|Photo by Shelley Hanson| D.J. Smith of Massillon, Ohio, did his first Ogden race for the first time on Saturday. He is keeping his running tradition alive for a late friend who introduced him to the sport. He plans to do 50 races in 50 different states and has done 12 to date.

WHEELING – Massillon, Ohio, resident D.J. Smith had never been to West Virginia before Saturday’s Ogden Newspapers Half Marathon Classic.

He was signed up to run the race for the first time, but it wasn’t his first race. He is attempting to do 50 runs in 50 states, and so far he has already done 12 of them.

Smith said he had heard the hills in the Ogden race were tough.

“I was looking for a challenge,” he said.

Smith said he got into running thanks to a friend. His friend recently died and he wanted to keep the tradition alive for him. He and his friend met in the military. Smith served in the Air Force; he worked as a mental health counselor.

Wallace said to prepare for the races he runs every other day, eats a healthy diet and drinks plenty of water.

“A lot of it is mental,” he said of road races. “Just because it looks scary, that doesn’t mean it will be.”

Wallace noted there are a lot of parallels in life to running.

“Anyone can run a marathon, it’s about pace,” he said.

Wallace’s next half-marathon will be in North Carolina.