TEMPE, AZ — Pat's Run celebrated its 20th anniversary this year, and William McGowan has been there for every single one of them.
How he became a Pat's Run lifer is similar to how he got into running: he stumbled into it.
"Back in January of 2005, I was on some Arizona running websites and I saw this race in April advertised as Pat's Run, so I started to investigate it," McGowan said. "A 4.2 mile run around Tempe with the finish line on the 42-yard-line inside Sun Devil Stadium to honor Pat Tillman. I was sold."
McGowan hangs every shirt from the race on a single hanger, unwashed and unworn.
"I can't believe it's been 20 years, it feels like 20 seconds," he said while thumbing through each shirt. "It's just unbelievable how time has flown by. And then every year I got to see how the race has grown from 5,000 to 32,000."
A Chicago native, McGowan says he's run six marathons, five or six half marathons, and close to one thousand 5K's and 10K's. But there's something special about this run.
"My mentality as a runner, I always believe in what's called positive reinforcement. I've still been running strong the last 40-plus years, and every April comes, it's my birthday month. I hope to come back for the next five years."
Of all the things he's seen and experienced in the last 19 Pat's Runs, it was an hour-long conversation with Bruce Snyder that remains his favorite moment.
"The year before Bruce passed away, he was down on Packard Drive and he was the starter for the race. He'd blow the horn [and say] 'give 'em hell Devils,'" McGowan recalled. "He told me inside stories of how he coached Pat and what Pat did and didn't do. And I feel like a connection there through the big guy in the sky. It was a really cool feeling."
Finishing inside the stadium gives McGowan the feeling of being an Olympic marathon runner. While being associated with Pat's Run, and his memory, engage people from all walks of life.
"People are more in tune with what Americana is, and what Pat gave up," he said. "It is a running race, so to speak, but there's only the top 500 that are really professional runners. It's more of a family event. It's more of a remembrance. It's a way to pay tribute to a legendary American who gave up his life."
