McKale Montgomery: From TCU Track Star to Runner's Dystonia to Cowtown 50K Champion

DFW Running Talk: McKale Montgomery
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Chris Detzel: [00:00:00] Welcome to DFW Running Talk. I'm Chris Detzel, so let's get started.

Hey everyone. Chris Detzel here from DFW Running Talk and I have a race you gotta know about. So on April 4th, Panther City Ultra at Marion Sampson Park in Fort Worth, Texas, there's four distances, a 50 K, 20 5K, 10 K, and a 5K. So here's the thing, my wife Leo, my son Tegan and I are all running the 5K that morning and it's actually Leah's birthday.

So we're making a family celebration on the trails, and I want you to join us. So whether you're chasing that 50 K challenge or just wanna knock out a 5K. Like we are the race has something just, basically for everyone. So it's in Fort Worth. Great atmosphere, always great atmosphere when Rob put these, puts these races on and is captain about 300 runners, so it's not gonna be the zoo.

The rise racing is putting this on for us. They're our very first sponsor, as some of you might know, and [00:01:00] they do all our races rights, so use code DFW for 10% off April 4th. Marion Sampson Park, let's run together. The link is in the bio and I hope to see you out there. Take care, take.

All right. Welcome to another DFW Running Talk. I'm Chris Detzel, and today's special guest is McKale Montgomery. McKale, how are you

McKale Montgomery: doing? Pretty good, thanks.

Chris Detzel: I appreciate you coming on, and one of the things that I saw very recently is that you won the 50 K outright at Cal Town, and that's never happened before.

Congratulations.

McKale Montgomery: Thanks. Yeah, that was fun. I'm still living that high.

Chris Detzel: I'm sure of it. And so before we get into that, because I wanna go into detail about that race, because it's so recent and in such a great accomplishment. I wanna talk a little bit about you. You live, I think, in Fort Worth or DFW.

McKale Montgomery: I'm in Fort Worth.

Chris Detzel: Okay. And let's talk a little bit about your racing journey. Like how'd you start running,

McKale Montgomery: so I started running because I really wanted to be a good basketball player. Loved basketball when I was young, would every summer at basketball camp. And I have [00:02:00] this very like core memory sitting in the car with my grandpa dropping me off at basketball camp.

He said it took more than just that. I, that tho he said those runners, they ran every day. He told me that. Basketball players ran seven miles a day. No idea where he got that number. Told me that.

Seven

Chris Detzel: miles a lot

McKale Montgomery: for basketball, collegiate basketball player. And I was like, if basketball players were on, I run.

That's what I'm doing, and then we just, before high school, we moved out into the country. I'm from Oklahoma, small town. We moved out about four miles from town and I wanted to make the varsity team, but I couldn't drive, so I. Practice freshman year I was the only freshman to make the varsity basketball team and I was also Allstate cross country state qualifier in track and then ended up winning the mile and the two mile my sophomore, junior, and senior year in track for.

So turns out I was a little bit better than basketball player.

Chris Detzel: Did you keep playing basketball?

McKale Montgomery: No. I ended up once the. Small town, Oklahoma, usually your biggest goal in life is to get out of small town Oklahoma. So once the college recruitment [00:03:00] letters for running started coming in, I switched to running and I ended up, so I'm, this is my second time back to the DFW area, so I got a full scholarship to run for TCU, and I ran for TCU from 2003 to 2007.

Chris Detzel: How'd you do?

McKale Montgomery: I was awful. Just turns out Class A track in Oklahoma does not translate to division one super seamlessly. I just got my tail kicked for three years. We got a really solid coach my fourth year turned around and out of, no, I mean I was the first TCU runner in program history to win a conference championship at the 10 k at that distance.

It's been done since then, but I was the first one to do distance conference champion so it really turned around right at the end.

Chris Detzel: Just think coaches make a huge difference, doesn't it?

McKale Montgomery: Funny thing is, so yeah, so he, I can't even, his Eric Hines, he was in AU to their national championships. Good coach.

But funniest thing is tcs, historically a sprint school. I love telling this story. Came time for the 10 k. Been [00:04:00] hot. They were, everybody was hungry. Coach loaded up the whole team. Go back to the hotel. It's me, distance coach, couple of my friends and my mom. I was seated like seventh. I ended up winning it and I, my coach distance coach is on the phone.

Sir. ML just won the 10 K? No sir. I am not shitting you right now.

That's my favorite collegiate running story.

Chris Detzel: I love it. Did, how'd, do you remember the time that you ran?

McKale Montgomery: It was not particularly fast. They, the, that's, that was their problem. They let it go like a stre, like a chess match as happens and, conference championship races and not always the fastest, but I'm a pretty good strategist.

They just played it to my, in my liking. Ended up just being able to out kick in the end, which was great. I wasn't, it was not particularly fast. It was. 35 high, 36 low.

Chris Detzel: Okay. Yeah. It's not bad.

McKale Montgomery: No, I know. No,

Chris Detzel: it was, it's pretty fast.

McKale Montgomery: Fine. It was a hot day. But

Chris Detzel: yeah,

McKale Montgomery: nothing to

Chris Detzel: everything.

All right, so you go to college and you [00:05:00] do pretty well, especially at the end. Mostly. You won

McKale Montgomery: Yeah, at the end.

Chris Detzel: Pretty amazing. And what'd you, what was next? What? How'd you, did you kept running or did you think

McKale Montgomery: Yeah so that's it. I've never stopped I ended up gonna Oklahoma State.

For a master's degree, and I had a season of indoor eligibility left. And coach saw me running fast around the lake, said, Hey, why don't you got any eligibility left, come run. So I ran a season of indoor at Oklahoma State, made a bunch of running friends, and as soon as that eligibility was over, I would train with the team and then go ran, win five cases for like a hundred dollars a year, $200 there.

And that was just my hustle, my side hustle through grad school. I ended up getting a PhD. I just ran for. Grocery money Master PhD,

Chris Detzel: you're actually paying to get G or you're running to get grocery money. It's funny you

McKale Montgomery: Yeah. That's pretty, yeah, it's a vicious cycle, right? Eat more.

But it was a fun, it was to do it

Chris Detzel: and you actually teach it TCU, right?

McKale Montgomery: Yeah. I'm ba I just moved back to Fort [00:06:00] Worth just about, it was December, 2024. So I've been here just a little over a year again and back at TC back in my department, I graduated from.

Chris Detzel: Nice. Nice. What do you do? What is your profession?

McKale Montgomery: So I'm a nutrition professor.

Chris Detzel: Okay.

McKale Montgomery: Doesn't always tell the whole story. I teach like advanced metabolism, but my appointment's 50% teaching 50% research. So I also study nutrient gene interactions and chronic disease development and run a pretty active research lab as well.

Chris Detzel: That's awesome. I'm just curious, and that's a lot, it sounds like

McKale Montgomery: It's a lot that happens.

Yeah. It keeps me really busy.

Chris Detzel: All right. So you go to Oklahoma State as your, master's, and then

McKale Montgomery: I got my master's, then I got, then I stayed and got my PhD. Okay. Favorite story of running in grad school was that my. Advisor told me if I really wanted to finish when I was supposed to finish, that I needed to stop running so much, so I ended up, ugh.

My first marathon the semester I graduated Outta Spite, I think [00:07:00] so.

Chris Detzel: Was that your first marathon to run?

McKale Montgomery: It was not my first marathon to run. It was maybe my third or fourth. Okay. But I, it was my first one to win. You always remember those first wins.

Chris Detzel: So I'm curious, you've had a lot of history in running when you ran that first marathon, if you remember anything, how was your training?

Look, you had a background of running, so it's not like you didn't know.

McKale Montgomery: Yeah, so I was reading. I read that Meb Kki did like a what? A 10 day week cycle, 10 day running week cycle. I read this about him, whereas the long run was every 10 days instead of every seven. Okay. Allow for recovery. So I followed that route.

I ran quite a bit. I probably hit what was a lot for me back then 80 miles or more. Yeah. And that's a lot for anybody, but I'm crazy now and we'll get into

Chris Detzel: that in a minute.

McKale Montgomery: So I went to, so yeah, so crazy me wanted to qualify for the Olympic trials. This was back in 2011, so trying to do 12 trials.

I [00:08:00] wanted to qualify for the Olympic trials in my first ever marathon. Back then, the qualifying time was 2 46.

Chris Detzel: Yeah.

McKale Montgomery: And in my first marathon, I ran 2 48 and I bet I walked. I just, I went out so fast and I blew up so hard. I did it 2 48 the hard way. I went out in one 19, came back in a nice 1 29 or something like that.

Chris Detzel: Did you ever run a half marathon before that?

McKale Montgomery: I had.

Chris Detzel: Okay.

McKale Montgomery: Nothing. Nothing that would indicate that I should be able to run one 19 twice. I think I had a one 18 pr.

Chris Detzel: Okay.

McKale Montgomery: Just got all, it was in Chicago. My first marathon was Chicago. I got into their American development because of my faster half marathon time.

So I was just, you're on, this is my first time you ever doing a big city race like that. Gun goes off and there are 40,000 people behind you. You just. Sprint.

Chris Detzel: It's so interesting. You had a goal to hit a 2 46 marathon, to be in the Olympic trials. You were so close, like you were, if you think about [00:09:00] that you weren't, that you were only two minutes off.

Were you devastated from that or were you just Yeah, I'll do the next one.

McKale Montgomery: Yeah, I think I was shell-shocked. What just happened? I don't even know. I didn't, I don't think I knew how to feel because everybody, and they were right. 2 48 is a hell of a first marathon.

Chris Detzel: Hell of a first,

Hell of a first.

McKale Montgomery: But I, obviously we had goals and didn't hit 'em. So my, so a couple of my buddies that was so Chicago marathon's always what? First, second Sunday, October. Yeah. Came home next week, went for a run with a friend. She was like, Dallas is in seven weeks, something like that. You're already in shape.

So I came down to back when it was White Rock.

Chris Detzel: Yeah.

McKale Montgomery: Just what it was like eight weeks later and tried again. Ran 2 47, so I so missed it from two minutes. The first time, a minute, the second time it was pouring rain. That was, it rained for two hours and 47 minutes. I don't remember anything after that.

I just remember it rained the whole time.

Chris Detzel: But What year was that? [00:10:00]

McKale Montgomery: That would've been 2011.

Chris Detzel: Was that, was it really cold too? Like thirties? It was

McKale Montgomery: cold. It was miserable.

Chris Detzel: Yeah.

McKale Montgomery: Yeah, absolutely.

Chris Detzel: A twin brother that ran that one. Yeah.

McKale Montgomery: Ankle deep water. Just, all I was worried about was getting frostbite at that point.

Chris Detzel: Did you win it? I

McKale Montgomery: was, so that was back when White Rock was really competitive and they had double dip prize money. So I was third overall, but I was first American. That was also my biggest ever payday and no what they pay you in college they had a separate American prize money pot. So yeah.

Third overall, first American. So I,

Chris Detzel: do you remember what it paid you? I'm curious.

McKale Montgomery: I remember total it was two grand, which was like

Chris Detzel: nice, just

McKale Montgomery: huge. I was making $16,000 a year. So that was. Exactly to my income right there.

Chris Detzel: That's a huge yeah. Number for, especially if you're making 16 KA year. Wow, that was impressive.

All right, so you run a few marathons and when did you get to that Olympic trial? Because, I'll say this is, and you probably know this by now, is, your first marathon. Not always your worst, but it's not [00:11:00] al it's never gonna be your best if you continue on to run marathons. The opportunity over the next two or three years of anybody that continues to train their body gets used to it.

Now you've been running, you're a little different. Just because of what you've done, but still running that amount of miles, 80 plus miles is probably a shock on the body, but it has to be continuous for the next several couple years for your body to get used to that, so I'm interested.

McKale Montgomery: Yeah. So now here four years later, everybody and their dog wants to qualify for the 2016 trials. They raised the standard at that point to two four, from 2 46 to 2 45 that year. And I went to California International CIM.

Yep.

McKale Montgomery: And I ran 2 46 0 6 and then. Four days later because the qualifying window was about to close and there were hardly any qualifiers.

They lowered the standard back to 2 46. So I ended up only missing it by six seconds. I like actually got [00:12:00] physically ill at work whenever I read that because I was. That's

Chris Detzel: frustrating.

McKale Montgomery: Yes. I missed it by six.

Chris Detzel: And then you're not pring by a lot. These are just

McKale Montgomery: like a

Chris Detzel: minute

McKale Montgomery: or two. Two. I was really stuck.

I was like 2 46 to 2 49. I could just do all day.

Chris Detzel: Yeah. And

McKale Montgomery: I could not figure out how to get. Past that point then comes,

Chris Detzel: did you ever decide to do something different, like

McKale Montgomery: training or something along the way? Yeah. Varied things along the way. Focus more on sprinting, trying to focus on the 5K again, do more social running, whatever I got and I got married, I had a baby in 2018.

And then, so this is awful. I'm a registered dietician, PhD in nutrition. Finally just started practicing what I preached. It's I got this kid that's gonna mirror what I'm gonna do, right? Yeah. Kids they watching every move. Anyway, so I ended up, I ran when I was pregnant. I ran, [00:13:00] I averaged 70 miles a week for the first.

20 weeks at 23 weeks, I was out for a run and my SI joint popped out of place. That was it. That was it till I delivered. Started running again a couple weeks after she was born. Just jogging, and it felt so good. Everything was back together again.

Chris Detzel: I'm sure it's better.

McKale Montgomery: So I ended up running 2 40 10 months postpartum.

So yeah,

Chris Detzel: maybe that was the answer the whole time is have a baby and then learn.

McKale Montgomery: Take a break.

Chris Detzel: Yeah, probably the

break.

McKale Montgomery: Helpful or take an induced break and kind of reinvigorate the love for it, right?

Chris Detzel: Yeah. So what you ran the two 40, where was Chicago?

McKale Montgomery: I was back. Back at Chicago. That's,

Chris Detzel: yeah.

McKale Montgomery: And then got to go to the trials and that was awesome.

Chris Detzel: How'd you do that?

McKale Montgomery: I actually did pretty well. I was, that was the year that everybody qualified, so made it right. They lowered it back to 2 45 and they had 400 qualifiers. I got 30th though, and I ran 2 38 on a very hilly, windy course, and so I [00:14:00] was,

Chris Detzel: what was the, where was the,

McKale Montgomery: we were in Atlanta, so we got those Atlanta hills and it was just crazy windy that day.

Chris Detzel: What do you think of outta curiosity? When you. Think about the shoes and the stuff that you were wearing back then compared to the stuff now. And we'll get into the other, a few other things too, but I'm just curious on that. Do you feel like, it's gotta be better, right?

McKale Montgomery: Oh yeah.

So that was two 40 at Chicago was actually, it was about 10 months after the Nike, 4% first ones came out because I was like, with my infant and a good friend of mine. Sent me a pair of four percents in the mail.

Chris Detzel: Really?

McKale Montgomery: And he was like, Hey, I ended up getting a, somehow getting a snag and a pair of these for free.

He was like you'll do better for when in them, and then I will. And so one, but I was on that fence like everybody else. Is this cheating? Should they be allowed? Should they not be allowed? And I just was, I was just. Turmoil. I was asking everybody really, is this something I should do?

I don't know how I feel about this. I'm of [00:15:00] that likelihood that it is an advantage. 'cause I, I'd p I'd warn them to run in clear. I would call myself a good responder to him and I, he ended up reaching out to just a buddy of mine who I'd trained with for a long time when I was in Phoenix. And he is just a good sounding board.

And I said. I don't think I wanna run in these, I don't feel comfortable with it. I don't know if I feel comfortable with it. And he said think about this. How are you gonna feel when you step on that line in Chicago and everybody else is wearing those shoes, but you Yeah. And that was, and he was right.

So I took him put'em on, I had to everybody,

Chris Detzel: everybody has '

McKale Montgomery: em. Look to the left, look to the right. We're all wearing the same thing.

Chris Detzel: I was thinking the same thing as I remember I was running a race and I don't wear 'em anymore 'cause it starts to hurt my Achilles, so I just don't run. But I loved them.

But I got to this race when they were new, every single person at that race, especially the really fast people were wearing them. And it looked odd to me at first, because they were the Nike Vapor [00:16:00] Fly or whatever it was. I don't know what they were, but they're just so different, and I'm like,

McKale Montgomery: yeah,

Chris Detzel: These just look goofy on people, but they're really light and really, and they work, so

McKale Montgomery: Yeah. Then at the Olympic trials, Nike did that thing where, 'cause they hadn't released the Alpha Fly yet, but they wanted their runners to wear 'em on race day. So to pull that stunt, they had to give every single runner in the race a pair.

I did not wear them that day because I am not crazy like some people are. But yeah, that was, they knew what they're doing. Warm after that. Yeah.

Chris Detzel: Even today, I mean with all the other super shoes, they still do very well. They or known, for that Now, if they just had an everyday shoe, but maybe one day.

So you get to the Olympic trials, you ran your first how'd you feel afterwards? You did well, but were you so ecstatic and all that kind of stuff beforehand and then after?

McKale Montgomery: Yeah, I that even though I've ran faster since then, that was a race I was really proud of. 1 2 38 was a PR on a really hilly course with all the best 500 of the best runners in the world.

And

Chris Detzel: you got 30

McKale Montgomery: plus in America and I got [00:17:00] 30th. But. I would call that I told my training partner, I said the first time, the first race, first marathon, that I executed completely to my ability. That's as fast as I am capable of running right now. Yeah, it was, like sometimes you're like, oh, did I have a little more or did I go too fast and I blew up?

Yeah, no. I ran right at my ability and executed it. Even split was just in that it's probably the best. I've, one of the best I've ever done was just like that's, that was as good as I was at the time and I pulled it off and I was super happy about it.

Chris Detzel: That sounds amazing. Did you I assume you saw some people that you knew or knew of, as elite athletes?

McKale Montgomery: Yeah, like I said, 500 running the whole it's world's small place, take 500 women ranchers. So somebody knew from Oklahoma, somebody knew from Arizona where I had done my postdoc, some I, oh, wow. Yeah. So it was fun.

Chris Detzel: Yeah. That's pretty awesome. Now have you qualified since then?

McKale Montgomery: Oh, I [00:18:00] have a lot of sad stories since then. Yeah, so that, so within 20, that was 20, right after that the world shut down.

Chris Detzel: Yeah.

McKale Montgomery: No races on the forefront. I was going nuts because I was in the shape of my life. So I actually spent that summer just. Training to see if I could ever break five minutes in the mile.

I'd never done that. I always wanted to do that. So I took the whole summer. So I say Mile 1600 by the way. 'cause I didn't know where the mile mark was. So I ended up around 4 55. That summer into 1601st marathon. I did back after that. I was my first time ever in a big race where I beat all the men and all the women.

I ran 39 at Prairie Fire, set this Kansas State record and beat all the men in the race.

Chris Detzel: That's amazing.

McKale Montgomery: So that was fun. We're gonna

Chris Detzel: talk about that one, another one like that in a minute.

McKale Montgomery: And then I got in because of those fast times I got into that race, I don't know if it was called the Marathon Project.

They did it again this year. They wanted, because people were losing contracts, right? There weren't enough races [00:19:00] to go around, so elite runners were losing money, losing contracts. Ben Rosa. And did

Chris Detzel: you get paid to do any of these runs?

McKale Montgomery: Oh, I would win prize money.

Chris Detzel: Okay.

McKale Montgomery: But, so Ben Rosario is a professional coach and agent, he put on something called the Marathon Project.

They only allowed the 50 fastest men and the 50 fastest women in the US in, and I got in. That's where I ran. My PR ran 2 34, so that was

Chris Detzel: Let's talk about a, so that's what's pretty awesome. You run, you go to the 50 fastest. So you really had to be fast that day. What'd you do to train

McKale Montgomery: for that?

Yeah, fastest. And I was like, I ran 2 34 and I'm gonna be honest, I think I was like first place. Like it was

Chris Detzel: exactly

McKale Montgomery: crazy fast,

Chris Detzel: but you get less.

McKale Montgomery: I didn't get less,

Chris Detzel: And you had your best day ever. Yeah. At that time, when you get up to the, how are you feeling when you got up to that particular race?

I'm curious, were you feeling good?

McKale Montgomery: You

Chris Detzel: ran your best.

McKale Montgomery: I was just insanely nervous. I was nervous at that [00:20:00] point. It was just because, everything was still in so uncertain. We're still in 2020, still aren't happening. The, it was like, it was one of those things is I don't know when I'm gonna get to race again.

I haven't got to do this in a long time. And this is. Is this my one shot? What, what goes from here? So I felt like it was just more, it wasn't one of those if this, if I don't do well here, I'll just sign up for another race, because I didn't know when the next race would be.

So it just,

Chris Detzel: no did,

McKale Montgomery: it made me super nervous. I was a ball of anxiety, but it was fun.

Chris Detzel: You get out to the starting line and you kill it. For you?

McKale Montgomery: Yeah.

Yeah, there was, I, yeah I ran I'd have to look, but I remember I, my splits were in impressive I think my fastest mile was 5 48 and like my slowest mile was like 5 55.

Like it was just. Metronome.

Chris Detzel: Alright, so after that race I know there was a ra I was reading about you were in a runner's world a few years ago, and one of the races that they mentioned I don't know what the race was, but something to where you were telling me [00:21:00] you ran your best ever and then the bike went off course, like seven people followed this bike and you were off just a little bit.

Tell me about that.

McKale Montgomery: So that ended up being my next race, and it was here in Texas. It was down at the Woodlands. Okay.

Chris Detzel: Yeah.

McKale Montgomery: And they were the first ones to say, yeah, we're back. We're, it was, I think that was the first marathon to say, yeah, we're back. We're in person. We're doing this thing. I was in good shape still.

I was excited about it. And it was, and they, I was, I wanted to win. I wanted the prize money. I love prize money. Ended up just, it was a great weather day. I felt good. Was tight race there through half. I actually prd through the half in that race. I came through the half in like one 16 and I was like, man I like said to the, because I was neck and neck.

Me and this second place we're still running just side by side. Saw the clock as we went by. I was like, Hey, I just hard in the marathon. [00:22:00] Anyway. That's pretty

Chris Detzel: impressing.

McKale Montgomery: Anyway. And the, so the watches were. It's one thing for your watch sometimes, your watch just never lines up with the mile markers in a race.

It's just,

yeah,

McKale Montgomery: it never happens. But it was actually quite close. And then we come off the water, we're return and the course re kinda repeats on itself a little bit. And we pass a mile marker, nowhere near where my watch had split. And I was like, that was weird. 'cause we were just like, we were pretty on him.

Chris Detzel: Yeah.

McKale Montgomery: And I saw somebody. Turned back. Someone from a guy in front of me turned back, he was, and I was like, what the heck's going on? I still have second place, she's on my shoulder, but I'm starting to lose her. Finally, we're like 14, 15 miles in and I'm like, she's gone. The cyclist is still in front of me and I kept saying, just hold on right here.

I was like. Just stay relaxed because every time I would split a mile on my watch, I was like, wow, that was faster than I thought. Wow, that was faster than I thought. Any minute now I'm gonna slow down Any minute I'm gonna be tired. And I never got tired. We crossed the line [00:23:00] in two 30, some change. My watch said 26.0 something and the, I saw the course, I saw the race director, and I said, man, your course is short.

He said, no. Something happened and they knew. They figured it out because you take that little jaunt out twice, and I only took it the second loop because the cyclist missed it. They did the math yeah. 275 meters that I missed off the course, but I got disqualified. Second place who was with me at the time got disqualified.

They were what happened in Atlanta recently with the US half marathon championships. Yeah. The Woodlands recognized. There was a lot that went into that mistake happening, so they ended up paying me and second, our prize money or the food that were disqualified, prize money, and then also the first place prize money because but I still like, that doesn't, I didn't run a marathon pr, I ran the fastest 26 miles of my life,

Chris Detzel: but that's devastating, i'm glad you got the money. [00:24:00]

McKale Montgomery: It's still, it still burns a little.

Chris Detzel: Yeah, that's, that was not, that was a few years ago.

McKale Montgomery: 2021,

Chris Detzel: but all but still that would be devastating. I can't even imagine. I've run courses where there's this one marathon, it's called Big D, and they went like a mile over the course.

Like it was ridiculous. So at least you'd get 27 miles, not 26.

McKale Montgomery: Yeah. You still to get the distance.

Chris Detzel: Yeah, that, that just sounds terrible. I really hate that. But it's a story nonetheless. And something you went through and you had to deal with. How'd you deal with that afterwards?

Like what, over the last, you had something next I'm sure, but did it take you a while to get over it or,

McKale Montgomery: yeah, so I've just never had a, that was one of those, like the race you dream of. I have never felt that good in a race since I've been, what I felt like is in better shape. I spent, I took some time away and decided to wait.

And run grandma's that summer, the grandma's marathon in Duluth. And in arguably better shape, I [00:25:00] actually thought I might dip under two 30 on a good day, and I just did not, I ran 2 36 and I just felt like garbage. I just actually just felt bad. Honestly. I wasn't even that upset because I was like running 2 36, feeling bad every single step of the way that it was pretty good.

Chris Detzel: That's the worst.

McKale Montgomery: It was just. I never felt good, never got comfortable. It was like not even the first mile, so it was rough.

Chris Detzel: When you look back and understand what you're trying to do, and that's, I guess that's the beauty and the beast of a marathon. You never know what you're gonna do and how you're gonna feel on that day.

McKale Montgomery: Yeah.

Chris Detzel: No matter your training. It's not like you go into these run a 2 36, which is amazing.

They're trained. You obviously have some talent,

McKale Montgomery: can't control weather, can't control, there's all sorts of stuff. All the variables.

Chris Detzel: Yeah. Yeah. You've run so many marathons now that you're like, what is your, as you look for, so was that your best time was the 2 34 was, yes.

That's

McKale Montgomery: my official PR

Chris Detzel: Official, [00:26:00] yeah. And then your best marathon was the Woodlands, but yet

McKale Montgomery: wasn't even ca wasn't even my best marathon.

Chris Detzel: Best 26 miles.

McKale Montgomery: Best 26 miles.

Chris Detzel: So as we fast forward, let's talk a little bit about Cal Town, but before we do tell me a little about your training re regime. You mentioned that you do a lot more than 80 miles today. What does that look like? Just as a training block I would say.

McKale Montgomery: So I'll usually, like a standard training block for me is 10 to 12 weeks now.

I just always have a base. I'm always running whether I'm doing workouts or not. So I'm just running. I like running what I do. For me, it's usually I'll usually workout in my. Usually do a workout every other long run some one Saturday, it'll be a really hard push. Another Saturday it'll just be the miles and then another, a midweek.

So it's usually, so it's only one to two workouts a week for me with lots of mileage. I always say the, there's so there's [00:27:00] running and I tell people this, and this is what I finally just got disciplined at as I got older and had kids and have a stressful job and have to just. You just have to run a tight ship.

You either do it or you don't. You either do it or you don't. There's a two kids full-time job. There's plenty of reasons not to, but for me, if I'm not running miles, if I'm not eating well, if I'm not sleeping well and I'm not doing core workouts, I have to have all four. All four of 'em. I've tried.

I've ran so many marathons doing three out of four of those things, any given three, never in the same order. Always randomly. And it never works out for me. I have to have all four of 'em. It has to, otherwise, that's it. So I do, I only do one to two workouts a week. Prioritize sleep, prioritize eating well and,

Chris Detzel: it's such a busy life. Do you run with a community of people at all or do you have time to do that?

McKale Montgomery: I wish.

Chris Detzel: Or is it just

McKale Montgomery: No. I don't. Five days a week, I'm done by 7:00 AM Get the kids wake up and get 'em off to school. I have supportive kids, supportive husband, so they know that.

The weekend starts after mom gets back from a run. [00:28:00] Yeah. I start before their, wait, before they even wake up just to, so I can maximize time with them. But that's just it. Back in, before I moved here, I had a training partner, then he got a job moved off, and since I've just finished with Cowtown, I had another a woman runner.

The actual female, the record holder, so fastest Cow Town. Okay. Ever from 2016. She reached out and was like, Hey, we should try to run together, and we ran together this too Monday, so maybe I'll find people to run with.

Chris Detzel: What's her name?

McKale Montgomery: Elizabeth Northern,

Chris Detzel: was it Liz? Liz. Liz. Yep. She's run that race several times, so that's awesome.

And I'm glad that she reached out. That's really cool.

McKale Montgomery: Yeah. Yeah. I'm glad

Chris Detzel: she's been on she's been on the pod, like I had the four really fast women that went to Boston last year, and they came on and talked a little bit about their experiences within Boston. They're all pretty fast, so have you done a 50 K before? Before that was first. What made you decide [00:29:00] to sign up for the.

McKale Montgomery: Ego mostly.

Chris Detzel: Tell me more about that. What do you mean?

McKale Montgomery: So since we've had a lot of haphazards happen since then, I was running really well. I ran, so then they lowered the Olympic trials qualifying time to 2 37, right?

For 2024, I ran 2 35. 20 days before the window opened. Oh, two weeks before the window opened. And then I ran 2 47 0 2, and so two seconds. And that was summer 2022. And September, 2022, my right leg stopped working. Like just,

Chris Detzel: oh, wow.

McKale Montgomery: Lost the ability to control my light right leg while I was running and that.

So doctors, physical therapists, different doctors, different physical therapists, MRIs, x-rays. Nothing wrong. Tried to run. I had signed up for races. I fall a lot. Anytime I try to run fast I lose my balance. I'll tend to fall. I'm just missed [00:30:00] racing. So last year, right after we moved here, I signed up for the full, and again, I know it sounds crazy, but you're talking about somebody who was just running two 30 fours.

Whenever she felt like it there for a while and my leg still, hadn't been working. I ended up running 2 57. So

Chris Detzel: you never figured out what

McKale Montgomery: was wrong with

Chris Detzel: your

McKale Montgomery: leg? Yeah, almost. We just know. So I ran 2 57 but got fourth. That was like the deepest cow town ever because 2 57 is usually at least second.

Yeah. But I got four. I had won, I won Cal Town in 2018, the full

Chris Detzel: Okay.

McKale Montgomery: So I was like, I figured I could dip under three hours. And I was like, ah, that'll get me on the podium. And I got fourth hurt. My feelings to be just totally blunt about it.

Chris Detzel: Yeah, somebody that's used to winning and or running. Really?

McKale Montgomery: Yeah.

Chris Detzel: A lot faster.

McKale Montgomery: And so come finally after that I end up searching around, found a physical therapist here. She recommended a new sports doc. And [00:31:00] so what was it maybe. November, just this past November, 2025. So we're three and a half years later. Finally, someone threw, that's terrible. Throughout the phrase that I had heard, because I'm huge Kara Goucher fan, which is, we think it's runner's dystonia.

And I was like, no, that can't be it because that's mental. And I don't have a, my mind's strong. I've always no can be a mental,

Chris Detzel: that's interesting

McKale Montgomery: thing. If it was mental. If it was mental, I'd have figured it out was like, because ego. Pretty big ego scientist, right? My job is, I'm a scientist.

I, I run a lot. I get it. And I was like, no. And so they started physical therapy changed to treat it like it's runner's dystonia. Talked with a doctor, started studying it, and scientist would found a case report that was published, just had just been published a couple months before of the first ever treated case.

It was on an elite marathon runner in Japan, and printed the article, made a doctor's appointment, said. Can we try this? So that was January maybe. That sounds about right. And she [00:32:00] talked and about this time I was like if I can't run fast anymore, I can still run far, so I'm gonna sign up for the 50 K.

And we started doing this experimental medication about the same time, and it has helped tremendously. I still really struggle with balance. I felt twice during this training block for the. For

Chris Detzel: Cal

McKale Montgomery: Town once on the treadmill, which like, I was still honestly still had some braces going into the race.

Yeah. So I honestly, I was just like, I'm gonna, for, that'd be the worst at treadmill a race. I think I can win that was it. I think I can run far. I was like, I know I can average under seven minute pace all day. Yeah. That's not, I can maintain my balance at seven minute pace. Ran 90 to a hundred miles a week.

I ran two full marathons at seven minute pace on the treadmill.

Chris Detzel: That sounds terrible

McKale Montgomery: to maintain my balance because I wanted to win the Ultra at Cowtown.

Chris Detzel: But when you that's a crazy story and I wasn't expecting that. So I appreciate you sharing that. I know others well, I think others might, you never know, might be able to learn from something like that Right now, [00:33:00] how are you feeling now?

What's The medications helped a little bit and

McKale Montgomery: medications helped. So it's an interesting one because not FDA approved for runner's dystonia. My, the doctor was hesitant. It's, they're only 48. Diagnosed cases in the US so it's hard to get a diagnosis like that and make it official. She wanted me to see a neurologist.

It took me six months to get in. My appointment was two days ago, he said. He said he agreed he wanted me to try different medication, one with potentially less side effects.

Chris Detzel: Okay,

McKale Montgomery: so I haven't started on that one yet because it also is not without side effects and I'm nervous. So I'm waiting for spring break.

Try it when I don't have to go to work. Just in case.

Chris Detzel: Smart smart. Let's talk about the race a little bit. The 50 K. So when you get on the line, you had it, the goal was to win it, the women's, anyways, so when you started out, what was that like? Was there a bunch of people in front of you or was

McKale Montgomery: Yeah so the runners dystonia makes it really hard for me to start really off balance.

In fact I'm pretty [00:34:00] embarrassed by how I look when I start running. I'm used to being this fluid. Elite runner and it looks like, I wa I laughed on the episode of friends when Phoebe ran like a crazy person, but when that's you and you can't control it, it's less funny. Yeah, of

Chris Detzel: course

McKale Montgomery: the medication helps.

So I don't look quite that bad anymore, but it's still awkward because I'm just. Balance my balance, getting my balance together. And I was nervous about being on the start line 'cause I didn't wanna get ran over and I don't wanna get in anybody's way. Yeah. Other people have goals.

It's not my business. So I tucked back and got right behind the 3 0 5 Pacer. Okay. I was like, I think I can start almost that fast. And that was my plan. So I was probably 20 seconds off the line or something.

Chris Detzel: I started with the 3 0 5 Pacer as well. I was doing it off. So I know him pretty well.

Braden is the,

McKale Montgomery: oh, that's fine. I just was like, you know what? This seems like the, yeah. A good group. I saw you, man. My goal was to come through the marathon, like 26 miles and three [00:35:00] flat, and so I was like, I know I need to start out a little slower than that. So I just tucked in with the 3 0 5 group.

Chris Detzel: That's pretty awesome. And did you run about a three hour marathon at that time or

McKale Montgomery: just under? I was just under.

Chris Detzel: Okay. Alright. And what was your time? So when did you start passing everyone from the 50 k? Do you remember? Because I know it's grouped

McKale Montgomery: up. Yeah. It's hard to tell, right?

Even the half marathon breaks off and then you're with the marathon. Yeah. Endot tell you though my, I had no idea really. I knew I was in the lead 'cause there was a cyclist next to me. Yeah, when I learned my lesson, as soon as the cyclist said, I'm your lead cyclist, I said, do you know this course

Chris Detzel: exactly?

McKale Montgomery: She said she'd done it before. So

Chris Detzel: it's my first, I don't even know. For worth.

McKale Montgomery: Yeah. That's what I was afraid of. So we did that. And I, so I knew I would get better as I go. I came through the half, like so 13 whatever, in like one 30. 2, 1 30, 1 high. Okay. Yeah. And then I started picking up the pace after that.

That's, I've [00:36:00] said this several times, I love being back in Fort Worth and having a local big race. Yeah. Because, I'm not super steady. I do almost all my training either on the treadmill or the flats of the Trinity trails, and I was starting to get. Pretty fatigued. 20 miles in, and I was like, crap, 10 miles to go, right?

So once we hit the trails, I was like, no one's catching me right now. Yeah, I own these trails. Like I know 'em like the back of my hand, so that was super nice. I loved that about it. The biggest like thing that annoyed me the most though was. So I had no idea. I knew I was the lead woman. I had no idea where the second place was or where the men were.

I had no idea. But when the marathon pulls off turns around and pulls back, the lead woman was only like 300 yards in front of me. And I was like, you mean I don't, I didn't need to run five more miles like I could have just. I only signed up for this To win would've you

Chris Detzel: would've won the marathon.

That's right.

McKale Montgomery: Would've just tried to, I could've just done that and so I was like that stink.

Chris Detzel: I thought this year or in December with the Dallas Marathon, [00:37:00] there seemed a lot faster people that ran that particular marathon than this particular marathon, this time in Cal Town. So it was interesting.

McKale Montgomery: You never know.

Chris Detzel: Like the guys were two.

24, then 2 26, first, second, third, I dunno what the women were, I think it was over three hours actually, so it wasn't as fast as you would've done anyways. So you get past the 26 mile and you realize you could have probably beat the woman, but.

McKale Montgomery: Yeah. And then, but I'm on the trails, so I'm enjoying myself and run it holding pretty good place.

And then I came through the marathon where, like I said I looked at my watch, I was like, I'm right on, just run just under three right now. But it was just that part of the trail. There's no one, there's no fans. There's cloudy, knew I was in the lead. So I start to like. Slow down because you're tired, but you hit that turnaround point at 27 miles.

Yeah. And I see the lead mail at that point, right? Like we cross, we have to cross paths and it's an arrow path. But I get to [00:38:00] Justin

Chris Detzel: Hun,

McKale Montgomery: I get to, that's

Chris Detzel: saw.

McKale Montgomery: Okay. So I get to the aid station there at the turnaround point though, and the ladies at that aid station were going nuts. Like I wasn't even thinking about, I was, didn't even cross my mind.

And they were like. He terrible. Go get him. He looks terrible. Go get him. And just, that's

Chris Detzel: awesome.

McKale Montgomery: And that was an, that actually was super helpful. Like it lit a little fire under me. I managed to pull my myself back together and caught him just after the 30 mile mark.

Chris Detzel: Wow. Wow.

McKale Montgomery: So it took me three miles to reel him in.

Chris Detzel: But you knew what you were doing. You've done

McKale Montgomery: this before. Not my fir my, my first 50 k, but not my first rodeo.

Chris Detzel: How did that feel your first 50 K? Was it just, do you feel like you'll do something like that again or,

McKale Montgomery: yeah. Right afterwards I was like, yeah, that, that was enough.

One

Chris Detzel: of those was

McKale Montgomery: probably enough.

Chris Detzel: Do it again. At least you did the road. A lot of the 50 Ks are on.

McKale Montgomery: Yeah. Yeah. I don't have the, even before the dystonia, I don't have the hand-eye [00:39:00] coordination to pull off trail running.

Chris Detzel: Dystonia. How'd you feel like, did it affect you during the race at all besides the first of the race?

McKale Montgomery: The start was rough.

Chris Detzel: Okay.

McKale Montgomery: But the start's always rough for me, so I just took it easy and tried to stay calm. I knew I'd get my rhythm. Okay. It takes me a little while, but I knew I'd find my rhythm, but I also, I'd never, I, and I ran as far as 26 miles for training runs, so I knew I was pretty good, but I knew I was also just uncharted territory.

Medicine I use only has a three hour halflife and it's a three and a half hour race exactly. That was just right. You

Chris Detzel: had to make it a three and a half hour race anyways,

McKale Montgomery: fighting a, fighting, fighting the clock in more ways than one. I had a little bit of trouble. There's that points where you have to go over gravel and there was that.

Point where they had to go off because they were building that new part on the trail. I, like 25, 26 miles in. So any, anytime I'm forced to alter my rhythm. So come down a curve. Come up a [00:40:00] curve. Yeah. Hit the gravel. Those were tougher probably for me to navigate the most, but.

Fortunately I stayed on my feet. That's something

Chris Detzel: that's congratulations on the outright win. That's amazing and more amazing is that you're trying really hard to overcome dystonia thing that is very rare and now you're still trying to do it.

McKale Montgomery: Just trying to learn to manage. Yeah.

Chris Detzel: Does it ever go away, do you know, or, what's the,

McKale Montgomery: no. The case study that I printed was the first ever report of the runner. Went off all medications after about a year.

Chris Detzel: Okay.

McKale Montgomery: And so there's hope, this is a case report of one, a male Japanese runner. It only takes one though, right? Yeah. So there's a lot, lots of differences there. Way we practice medicine here is a little bit different. They're a little faster and looser.

Chris Detzel: Yeah.

McKale Montgomery: And so getting, it's not a cheap medication [00:41:00] insurance. Yeah. Doesn't pay for experimental stuff, so you just fighting, it's just that, it's just a little bit every day.

But yeah, I'll, I got two kidneys. I probably sell a kidney to keep running, so I guess I'll see what it takes to keep it. Keep with the doctor and

Chris Detzel: yeah,

McKale Montgomery: stay optimistic, right? That's all you can do,

Chris Detzel: I think. I think that's the right approach. You be as positive you to.

I'm gonna go run this 50 KI know I have this thing, I'm gonna try to win it because I think I can. And that's the attitude, that's an attitude of a winner to me.

McKale Montgomery: Yeah. I have a thing like so you asked about, dealing with the woodlands and after the, after that the diagnosis with runner's dystonia and I had heard of it and I knew of it and I tried to look into it.

I I always have it. I have a thing tragedy's hard, but the thing is the world keeps spinning right It and it does no matter what and but I always give myself a day pity party. So I pick a day and I just feel [00:42:00] bad. For me, I just take the whole day and it's all about feeling bad for me. Usually got a six pack curse of light with me, some shows that I like and just spend the day feeling bad for me.

And then. I move on. Oh, yeah, that's all you can do.

Chris Detzel: A quick story. My wife, she's running 13 Boston marathons and a bunch of other marathons, and she'll have a bad day and she goes, Chris, I'm allowed to have a bad day. I'm gonna have one bad day. If I have it, I'm gonna have a pity party for me.

Okay, so I'll be okay tomorrow and I'll move on tomorrow, but the rest of this day I'm pissed, or whatever, but then I love that. It's funny you said that because she said the same way and I think, especially for running and, things like that, you're just gonna have to forget, and move on to the next run because there, luckily there is next runs and you've done a great job.

And is there anything that you're thinking about what's next? I know you're taking this new medicine and stuff. Maybe wait and see what's the Yeah.

McKale Montgomery: You know that breaking the tape is insert that into my veins. I [00:43:00] want it every day. So immediately I was like, maybe I should try to find, what's a race I could, sign up for what's the next shot?

But I. I knew I needed to see the neurologist. I wanna try this stuff out toyed with the idea of the Oklahoma City Marathon. 'cause I love that race. 'cause I'm from Oklahoma. That was the first marathon I ever ran in 2013. I set the state record there in 2022. So it's a fun race for me. But then, I don't know, because I feel like the pressure's on I don't go there anonymously.

People know, like my picture's on the big wall, on the expo, and i'm thinking once you

Chris Detzel: go, I'm running the app, I'd make sure to take a selfie for

McKale Montgomery: sure. I feel like it's too much. I'm like, maybe that's too much pressure. So yeah, I, we'll see.

Chris Detzel: Okay. Is there anything

McKale Montgomery: on the, so on the trails I on up,

Chris Detzel: Hey, I know you get go.

Is there anything that you know, I didn't ask that I probably should ask or that you wanted to bring up that you didn't bring up? Or that you might have a message for runners or whatever.

McKale Montgomery: Gosh, I wish I had something [00:44:00] profound to say right here, don't you? I mean anything. I feel like I just, I don't know what it is that, a lot of people love running, but just whether I'm running good or running bad, at least I'm running right?

Yeah. A bad day, running great quote, bad day running's better than a good day. Not. So

Chris Detzel: that's a great quote and I'm gonna use that quote. McKale, this has been great. I really appreciate you coming on and telling your story, and I thoroughly enjoyed it, and so

McKale Montgomery: thanks. I, yeah, I feel free to follow up.

I don't have, so I don't have a big running community here. Liz Northern reached out. Yeah, let's, maybe that'll change soon, I get to talk about running about zero people. Your

Chris Detzel: husband gets tired of it. Okay, babe, whatever.

McKale Montgomery: My most viral tweet ever was like. It was back when I was really in my big running boom and running again in a lot of professional races, and I said, sometimes I get jealous of these professional running women and their professional running husbands to pace them through these races.

Then I remember that I've trained mine to stand at the line for almost three [00:45:00] hours holding my purse a beer, and I'm pretty proud of that.

Chris Detzel: Exactly. There's nothing like having a spouse that is very helpful and supports your journey. I'm, and I'm sure you support whatever he does. I think it's important, my wife and I do the same for each other, right?

She's a runner. I'm a runner, and we support each other's running habits and what our, we go all over. I love,

McKale Montgomery: I've always had a strict never day runner policy.

Chris Detzel: Some of runners are too selfish than others. Yes, exactly. Support All wonder.

McKale Montgomery: I know mine.

Chris Detzel: I get it. Al, it's been great. I really appreciate you coming on. Thank you everyone for tuning into another DFW Running Talk. I'm Chris Zel. Please subscribe to our newsletter, DFW Running talk dot sub stack do com.

We're on Instagram, we're on TikTok, Facebook, YouTube, et cetera. So McKale, thanks again.

McKale Montgomery: Thank you.

Chris Detzel: By the way, that was all.