Monthly Archives: November 2021

50 Years of Running: A New Me

Posted on November 29, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

My parents both drove back with me to Luther College in the fall of 1978. We took the back roads through southwestern Wisconsin to enjoy the scenery, stopping at times to get out and stretch while gazing at the hazy … Continue reading →

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13.1 miles of active consideration

Posted on November 29, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

Having recently started work as a staffer at Dick Pond Athletics in St. Charles, Illinois, I’ve had cause to engage in consideration of my running career. The Dick Pond group of stores is celebrating 50 years of running, a fact … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: First steps to clarity

Posted on November 26, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

Coming off the two semesters that my friends called “Cud’s weird year,” I arrived home at the farmhouse where our family lived for a year and took a hard look in the mirror. My hair was so thick and long … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: Rough surfaces and deep dives

Posted on November 24, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

The winter of 1977 was, like so many winters in the late 1970s and early 80s, as cold as hell and frozen over. We trained through the cold by running on snow-packed roads. We’d often leave in the near-dark and … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: A Few Jokers and Wild Cards

Posted on November 24, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

The interesting thing about cross country as a sport is that teammates tend to spend enormous amounts of time together. Whereas athletes in track and field tend to split into training groups for mid-distance and long-distance training, in cross country … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: Olympic Aspirations

Posted on November 22, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

The summer before my junior year in college, my parents decided to move from a tiny split-level house in a suburban St. Charles neighborhood to a farmhouse six miles out of town. They were both raised on farms in Upstate … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: U-Hauling Ass

Posted on November 19, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

Working summer jobs between school years was necessary to pay my way through college. That first summer I worked as a coach for the St. Charles Track Club but only earned $500 for the entire summer. The next year, I … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: Sophomoric self-perception

Posted on November 17, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

One of the most challenging aspects of being a runner is building a self-perception conducive to improvement. For starters, you must believe that it is possible to improve. Secondly, you must do the work necessary to improve. And finally, you … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: Go West Young Man

Posted on November 15, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

Heading into the cross country season of 1976, I elected to join the team training trip out west to Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons. The previous year’s trip to South Dakota provided compelling accounts of runs in the mountains. It … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: A Bird’s Eye View of Life

Posted on November 12, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

As college cross country season ended in the fall of 1976, I started thinking about what to do during January interim. The previous year I drew nudes for six hours a day. That was enlightening. But my other keen interest … Continue reading →

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