Nassau Native Runs From Montauk To Brooklyn For Kids Foundation

WANTAGH, NY — Ryan Clifford started running at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday at the Montauk Lighthouse Museum. Exactly 20 hours, three minutes and 58 seconds later, he finished his journey on the Brooklyn Bridge — 131 miles west of where he began.

Clifford, a Seaford native who graduated from General Douglas MacArthur High School in Levittown, decided to run the length of Long Island in less than 24 hours to raise awareness and at least $5,000 for the John Theissen Children’s Foundation in Wantagh, which works to support sick and underprivileged children.

The goal to run cross-island was sparked eight years ago, when Clifford first started working with the foundation. Theissen himself ran just over 100 miles from Bellmore to Montauk in 1999 to benefit the organization, which he had founded seven years earlier.

"I knew I wanted to do this, and I wanted to be able to do it for a great charity," Clifford told Patch in a phone interview Thursday. "I've been working with John Theissen for almost 10 years now to help raise money for sick and underprivileged children, which is really a group that's in need, constantly."

Throughout high school and his undergraduate years at Mansfield University in Pennsylvania, Clifford competed as a distance runner and saw unprecedented success as he hit his stride in longer distance events. Immediately after college, Clifford pursued his dream of running ultra-marathons: In June 2019, he completed the Cayuga Trails 50 Miler in just under eight hours, and then in October, he managed to accumulate 80 miles in the End Trails 12 Hour Race, securing a comfortable win over all the other runners.

When the coronavirus pandemic interrupted most elements of everyday life and forced Theissen to cancel two of his main annual fundraising events, Clifford decided that this summer would be as good a time as any to fulfill his goal of running cross-island.

In preparation for the event, Clifford began "just putting in the miles," he said. The final two weeks of his training before July 7, the day of the event, he ran 130 miles per week. He also had a friend help build a website with a live tracker of his run, the locations of aid stations and any other information that would enable community members to get involved and be part of the experience.

Clifford began the 131-mile run in the dark early Tuesday morning. His first aid station would not be for another 50 miles in Westhampton.

"It was definitely daunting at first, knowing you had 131 miles until the finish," Clifford said. "But once you kind of got into the rhythm of it, it was breaking it down by milestone."

For the rest of the run, communities around his path and beyond showed up in support: at miles 60 and 70, runners from the Greater Long Island Running Club joined and ran alongside him; at mile 80, his sister followed him on bicycle; and by mile 90, Clifford had garnered a group of people biking, running and driving with him as they tracked his location through the live map on his website and the frequent updates streamed on Facebook Live. He also had a constant support group, including family members, his girlfriend, Rachel Hohenwarter, and Theissen, driving alongside him to keep him safe and nourished.

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Around 2:15 p.m. and 103 miles into the run, Clifford paused for photos and sustenance at the foundation's headquarters in Wantagh, where he was greeted by a crowd of cheering onlookers and banners. And as he made his way through Nassau County, Clifford continued to develop a steady stream of fans and followers in cars honking their horns in support.

"It felt like a homecoming parade almost," he said. "It was a very whole experience with the community being able to be a part of everything."

In the final few miles up to the Brooklyn Bridge, accompanied by his dad and brother and in sight of the Manhattan skyline, Clifford hit his fastest pace yet.

"Eventually, the bridge turned from the concrete to the wooden walkway, and then it was just a half mile from there," he said. "And I just took it all in."

He added: "It was so cool being able to see the Manhattan skyline and to know you started in Montauk where, if you looked around, there was nothing but ocean all around you. And just being able to finish with the Manhattan skyline in the background and all the light — it was just so different from where I was less than 24 hours ago."

Clifford’s campaign has raised more than $6,000 and counting for the foundation. The money will help the organization provide therapeutic and recreational equipment for sick, terminally ill and underprivileged children, help families pay medical bills and more.

For Clifford, his next goal after recovery is trying to qualify for the Boston and New York City marathons, which were postponed in light of the coronavirus pandemic. He also plans to continue running ultra-marathons.

"It's not only fun to have the experience personally, but I think that the experience that the shared support group had is sometimes even more valuable," he said.