Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - What first started as a dare has now become a tradition for one Buffalo native, and it's even evolved into an event for charity to benefit one local organization.
Sunday will mark the 10th time that Brian Goldsmith has laced up his running shoes and made the 17-mile trek from Hertel Avenue in North Buffalo all the way to Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park. Goldsmith will be live streaming his run, while also raising funds for Wings Flights of Hope, a local organization that provides emergency medical flights for people of Western New York.
Goldsmith started his "Stampede to the Stadium" tradition the year the Bills ended their playoff drought in 2017, and it was more of a dare that started it all.
"I was living in Buffalo at the time, and I was really kind of just getting into endurance sports, so it's kind of testing the limits of what I thought I would be able to do," said Goldsmith in an interview with WBEN. "My wife had just bought me a GoPro, so I strapped the GoPro to my chest. I had season tickets, at the time, with all my friends, and I just ran to the game. Then we made the playoffs in that dramatic fashion on New Year's Eve, so I then was like, 'Well, for good luck, I have to run to the stadium again for the playoff game.' So I did it in the morning of the playoff game when we played in Jacksonville."
Since then, Goldsmith has made the run eight other times, including during last year's playoff run when Buffalo faced the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Divisional Round. He says each run from North Buffalo to Orchard Park usually takes anywhere between two-and-a-half and three hours, depending on how many stops he wants to make or how many people he want to talk with along his route.
It was during the offseason in August 2018 when Goldsmith then got a job in Dallas, which saw him moving away from home. However, it doesn't stop him from making the trip back to Western New York to make the 17-mile run once or twice a year.
Goldsmith is flying back to Buffalo on Thursday ahead of his run on Sunday.
"I love Buffalo, like every Buffalonian does, and I wanted to stay connected to the city. So I thought this would be a great way to stay connected with the city, to fly back home for the home opener every year and run from Hertel to the stadium," Goldsmith said.
Just in the last few years, Goldsmith has also been joined by one of his good friends from Dallas whenever the choose to make the 17-mile run for a game.
"I met somebody through my gym that I worked at, at the time, and he heard about what I was doing, and he was like, 'We should live stream it! I'd love to come up there with you.' And he's from San Diego, he has no ties to Buffalo whatsoever. And I was like, 'Are you serious?' He said, 'Yeah, let's do it! Let's make this a thing.' So he came up, I believe the first time he came up was when we played Tennessee [Titans], and it was a Monday night, and he had the time of his life. He said, 'This is something that we're going to do forever,'" Goldsmith recalled.
Every year since embarking on his journey, Goldsmith says it's grown quite a bit, especially with the fundraising element, which was something he came up with a couple years ago.
"I just thought it would be so cool to not only still stay connected to Buffalo for this run, but to do good with it too," Goldsmith explained. "I've live streamed all the runs, and starting to engage with the community as I run now. It's just really taken off. People seem to enjoy it, they enjoy watching, and hop on the live stream, give a 'Go Bills!' and words of encouragement as I go. It's just something I really look forward to now. And with the Bills being really competitive and in the playoffs every year now, this is just another level I get to take it."
In the times he has fundraised for his runs to Highmark Stadium, Goldsmith says he's usually earned about $1,000 every time. One of his runs helped generate over $2,000 in donations.
And like most people, Goldsmith says the folks at Wings Flights of Hope were shocked by the donation.
"They, like most people, were kind of surprised, like, 'Wait a minute, you're running from Hertel to the stadium?' I was like, 'Yeah, and I'd love to fundraise for you guys!'" he said. "They're right next to the stadium, they do great work for Buffalo. And I have a lot of stories that I've heard of people saying they've had really good relationships with Wings Flights of Hope. And they couldn't have been more gracious, and they're just so fun to work with. I've ended my run there a couple times now, and they are just another wrinkle to this whole experience that really gets me excited to do this every year."
In the lead up to Sunday's kickoff in Orchard Park, temperatures are expected to peak at around 18 degrees for the day, with a chance of snow showers in the forecast. As we inch closer to the scheduled start time at 6:30 p.m., temperatures could dip into the single-digits.
Goldsmith admits he never takes a look at the weather when he decides to make one of his runs.
"I'm gonna go running, and if the weather's gonna be cold, I don't care. It is what it is. If it's raining, if it's snowing, if it's windy, I don't care. I'm doing it for a cause, and I'm doing it for a reason," Goldsmith said. "I live in Texas, so I've been running all summer. I compete in the ironman distance triathlon, so I run quite a bit, and I run in the heat, I run in the cold. It's just no different to me. It's about the mission. So I'm looking forward to just being back in Buffalo. I'm a Buffalonian to my core, so a little cold is not going to hurt you."
Something that Goldsmith is proud of is the fact he's a Guinness World Record holder for the fastest marathon ran while dressed in football equipment. Working for the Arlington Renegades of the UFL in Dallas, he established that record last year at the Dallas Marathon. He says he'd absolutely love to get a chance to make his 17-mile run while dressed head-to-toe in Bills football equipment.
"I don't have any, so if anyone out there would be willing to make that happen, that would be awesome," Goldsmith said.
Donations for the cause can be made at Goldsmith's GoFundMe page, where you can also find the link to his YouTube channel that will provide the live stream for his run on Sunday.
