Some run marathons to make a living; for others, it’s a big dream or a goal at the end of a journey, but for John Naslund, it’s his way of life. His marathon journey started in the early 1970s with a friend’s suggestion: run the Boston Marathon. Since then, he has become a marathon legend, running over 200 races, per his 2022 stats. Now, the now-76-year-old wants to run to maintain a unique historical streak that even his torn meniscus cannot stop.

Naslund is the only marathoner to have run all 49 races at Grandma’s Marathon since its inception in 1977 and is now aiming for the 50th.

“It’s very important,” Naslund told Duluth News Tribune on June 13. “I’ve been doing it for 50 years. You don’t just decide to get off the horse just because it’s a round number. It’s what I’ve done for so long. If I’m able to do it, I’m going to rise to the occasion.”

The American injured his knee last fall but passed on a surgical repair after doctors said it wouldn’t make too much of a difference. Since then, his training load has changed from regularly running to a lot of walking instead. Not quite what the 76-year-old is used to, but then again, his body knows what to expect.

After all, Naslund has been an athlete since he was in college. Not a runner, but a pole vaulter at the University of Minnesota Duluth. He was also a member of a running club in the 1970s when someone suggested the Boston Marathon. Somehow, that clicked into place for Naslund, and he never looked back. 

Now, over 50 years later, he has done it all. Naslund completed all 43 Twin Cities Marathons, making him, in 2020, one of only 14 people to do so. 

“50ks, double crossing of the Grand Canyon, 50-milers, 100k around Lake Mille Lacs, Western States 100-miler — I’ve raced up on the north end of Baffin Island, double marathons across the tundra. That was really a hoot,” Naslund told Kare11.com in 2022.

A double marathon across the tundra? A hoot is not the word most would use to describe it, but it just goes to show how much Naslund loves running. And he became rather good at it, targeting a two-hour time and his age during his heyday. However, his time of 6:23.12 in the 2025 Twin Cities Marathon has hit him hard.

Now, add to his knee troubles, the 2026 Grandma’s Marathon has a time limit of seven hours. Normally, that wouldn’t be an issue for Naslund, as he finished the 2025 edition in 5:31.06. However, given his knee problem, Grandma’s Marathon Iron Man will test his limits to finish the race.

“This is going to be a grinder this year, a long day at the office,” Naslund explained. “Just try to get down the road without getting in trouble.”

He added, “It gets to be a challenge. It’s a big number, and if I’m blessed to be able to finish, I’ll do it again next year. I mean, we are getting older.”

Naslund is not the only runner who understands what it takes to keep a streak alive for decades. Another Grandma’s Marathon mainstay recently reflected on the moment his own remarkable run finally ended.

Jim Nowak reflects on his Grandma’s Marathon streak ending

Even now, Naslund remains the last of “The Six Pack” to keep his Grandma’s Marathon streak going. They were a group of runners, including Naslund, who had run every iteration of the marathon until 1997. However, within two years, two runners dropped out. A few years later, it became “The Iron Three” after Rick Jackson signed up but didn’t race in 2004.

By 2019, Joe Johnson had suffered a stroke (per the Duluth News Tribune) and didn’t race, turning it into “The Iron Two”. Then, in 2025, Jim Nowak was diagnosed with Lyme disease about ten days before the race. Despite that, he stepped up to the line and started the marathon, but he had to drop out just after the halfway mark.

“What’s amazing is people have all kinds of reasons for dropping out,” Nowak told Duluth News Tribune. “Weddings, funerals, other obligations, sickness and all that. I got taken out by a little tiny insect.”

And yet, despite his streak being over, Nowak will be back for the 2026 edition. He believes it will be “mentally harder” for him with no real “incentive” to keep going. Despite that, he plans to put his best foot forward and will try to make it to the finish line. To make it even better, he’ll be lining up alongside Naslund, his former teammate from their days at UMD.

“I’m wishing John luck,” Nowak added. “He might be able to go a few more years. He’s a pretty strong person, but that knee thing … my wife has it and she’s just hobbling around. I couldn’t imagine her doing a marathon.”

The end of Nowak’s streak is a reminder that factors beyond an athlete’s control often decide longevity in distance running. It’s also what Naslund will try to overcome when he takes the start line next Saturday, June 20.