JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Running the Gate River Run has become more than a race for Casey Sparks.
The guy has literally done more races than he can count.
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“Excessive amounts like I don’t know even know how many marathons,” Sparks said.
Sparks laughed when asked about his finish line hardware, but then shifted the conversation to what he has learned and how he tries to help others.
“Every distance, there’s something that you can learn from. I mean, put it this way, right? Like I’ve done 100 mile races and I’ve gone to the well countless times in races, but I just did the shark bite half marathon here locally in New Smyrna Beach,” Sparks said. “I put on clinics every Saturday for 13 weeks before the race.
Sparks himself finished the Leadville Ultramarathon — a 100-mile ultra that draws elite competitors. He has learned a lot about himself in those races.
“I was telling my athletes this weekend, you know, it’s like, you’re here. You’ve got 12 people that showed up from different states that are here to pace you. Like, what are you gonna do? Are you gonna quit? Like, that doesn’t make sense,” Sparks said. “There’s like the physical, your muscles. There’s the mental your brain that’s telling you, you know what to do. Then there’s, call it you or your soul or whatever it is you want to call it, but it’s you. That’s why I tell a lot of people when they’re in that it’s like, who, who do you want to be in charge right now?”
Sparks is a well-accomplished runner and coach but his sobriety is one of the things he is most proud of. He got sober three years and three months ago. He says in his 20’s he was still dealing with the painful loss of his father.
“My father passed away when I was 19 in a four-wheeler accident. And I think that’s where it kind of all started from,” Sparks said.
We reached out to Sparks after he sent this excerpt to the Gate River Run about why this race is so important to him.
It reads:
Gate River Run isn’t just a race for me—it’s the start of everything.
I lined up at Gate River Run for the first time in 2019 for what I thought was just “a real race.” I had no idea it would become an annual checkpoint for my life. Since that first year, I’ve returned every year chasing progress, consistency, and that Top 10% hat—earning it five years in a row and lining up this year hungry for number six.
Since that first Gate River Run, everything has changed. I got sober. I learned discipline. I showed up when motivation was gone. That commitment carried me far beyond 15K—through countless marathons, every distance in between, and ultimately to the finish line of the Leadville 100.
Today, I’m a USATF-certified coach, helping others navigate the same slippery slope I once stood on—using running as a tool for structure, accountability, and belief. Every year I toe the line at Gate River Run, it reminds me where this journey started and why I keep coming back.
Not only does he compete at a high level at the race, but now performs at an even higher level at home.
“It kind of really helped everything that I was trying to do, you know, like be a good dad, be a husband, be good father or friend, a good business owner or coach,” he said. “I feel, like Gate River Run, like how I wrote that expert with Gate River Run is my annual checkup to see where I’m at and every year I try to PR every year. I’m getting a hat.”
So what is the goal this year?
“This year, I’m looking to go sub one hour, which is fast.”