The Spirit of a Distance Runner

Connor McCullum’s Race to Honor His Dad and Those Fighting ALS

Author

Rachael Woodruff
December 05, 2025

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In This Issue:

The Spirit of a Distance Runner

“Connor truly exemplifies the spirit of a long-distance runner.”

That’s how Coach Joey Berriatua describes his athlete, Connor McCullum — who recently ran the NYC Marathon in honor of his dad, his family, and everyone affected by ALS. Connor has been training with Joey through Hammer & Axe for a couple of years, but his belief in his potential as a distance runner wasn’t always clear. As Joey remembers, “Coming from a sports-heavy background (he’s 6'7”, I might add), one of his early concerns was that he didn’t feel like he had the ‘build’ of a runner.” But with two marathons already under his belt, both done after higher mileage training and no injuries, Joey reassured him, “That’s a distance runner in my book.”

From there, they got to work.

Joey provided structure, guidance, and a clear training philosophy. More importantly, as he strives to do with all his athletes, he helped Connor develop a better understanding of himself — how to trust his body, how to know his limits on a given training day, how to make smart decisions on the fly, a critical skill for any remotely coached runner. Connor mastered that skill. As Joey attests,

“Connor always seemed to make the right calls for his training — pushing when it was acceptable to push, backing off when his body was telling him to back off. He showed up every week with the professionalism of some of the best runners in the world. He made no excuses, did the necessary work, and gave himself grace when needed.”

Connor’s consistency and work ethic paid dividends. He lowered his marathon best by nearly 20 minutes in just two years. In his most recent build, his focus shifted beyond the clock to honor something far greater.

In August 2024, Connor’s dad was diagnosed with ALS, a progressive neurodegenerative disease. The news was devastating, but Connor and his family chose to confront the road ahead with purpose. This past year, Connor joined forces with the ALS Therapy Development Institute (ALS TDI), an official charity partner dedicated to finding a cure, and ran the NYC Marathon in honor of his dad, his family, and everyone fighting ALS. His efforts raised more than $16,800 for ALS TDI.

Connor’s unwavering perseverance and strength carried him through the streets of New York, where he recorded the third-fastest marathon of his career. At the finish, he was met by his family, and surprised with some exciting news for his life moving forward.

We spoke with Connor about his journey to his first World Major, the experience of fundraising for ALS in his dad’s honor, what it’s like to be coached by Joey, practical advice for balancing training with a full-time job, and the emotions that hit him when he crossed the finish line. Read on for the full interview below.

Interview with Connor McCullum

Of all things you could've done to fundraise and raise awareness for ALS, why the marathon? Was there any significance to choosing NYC in particular?

Connor: Being from a family of runners, the marathon has been THE distance – as we chase qualifying times, PB’s, and just the grandiose scale of it all. My dad was the first runner of the family, as the infectious love soon spread to everyone else, including his late father, my grandfather who would run like 30 consecutive Peachtree Road Races and many marathons until the age of 79. So, it was only fitting to utilize the craft that unites us all to raise money to honor the man who first shared the craft with us. World majors in general have always been the dream, but NYC always seemed especially elusive as it’s such a hard race to get into without qualifying. I was fortunate enough to receive a bib from the ALS TDI, an organization my family works closely with, to have that dream realized and even more importantly raise money for folks like my dad.

How did you balance marathon training with your work and personal commitments?

Connor: Over the course of time: lots of lifestyle changes compounded with sacrifice and grace. I love it. I believe you must love the marathon to do it – I feel real empathy for those that choose the marathon and somehow don’t. Grace is required for yourself (and from others) – the grace to know that missing or moving a long run because of family is okay, and it won’t kill your entire build, and on the flipside, grace from others when you have to say “no” to the routine late-night drinks or hangs.

What's one thing you've really been working on or learning with Joey throughout this build?

Connor: Joey has taught and led by example on so many things since our first build together, but most recently and relevant to this build are two things:

  1. Training where you’re at. In other words, understanding on week 4 of a build when it’s 90 degrees outside, I don’t need to be running target PB race day pace on my tempos. Training comfortably and aware of effort and circumstance (especially when life outside of running is tumultuous.) Staying below the red lines enough to truly enjoy the craft and process and prevent injury.

  2. Trust the work. Trusting the consistency, and hard work throughout the entire build on race day. When doubts, negative thoughts, or worries creep in to fall back on that trust. Although NYC wasn’t a PR day, I was able to run comfortably and fun-run the back half while still crushing my 3rd best marathon time of my career. All attributed to trusting and believing the good work when things didn’t go my way. 

What were the emotions crossing the finish line? What did this race mean to you?

Connor: It’s truly hard to describe in words or capture the emotion of crossing the finish line of my first world major, raising a record amount of money for ALS and families like ours, and my wife gender revealing “It’s a Girl!” on a poster board waiting for me in the grandstands. It’s a culmination of impactful moments I’ll look back on and smile forever, as the finish chip time no longer matters one bit.

A Note From Joey:

“New York was truly a special experience — it was the first time I got to watch Connor race in person. Although it wasn’t the day he was hoping for (his MTA bus was late so he had to start in a later corral), he took the circumstances of life outside of running and used it as a way to appreciate how far he had come in the sport, and what he’s truly running for now — his dad, and his little baby girl on the way in 2026. It was the most proud I’ve been of an athlete. Perspective is the most important thing we can achieve in running, and Connor perfected it. It’s an honor to know him and have the relationship we’ve developed over the years.”

Curious How Coaching Works?

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