Ever wonder what it’s like to get to the finish line first at one of Milwaukee’s premier races? Matt Thull knows. The six-time winner of Briggs and Al’s 8k race also has five, top 10 USA National Road Race finishes to his name and was a member of the USA World Half Marathon Team.

Read on to learn how he got started, what a typical day of training looks like and why he loves running in MKE.

Matt Thull

Elite Runner/Owner of ThunderDome Running (personalized coaching and running plans)

Age: 38

Years Running: 24

Favorite Distance to Race: 15k and 10 miles

Significant Past Races:

• Six-time overall winner of Briggs & Al’s 8k Run
• Five Top 10 USA National Road Race finishes from 5k to 10 miles
• Member of the USA World Half Marathon Team that raced the World Champs in Portugal

Favorite songs to get pumped up before a race:

• Bulls on Parade – Rage Against the Machine
• For Whom the Bell Tolls – Metallica

Favorite post-race treat: Soda

How did you get started with running?

My high school cross country coach came over to my house before my freshman year of high school to do a run and try to convince me to join the team. I had overslept and was still in bed when he got there. I got up to run with him and on that run he persuaded me to run cross country my freshman year of high school.

What’s kept you running all these years? 

Competing in races and traveling all over the US.

What does a typical training day look like for you?

When I am training for a key race build up, it is a morning run of 4-5 miles and a PM run of 10 miles.

What’s your favorite workout?

10 mile progression/cutdown pace run where you get faster each new mile until at the end it is close to an all-out effort.

What are your favorite Milwaukee races and what do you like about them?

Bacon Run 5k, Icebreaker race weekend every January

Photo by Bill Flaws – Running in the USA

Where are your favorite places to run in Milwaukee?

Hart Park parkway area, Honey Creek Parkway and Hank Aaron Trail.

In general, what makes Milwaukee a great place for runners?

There’s a large number of members/clubs in our running community, great running store community support (Performance Running Outfitters), and a weekend group long run anywhere, anytime, and any distance if you look for it. You barely ever have to run alone.

Thanks for chatting with us, Matt!

If you’re a runner in MKE, we’d love to chat with you. Send us an email at keeprunningmke@gmail.com if you’d like to be featured or know someone who should be featured in an upcoming Let’s Get to Know . . . post.

Keep Running MKE – you’re doing great!