setting my half-marathon PR at Country Music this year (my first race on the NRC race team)

It is my pleasure to introduce you to our newest East Nasty of the Week (ENOW), Jackson Miller! Like me, most of you may know Jackson as the tall, tattooed drink of water leading the Wednesday morning runs this summer. Or, if you read his blog, as the person who works out more than you do & who's faster than you'll ever be, even in the dreams where you're flying.

Let's get to know Jackson!

Jackson was born in Nashville and grew up off of Belmont Blvd. In middle school, he ran track, and in high school, he ran cross country. Ahh, a man after Mark Miller's cross country heart.

Jackson's first attempt at college was Loyola in New Orleans, where he studied jazz. Jazz schmazz. Jackson said he ended up studying the New Orleans "culture" & only lasted a year. Then he attended Belmont University and studied Philosophy and Religion for a couple of years. After that he moved to the northeast and lived in New Hampshire, Philly and Washington DC.

Jackson has been back in Nashville for about 10 years. He is the co-owner of three Plato’s Closet retail stores. He says, "It’s pretty glamorous until I have to go fix a toilet on a Saturday afternoon."

Jackson started running when he was a kid (see above), but has only been running as an adult for 2 and a half years. Again, no surprise to those who read his blog, but Jackson says his biggest accomplishment in running is speed.

Jackson and Kevin taking 2nd and 3rd at Viva La Diva last year behind Courtney. We ran a 10 mile warmup before the 10 mile race as a training run.

He says, "I have been very fortunate to be able to get a lot faster in the past couple of years. When I first started running again, I ran a half marathon as fast as I could in 2:09 (February 2010). This year I ran a 1:20 at Country Music and then ran the San Diego full in 2:59."

Y'all, to put that in perspective, he ran a FULL in 2:59. My New Orleans HALF finish time was 2:52. You do the math.

Jackson says it was Alexis Hoag who first told him about East Nasty. He started joining runs in January 2011, but the only time he would talk to people was that awkward moment before the start when we have to meet someone new. Ha!

Speaking of Alexis, I work-out with her multiple times a week, so I asked her to say a few words. Here's what Alexis had to say about her friend & running partner, Jackson:

"Jackson is a force of nature in all aspects of his life -- parenting six kids, owning multiple retail stores, keeping up with his lovely wife Erica, and, of course, running. Never one to give less than full effort, once Jackson became serious about running, he cut his half marathon time in half and slashed his marathon PR to under 3:00 hours. Most importantly, he's the best running partner you could ask for -- he's always willing to run, even on those especially freezing early mornings or scorching hot days. Jackson is whip smart, funny, and an all around awesome guy. Don't let his fast times scare you, he's great company at any pace."

Relaxing with Greg Kyle and David Cañas after Rocket City

When asked what he enjoys most about East Nasty, Jackson says, "I can’t count the number of friends I have made through East Nasty. I run with East Nasties more days than not. I have learned so much from running and talking with fellow Nasties. If I have to pick one thing that I enjoy most it is probably that I can’t recall meeting any assholes in East Nasty - I have never experienced that before in a large group."

Jackson says that there are two East Nasty experiences that really stand out in his mind:

1) "Mark Miller gave a Braveheart-esque speech about courage and bravery before a particularly cold and icy run in 2011. I have actually thought about that on many cold mornings since.

2) I had a ton of fun training for and running the first 18 miles (the last 8 miles were not fun) of Rocket City Marathon with Greg Kyle, Kevin Christian and Courtney Terrell last year."

"What a happy family with 6 kids looks like."

I asked Jackson what other hobbies he has and he had a pretty hilarious response, "I train for marathons, own three retail stores, and have six kids. Running takes up all my hobby time." I imagine it does.

Jackson, you are a speed machine & we're happy to know you. Congrats and welcome to the ENOW club!