They say running can be addicting. If it is that may explain why I keep coming back to it. I have been running off and on since 1972 in High School when I ran the mile on the track team. I did not do very well back then partly due to our team not really having a coach and I had no idea how to train for running the mile let alone any other distance.
Later on when in the Marine Corp at New River Air Station in
Jacksonville, N.C., I took up running again and ran a couple 10k races, again
not really knowing what I was doing. One day a friend told me about someone he
met that was doing something called Triathlons (this is 1984) where you swim,
bike and ran during one event – do what?
Not long after that I had to take a co-worker to the hospital to
get something removed from his eye. I was sitting in the waiting room and spied
a Triathlon magazine on the table. I grabbed it up and started reading; I was
amazed that this was indeed a real event. I had to do this Triathlon thing.
From that day forward I finally started to learn what it takes to go further
and faster and devoted myself to it. Then I found a Triathlon that was
scheduled a few months out in New Bern, just a short distance from where I was.
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| Triathlon 1984 |
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| Triathlon 1984 |
I did that Triathlon and did pretty well but did not place, never
the less I was hooked. What really amazed me is that with the combination of
all the swimming and biking I was doing along with the running I was able to
get my 5k times down to the 16 to17 minute range. I was only running about 25
to 30 miles a week.
Over the next couple years I raced in various races in North
Carolina and Florida when I came down here on vacations, actually ran with my
dad at that time as he was doing races as well. A move to San Diego County in
California was a big boost to my training and racing, it’s just a great place
for sports.
Fast forward to today, over the years I was on and off with my
running due to life sometimes getting in the way. It was just hard to keep up
with it. So here I am back into it again at 57 years old and I feel like I’ll
be around for a while this time, at least as long as I’m injury free.
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