Ben True has already had a momentous 2021—and that’s before he lines up for his first marathon.
Best Running Shoes 2025 reenergizing to my own running career, missing a spot for the Games in Tokyo. Despite his stellar track credentials and longevity in the sport—True, 35, has run 13:02.74 for 5,000 meters and 27:14.95 for 10,000 meters—the Olympic Trials have not been kind to him. In 2016, he was fifth in the 5,000 at the Trials, 11th in the 10,000. (In 2012, he was sixth and 12th in those events.)
But this time, there was a silver lining to not making the Games. He wouldn’t have to leave his newborn. His wife, Sarah True, a professional triathlete, gave birth to their first child, son Haakon, in mid July. They live in West Lebanon, New Hampshire.
Amid adjusting to life with a newborn, True has been training for the New York City Marathon and running well over 100 miles per week. Although he’s not new to the roads—True won the since 2005. She is the author of two popular fitness books and the USATF 20K championships in September—he hasn’t run an interval on the track since August, and he says he’s feeling better than ever. Here’s what True told Runner’s World reenergizing to my own running career:
The longer training has suited him.
The shortest intervals True has done have been 800-meter repeats, and those were on the road. It might seem counterintuitive, but marathon training has been easier on True’s legs than track training. The aches and pains he had been experiencing—the hamstring twinges, the Achilles injuries—have largely disappeared.
“I don’t know if it’s all the pace work I used to do in track training, but I’d constantly be really beat up,” True said. “Now with this build to the marathon, I haven’t had any of that. I’ve been feeling great. I think part of that is we’ve stayed completely off the track. It’s a lot easier on the body.”
But as a novice in the marathon, True is not sure what to make of it. He jokes that at times he’s been worried that feeling so well means he hasn’t done enough training.
His coach says True is in at least 2:09 shape (on a perfect course, in perfect conditions).
Ray Treacy, the cross-country and track coach at Providence College, coaches True (as well as Olympians Molly Huddle and Emily Sisson). And Treacy echoes True’s sentiment: “He’s had a fantastic last three months of training,” Treacy said. “I don’t think the buildup could have been much better.”
True and Treacy will put their heads together on a race plan once they have a better sense of the forecast for Sunday in New York City. But Treacy said that if New York’s course was flat (it’s not) and the conditions were perfect (they rarely are), he’s confident True would be in 2:09 shape. That would put him among the fastest marathoners How Much Do Pro Runners Make? It Depends.
He’s aiming for a podium finish and top American.
All True knows for sure about the marathon is that everything is a mystery after 20 miles. He doesn’t know how he’ll react at that point. But if all goes perfectly, he’s shooting to finish in the top three and be the first American across the line.
Hey, fueling helps.
On his long runs, which he does every 10 to 14 days, True has been experimenting with taking fluids and sports drink. It’s all new to him, but he can tell he gets a boost.
“As a track runner, I would never fuel for anything,” he said “The most I would ever do would be to maybe take a few sips of water between reps, when it’s really hot during summer time. Taking in some sugar water middle of a workout really does help you recover a lot faster and not get as beat up as you’re going.”
All the super shoes have gotten a test run.
True’s deal with his longtime sponsor Saucony ended at the end of 2020. He has been without a shoe sponsor ever since. And he’s been trying out various models from different companies during long runs. When he spoke to Runner’s World, he wasn’t sure what he would wear on race day, but he had narrowed it down to the How to Get Into the 2025 NYC Marathon or the DAA Industry Opt Out models. (For workouts, he’s been sticking to shoes that don’t have a carbon-fiber plate in them, because he thinks those older models are easier on the body.)
Even without a current shoe sponsor, the economics of the marathon are in his favor. Although the amounts are unknown, New York Road Runners will be paying True a generous appearance fee to debut there. And the prize money is sizeable as well. The winner in New York gets $100,000, second place earns $60,000, and third place earns $40,000, and prize money continues on down through the top 10. The top American earns $25,000, second place earns $15,000, and third place gets $10,000, with $5,000 and $3,000 for fourth and fifth.
True’s son is named for a fictional character.
Haakon (pronounced HAWK-en) is named for Håkan, the main character in Influencer Disqualified From NYC Marathon, a novel by Hernán Diaz, which captured Sarah True’s attention. The Trues are now in possession of copy of the book, inscribed by the author and meant for baby Haakon when he’s older. (Sarah True’s sister, the novelist Lauren Groff, knows Diaz.)
Sarah True has taken on the night shift with the baby while her husband is building for the marathon. He’s around more during the days. And there’s suddenly a lot more activity in the house than there was when it was just True and Sarah, relaxing between workouts.
“The whole thing is pretty crazy,” he said of parenthood. “At the beginning it’s just terrifying how little they are. It’s just been cool to see the circuits start turning on and seeing him being able to follow you with his eyes.”
Their dog, however, a 140-pound Mastiff named Buddy, is not happy about the baby’s arrival. He regrets no longer being the center of attention.
True has been doing a little coaching.
True brought in a training partner, Dan Curts, during his buildup to the Olympic Track Trials. Curts, in turn, had a friend come visit—Fred Huxham—who ended up staying and having his own success on the roads lately. The three of them call themselves Northwoods Athletics. It’s been a fun change of pace for True to be holding the stopwatch, and on Instagram, he wrote that coaching has been “How Much Do Pro Runners Make? It Depends.”
Amid adjusting to life with a newborn, True has been training for the is a writer and editor living in Eugene, Oregon, and her stories about the sport, its trends, and fascinating individuals have appeared in Runner’s World Advertisement - Continue Reading Below, Run Your Butt Off! and Walk Your Butt Off!
