Poetry in motion

Today marks seven years since Tyler Sullivan, 34, embarked on a journey to visit every town in all 99 counties of Iowa. He didn’t just drive by or stop at the local gas station, he got out and ran at least a mile in every city, village or township.

July 2, Sullivan will finish his trip through Union County with the Greater 8 and 5k in Creston. He said he enjoys doing road races because he can help the community while he visits. “I can go to a festival and share what I’m doing,” Sullivan said.

It started in 2015 when a long distance relationship forced him to travel from Iowa City to Mason City every other weekend. Along the drive, he would note counties he had never heard of before.

At first, his journey started with picking a county along his drive and exploring it. “I wanted to study all these little towns,” Sullivan said. “In 2018, a friend asked if I had thought about running in them.”

Sullivan had concerns about fitting in runs in towns as small as Thayer, Lorimor or Kent. His friend advised him to keep it small - even one mile would be worth it.

Though he took the challenge to run in every town, he doesn’t stop there. He visits state parks, museums, diners and visitor centers. “Every town has something special,” Sullivan said. “They have that hidden gem, and I try to find it.”

Along this expedition, a mentor asked if he had considered writing poems about the places he visited. Sullivan thought the challenge might be too big, but after writing a poem about his home county, Johnson, he thought, “Now I just have to do that 98 more times.”

In the past seven years, Sullivan has completed 92 counties and written 67 poems. He has divided Iowa into nine sections - each going to be its own book of pictures, poems and his experience in the area. He is starting with Northwest Iowa, and the book is already 150 pages.

When he spoke of his inspiration for his poems, he said “My imagination just flows when I’m running. I get home and just grab a pad of paper and my phone and I talk into it.”

He wrote one poem about the dogs that always bark at him while he runs. He imagines they know it’s him coming to see their town. He was even accompanied by a dog for a quarter mile in his run through Thayer last year.

It’s been more than a year since Sullivan ran through the other towns of Union County, but he’s able to recall the detail like it was yesterday. “I really like the Arispe welcome sign,” he said. “It’s cool because it has a train on it.”

While he runs, Sullivan said he likes to picture himself growing up in the community - going to school there. He noted the Odd Fellows Block in Afton and an old school he saw in Lamoni. He laughed about the sign saying “Cromwell next 3 exits,” because he’s used to actual interstate exits while these were just turns.

Even in the smallest of towns, Sullivan finds a way to make a connection. “I went to Shannon City. There wasn’t a lot there,” he said. “But one of my good friends is Shannon, so I took a picture.”

He runs a Facebook page called Iowa’s Scenic Views By Foot where he posts his pictures and experiences. Last year, he had 400 people following along his journey. Today he has more than 10,000.

He has made a visit to Creston even though he won’t officially complete Union County until the run next month. He was impressed with the train depot, the Iowana and the historical village.

Sullivan said he’s just trying to get people to visit more of their towns. “A lot of communities have historical societies,” he said. “They look forward to talking to people and sharing the history.”

While he’s only a few short counties from finishing his adventure, Sullivan said he wants to take his time with it over the next three years. He hopes to finish in Linn County so his friends and family can take the final steps with him.

“I’m just trying to get people to see more of Iowa because it’s really beautiful.”