile Run, Hawaiian Ultra Running Team (HURT) Trail 100 Run and Sweetheart 50 Mile Run.
