It's Just Pain
Mason Newberry's Meteoric Rise from Purpose-Seeker to 250-Mile Conqueror
How a three-year running journey led to one of ultrarunning's most notorious challenges—and what comes next
The Search for Something More
Three years ago, Mason Newberry was searching for something that millions of people spend their entire lives trying to find: purpose. Not just a hobby or a way to stay fit, but something meaningful to work toward, something that would give shape and direction to his days.
"I wanted to find purpose and have something to work towards," Mason explains with the kind of understated delivery that characterizes someone who has learned that the biggest achievements often come wrapped in the simplest packages.
What he found in running was more than purpose—he found a pathway to discovering the outer limits of human endurance. And in just three years, that pathway led him to one of the most legendary challenges in all of ultrarunning: the Cocodona 250.
The Philosophy of Pain
Ask Mason about his approach to ultrarunning, and his answer cuts through every piece of sports psychology ever written:
"It's just pain."
Three words that contain the entire philosophy of someone who has spent 250 miles crossing the Arizona desert. Not "embrace the pain" or "pain is temporary" or any of the other motivational mantras that populate running forums. Just the simple, unvarnished truth: It's just pain.
This isn't dismissiveness—it's clarity. Pain, in Mason's worldview, isn't something to be feared or overcome with elaborate mental strategies. It's simply a fact of the experience, as basic and unavoidable as the need to put one foot in front of the other. When you strip away the drama and the mythology, what remains is the elemental truth: endurance running hurts, and that's okay.
The Mind's Journey
But Mason's relationship with ultrarunning goes deeper than pain management. Ask him about his favorite aspect of endurance events, and a more nuanced picture emerges:
"Seeing how far I can push my body. Letting the mind wander during long events."
There's something profound about that second part—the mind wandering. While most of us need constant stimulation, entertainment, and distraction, Mason has found peace in the vast mental spaces that open up during ultra-distance events. It's meditation in motion, consciousness unmoored from the usual anchors of daily life.
Imagine the conversations that happen between Mason and his own thoughts during a 250-mile journey through the desert. The places his mind visits when there's nothing but footsteps and breathing and the gradual progression of miles. It's a form of mental exploration that's impossible to replicate in any other context.
The Cocodona Crucible
In May 2024, Mason lined up for the Cocodona 250—a race that sits at the apex of ultrarunning's most challenging events. The race covers 250 miles of Arizona terrain, typically taking runners through multiple days and nights of continuous movement. It's the kind of challenge that attracts only the most committed and experienced ultrarunners.
Except Mason had been running for less than three years.
The audacity of that decision—to go from recreational runner to attempting one of the world's most demanding foot races—speaks to something essential about Mason's character. He doesn't build up to challenges gradually; he identifies what seems impossible and then methodically figures out how to make it possible.
"I did the Cocodona 250 in May," he writes in a way that one would imagine him making a statement with the same casual tone most people might use to mention a weekend 5K. For Mason, extraordinary has become ordinary through the simple process of repeatedly doing extraordinary things.
The Texas Transition
Life took another significant turn for Mason on June 21st, 2025, when he relocated to Austin, Texas. For most people, a cross-country move represents enough change and stress to derail any athletic pursuits. For Mason, it simply means finding new places to run and new challenges to tackle.
The Austin Solstice Circuit will mark his first race in Texas—a homecoming of sorts to the endurance running community in a state known for producing some of the sport's most dedicated athletes. But this isn't about making a statement or proving himself in a new environment. Mason has already proven everything he needs to prove.
The Sub-8 Ambition
When most ultrarunners talk about 52-mile goals, they focus on finishing or perhaps breaking into the double-digit hour range. Mason's goal for the Austin Solstice Circuit reveals the mindset of someone who has recalibrated his sense of what's possible:
"Run the 52 miler under 8 hours."
Under 8 hours for 52 miles represents serious speed—the kind of performance that would place him among the top finishers in most ultra events. It's a goal that makes sense only when you understand that this is someone who has already pushed his body through 250 miles of desert. After that experience, 52 miles becomes a different kind of challenge entirely.
The Night Runner's Advantage
Mason's preparation for the Austin Solstice Circuit's unique evening start format reflects the confidence of someone who has already spent multiple nights running through darkness:
"I'm not [training specifically for the night format], but I'm familiar with running through the night."
It's the kind of casual confidence that comes from experience. When you've navigated 250 miles that included multiple transitions from day to night and back to day, a single night of running becomes routine rather than exotic.
This familiarity with night running provides a significant advantage at an event designed around the evening hours. While other runners will be adapting to the unique challenges of running in darkness, Mason will be operating in his element.
The Arsenal of Simplicity
Mason's approach to fueling and gear reflects the practical wisdom gained from ultra-distance experience. His go-to nutrition during long events consists of SiS Beta Fuel Gels and Uncrustable PB&Js—a combination that balances quick energy with sustained comfort food.
There's something beautifully practical about Uncrustables as ultra fuel. While other runners experiment with exotic gels and elaborate nutrition protocols, Mason has found that sometimes the best fuel is the kind that reminds you of childhood lunch boxes. When you're 150 miles into a desert crossing, the familiar comfort of peanut butter and jelly can be more valuable than any engineered sports nutrition.
His essential gear choice is equally practical: a Naked running belt. After 250 miles of testing, he's identified exactly what he needs to carry and the most efficient way to carry it.
The Calendar of Ambition
Mason's racing schedule for the remainder of 2025 reads like a progression of escalating challenges:
Austin Solstice Circuit (52 miles) - July
DC Marathon - Later in 2025
Tunnel Hill 100 - Later in 2025
Another 200-mile race (location TBD)
The return to 200-mile racing represents something significant. After conquering the Cocodona 250, Mason isn't stepping back to "easier" distances. He's identifying the next mountain to climb, the next frontier of his own capability to explore.
The Wandering Mind at Work
Mason's favorite aspect of endurance running—letting his mind wander during long events—becomes particularly fascinating when considered in the context of his racing calendar. What kinds of thoughts sustain someone through 100+ mile journeys? What mental territories does consciousness explore when freed from the usual constraints of structured time and space?
These are questions that can only be answered through the direct experience of ultra-distance running. Mason has become an explorer of not just physical endurance, but mental endurance—mapping the interior landscapes that reveal themselves only during the longest journeys.
The New Austin Chapter
As Mason settles into life in Austin, he's joining one of America's most vibrant running communities. The city's culture of outdoor recreation and acceptance of seemingly impossible athletic pursuits makes it a perfect fit for someone whose idea of a training weekend might involve running for 20+ hours.
The Austin Solstice Circuit represents more than just his first Texas race—it's his introduction to a community that will appreciate what he's accomplished and understand what he's attempting. Among Austin's runners, having completed the Cocodona 250 isn't just impressive; it's a credential that opens doors and starts conversations.
The Philosophy Applied
Mason's "It's just pain" philosophy will be put to the test again at the Austin Solstice Circuit, though in a different context than the desert crossing that proved its effectiveness. The 1.64-mile figure-8 loop format creates a unique psychological challenge—instead of constantly changing scenery providing distraction, runners must find ways to maintain focus and motivation while covering the same ground repeatedly.
For someone whose mind is accustomed to wandering freely across vast landscapes, the loop format might seem restrictive. But Mason's experience suggests he's learned to find mental freedom regardless of external circumstances. The mind's capacity to wander isn't dependent on geographical diversity—it's dependent on the runner's willingness to let consciousness explore.
The Sub-8 Statement
Mason's goal of completing 52 miles in under 8 hours represents more than just a time target—it's a statement about what becomes possible when you've already done the impossible. After 250 miles through the Arizona desert, the question isn't whether he can complete 52 miles, but how fast he can do it while still maintaining the mindful approach that has sustained him through longer challenges.
The goal also reflects an understanding of his own capabilities that can only come from extreme testing. When you know what your body and mind can handle at their absolute limits, you can make more aggressive goals for shorter distances.
The Next Frontier
As Mason prepares for the Austin Solstice Circuit and the challenges beyond, he represents something compelling in the ultrarunning world: proof that rapid progression is possible when purpose meets persistence, that three years can transform someone from recreational runner to elite ultra-endurance athlete, and that sometimes the most profound philosophies are also the simplest ones.
When he lines up at Pace Bend Park on July 12th, watching the sun begin its descent toward Lake Travis, Mason will be carrying more than just SiS gels and Uncrustables. He'll be carrying the confidence of someone who has already pushed through 250 miles of Arizona desert, the wisdom of someone who has learned to let his mind wander freely during the longest journeys, and the simple clarity of knowing that whatever challenges arise over the next 52 miles, they're just pain.
And pain, after all, is just something that happens on the way to discovering what we're really capable of.
Follow Mason's results and future races on UltraSignup under Mason Newberry. The Austin Solstice Circuit takes place July 12-13, 2025, at Pace Bend Park on Lake Travis, where Mason will begin his Texas racing chapter with a sub-8-hour assault on 52 miles.