850 Million Reasons To Run

New York Road Runners
  • 5.0 (1)
  • RUNNING

We're so excited to announce our brand new audio docuseries, NYRR Set the Pace Presents: 850 Million Reasons to Run!  This powerful five-part audio documentary shares the extraordinary story of Peter Kirk: entrepreneur, proud New Yorker, father of three, cancer survivor, stem cell transplant recipient, and marathoner.   This special spin-off offers an intimate and deeply moving portrait of Peter’s journey—one that began with a sudden, life-threatening diagnosis and led to the finish line of the TCS New York City Marathon less than a year later.    Told in Peter’s own voice, and with heartfelt insight from his wife Torun and his stem cell transplant donor Sam, the series charts a course through illness, hope, and the healing power of movement.

Episodes

  1. Memento Mori | Episode 5 - Recorded LIVE

    06/06/2025

    Memento Mori | Episode 5 - Recorded LIVE

    It all started with a devastating diagnosis in the fall of 2020. Multiple chemo treatments, a stem cell transplant and many marathon finish lines later,  Peter joins NYRR CEO Rob Simmelkjaer for a special LIVE  taping of 850 Million Reasons to Run. Rob and Peter  dive into  the “memento mori” moment that reframed the meaning of Peter's life, turning a business leader into a global philanthropist with one singular quest- to turn his new found love of running into a global movement to empower life-saving medical research.   Let's unlock money for medical research!  Learn More, and Sign Up here-  https://www.beyourpossible.com/runforresearch New York Road Runners does not benefit from Be Your Possible donations or unlocked funds. NYRR is elevating Peter's story as part of our joint vision to create positive change through running. Signing up for Be Your Possible's Run For Research  is free to all  - there is no financial obligation for any runner who chooses to participate. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    20 min
  2. The Man Who Said Yes | Episode 4

    06/04/2025

    The Man Who Said Yes | Episode 4

    What happens when the person who saves your life is someone you’ve never met? A year after his transplant, Peter is finally allowed to contact the donor whose stem cells now run through his body and an eight‑page letter, dashed off at 38,000 feet, transforms into the meeting of two, forever connected humans. How do you pay it forward after the unthinkable? What do we owe others when someone else's good deed changes a man, a family and a future, forever? For Peter, the answer is RUN.   Let's unlock money for medical research!  Learn More, and Sign Up here-  https://www.beyourpossible.com/runforresearch New York Road Runners does not benefit from Be Your Possible donations or unlocked funds. NYRR is elevating Peter's story as part of our joint vision to create positive change through running. Signing up for Be Your Possible's Run For Research  is free to all  - there is no financial obligation for any runner who chooses to participate. DISCLAIMER  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    24 min
  3. Ninety Nine Seconds | Episode 3

    05/30/2025

    Ninety Nine Seconds | Episode 3

    Ninety nine seconds—that’s all Peter’s lungs can manage on his first post-transplant run. But  the shock of those agonizing 200 meters ignites an out‑loud promise to himself: Peter pledges he will run the 2021 TCS New York City Marathon, just 12 weeks away. Starting with small steps, Peter shrinks the city into single‑block laps, keeping the  memory of coughing up blood in reserve as inspiration to keep moving forward, step by step, to the start line on Staten Island. Race day erupts in tears and cannons and unexpected angels.  Peter attempts to leave the patient behind on the roads, and to cross the finish line into a new story.   Let's unlock money for medical research!  Learn More, and Sign Up here-  https://www.beyourpossible.com/runforresearch New York Road Runners does not benefit from Be Your Possible donations or unlocked funds. NYRR is elevating Peter's story as part of our joint vision to create positive change through running. Signing up for Be Your Possible's Run For Research  is free to all  - there is no financial obligation for any runner who chooses to participate. DISCLAIMER  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    21 min
  4. Tour De France | Episode 2

    05/28/2025

    Tour De France | Episode 2

    A Tour de France postcard is all Peter clutches as he steps back through the hospital doors, determined to earn a permanent cure. He’s about to take on the most demanding stage yet, flanked by bossy nurses, amazed pulmonologists, his devoted cavapoo, and his wife, Torun—all rooting for him along this personal, indoor Tour. (It will feel like the toughest climb—until he laces up for the 2022 TCS New York City Marathon…but that’s the next episode.) This Tour de France doesn’t just aim to save Peter’s life—it promises to change it forever.   Let's unlock money for medical research!  Learn More, and Sign Up here-  https://www.beyourpossible.com/runforresearch New York Road Runners does not benefit from Be Your Possible donations or unlocked funds. NYRR is elevating Peter's story as part of our joint vision to create positive change through running. Signing up for Be Your Possible's Run For Research  is free to all  - there is no financial obligation for any runner who chooses to participate. DISCLAIMER  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    25 min
  5. Decimated | Episode 1

    05/23/2025

    Decimated | Episode 1

    Meet Peter Kirk - a father, a New Yorker, and a runner - who found himself facing something far bigger than 26.2 miles.  850 Million Reasons to Run is the true story of Peter's journey—not just to the start line of the TCS New York City Marathon, but back to life itself. It’s about what happens when everything changes in an instant… and how running became the thread that helped put it all back together. Told in his own words—and through the voices of those closest to him—this is not your typical race story. We're so excited to announce our brand new audio docuseries, NYRR Set the Pace Presents: 850 Million Reasons to Run, the first audio documentary from East 89th St Productions, an NYRR Studio.   Let's unlock money for medical research!  Learn More, and Sign Up here-  https://www.beyourpossible.com/runforresearch New York Road Runner does not benefit from Be Your Possible donations or unlocked funds. NYRR is elevating Peter's story as part of our joint vision to create positive change through running. Signing up for Be Your Possible, Run For Research  is free to all  - there is no financial obligation for any runner who chooses to participate. DISCLAIMER  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    28 min
  • 5 Episodes

About

We're so excited to announce our brand new audio docuseries, NYRR Set the Pace Presents: 850 Million Reasons to Run!  This powerful five-part audio documentary shares the extraordinary story of Peter Kirk: entrepreneur, proud New Yorker, father of three, cancer survivor, stem cell transplant recipient, and marathoner.   This special spin-off offers an intimate and deeply moving portrait of Peter’s journey—one that began with a sudden, life-threatening diagnosis and led to the finish line of the TCS New York City Marathon less than a year later.    Told in Peter’s own voice, and with heartfelt insight from his wife Torun and his stem cell transplant donor Sam, the series charts a course through illness, hope, and the healing power of movement.

Information

  • Creator
    New York Road Runners
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    5
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 New York Road Runners
  • Show Website
    850 Million Reasons To Run