Tag Archives: runner

A hot day followed by a false fall

After yesterday’s early run in advancing heat, I accepted that I was not up for completing the last half-mile to reach ten miles… and that taunted me on the Garmin. The 4.85 miles of running out to Waubonsee Community College … Continue reading

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No revisionist history necessary

As a member of the Facebook group Glenn’s, I’m privy to a load of statistics and recollections from runners who excelled in the sports of cross country and track during the 60s, 70s, and 80s. Those years produced times and … Continue reading

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The fabric of life and a sense of home

I’m substitute teaching at the high school a block from our former home in Geneva, Illinois. The streets look the same as they always did. The giant cottonwood tree on the corner of the block was a favorite waiting place … Continue reading

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Giving an Achilles heel the boot

Yesterday afternoon at 4:15 I stood up from working at my desk and felt a hot twinge in my right Achilles tendon. It was about a “4” on the pain scale. I walked it off and went to get dressed … Continue reading

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On winter and fading tan lines

During the summer I always put sunscreen on my arms, face, ears, neck and nose. But that’s a rather recent habit. For most of my running career before taking up cycling fifteen years ago, the thought of putting on sunscreen … Continue reading

Posted in cycling, cycling the midwest, cycling threats, death, healthy aging, healthy senior, running | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Understanding dogs can be a real bite in the butt

This morning while running our dog around the dog park, she took to playing with an same-sized pup named Evie. She’s a shepard mix of some sort who loves to run and growl and tumble with Lucy, our pit/border/beagle/boxer mix. … Continue reading

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A good deal underfoot

The first set of running orthotics that I purchased in the early 1990s were fitted and designed by Dr. John Durkin, who served as a podiatrist to world-class runners such as Sebastian Coe, Craig Virgin and Jim Spivey. The inserts … Continue reading

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Winning means different things to different people

On a chilly October day in October, 1983, I stood on the starting line of a race in downtown Oak Park, Illinois. It was fifty degrees outside. Rain had fallen the night before and the clouds still formed a low, … Continue reading

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A run of luck with Glen Kamps

This morning I met up to run with one of the leading personalities of the Illinois running world. That would be Glen Kamps. We go back a long ways to the early 80s when he was first working for Dick … Continue reading

Posted in 10K, 13.1, aging, aging is not for the weak of heart, cross country, half marathon, marathon, race pace, racing peak, running | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

A minute can last a lifetime

I had a nice conversation yesterday with Craig Virgin, one of America’s greatest distance runners whose 27:29 10K still ranks in the top ten all-time. He was also a three-time Olympian We talked about his book Virgin Territory, which I … Continue reading

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