Meet the Athlete: Justin Mollak

Name: Justin Mollak

Age:34

Place of Birth: Omaha, NE

High School: Millard North 

College: 

Southeast Community College, Milford, NE

Major/Minor:  Building Construction Technology

Where do you currently live?: Omaha, NE

Occupation/Degree you are working towards:

Self Employed – Carpenter – Owner of Mollak Custom Carpentry since 2013

How long have you been an LRC-Nebraska member?: Team Nebraska Since 2011

How long have you been running competitively?: Since 2011

What excites you the most about being an LRC-Nebraska athlete?: Team camaraderie. Group Runs

What does a typical training week look like for you?  Walk us through your daily routine (training related and otherwise):      

Currently I’m just trying to get out the door for runs whenever it is possible. Usually 5am. We have a daughter that is almost two (that typically disrupts our sleep) and a baby boy due in July. My work days are usually fairly labor intensive. Carrying wood, swinging sledge hammers, cutting, lifting, and many other construction related activities.  I am also trying to finish remodeling my home before the boy is born in July. I am running the Sandhills marathon in June and it will be my first marathon in a year and a half. I think it may also be my first race. 

We all approach training and racing differently, so tell us what your short-term and long-term goals are with running: 

Short term – get a regular run routine going and find happiness in running again. Long term – race a marathon in 2019 and continue to train regularly 

Where are your 3 favorite places to do long runs at the moment?: 

1 – From home to downtown Omaha

2 – Pick some roads and go run

3 – anywhere new

After a solid race or long run, what is your favorite meal to demolish and replenish those calories?  Please use details and give recommendations!:            anything within reach. I love drinking coffee and eating everything after a long run. 

Share a crazy training or racing story, or simply an interesting moment in time: 

Crazy race would have to be the The Bear 100 in Logan, Utah in 2016 – 29 hrs and 33 mins in the mud, rain, snow, cold, and darkness. The course changed several times due to forest fires and weather. It ended up being an out and back race instead of a point to point. Started off in the dark with light rain. The mud got worse as we ascended. Then it rained more. Snowed at higher elevations. Made it half way when the sun went down. Slogged through the mud all night. I don’t think I ran at all the last 50k. Wouldn’t have made it at all without my crew/pacers, Amy (my wife) Tim McGargill, and Lindsey Meyer. I had cankles for a week after

What book are you currently reading or TV show are you binge watching?: First we make the beast beautiful by Sarah Wilson 

You’re the star of a running movie, and the opening scene is you running on a winding dirt road, with a beautiful sunrise.  What song is playing in the background?: My first thought is the circle of life from the Lion King Soundtrack