Ray Bauer could teach folks a thing or two about setting a goal and achieving it. The Irving man is about to cross the finish line of an amazing goal: Running the distance of the world's equator -- all the way around.
Bauer has been running several miles per week for 32 years. He's 106 miles shy of his ultimate goal.
“I established the circumference of the world on the equator as the goal,” Bauer said. “It’s 24,902, almost 25,000 miles. It seemed way in the distance years ago, but now, I'm 106 miles from the goal. "
Here's some perspective: 24,902 miles is about 950 marathons. Or 35.1 million steps.
He has been keeping track of his virtual trek around the world on a map and with careful journal-keeping. He plans to go to Quito, Ecuador -- which straddles the equator -- to run the last few miles.
"I’m running about 75 miles a month,” Bauer said. “So, in six weeks or so, we'll be in Quito, and that's where I’ll actually finish."
Bauer has never had an injury that prevented him from running, and he thinks it's because he has done it somewhat in moderation.
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"I’m running 900 to 1,000 miles a year lately here, and the big marathon runners are running more than twice that,” he said.
And once he finished those last 106 miles? Bauer is considering tackling the world by bike.
