TONY PHILLIPPI
Main Maniac / Race Director
Tony ran track and played soccer in school. After a short hiatus from running, he returned to the running world and hasn’t stopped since. In May of 2003, Tony and two friends started what is now the largest marathon running club in the world, called the Marathon Maniacs. In 2009, they started the Half Fanatics, and since then the clubs have grown to over 34,000 members throughout the world. In 2006, he also teamed up with Databar Inc. to create Databar Events!
Tony has run all distances, with over 300 Marathons under his belt. He is a 9-time Ironman finisher and run over 20 consecutive Boston Marathons. He enjoys training on the trails at Pt. Defiance and coffee with friends, maybe a beer too.
JENN SHAFFER
Race Director
Jenn grew up around the running world, thanks to her Marathon Maniac mom (MM #200) who inspired her to start running. Jenn has tried out most distances, running 5ks, half marathons, marathons, and an ultra. She joined the Half Fanatics in 2014, but it wasn’t until 2020 that she really fell in love with running and in 2022, she finally became a Maniac herself.
Jenn wears many hats in her day-to-day life. After graduating from the University of Washington, she spent time doing research as a Marine Biologist before receiving her MBA and becoming a Business Analyst at Teeter. When she’s not working or running, you can find her spending time with friends and family (and her dog), hiking, camping or adding to her plant collection.
SHERRY CLARKE
Race Director
Sherry is a born and raised Washingtonian who grew up surrounded by a family full of runners. She has always loved running but she began taking the sport more seriously after having kids, using it as a way to stay regularly active. Sherry enjoys the half marathon distance the most, but also loves the adrenaline rush that comes with racing shorter distances.
When she’s not running, she enjoys spending time with her husband and two young kids, cooking, playing tennis, hiking and camping, and watching movies.