“A year is a journey of 365 opportunities.”
(Unknown)
What a year 2025 has been for me!
I know everyone starts a new year with the hope it will be their best year ever. We say it year after year but I’m not sure we know how a year will truly go. I start each new year with a set of goals I want to reach in multiple areas: health, fitness, reading, travel, etc. I wanted 2025 to be a huge year for me but looking back this week showed that this was an outstanding year for me and I’m going to claim my best year yet. 😊
Travel
I set an aggressive running schedule for myself in 2025. I targeted some new races which would allow me to bring my running tourist persona to new locales. I ran the 2025 Fargo Half Marathon in May and leveraged this race to add two new states to my visit list. North Dakota was the race state, but I made sure to drive down to South Dakota to check that off my list as well. I enjoyed the experience but I’m not sure I will run in Fargo again so I’m happy to have experienced the city, food, and culture.
Nashville, Tennessee is always on my running calendar in April. The 2025 Rock N Roll Half Marathon is one of my favorite races and I love the country music available in Nashville. I’m coming up on ten years running in the city and I don’t see a reason to stop now. Tennessee provides a lot of different adventures and Gatlinburg was my destination in November for Smoky Mountain hiking.
I made a Midwest trek for the 2025 Madison Mini-Marathon in August. Wisconsin was a state I always wanted to visit but I never put in the effort to get there. Running has turned into my vehicle to get up and travel, so I used my love of running to get to Wisconsin. I took advantage of proximity and made my way over to Dubuque, Iowa to experience the city that sits right on the Mississippi river. It was a quick trip over to Iowa, but I was able to have a fantastic catfish dinner while overlooking the Mississippi river.
I took my regular trip to Virginia Beach for the Labor Day weekend to run the 2025 Virginia Beach 10-Miler. This was my third run of this race, and I enjoyed my time on the boardwalk as this is a great place for people watching.
I ventured further north in October for the 2025 Smuttynose Half Marathon. This race took me back to New England and I crossed off North Hampshire and Maine as states I have visited. I enjoyed the race and environment so much I signed up for the 2026 race before I came back to Florida. The 2025 Atlantic City Marathon got me back to the northeast two weeks later in October. I’ve been to New Jersey multiple times, but this was my first marathon in the state.
That’s 8 states visited in 2025 with 6 of those being new states for the running tourist. I’m looking forward to being just as aggressive in 2026 and adding a few new states. There are races in Louisville, Kentucky, Lincoln, Nebraska and Morgantown, West Virginia that I’m researching, and I hope to book those early for new adventures. I will keep my normal Florida races on the schedule as well so get ready for more running tourism adventures. 😊
Negril, Jamaica is my go-to place to visit yearly. I write about this trip every year and will continue to visit. I would like to get down there twice in 2026 since I love the island and culture so much.
Running
I can’t call myself a running tourist without highlighting the running program. I’m always looking for ways to increase my yearly mileage but never put exact numbers on the total. I still need to balance regular life, work, travel and running. Running is a big part of my weekly life, but I do try to have balance and enjoy other aspects of life. I currently sit at 1,505 miles with three weeks left in December. I would like to get over the 1,600-mile marker as this would be my largest run total for a year. I’ve got to ensure I don’t miss any run or training sessions to make it to 1,600.
Fun fact—I completed a total of 18 races in 2025, which is my personal best for a calendar year.
Fun fact 2—I ran PRs over three distances in 2025: 2025 Virgina Beach 10-miler, 2025 Smuttynose Half Marathon and 2025 Atlantic City Marathon.
Reading
Reading has been my passion since I was a kid. I had a newspaper scription when I was twelve years old and read every book I could get my hands on. There were not a lot of distractions in Jasper, Florida so I developed a love for reading and I still have it. This love of reading followed me into adulthood, and I have multiple books on my reading list. My 2025 reading goal was to read daily and I have met that goal. I read articles, devotionals and have finished reading 15 books this year. I don’t know if that’s a record for me, but I’ve enjoyed the process and continue to be a life-long learner.
Target boycott 2025
Target was one of my favorite places to shop prior to 2025. The Target leadership decided to reverse multiple Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives due to political pressure. Well, a few folks decided to boycott Target until they put these initiatives back in place. Target has been consistent with the refusal to reverse the decisions—I respect that.
Fun fact 3—I have not spent one cent or step foot in a Target store in 2025. My contributions to this boycott will never make it into a history book but I’m standing firmly committed to this small step to demand better from a place I can choose to shop with or not.
Family and friends
My family members and friends are all healthy and thriving. I make it to Jasper, Florida to visit my mom monthly and this is a highlight of the month for me. I finally convinced her to visit me in Fort Pierce this year and it was a great visit for her. She needed a break from Jasper obligations and I’m happy I could help. I will look forward to getting her back down to Fort Pierce more in 2026. 😊 My friends continue to make me smile daily. I don’t run in a large circle, but my folks fit me, and we enjoy life to the fullest.
Creating content for the Walk into the Future blog is a huge part of my life. I continue to look for ways to become better at writing and provide a platform my readers enjoy visiting. I fine-tuned a few of my writing prompts in 2025 and I’m happy with my overall content production. 2026 should bring better content for my readers!
Well, I can continue to rattle off things from 2025, but I’ve made my point—at least to myself! 😊 2025 has been an outstanding year for me.
I’m excited to see what 2026 will bring!
What moments are you proud of in 2025? What will 2026 bring?
Irie!
Calvin Williams
“The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide you’re not going to stay where you are.”
(Unknown)
Walk Into the Future 