A Park City man is on the run. The real-life Forrest Gump will make his way across the country on foot.
In 100 days, Jordan Moon will set out to run almost 3,000 miles across America in 41 days.In order to beat the current 42-day record set in 2016, he’ll have to run 72 miles per day.
"No one understands it," Moon said. "Everyone's like ‘you are a madman, you are crazy, how are you not hurting?’ Everybody has their passions, but mine happens to be moving the body ... running."
Moon has been running his whole life, and over the last three years he started picking up the pace by running ultra long distances - beyond marathons - and participating in IronMan Triathlons. And at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, he decided to take his mental and physical endurance to new levels.
He left behind his whole life in Atlanta, GA, including his commercial landscape company and moved out to Park City in August to get in elevation and winter training.
"This town has really provided the optimal place for me to train," he said. "And with weather conditions that always change here. You know, we had snow the other day, I couldn't believe it. But whenever I see terrible weather, I kind of get a smile on my face. I'm like, alright, this is perfect. This is what I need to be training in."
Aside from the run being a lifelong goal to test his limits, he said he’s also raising money for the American Brain Foundation.
"Two of the biggest mentors in my life were my father’s father, my grandfather, he's no longer with us," he said. "He had a stroke and lost his speech. And about 12 years ago, on my mother's side, my grandmother got diagnosed with dementia. And, if there's something I can do ... if I can somehow raise awareness and raise some money for brain disease research, if I can help in any way? I am."
He’s using the opportunity to also raise awareness on the importance of mental health after a good friend recently took their life.
Moon starts his journey on September 2 at the San Francisco City Hall and plans to finish at New York City Hall by October 12. 12 days into his trip, he’ll run through Logan and says he invites runners to join him for any length of his travels.
