JULIANA FLORES / FEATURE EDITOR

ADELA TABEK / FEATURE WRITTER

At 2:00 a.m. on Oct. 24, two USD sophomores, Chase Tesoro and Jacob Szilagyi, started running from Mission Beach toward the El Cajon summit, a total of 40 miles. Twelve miles is the farthest that either had run. Tesoro and Szilagyi believe they may be among one of the firsts to conquer this feat.

The students gained a total of 6,278 feet in elevation. They ran a total of 42.82 miles, ending their run at around 2:00 p.m. that afternoon.

Tesoro spoke about their decision to conquer this challenge.

“Both of us are really into the outdoors and running,” Tesoro remarked. “This summer, I ran seven fourteeners in Colorado in a single day, which was my first taste at these endurance challenges and I really loved it. A lot of people thought it wasn’t possible, and it felt really good to prove them wrong. We were thinking of stuff that we could do around San Diego that would kind of scratch that itch.”

Szilagyi noted how he originally had no interest in running.

“I always hated running,” Szilagyi stated. “[Coaches] made us run a mile, warm up and do a bunch of sprints, but I really started to fall in love with running over the summer. It’s just fun to be outside for a long time.”

Rowan McCain, their roommate, commented on what his day looked like while supporting his roommates.

“I’m the man on the chair,” McCain stated. “When they leave and start their journey at 2:00 a.m., I’ll be at the dorm waiting and have my phone ready. If they call me with an emergency I’ll drive out there with whatever they need. I have food on standby. The biggest request was once they are done, I meet them at the bottom of El Cajon with as many dirty carbs as possible.”

McCain addressed his initial reaction to hearing they were attempting this sea to summit journey.

“They have been building up to this,” McCain said. “Our dorm revolves around sitting and watching mountaineering and long runs. I knew they had totally thought through all of the steps, they are very chronological with everything, my first reaction was, ‘wow, what’s my role and how do you need my help?’”

Their love for nature and exploration motivated their willingness to defy the odds. Tesoro highlighted his experience prior to this with outdoor adventures.

“Anything longer than that has been hikes and climbs, where I’m running part of it, but more elevation gain, more climbing,” Tesoro added.

USD sophomore Jules Conklin has been friends with Tesoro and Szilagyi since their freshman year. She spoke of their spontaneous personalities.

“They are constantly finding new adventures, whether it is going climbing, camping or planning some crazy outdoor trip,” Conklin stated. “At the end of last year, they even got a dog named Major and took care of him all the way until summer. I feel like they just live life differently than most people. They are always looking for the next adventure and actually following through with it instead of just talking about it.”

Tesoro and Szilagyi became friends their first year at USD and are now roommates.

“We are very similar in some of our strengths, capabilities and I think he’s better at stuff than me and I’m better at stuff than him,” Tesoro said.

“I think that was a problem in my hometown doing all these challenges. Either people are way faster and way stronger than me, or they can’t keep up,” Tesoro stated.

One concerning factor to this challenge is the possibility of injury. Attempting to run this many miles can have severe consequences if not properly trained. According to a study done on first time New York City marathon runners and injuries, less training time and completion can lead to more injuries.

Szilagyi commented on his confidence in himself to finish the run without fail.

“I’m the least injury-prone person,” Szilagyi stated. “We’ve both never been super injured from our runs or climbing or anything. I’ve only been super injured once. I think we’ll be fine.”

First-year cross country and track and field first-year student-athlete Nora Doyle-Newe noted how this amount of mileage is something she would never consider doing, even as an experienced runner.

“I don’t run super long runs,” Doyle-Newe said. “I’m more of a middle-distance runner, so my long runs are eight miles. Some girls on my team go up to 14 or 13 miles but I can not do anything like 40, that’s insane. If they can do this then it might inspire other people in running or getting into it because it’s a sport for everyone. As a USD runner, knowing that someone with little experience can run 40 miles gives me more confidence in my abilities.”

Both Tesoro and Szilagyi hope that one day they will be able to do this for charity, and inspire other students to push themselves further than what they have done before.

“We definitely thought about running for more of a cause and getting a charity or a nonprofit involved and maybe getting partnerships with brands so they can fund our challenges,” Tesoro said. “That would be the ultimate goal. Doing stuff like this is building our resume for endurance athletes.”

After finishing their 40 miles, Tesoro spoke on how difficult it was to finish.

“For pretty much the entire hike, I was limping and I had found two sticks to use as crutches,” Tesoro said. “The last 13 miles were really, really rough for me.”

Tesoro spoke of his excitement to start another challenge.

“I feel like these challenges, the whole training aspect and building up to it, is super motivational and almost life-changing,” Tesoro said. “But once you complete it, you’re already looking for the next thing.”

Despite their challenges, Tesoro and Szilagyi ran more than three times longer than any they have done before, proving to themselves that the journey was worth it in the end. At the bottom of El Cajon, the dirty carbs were waiting.

Tesoro and Szilagyi pose after finishing their run. Photo courtesy of Chase Tesoro