Geoff Masanet ran 41 miles in 6 hours and 32 minutes.

The cross-country coach ran from Champaign to Charleston to raise money for his team on April 25.

Masanet’s training regime for the run was not what most people would expect.

“Nobody should take a page from my training book on how I prepare for this run or last year’s,” Masanet said. “I’d miss several days in a row then go out for a 10 mile run.”

Masanet had some help during his run. Former Eastern cross-country coach John McInerny made sure Masanet had the supplies he needed to survive the run.

“John McInerny, my personal hero and good friend, helped last year and this year with driving me to Champaign and dropping off drop bags along the route that I ran so I had water, Gatorade and cliff bars to eat, as well as clean socks to change into,” Masanet said.

McInerny believes the message Masanet is sending to his athletes is more important than the actual run.

“The message to his athletes is a simple but very important one, think outside the box, don’t be afraid to try something a bit radical,” McInerney said. “I think he is trying to get his athletes to expand their thinking about their own training and racing.”

Men’s track and field head coach Tom Akers helped Masanet with his run last year to Terre Haute, Ind. Akers was unable to help Masanet with his run this year but still appreciated the message Masanet was sending to his team.

“One not so obvious result that comes from this is a subtle message that is sent to his team,” Akers said. “It takes more than a year long commitment of running to be a competitive collegiate distance runner. It takes an accumulation of years of running.”

Years of running is what Masanet credits with making his runs successful.

“I was intelligent in my approach to the run in terms of pacing myself well and holding back the pace early in the run,” Masanet said. “That is what being around running for 20 plus years will teach you; how to get the most out of yourself, regardless of your fitness level.”

Last year’s run to Terre Haute was harder physically on Masanet than the run this year.

“The run last year just about killed me,” he said. “I couldn’t walk normal for two weeks and the first few days were very difficult. I could barely move.”

After his run this year, Masanet took an ice bath and was at cross-country practice an hour later. Last week, Masanet developed pain in his left foot that causes him to walk with a limp sometimes.

“I guess that was a hidden injury that didn’t surface until later but has me walking with a limp sometimes, it comes and goes,” he said.

What does not come and go is the cross-country team’s need to fundraise.

The team does three fundraisers throughout the year.

The team will sponsor “open races” Friday night after the preliminary rounds of the Girls State Track meet at O’Brien Stadium. Anyone can enter for a fee. The team sells Trip of a Lifetime raffle tickets in the fall, an event sponsored by the Panther Club. In the spring, members of the cross-country team ask for donations for Masanet’s 50-mile run.

“My idea of doing this run was prompted as a singular event I could do, so that my athletes wouldn’t have to do anything, other than ask for donations,” said Masanet. “I don’t like having them spend lots of extra time fundraising, as they are busy enough with their studies and running, so this was a way for me to use my time, rather than their time.”

Eastern’s cross-country team’s budget for the 2007 fiscal year was $9,373 for both the men’s and women’s teams, which is the smallest budget for any sport at Eastern.

For the fiscal year 2007 the men’s team was expected to raise $3,320 and the women’s team was expected to raise $3,325.

“I supposed I will do this every year that I feel we need to supplement our budget in order to do the things that we need to do to travel to competitive meets, have quality shoes for the kids to train in and things like that,” said Masanet. “Between the three fundraisers, we basically met our fundraising goals for the year.”