Rashaad Jorden pounds the pavement on average 50 to 70 miles, six days a week.
Often times you can find the Collingswood resident around Cooper Park that winds through Pennsauken, Cherry Hill, Collingswood and Haddon Township or running hills in Haddonfield. On Wednesday evenings he joins runs with a local running club.
Jorden began running as a youngster growing up in Willingboro when his father suggested he try track. He had been playing soccer at the time admitting track was not his first choice. But once he tried it, he realized he was pretty good at the long distances of one to two miles.
He ran at Willingboro High School and continued to run at Coppin State University in Baltimore.
After college, Jorden ran off and on until work as an English teacher took him to Bû, France, a small town near Normandy.
“I needed things to do on my free time,” Jorden recalled. That’s when he found a local running group and started increasing his mileage again.
When work took him to northern Japan, he signed up for a 10K during the weekend of the Tokyo marathon in 2009.
“It was fun running the streets of Tokyo,” Jorden recalled, adding he made the decision after the race that he would run the full marathon the next year.
The 2010 Tokyo marathon was his first time running 26.2 miles and he came in at a time of 3 hours and 28 minutes.
“I was tired, but I didn’t hit a wall,” Jorden recalled. “I was really proud of myself.”
Rashaad Jorden has run seven marathons including the most recent Boston marathon. He enjoys the challenges of the 26.2 race.
Since Tokyo, Jorden has run a total of seven marathons including two different marathons in Japan, the JAL Honolulu marathon, a couple of Philadelphia marathons and recently the Boston marathon in April.
Jorden ran the JAL Honolulu marathon during a vacation to Hawaii in December 2021 after hearing about it in Japan. And out of all the marathons, it was the most challenging with its mountainous terrain and hills.
“At the end I had nothing left,” he said, recalling a “monster hill” with roughly two miles left. “I’m glad I did it even though I hit a wall.”
In 2023, Jorden ran the Philadelphia marathon and came in at a time of 2 hours, 58 minutes and 50 seconds, which qualified him for the Boston marathon.
“Boston was a lot of fun,” he said, noting the tons of people cheering runners along the course. “It’s amazing. There are people from all around the world.”
In Boston, Jorden ran his best marathon time yet at 2 hours, 54 minutes and 31 seconds.
And as he continues to pound the pavement recycling running sneakers – either his Saucony and/or Adidas – every three to four months, Jorden strives to best his times.
“I love the challenge,” he divulged, “when your body doesn’t feel good and it’s a struggle, it feels good to push yourself.”
Jorden’s next challenge will be the Philadelphia marathon in November and the Boston marathon on April 20, 2026.
Athletes who ran 4 minutes and 34 seconds faster than their qualifying standard have been accepted into what will be the 130th Boston Marathon, according to its website. Jorden is one of 24,362 qualifiers.
