Category Archives: running

50 Years of Running: What is my real job?

Posted on February 4, 2022 by Christopher Cudworth

As the Traveler’s Cheques slowly disappeared, I kept up the hunt for a job in the summer of 1983. Meanwhile, small freelance jobs kept coming my way. I drew up some ads for Vertel’s Running store, but the process was … Continue reading →

Posted in 400 meter intervals, 400 workouts, 5K, adhd, anxiety, Christopher Cudworth, competition, running, Tarsnakes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Running: Moving experiences

Posted on February 3, 2022 by Christopher Cudworth

I felt kind of cheesy being back in the Chicago area after having been given a big sendoff party to hail my departure to Philadelphia just nine months before. Once back in town, I headed downtown to find the apartment … Continue reading →

Posted in alcohol, Christopher Cudworth, climbing, cross country, running | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Running: Closing time

Posted on February 1, 2022 by Christopher Cudworth

All of us who run know the difference between a good race and a bad race. There are empirical factors such as time and place by which we measure our efforts. Yet even these are subjective depending on conditions such … Continue reading →

Posted in alcohol, competition, cycling, duathlon, God, mental health, nature, race pace, racing peak, running, running shoes, sex, triathlon | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

50 Years of Running: Love letters and tell-alls

Posted on January 30, 2022 by Christopher Cudworth

During all those weeks and months away in Philadelphia, I kept up a steady stream of correspondence with Linda back in Geneva. She kept all those letters, and I found them in our house years later. In the week after … Continue reading →

Posted in love, mental health, nature, running, sex | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Running: Marching on

Posted on January 29, 2022 by Christopher Cudworth

By March 6, 1983, the weather in southeastern Pennsylvania was beginning to moderate. I ran a sixteen-miler in 1:43 on a route that I now knew well enough to do with confidence. No more getting lost in horse country. I … Continue reading →

Posted in blood on the highway, Christopher Cudworth, competition, death, fear, mental health, mental illness, race pace, racing peak, running, running shoes, sex, we run and ride | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Running: Green-eyed redemption

Posted on January 28, 2022 by Christopher Cudworth

Coming off the Miami weekend in January of 1983, I got caught in the rain during the first run back and came home feeling dragged out, with cold symptoms haunting me all the next day. “I’m resting tonight to see … Continue reading →

Posted in Christopher Cudworth, competition, life and death, love, mental health, nature, race pace, racing peak, running, running shoes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Running: Ringing in 1983

Posted on January 27, 2022 by Christopher Cudworth

After a sweet Christmas in Chicago with Linda, I returned to life in Paoli with an eye on starting the New Year the right way. A long run. “I ran a very relaxed but determined two hours today,” I wrote. … Continue reading →

Posted in love, mental health, nature, race pace, racing peak, running, sex | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Running: Breaking barriers

Posted on January 24, 2022 by Christopher Cudworth

Running has its barriers for everyone. Until Sir Roger Bannister first broke the 4:00 mile barrier in 1954, people speculated that it could never be done. Now the world record set by in 1999 by Hicham El Guerrouj stands at … Continue reading →

Posted in 10K, 13.1, aging, aging is not for the weak of heart, Christopher Cudworth, competition, mental health, race pace, racing peak, running, training, training for a marathon | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Running: Muscleheads and kryptonite

Posted on January 23, 2022 by Christopher Cudworth

Always on the lookout for another fitness opportunity, I wandered into a weightlifting club about two blocks from my apartment. I’d heard of the place from a co-worker that had just joined the firm. We rode the train in together … Continue reading →

Posted in alcohol, anxiety, running | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Running: The Villanova Factor

Posted on January 21, 2022 by Christopher Cudworth

Adjusting to life in the Philly suburbs took some doing. With rare exception, I took the train downtown because driving into the city was a manic experiment in age-old expressways and traffic backups right and left. The main route into … Continue reading →

Posted in aging, aging is not for the weak of heart, race pace, racing peak, running, we run and ride | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment