Category Archives: competition

Good energy all around

Posted on December 8, 2019 by Christopher Cudworth

The term “good energy” has been recruited to serve a number of purposes and connotations in this world. It substitutes for “clean energy” in the growing field of alternative fuels, and “good energy” means moral power in the realm of … Continue reading →

Posted in 10K, 13.1, aging, aging is not for the weak of heart, anxiety, Christopher Cudworth, competition, Depression, running, same sex adults, sex, Tarsnakes, triathlete, triathlon, triathlons | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Self portrait of a determined young man

Posted on November 15, 2019 by Christopher Cudworth

In November 1978 I was a senior at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa. Our team had just placed second in the NCAA National Cross Country Championships in Rock Island, Illinois. I was fifth man for the team that day after … Continue reading →

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From one bag of bones to another

Posted on November 12, 2019 by Christopher Cudworth

Before hopping on the train to Chicago this morning, I slipped into the restroom at the Perk Up! cafe in the Geneva train station. The walls in that room were decorated with skeleton wallpaper. The first image that stood out … Continue reading →

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History in the making

Posted on November 10, 2019 by Christopher Cudworth

The day after the 2019 Illinois state cross country championship, I turned to the website of my former employer, the Daily Herald, to find a story by Michael Eaken of the record-setting run by a Hersey high school senior Josh … Continue reading →

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The Tar Bubble Chronicles

Posted on September 17, 2019 by Christopher Cudworth

During my run today I looked down and saw a few small bubbles poking up from the surface of the tar at the edge of the road. I stopped and bent down to use the tip of my pointer finger … Continue reading →

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A competitive take on 9/11

Posted on September 11, 2019 by Christopher Cudworth

Thinking back to 9/11/2011, I well recall coming into the house after a run to find the television tuned to an image of a World Trade Center tower smoking and burning against a clear blue sky. At that time, America … Continue reading →

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Is it ever okay to be selfish?

Posted on September 10, 2019 by Christopher Cudworth

Back in 1982, I was transferred by my employer from Chicago out to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in a consolidation of the marketing department. That situation lasted about eight months before the EVP in charge of the division decided the VP of … Continue reading →

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The high value of red meat and bones

Posted on August 27, 2019 by Christopher Cudworth

We adopted a dog from Safe Haven, the rescue group that brings abandoned pups from Tennessee and Kentucky up to Illinois to find homes for them. We named her Lucy, in part after triathlete Lucy Charles-Barclay, a person we both … Continue reading →

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Not every race is a blessing, but every race holds a lesson

Posted on August 9, 2019 by Christopher Cudworth

The photo above is as old as it looks. It is a snapshot taken by my father with one of his jury-rigged cameras in the late 1970s. My folks had come up to Kenosha, Wisconsin from our home back in … Continue reading →

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My annual ride in the Tour de Chicory

Posted on August 8, 2019 by Christopher Cudworth

America’s roadsides in July and August typically bear a ribbon of bright blue flowers known as chicory. They are tough plants that grow in disturbed soil, often popping up through gravel and grit to unleash their starlike blue blossoms in … Continue reading →

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