Brian Stark, a middle school teacher and ultra runner from Scottsdale, Arizona, will attempt to run 523 miles across Nebraska following the American Discovery Trail from Omaha to the Colorado state line from June 17 - July 10.

Promoting fitness, supporting local businesses and highlighting Nebraska's scenic beauty are the purposes of Stark's trek. He is also using the run to pursue a life goal: crossing all 50 states on foot. Nebraska will be state number 28.

The son of a marathoning father, Stark has been a long distance runner since middle school when he began running track. By the end of high school, Stark completed his 10,000th career mile. After graduating from Hanover College in southern Indiana, Stark hiked the 2,100 mile Appalachian Trail from Maine to Georgia.

He next set his sights on a coast-to-coast run. Using a 10-pound hip pack and wearing through 12 pairs of shoes, he ran 4,800 miles from Delaware to California on a network of trails collectively called the American Discovery Trail. He has since published a book on the trek, Getting to the Point. In a dozen pairs of shoes (Authorhouse, 2006). Most recently, he has run across Arizona and Iowa.

Lending support in this summer's event are Round the Bend Steakhouse and Ole's Big Game Steakhouse.

Stark will be flying into Omaha's Eppley Airfield to begin his trek but says, "I'll start running from the airport but I'm going to need to take a short detour to run across the new Bob Kerrey Bridge. What a great and beautiful addition to Omaha's trail network!"

Information about Brian Stark, his route, and his running can be found on his website: www.statesrunner.com

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