“I’m just a regular guy who has put years and years of work in and it finally paid off… If you keep working at it, the sky is the limit. I only ran 30:50 for the 10K in college and now I’m running 2:09 for the marathon. If you like people who put their nose to the grindstone and don’t quit on their dreams, then I’m probably the guy to root for.”
My guest for today’s episode is Turner Wiley. If you’re looking for one of the most relatable stories in American marathoning right now, he might be it. Turner didn’t come through the sport the traditional way. No NCAA titles, no national team buzz. He was a Division II runner at Seattle Pacific who never qualified for nationals.
He was the kind of athlete most people assume fades out of the sport after college. But he didn’t. He kept showing up, kept building, and kept believing that the marathon might eventually unlock something bigger.
Fast forward a few years and he’s now a 2:09 marathoner, the runner-up at last December’s Marathon Project, and a Brooks sponsored athlete heading into Boston — all while working a full-time job at Seattle Children’s Hospital and raising a newborn at home.
Turner is the guy waking up at 5 a.m. to get his first run in before work. He’s logging 130–140 mile weeks, mostly solo, pushing a stroller on second runs, and stacking years of consistent, unflashy training until it finally clicked.
In this conversation, we talk about that slow burn of development — from blowing up in his debut marathon in Paris, grinding through the club system in Seattle, to breaking through with a 2:09 at The Marathon Project. We get into what it looks like to chase elite performance without making running your entire identity, how fatherhood has reshaped his perspective, and why he genuinely believes his best racing might still be ahead of him.
This is the next episode in a series of interviews that we’re doing with Brooks marathoners in the lead-up to the Boston Marathon. Stay tuned as we announce our schedule of events with Brooks out of the Hyperion House. We’ll have a shakeout run on Saturday morning at 8 a.m., a live chat with Jess McClain, and more.
____________
Host: Chris Chavez | @chris_j_chavez
Guest: Turner Wiley | @turner_wiley93
Produced by: Jasmine Fehr | @jasminefehr
____________
SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS
WAHOO: With the Wahoo KICKR RUN, you can simulate the exact Boston or London Marathon course right in your own home. You can also use the run free mode, which uses sensors to automatically match the belt speed to your stride. No buttons, no interruptions, no breaking your flow. When you use code CITIUS at checkout, you'll also get a free KICKR Headwind Smart Fan. Check it out today at wahoofitness.com.
XENDURANCE: When you finish a hard workout, the work isn't actually done. That's when recovery starts. Xendurance Protein is designed specifically to help your body recover, rebuild, and get stronger after training. It combines four different types of protein, so your body gets both fast absorbing protein for immediate recovery and slower release protein to support muscle repair over time. Check it out at Xendurance.com and use code CITIUS for 25% off your first order.
OLIPOP: Olipop’s Tropical Punch tastes like a vacation in a can. It has the perfect balance of pineapple, passionfruit, mandarin, and apple. You get that nostalgic fruit punch flavor, but way more crisp and way more refreshing. Every can contains their Olismart blend, which includes ingredients designed to support digestive health and help feed your gut microbiome. If you haven't had tried Olipop yet, grab a can and see what the hype is all about! Head to DrinkOlipop.com and use code CITIUS25 at checkout to get 25% off your orders.