This 78-year-old ‘ultrarunner’ is on a coast-to-coast journey across the United States

To understand why Stan Cottrell runs, you first must travel back to 1949 in rural Kentucky.

There, the then 6-year-old Cottrell was on his family’s farm in Appalachia, already a frequent laborer tending the land. That year, Cottrell hit elementary-school age and the responsibilities in his life ramped up: not only did he need to complete his chores each morning, he’d better be able to make it to school on time, too.

Work with the family cows took up plenty of his time, resulting him to miss the school bus in what he said was “at least three mornings out of every five.” Better hoof it to school then, his father would tell him. So he did, for the whole six-mile journey, numerous times in his youth.

The moment he knew he would be running for life came six years later, when Cottrell entered a 100-yard dash event at his county fair. Cottrell, struggling for confidence as an underdeveloped 12-year-old (he said he was 4-foot-9 and 70 pounds at this point), ended up winning the race and garnering congratulations from the crowd.

One woman’s comments there still stick with him in 2021.

“Somebody came up to me — some social worker, I think — came up and said, ‘You know, you sure are little, but those little legs sure can fly. Well, you might just grow up to be a champion someday,’” Cottrell said. “And here I am, small and felt very inadequate, inferior or insecure, all of a sudden I felt significant.”

That moment changed his outlook, he said. From there, Cottrell’s life since then has been nothing short of significant.

Now 78 and still an “ultra-runner,” he has traversed almost 270,000 miles in over 40 countries over a distinguished career that’s included a 405-mile run in four and-a-half days, running across the Great Wall of China and a trek across the U.S. in just over 48 days.

About that last part — running across the United States — Cottrell is currently in his third run from coast to coast, an occasion he’s titled The Amazing Friendship Run. He’ll cover 3,000 miles over the course of 100 days for charity, from Los Angeles to Washington D.C.

Last weekend, he made a pit stop in Kansas City.

Cottrell tagged along with a local group of runners, the 816 Run Club, while he was in town. It was another chapter in a journey that included visits to nearby cities, such as Topeka and Lawrence in Kansas and Columbia and St. Louis in Missouri.

“Kansas City, the last two times, has given me such an incredible reception,” Cottrell said. “One of my driver friends, he’s so excited to go to Kansas City because of the Chiefs, and I’m all for that. ... I’m a World War I, World War II buff, and my grandfather fought in World War I ... and the World War I Memorial, I’m looking forward to seeing that.”

But why now, at 78, has Cottrell continued to run rather than enjoy a more sedentary life of retirement? Running is his forum to reach people, he says, and that helps him fulfill his life’s goals.

Having grown up in poverty in Kentucky, philanthropy is a massive part of Cottrell. Numerous charities have tagged along for The Amazing Friendship Run, including the G.O. V.E.T.S. Foundation, Feed The Children and the Multiple Sclerosis Foundation. He welcomes donations and for good Samaritans to tag along in the efforts, knowing how much even small acts can help those in need.

“If there’s a child going to sleep crying his little eyes out at night just freezing to pieces, or just some other kind of physical depravity — food, shoes, clothing, whatever it is — if my running can open that door ... if you’re in the United States to make a difference, then I’ll run,” Cottrell said.

When asked if he felt his life was fulfilling, Cottrell called himself “one of the richest men on Earth,” not because of money, but because of what he feels is the value of life experiences and differences in lives he’s felt he’s created over the years. It’s a calling, a mission, and something he says is impossible to put a dollar value on.

Cottrell himself is attempting to promote what he calls “the spirit of friendship” through his running. No one has ever protested friendship in his time running across the world, he says, so he believes it’s something everyone can get behind.

He just hopes that, through running, someone will listen.

“What I’ve been doing all these years is that I use my running as a vehicle,” Cottrell said. “Not only to help people break down the walls to divide one nation from another, but to help break down the walls that divide one human heart from another. Everybody can do something extremely well, and do more of it. Everybody has a sweet spot that people will listen to them. They have a unique message, and all I do is I’m coming through just to share my story.”