Actually, Paul already did. I spotted this story on active.com yesterday, and it is well worth the read. Inspired by school kids rather than Forrest Gump, Paul Staso (don’t miss his photo gallery either) ran across the United States unassisted over four months last year:

Paul Staso completed a 3,260-mile run across the country. He began his trek at Cannon Beach, Oregon and ended 108 running days later at Cape Henlopen State Park on the Deleware coast on October 20, 2006. Staso, of Missoula, MT, became the seventh person to successfully run across the continent without any type of support crew.

Averaging 30 miles a day, Staso trekked along, pushing all of his gear, water and food in an Ironman jogging stroller. His route took him through 15 states, including Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland (and Washington D.C.) and Delaware.

Staso began running to honor his pledge to students in his hometown. He challenged them to maintain a walking/running exercise routine and track the distances their classes covered as a virtual trek across the country. If they succeeded, Staso said, he’d answer their activity by running from sea to sea for real. (By the way, that stroller he’s carrying included all of his supplies and weighed 65 pounds.)

Wow. This is definitely putting your money where your mouth is, and it is an amazing testament to physical and mental endurance. Way to go, Paul!