The Marathon Mantra: Ambrose Hanna’s Running Odyssey

From city streets to marathon feats, Ambrose Hanna turned lockdown solitude into a running revelation. Read about his journey from his first 6-mile goal to conquering marathons nationwide.

By Jonathan Andrade

When the rest of the world stopped, Ambrose Hanna got going.

The masses sheltered at home throughout the lockdown, but Hanna found his own kind of solitude on the pavement that lined the empty city streets.

“I definitely needed something to bring me into that place of meditation…a place to really just connect,” he said.

He found that place, and he found a new passion.

As is the case for many runners, the runs started with shorter distances. But even then, a wide-eyed Hanna set goals for himself.

“I wanted to be able to run six miles,” he recalls.

Eventually, the 10-kilometer runs turned to double-digit miles. Then half marathons. And inevitably full, 26.2-mile marathons.

The harder Hanna pushes his training, the further running has taken him.

He ran his first marathon—the Los Angeles Marathon—in November 2021. He travelled south to tackle the Orange County Marathon in May 2022 before going cross-country to run the New York City Marathon in November 2022. This past June, he completed the Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, Minn.

He’ll toe the line at his fifth marathon—the California International Marathon—on Dec. 3 in Sacramento, Calif.

“I’ve had a few bumps in the road,” Hanna said of CIM training. “It’s a matter of just overcoming those obstacles you have.”

The experienced marathoner entered training with lofty time goals for CIM, but the unforgiving daily schedule has taken a toll on Hanna’s body. Still, he’s determined to reach the state’s capital to experience the unparalleled race day vibes he keeps hearing about.

“I’m just really looking forward to running this race that a lot of people in Southern California love to run,” he said. “I’m looking forward to gathering in a different city with a lot of my running friends and the different running communities.”

 
You can follow Ambrose on Instagram here.