A small, inconspicuous, central Kentucky business has several locations in Lexington that have been around for several decades, and one employee has worked in the little building off Ashland Avenue for about 17 years.

Mike Acord, 71, currently works part-time at the classic John’s Run/ Walk Shop, but prior to that he worked about 10 years full time. 

Acord said he likes helping customers on the sales floor, especially seniors, and is not ready to give up his job just yet.

Acord is originally from Ashland, Kentucky, and taught at Morehead State University in the music department for 18 years. 

“I don’t miss anything about teaching, except I do miss being around students 18 to 24 (years-old) and that’s exactly what I’m around here,” Acord said. “I love talking to them; I love seeing what they wear – what music they’re listening to – it makes me feel younger too.”

Acord said he was always in the band and orchestra, and had never ran a step, but then things changed.

“When I was 53, my father had passed away here in Lexington, and I resigned at Morehead and I came back here to kind of help mom,” he said.

Acord said he ran the Bluegrass 10,000 twice, in 1985 and 1986, which is an annual 10 kilometer race in Lexington. 

He then took a 21-year hiatus from running, and it was at 53 when he moved back to Lexington that he started his journey again by going to The Arboretum to walk. 

“You only have to be there 30 minutes and you’re going to see runners and I thought, ‘I wonder if I could do that again,’” Acord said. 

He said he did things the smart way: “I didn’t just haul off and start running, but I actually did the Couch to 5K program, and it was very good.”

Acord said he didn’t really know where to go after that, and he found himself at John’s Run/ Walk Shop.

“I’d come over here (John’s Run/ Walk Shop) to talk to runners who worked on the sales floor, and John came in one day – The John – and he said, ‘well, this is silly, you ought to just work here.’ And that’s how it started,” Acord said.

Acord said he has been walking annual marathons for three years now, and had plans to do his fourth in June, but had to postpone. His next race will be the Bluegrass 10,000, which will be held on July 4, 2024.

He said his marathon journey started as a pandemic challenge for himself back in 2020. 

“I saw this YouTube video … ‘walking a marathon during quarantine,’” Acord said. 

Acord said that video intrigued him, and he wondered if he could do it too.

However, back when Acord was running he had run several half marathons, but never a full marathon.

Acord said he’s worked with exceptionally talented runners by watching them train for marathons and going to support them when they race.

“I sketched out a training program,” he said. “Now I was very comfortable walking 10 miles in two and a half hours, a 15 minute pace, so my training program starts there.”

Acord said he trained for about nine weeks, and planned out a map of where he was going to walk his marathon around Lexington. 

He said he stayed away from the downtown area, so that he wouldn’t have to stop for traffic lights.

He kept his 26.2 miles mostly near The Arboretum, Tates Creek and the Chinoe area, with the end destination being on Catalpa Road at his house. 

Acord said all of his co-workers at John’s Run/ Walk Shop asked him what time he would finish the marathon, and he replied, “If everything goes right, it’s gonna be about 2:15 p.m.”

When Acord finished his race, his co-workers were there to congratulate him with fireworks in his driveway, a big balloon arch and Queen’s hit song “We are the Champions” blasting, he said. 

And after that first year, it became an annual tradition for him, “they call it the Mike-athon,” Acord said. 

The following year, 2021, Acord said he was able to take about a minute off his previous time and felt he had made some progress. 

“In 2022, I really trained, I used the same training program, but I tried really hard and I took 17 minutes off my time – nobody does that,” he said. “And that was a 14:51 pace.”

Acord said his coach got him a coffee mug that just says 14:51 on it.

Acord was very pleased with himself; he said that was a very good time especially for a 70-year-old. 

He also said he makes sure to walk the entire marathon because if he were to run, even a little, that would be unfair. His goal is to compare and improve his time each year by walking the same route.

In 2023, Acord said he wasn’t excited at first about the marathon. He underwent a program called 75 Hard, which is a 75 day program that exercises you physically and mentally.

It includes several different tasks, such as completing two 45 minute workouts a day, reading 10 pages of a book every day and taking a progress picture each day; which Acord said was his least favorite. 

Acord said he also participated in a fitness retreat in Arizona prior to the 2023 marathon.

“You need to be a little bit excited, because this is a big commitment – physical, timewise and mental,” Acord said. “It’s a lot.”

In December of 2023, Acord started to feel the passion again. He said he was excited for his fourth marathon to see if he could beat his remarkable time of 14:51. 

Acord uses a GPS tracking system on his phone called Strava to track his time and mileage during his races. He said other people can also follow along with him through the app. 

“I started off that morning, 6:30 a.m., and I got to mile one and she came on (the GPS tracking voice), and said ‘distance, one mile, pace, 14 minutes, 21 seconds,’ he said. “If that had been a training walk, I would have put the brakes on, but I thought, this is it, I’m gonna go, if I fall apart, okay.” Acord said.

Acord said he got cold chills from recounting the marathon experience from that year. He said he’s not sure if he can beat that, but he will try. 

He said besides the goal of improving his time each year, the goal is always good health, which he said is also one of the philosophies of John’s Run/ Walk Shop. 

Garrett Hadaway, race director at John’s Run/ Walk Shop, has a unique relationship with Acord. 

He graduated from University of the Cumberlands about a year ago where he ran cross country and track.

He said his job has been a nice fit for him after running for so long, he now gets to organize about 9 or 10 races a year that they do through John’s Run/ Walk Shop. 

Hadaway said he really enjoys that it’s not just a desk job in an office. 

“I get to go outside, I get to run, I get to be a part of all these different events,” he said. “Just kind of around different parts of the city, I’m not stuck staring at a computer screen all day long.” 

Hadaway said Acord keeps things interesting, and that he is the one who trained him when he was first hired. 

“I didn’t know what to expect, and I guess what I did expect, Mike was the complete opposite of it,” Hadaway said. “It’s always fun working with him. I always look forward to it.”

Hadaway said Acord doesn’t drive and that he lives within walking distance from John’s Run/ Walk Shop.

He said once a month he and Acord take a trip to Waffle House.

“He’ll get off at 2, and I’ll take my lunch break at 2, I’ll drive us to Waffle House,” he said. “I’ll drive, he buys, and then I’ll drop him off at his place on my way back to work.”

Hadaway said he always has fun and enjoys those little trips with Acord. 

Matt Reno, marketing director for John’s Run/ Walk Shop, has been working there since January of 2023, and has enjoyed running since about age 15. 

He said he ran throughout high school, and now runs for fun with half marathons being his favorite distance. 

He said his favorite part of his job is his co-workers, which would include Acord. 

Reno was just recently training for a half marathon and said Acord is always the first to give him words of encouragement. 

“He’ll give me tips. He’ll just say some words of encouragement and say, “you know i’ve seen your latest runs on Strava, you’re going to be fine,” Reno said.

Acord said he and his co-workers at John’s Run/ Walk encourage everyone to move, whether that be playing with your grandchildren, gardening, or walking to Kroger, but just to get off the couch. 

“That’s the goal,” he said. “It’s not that I’m this athlete, it’s that I want to stay healthy, and that’ll certainly do it. If I had to pick one thing outside of nutrition and hydration and good medical care, the best thing people can do is to move each day in a variety of different ways.” 

Acord said he tells other runners at the shop, “If they stick with it, they might live to be 70.”

He also said he tells the co-workers who think he still looks very young, that their two saving graces will be moisturizer and sunscreen, something he wishes he would have used more of at their age.