Category Archives: running

50 Years of Running: Yin and Yang

Posted on October 26, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

With several weeks of running in the tank, it was time for the team Intrasquad meet. Everyone knew it was coming because the course was marked out by the loyal campus groundskeeper. There was just one problem. He was a … Continue reading →

Posted in Christopher Cudworth, college, competition, cross country, running | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Running: Logging miles, swapping tales

Posted on October 25, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

The hours spent running with twenty-four guys proved to be great way to get to know people that freshman year in college. While dorm life was a rush of introductions and a socially manic environment by nature, running cross country … Continue reading →

Posted in competition, cross country, running | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

50 Years of Running: Freshman Blues

Posted on October 22, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

On equipment day for the cross country season at Luther College, I was handed my first set of Luther Blues for training. I loved the simple dark blue tee shirt with the big number on the front. We got some … Continue reading →

Posted in running, training | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Running: Sweet summer sweat

Posted on October 20, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

Following high school graduation, the pressure to find a summer job and earn “money for college” entered the picture for the first time. I stumbled around the first few weeks looking for who-knows-what kind of job, then got offered a … Continue reading →

Posted in 400 meter intervals, 400 workouts, Christopher Cudworth, college, competition, running, track and field | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

50 Years of Running: Sweet consolation

Posted on October 19, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

When indoor track rolled around in the winter of 1974, our track team moved over to an elementary building called Davis School five blocks from the high school. There we engaged in an intense series of proprioceptive exercises under the … Continue reading →

Posted in love, running, sex, track and field, training | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Running: Jousting Knights

Posted on October 15, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

One of the unique aspects of cross country running in the 1970s is that dual meets were held between every team in the league. The Upstate Eight Conference consisted of St. Charles, Elgin, Elgin Larkin, Wheaton Central, East Aurora, West … Continue reading →

Posted in Christopher Cudworth, competition, cross country, running, running shoes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Running: Don’t be a dick about being a jock.

Posted on October 12, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

Heading into a senior season in high school cross country, I can’t say that there were a list of concrete goals at work. Knowing that the Sectional Wall awaited me at the end of the season, I had little confidence … Continue reading →

Posted in Christopher Cudworth, college, competition, cross country, running, sex | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Running: Basketball Jones

Posted on October 8, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

Sometime in the school year of 1973, the duo of Cheech and Chong came out with a comedy album featuring a novelty hit song titled Basketball Jones. It was filled with bald-faced cliches and overwrought background singers singing the refrain … Continue reading →

Posted in competition, cross country, running | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Running: The Sectional Wall

Posted on October 7, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

As the cross country season rolled to a close in November1973, our squad ran in a tough sectional in the Chicago suburbs and didn’t advance downstate. That would have been a stretch for a program that was just beginning to … Continue reading →

Posted in aging, Christopher Cudworth, competition, cross country, cycling, cycling the midwest, running | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Running: Forgettable and Unforgettable

Posted on October 5, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

Looking back at a running career is a bit kaleidoscopic. Memories sometimes mix and turn circles in the mind. Others bubble up unintentionally, driven by autumn light or the smell of the air on an October day. While many of … Continue reading →

Posted in aging, aging is not for the weak of heart, Christopher Cudworth, competition, cross country, running | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment