James Strahorn's 500-mile dream across Oklahoma

James Strahorn is the head coach of the Cross Country team at Jenks High School.

He has checked some pretty impressive races off his bucket list in his life.

This particular journey Strahorn is on now hasn't been attempted by many, and he's giving back while doing so.

Live Tracking of Coach Strahorn's run found here:

Union County Jul 23, 2025 | LiveTrack

Q: What made you want to do something like this?

A: So back to 2020. It was when my first time to run across the state. It was north, the south border, and it was when Covid hit. So I've been doing some hundred-mile races for a few years prior to that, and I had a couple scheduled, like going into that season canceled. So I was like, talk to my wife. What is something I can do? And so I decided to run from Kansas to Texas, based on some inspiration by some other friends and by Justin Walker, who has set this record. He did that two years prior. So I did that, and that was kind of my first taste of like, what a multi-day event would feel like. And that was 265 miles. And that obviously encouraged me to try the other direction.

Q: This is for a good cause, donating to charity and to your program for your student athletes?

A: So, I've done these types of runs twice, and I've yet to ever fundraise money for this. So this is my first time raising money for a charity and also for some of my student athletes. And so I think because of that, it feels like I have like a community behind me, and people rallying me. And so, like, my student athletes are loving it. I mean, you know, they, they, I think they think it's pretty cool that their coach does things like this. And so, you know, they're an inspiration for me too. And so there's going to be some moments out there where I know that it can be tough. And so I'll probably be leaning on some encouragement from them. And it helps like knowing that I'm an inspiration to people. And that's also why I wanted to share my story is just to inspire others. For other people to know that there's a lot that you can do with our bodies, you know, when we're capable of more than we think.

Q: You said off-camera you attempted this run before, and you stopped at I-35 where you got so sick. Just how hard is this coming from a guy that does this kind of stuff frequently?

A: You know, like, it's kind of a question that you almost. It's hard to answer. And in each race that I do and journeys like this present different challenges, I do think I was telling my high school kids just yesterday, I think this could probably be the hardest thing that I have done. I've done races that are up to 250 miles, multi-day stuff, quite a few like 100 milers. My other fkt journey, which was my run across the state, 500, is deep. It's the furthest I've ever went, but it is within what I would consider a comfort zone. I just feel good about the distance and about my preparation for that. But it can be overwhelming if I let it be. And that's the part of us that we just have to kind of control and but I'm excited to honestly get it started.

Q: You talked about preparation. What goes into that?

A: I mean, it's a lot of strenuous training. Day and night. You're having to spend a little bit to get the acclimation. I know you said you just put your Arizona so you're used to the heat, but the acclimation part of it, too. You really got to get down. Yeah. That's true. And so like I had a few kids ask like, how do you prepare to run 500? I don't know that you can target like a training plan for a race or journey like this, but I am kind of leaning on. I had a race two weeks ago out in Death Valley, California is 115 degrees at the start, 135 mile race that I feel pretty good about, how I well, I was the only Oklahoman in the field. I was able to be in the top ten. And so I really like looking back at my 6 to 12 weeks' training. Up to that was a lot of 110, 130, as high as 140 mile weeks. So you know that it can equate for math. I teach math at the high school. You know, anywhere from 17 to 20 miles a day. Like you said, lots of runs in the afternoon, honestly, lots of runs too, followed by some dry sauna sessions just to track myself. Immerse myself in the heat. And so I really feel good from the heat perspective. And then I think it is just going to be staying in the moment, day to day, in terms of absolutely like muscle fatigue, things like that are going to set in. But I also think that when you do things like this, like relying on fitness and your training are definitely components, but I also think that, like our hearts and our minds, just our faith, it's like there has to be a reason we do it. Because that's going to have to be answered lots of times out there. And so that's where you just kind of lean on my community and my family and my friends that are supporting me. And just my desire to be there.

Q: Walk me through the route.

A: So, it's going to go west to east, and we'll start tomorrow night in the Panhandle, and it's going to be route, on the Highway 412 all the way through the Panhandle. Once we get into Woodward, we'll kind of go southeast on, I think, I believe, Highway 270 East. And then once we get to where we get to Highway 51, I'll jump on Highway 51 and head straight east. And that's going to be a big stretch. So it's actually 200 miles for people that don't know. The Panhandle is 200 miles long, and it is a tough stretch, but you get to knock that out first. And it is for Oklahomans that don't know. A little downhill. There's a little elevation in the Panhandle. I think the elevation is like 30,500 ft. I don't feel it, but it's a nice gentle downhill. Once I get on Highway 51. It's a couple hundred miles, honestly, all the way through Tulsa. I hop on 51 because it's not a turnpike and pedestrians can't be on the turnpike. Once I get into Tulsa, I'm on some side roads until I can jump back on for 12 or alternate version of 412 until I hit Siloam Springs, Arkansas. So between highway 412 and highway 51, that's a big chunk of my route.

Q: You mentioned family and friends. Your wife will be driving your car following you. You will be resting in your car during your stops?

A: It's just as hard on my crew. I'm not sleeping very much, which means they are probably not sleeping very much. And so we will be utilizing my van. It's really my everyday vehicle, for shelter, food, water. And so it's going to be probably what it will look like is 40 to 50-mile chunks of time; it might be followed by 1 to 3 hours rest. Probably not a whole lot more than that. Just so the body doesn't stiffen up. And really, it's just a good opportunity to shut the mind off. But I really just want to move as best as I can, as frequently as I can.

Q: What are some key points in the trek you want to hit or have sense of gratitude moments?

A: I think there's two moments for me specifically. The first one will be when I cross I-35, where I ended up having to drop out last time in 2020. So that was I was telling you about 350 miles in, and it was pretty close to I-35 on the outskirts of Hennessy, and I just remember I was so beat up I was sick. So that's gonna be a big one for me, surpassing that area, and then another is when I'll come through town. I'm anticipating seeing people from our community.

Here's a link to Coach Strahorn's GoFundMe:

Fundraiser by James Strahorn : Support Coach Strahorn's 500 Mile Race