I did a sketch of what Old School runners looked like in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

In fact I did a sketch of what I looked like in the late 1970s. And this was the look.

Long, often thick hair. 

Skinny arms.

Half-beard that grew in patches.

Maybe a little chest hair. But not much.

Thin legs and tanned thighs.

Short running shorts.

Either a BR or FS tank top. No sleeves.

Mix of different experimental type shorts.

Some with built-in briefs.

Some without.

Some kind of sports watch. Casio. Timex. Or cheap knockoff purchased at Venture.

Running shoes with big fat soles. Or heels that flared so much they bruised your calves.

Hardly any calves to bruise.

Serious face. People did not fuck around at the starting line.

No mercy asked. None granted.

Raced 24 times a year. Minimum.

Sometimes twice a weekend. In different cities. Three hours apart. In the rain.

Lots of spaghetti, frozen peas and frozen waffles. That’s the diet.

Beer. Plenty to go around. Coor’s a favorite. Hard to get.

Trained 80-100 miles per week. Usually at 6 – 7 minutes per mile.

Also raced on the track. Whenever a track race could be found.

That’s kicking it old school. That’s how we did it. Sub-elite and all.

And glad for the experience to this day.