Carlson School Staff Member Extends Running Streak

Day after day, Mindy Bahr runs. No matter the weather, location, or what she has going on, she laces up her shoes and hits the running trails.

For more than 1,000 days and three straight years, Bahr, a program specialist in the Department of Work and Organizations, has run at least two miles.

Her goal of running every day began when a friend of hers mentioned a goal of “earning your comma,” meaning the comma in 1,000.

“She explained what it was and I thought, ‘Huh, that sounds just crazy and dumb enough to do,’” she says.

Bahr began her journey on Jan. 1, 2020. Most of her runs were on dirt or snow-covered trails where she could be out in nature.

Her most memorable run was just that, running rim to rim at the Grand Canyon, a trek that lasted 26 miles. Along the journey to 1,000 straight days, she ran in temperatures that varied from -32 degrees to 101, with a longest run of 46 miles.

Bahr reached her 1,000-day goal on Sept. 27, 2022. From there, she says it just made sense to finish out 2022 and make it three straight years. With that milestone made, the question remains: How long will Bahr continue running every day?

“The first day it’s no longer convenient will probably be the day I stop,” she says. “It’ll definitely be a weird feeling not to go for a run that day.”