183. Stephanie Pennington, Creator of Project Finish

"They don't expect a group to be there. And any runner deserves that incredible finish, no matter if it took two hours or if it's taken 12. It's not so much the time that needs to be celebrated in this case, it's the passion and the drive and the motivation behind each runner's story."

In 2015, Stephanie Pennington had just completed her first New York City Marathon. After finishing, she went out to celebrate — but before heading back home, she wanted to swing back through Central Park to see if anything was still happening. It was 7:45 PM, and Stephanie saw runners still making their way to the iconic finish line. She was inspired — and she didn't want any of those runners to ever finish 26.2 miles without a celebration. That's how Project Finish was born. (This video is a must-watch.) Now, every year at the TCS New York City Marathon finish line, Stephanie encourages people to join her and her wildly enthusiastic, growing group of supporters to cheer at the finish line until the very last runner comes through. On this episode, Stephanie — who is a fashion and technical designer for QVC — shares some inspiring finish line stories, and talks about her hopes and dreams for Project Finish this year.

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What you'll get on this episode:

• What inspired Stephanie to start Project Finish (3:30)
• What is the Project Finish vibe like? (12:15)
• Stephanie's favorite Project Finish memories from over the years (15:50)
• Why YOU should show up for Project Finish at this year's TCS New York City Marathon (27:10)
• Stephanie shares her running story (34:10)
• All about Stephanie's job (47:15)

What we mention on this episode:

Project Finish

Project Finish in the New York Times

New York Road Runners Virtual Training Programs

Follow Stephanie:

• Instagram @stephanie_pennington
• Website

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