Running with heart: Janesville man takes closer look at city

Mar. 5—JANESVILLE — Tom Owenby might look like just another runner, but he has more on his mind than adding up the miles.

He is seeing Janesville with new eyes, rediscovering old neighborhoods and learning about new ones.

Owenby's goal is to run the distance of every city street by the end of April.

In addition to paying closer attention to his community, he is raising money for the American Heart Association in honor of a college friend.

The Janesville man used to be up early and home late commuting to his job at UW-Madison.

Now, for almost a year, Owenby has worked as an educator of secondary social studies teachers from his house because of COVID-19 restrictions.

Late last year, he thought about new opportunities that are possible while spending more time at home.

On Jan. 1, he set out running near his east-side home, where he and his family have lived for more than three years.

"Over the past year or so, it has become even clearer to me the importance of being connected with our physical space," Owenby said. "I work in teacher education, and a big part of it is focusing on the concept of the community where a school is located. I'm translating that into my own physical being through the run."

Owenby jogs at what he calls "a fairly slow pace" to see people and to interact with them.

"I feel like I am moving through the space and really taking it in with my physical body as well as my mind," he said. "There is plenty to pique my interest."

Others have run every street in their cities, including Rickey Gates in San Francisco. Owenby saw a documentary on Gates and realized he could do the same thing in Janesville.

Gates ran more than 1,300 miles during his Every Single Street Project. Owenby does not know how many miles he will travel until he is finished.

"I tried to figure it out, but it's hard to do," he explained.

He runs from his home to new neighborhoods, so he explores some streets multiple times. So far, his runs have averaged up to 8 miles a day. Once a week, he runs up to 15 miles and plans to increase his daily mileage as the weather improves.

For the past decade, Owenby has enjoyed long-distance running on trails, known as ultramarathons. An ultramarathon by definition is any race longer than a marathon or 26.2 miles.

For almost 20 years, Owenby has been part of a group known as Team 242. Group members bike annually to honor their friend, David Browne, and to raise money for the American Heart Association. Browne died of undiagnosed heart disease at age 24.

In 2003, Owenby and five other graduates of Beloit College bicycled from Grand Portage, Minnesota, at the Canadian border to the Gulf of Mexico to raise money for the association in honor of Browne.

"We wanted to do something in his memory," Owenby said. "We wanted to do something a bit crazy because David had a zest for life."

The route changes yearly, takes riders around the Upper Midwest and lasts from one to two weeks.

"Now that we are getting older, the daily mileage is usually between 80 to 110 miles," Owenby said.

Born in Iran and raised in Colorado, Owenby moved to the Midwest to attend Beloit College. He graduated in 2001.

After leaving Beloit, Owenby taught and coached in Southern California for a year before moving to South Korea. He earned his master's degree in international politics from Kyung Hee University Graduate Institute of Peace Studies. He also taught at a foreign language high school and played lots of soccer.

Owenby earned a doctorate in curriculum and instruction from UW-Madison in 2018.

He is thankful for many things, including his family, a place to live and employment.

"I have the basic elements of life that are not given to so many people," Owenby said. "So I can think about doing this type of project. I am thankful my body is in a space where I can do this."

He believes there is something in his experience that might benefit everyone.

"There are so many things that draw our attention, including social media, politics and the pandemic," Owenby said. "At times, it can be helpful to take a breath and be present in the place you are in."

Anna Marie Lux is a human interest columnist for The Gazette. Call her with ideas or comments at 608-755-8264 or email amarielux@gazettextra .com.