Imagine having the energy and endurance to run more than 13.1 miles, without training for such a rigorous task, not only for your body, but for your mind.

For Western senior Jenna Kuczynski, running 13.1 miles without training is a doable adventure.

She has competed in at least six half marathons and only trained for the first one she ran.

“I don’t have any time to train with school and a job,” she said. “Riding my bike two miles to Western is my training.”

Her father, Silvio Kuczynski, runs almost every half marathon with her.

“Running with Jenna has made me run faster,” he said.

She and her father are always the last ones to start the race. 

“We navigate the human maze like a pinball in an obstacle course,” she said. “It’s like a game for us to shimmy through the crowd.”

Kuczynski said she and her father enjoy the challenge.

The Birch Bay Marathon will take place on Sunday, Feb. 19 at Birch Bay State Park in Blaine.

Kuczynski and her father are running the Birch Bay Half for his birthday.  

The night before every race they eat white pasta, she said.

“This is the only time we eat white pasta,” she said. “It’s really special because we never do this.”

Her father said running together is a great way for them to bond.

“Running goes beyond the bond we share,” he said. “It’s about the adventure we have together.”

While they wait to begin their run, they usually hang out and talk.

“We enjoy psyching each other up with huge smiles in anticipation to run in a human maze,” she said.

Kuczynski said she doesn’t listen to her iPod when she runs.

“I like to keep it real,” she said. “I like to view the surroundings.” 

 Seattle University junior Natalie Yip, Kuczynski’s best friend from junior high, said Jenna is a hilarious, awesome person.

“She is a really animated, caring person when it comes to people and causes,” Yip said. “She loves to be outdoors, and running has always been a passion of hers.” 

Kuczynski is graduating at the end of this quarter.

She created her own major through Huxley College of the Environment called ecological systems and natural resource management.

“I study the interconnections of Earth’s systems and holistic cycles, exploring the human relationship with natural systems to manage our interactions sustainably in the future,” she said.

Kuczynski said she is always bursting with energy after a race. 

“I feel like I could run five miles more,” she said. 

However, Kuczynski said a full marathon [26.2 miles] is too much of a killer to be fun.

“She is very dedicated to being outdoors and making that connection with her dad,” Yip said.

Kuczynski said she adores being outside.

“I only feel whole when I spend at least a little of my day going on some sort of adventure outside,” she said. “Nothing is more intoxicating than fresh air — it is the only way I feel alive.”

Kuczynski said this would be the first of many marathon adventures with her father this year.

Her average time for a race is about two hours, but she said it depends on the course.

Yip said she thinks Jenna is crazy for running 13.1 miles without training.

“She must be really healthy,” Yip said. “I feel like she will outlive everyone — she will live at least until she is 125.”

When Kuczynski and her father get to the finish line, her mother, grandmother and brother are there to congratulate them.   

Along the course she drinks some water, but she doesn’t have any of the energy food packets provided on the course.

She said she is picky about what she eats and finds the energy food disgusting.

Later that night, after a race, she can’t sleep, regardless of how tired she is, she said. 

3“You get such an adrenaline high from running,” she said. “ I love it.”