How this Runner Used His Long-Distance Racing Skills to Raise Money for CNM

There are very few people capable of running 100 miles. Adam Trubow is one of them. He recently ran 102 high-alpine miles with 23,000 feet of elevation gain as part of the Silverton Ultra race, finishing in a time of 37 hours and 54 minutes. Running for that amount of time is challenging to say the least.

“There are only two things that are bound to happen during a 100-mile effort. First, things will not go as planned. The race ain’t going to happen like you want, no matter how thorough the preparation is,” Adam says. “The second is that you are certain to encounter physical pain, self doubt, sleep-deprived fatigue, and a desire to just quit and have it stop. These things become external and internal for the runner. But with the darkness, so follows the light. You embrace the meaning of a day and it’s full cycle—every second of it. Time seems to evaporate around you and all that exists is the task at hand.”

Adam runs for the love of running but he’s also decided to dedicate his efforts to a good cause. Through a program he calls “100 Friends for 100 Miles,” he’s raised money for organizations he believes in during his races. 

In 2019 he raised over $12,000 leading up to the Bighorn 100 trail run. Of that money, $6,000 went to the widow of a fallen firefighter and $6,000 went to an adolescent cancer survivor. This year he decided to donate all the fundraised money from the Silverton race to CNM. 

Adam decided on CNM for several reasons. First, he knows first-hand the power of an education. After graduating from UNM in 2003 with a bachelor’s degree in Entrepreneurial Studies Adam went on to found Tal Realty Inc., a successful real estate investment firm. Trubow also founded Tickets for Joy, a nonprofit organization that gives unused event tickets to kids, disabled veterans, and others in need. 

Second, he’s seen how CNM changes lives. More specifically, he heard a number of student success stories including one about Christiane Kady, a single mom who went through a family death and divorce but used CNM and available scholarships to restart her life as a nurse.  

“It’s clear that CNM is an important and vital necessity for our community that provides education and work training opportunities. As New Mexicans, we must band together and support each other in furthering education, community, and the intellectual betterment of our entire state population,” he says. “There can be no better resource and no better way to help lift our state than in assisting meaningful educational opportunities and providing the chance to enhance one’s ability to work and provide for themselves and family.”

Here at CNM, the Foundation was overjoyed to receive the gift from Adam and will be using the money to provide scholarships for students.

"Adam is an inspiration. It's not every day that someone calls to tell you that not only are they going to run 100 miles but in conjunction they want to raise $20k to support our community. It’s actually never happened in my 20 years of fundraising,” says Clint Wells, the CNM Foundation Executive Director. “Adam exemplifies the core values of CNM and we are sincerely appreciative for his support."

On his end, Adam plans to continue running and raising money. He puts in nearly 50 miles each week and is already looking forward to his next fundraising opportunity. 

“The trail is long and who knows where it will go,” Adam says. “That’s the beauty of all this. I’m going to keep pushing the fundraising and the running.”