From Ottawa roots to the Grateful Dead archives: David Lemieux on running, music, and the marathon that brought him home

For many runners, Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend is a chance to test fitness, chase a personal goal, or experience one of Canada’s most celebrated courses. For David Lemieux, the archivist for the Grateful Dead, it was also a deeply personal return to the city where his story began.

A native of Ottawa, Lemieux’s life has taken him across continents through music, archiving, and production. In recent years, it has also led him to endurance running, including the 2025 Tartan Ottawa International Marathon, where hometown streets became part of a memorable race-day journey.

Growing up in Ottawa and a career in music

Lemieux’s roots in Ottawa run deep, shaping both his early life and his path into music history.

“I grew up in Ottawa, in the east end, and attended Manor Park Public School, Queen Elizabeth middle school, and Lisgar Collegiate Institute and Rideau High School. After that, I did my first degree at Carleton University, so I was in Ottawa until I was 24, leaving in 1995 to move to Montreal, then England, then California, and finally Victoria, BC in 2006.

I began working for the Grateful Dead in February 1999 after completing my MA in Film Archiving, and have been the Dead’s archivist and producer since then, and their Legacy Manager since 2010. The job is different every day, whether it’s producing albums, approving designs from one of our many licensees, producing my daily radio show on Sirius XM, or travelling for work events.

Ottawa was a great place to grow up, the perfect city for me. Between the ages of 16 and 22, I saw the Grateful Dead perform 100 times, 1987 to 1993, and Ottawa was a good place to live to get to shows. I never flinched at travelling to far away places to see the Dead, whether it was New York City, Chicago, Oregon, California, Paris, or London. If the Dead were playing, we’d make it to the show one way or the other.”

Discovering running later in life

Running was not always part of Lemieux’s life. In fact, it arrived unexpectedly and quickly became transformative.

“I’m 55, and started running a shade over four years ago. I’d never run before 2021, not even around the block. I’d always been pretty healthy, following a vegetarian diet since 1993 and hiking a lot, but it had never been on my radar to run. Keeping up with my high-level-athlete lady friend (a former national level swimmer), along with wanting to get very healthy for my now-16-year-old daughter, motivated me to give it a try, and it seemed to agree with me.

After running my first 10K, I was hooked, and in May 2022, thanks to my trainer who told me I’m in better shape than I think I am, I ran a half marathon here in Victoria, BC, and I was REALLY hooked. A few days after that, I brutally broke my toe and other bones in my foot, and the recovery was long and slow. I have been determined to never take my health for granted, and as soon as I was healthy, I ran another half marathon in Canmore, Alberta, in September 2022. That gave me the confidence to run a marathon, and in May 2023, I ran the Toronto Marathon, and it was the most physically challenging thing I’d ever done. Once again, I was hooked. I dedicated myself to training diligently after that. 

Additionally, adopting a vegan diet around that time has been an incredible boon to my running journey. Plenty of energy and strength, and almost immediate recovery, even after a marathon. So far I’ve run eight marathons and 19 half marathons. Two of the marathons I’ve run are World Majors, New York City in 2024 and London in 2025. Overall, I’m running around 2,300 total KMs a year, trying to run a minimum of 200 days a year.

I don’t allow myself much reflection of being proud of myself for anything, be it education, work or otherwise, but I am quietly proud at how far I’ve come in my running journey in a few years. I’ve not yet crossed a marathon finish line that didn’t see me shedding a few tears of joy and pride.”

Running to his own rhythm

As someone whose professional life revolves around sound, Lemieux’s relationship with music while running is thoughtful and intentional.

“I generally run without music, using running as a break from my job listening to music. I do spend a lot of my running time thinking about work, planning productions, planning future album projects, and setting up my day in my head (I run in the morning). Occasionally, when I’m working on a particularly high energy Grateful Dead show for album release, I’ll run with that concert in headphones, and that’s always a great way to experience a Grateful Dead show in a different setting than my studio and office. 

I do have running playlists that I’ve created, from Taylor Swift to late 70s/early 80s rock and pop (The Clash, Bowie, The Police, Duran Duran, early U2, etc). I’m open to suggestions for playlists that people think I might like for running! I never listen to music during races, as I like to be hyper aware of my surroundings, and to chat with other runners when we find ourselves running at the same pace for a few hundred meters or more.”

Racing the Tartan Ottawa International Marathon

Running a marathon is always significant. Running one in your hometown can be something else entirely.

“I ran the Tartan Ottawa International Marathon four weeks to the day after running the London Marathon in 2025, and it was spectacular. I took a week and half off after running London, then slowly ramped up with a few 10K and 15K runs before Ottawa. It was surreal thinking I’d be running a marathon in my hometown. Trust me when I say that I, and anyone in my life, definitely never had “Dave will run the Ottawa Marathon” on their bingo cards 20 or 30 years ago! 

We stayed downtown, right at the start line, and my lady friend ran the half marathon. As the race started, and I ran up Elgin, to Wellington, down along the parkway to Lebreton Flats, over the bridge to Hull, through Gatineau, back over a bridge to Sussex, to Rockcliffe, back to Hogsback past Carleton University, and then the final stretch down the Driveway, I was constantly in shock that I was doing this. It was surreal. 

I ran past so many places that meant so much to me as a youngster, like the Lester B. Pearson building where my dad worked 1973-1985, through the Rideau Hall grounds where my dad worked from 1985 until retirement, past Carleton University, past my mom’s apartments on Colonel By and the Driveway, and on an on. I didn’t slow down once, and was smiling the entire race. I saw my friend Caroline around the 38 KM mark, and my brother just after that, and seeing them gave me the energy to run those last 4 KMs at a good clip. I ended up just missing my PB in Ottawa, owing largely to the awe with which I ran the race, slowing me down as I looked around.

The course in Ottawa is magnificent. Not too many climbs, and the scenery is stunning. Even as an Ottawa native, I ran through so many parts of the city I didn’t know well and I was so impressed with how beautiful Ottawa is in all its parts. I’ve run eight different marathons now, and Ottawa is my favourite. Bonus was getting to see my family while in Ottawa for the race.”

Looking Ahead

With multiple marathons already behind him, Lemieux continues to look forward with enthusiasm and intention.

“I have plenty of goals, both short term and long term. As long as my health holds up, I’m planning to run three or four marathons a year, half a dozen half marathons, and aim for 2,400 total running KMs every year. At my current pace of marathons-per-year, I’m hoping to run my 25th marathon when I turn 60 in 2030. That’s a ways away, but I’m finding the more I run, the more motivated I am to run even more. 

I still love running half marathons, a nice training run for marathons, and a heck of an accomplishment on their own. In the very short term, I have a 21.1 KM training run scheduled for the day after writing this, and then spring race season begins in BC in February. I’m thankful to live in Victoria, BC, where the weather is pretty much always perfect for running. Winters see a bit of rain, but quite mild, and summers, in the morning when I run, are truly perfect.”

From growing up in Ottawa to preserving one of the most iconic musical legacies in the world, and now returning home as a marathoner, David Lemieux’s journey came full circle on the streets of the city that shaped him. His experience captured what makes Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend so special: a chance to test limits, connect with a sense of community and belonging, and create moments that stay with you long after the finish line. Registration for Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend 2026 is now open!