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The Mature Runner

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He Won the Ridge Run…and Then Everything Else!

By David Summerfield

In the search for something interesting to write about for this newsletter, I chanced upon the official list of running world record holders for every distance and age category imaginable. I had fun learning about (again) Derek Turnbull and his running exploits, which are worth noting again. He is a New Zealander, lived to be 80, and started running when he was 40. In a 3-month span in 1992 (65-69 age category), he set six World Records, ending with the London Marathon in 2:41:57! I remember finding out about that some 20 years ago, and instantly realized I would never set a world record in the marathon. Sigh. (His other records include a 4:56 mile, a 16:38 5k, and a 34:42 10k). Here he is setting one of those records!

(Photo from mastersathletics.net)

So then I went down the list of various distances, and my eyes popped out when I saw Jim Walmsley as having the fastest ever (in history) 50 mile run last year. Somehow I consider Jim a “local” hero, even though he didn’t set the BRR record. As I remember he was having foot problems from a previous run and was trying out Hokas to ease the pain (he needed more padding). He signed up just like everyone else and made it through the lottery somehow. I remember his essay included the fact that he could run well and was likely to be a potential winner. Here’s what the official BRR plaque says, 3:14:03! But he won, even though the year before Minde Erickson ran a 4:13:37!

All I could remember of Jim was his outlandish Rim-to-Rim that same year. So, I was propelled down memory lane once again…In 2015 Stacy and I did the Rim-to-Rim (south to north) of the Grand Canyon in a mere … 13 hours. Here we are arriving at the North Rim Trailhead, which would be Jim Walmsley’s start and finish just two months after his BRR in Bozeman (how egotistical to put us in any kind of league with the world record holder, but it’s sorta fun:-)

After we met Greg Young, Terry Leist, and Carrie Krause at the North Rim we all feasted the night away, and sent them off to do the North-South route the next morning…in a mere 7 hours. Here are the 5 of us the next afternoon as the trio arrived at the South Rim Trailhead:

That seemed SO fast to Stacy and I – almost twice as fast 🙂 Then along came that Walmsley fellow who had the audacity to do the R2R2R in a FKT of 5:55. Sheeesh. That was no “mere” time! He had moved to Flagstaff, AZ, so was a short drive away from the South Rim. He did “repeats” down into the Canyon and back, honing his skills and comfort level (even if agonizing pain is the price of getting comfortable tearing down the path and back up). For those of you who haven’t done this yet (and really, you should) there are 1000’s of steps created in the paths with logs or rocks as steps and those steps (to cut down on erosion) are between 6” and 12” high. And the steps are anywhere from 2 to 6 feet apart, so the body is constantly landing hard at irregular intervals. And going up, there’s the constant need to hoist yourself up ever changing heights. Stacy and I got worn down, and on the way out to the North Rim we pulled out the hiking poles so we could more easily push our way up each step. Jim, on the other hand (and there is NO comparison of course) developed his strength over time, and also knew every bend in the trail so well. He developed a “battle plan” over several years, especially using conversations with Rob Krar (the record holder before him in 6:21:47). It is really worth the read (irunfar.com/jim-Walmsleys-grand-canyon-r2r2r) for those interested, especially if you intend to even do the “simple” crossing (Rim-to-Rim). Here is Jim finishing the first half of his trip, arriving at the same kiosk as us the year before – actually, his time for the South-to-North was a FKT as well. 2:46:08 … hmmm, that means he was 5.3 times faster than our trip. Okay, he’s fast!

(Photo from Runningmagazine.ca)

In his account, he had an encounter with a mountain lion down near the Colorado River, and his watch recorded 2 consecutive 5-minute miles as he “ran for his life”. It was still dark, and all he saw by headlamp was the glowing pair of eyes, and the long tail disappearing up a nearby rise as he went by. He figured that must have changed his game plan, and as he neared the North Rim, he figured he should just stop, knowing he had already gotten a “fastest known time”. But there was a crowd there, and everyone was expecting him to continue going for it. I like the look in his eyes… “Darn it all, I’ve just had the run of my life, and you guys want more….can I really pull this off?”

While getting all this information, I finally found out another reason he’s so famous. Back in 2016 he had gotten to mile 93 in the Western States 100-miler, and was way ahead of everyone else. Then he made a wrong turn, and lost enough time to only come in 20th. His last 3 miles took him an hour – he was broken! That set him up for a major depression, and the Jim Walmsley we saw at the starting line of the BRR was a much chastened and recovered ultrarunner. The 2016 Western States was run on June 25th, just 6 weeks before the BRR that he won. Seems like he was maturing the champion he was to become. By 2018, he entered the Western States again, and broke the course record, and broke that record again in 2019 (14:09:28) and won again in 2021 (14:45:56). Somehow with all these records flying around, he is staying healthy and if you go to the Wikipedia thing, they list all his 1st place finishes. It’s a long list.

And the last thing I really wanted to write about was his actual World Record 50-miler. It happened May 4th, 2019 in Folsom, CA, and he ran the “Hoka” event on a USATF-certified course that includes an 18.8-mile point-to-point stretch from Folsom to Sacramento on the American River Parkway followed by nine consecutive loops around a 4.7-mile circuit in Sacramento. The more I read, the more nauseous I felt! This was a publicity stunt! Everyone (12 hand-picked elite HOKA runners) ran in a “top secret” shoe called the “Carbon-X”, but that name was a secret until May 4th. Of course, the shoes were available in stores on May 15th – be the 1st on your block to own a pair….. And this next piece is taken from an article written by Adam Ruggiero at “GearJunkie”: “The 36-year-old 50-mile record fell to Jim Walmsley running in a pair of HOKA ONE ONE’s Project Carbon X, a shoe release focused on breaking road running records.

A dozen HOKA athletes, all striding in the same pair of shoes, pounded the pavement Saturday in Folsom, Calif., each of them focused on setting records. Dubbed Project Carbon X, the event was part athletic endeavor — the 100km course received USA Track and Field (USATF) approval and was eligible for IAAF world record status — and part publicity stunt for HOKA’s upcoming racing shoe, the Carbon X.

“And while the coveted 100km record eluded the HOKA fleet, 29-year-old American Jim Walmsley managed to take down the 50-mile record set by Bruce Fordyce in 1983. Walmsley eked past Fordyce’s 4-hour, 50-minute, 21-second mark with a new record time of 4 hours, 50 minutes, 7 seconds.”

There. For those of you who follow the current ultrarunning world, this is old news. But for the rest of us, I’ve brought you up-to-date a bit. Who among us has been the 1st to buy a pair of Carbon-X’s? Do any of us really wear 8.5 ounce shoes? I need gobs of cushioning. Well, Kyle Klickir probably has a pair – right Kyle? Anyway, happy melting of the snow and ice, and hello to the mud and receding snowfields!!

The Mature Runner: The Silva

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The Silva – Laroupe Duo Set A High Standard!

By David Summerfield

A headline today really caught my attention: the name Germán Silva brought back so many memories that had fired my imagination 28 years ago. He won both the 1994 and 1995 New York Marathons (2:11:21 and 2:11:00) as an unknown Mexican in the running world. He even took a wrong turn with 0.7 of a mile to go, corrected his mistake (and his last mile was a 5:11) … and won a few steps ahead of his countryman and training partner, Benjamin Paredes.

(Photo from sports.vice.com)

He epitomized the unpretentious, humble, quiet runner who just knew how to run fast and long. I had completely forgotten about him until I learned he’s been running the entire length of Mexico for the past three months, averaging over 30 miles a day … even though he retired from professional running almost 20 years ago. I remember he took his New York Marathon winnings and helped bring electricity to his hometown.

But this current run of his … he’s supposed to finish on Feb. 20 at Tulum, in the Yucatan, overlooking the Caribbean Sea. Of course, he is being tracked by all the high-tech instruments cataloging every step of the trek, and he has covered 3,134 miles. On the map, you see him starting in Tijuana, on the Pacific, and he made sure he visited all the important aspects of Mexico, going through 17 states – this is a trek to publicize the real Mexico … as he put it, he ran the full length of the “veins” of Mexico. He didn’t skirt around the drug cartels – he went right through the heart of the cartels, being filmed the whole way by his support crew (his wife, kids and physiotherapist). He wanted to show the normal world of the cartels where people don’t get killed – being stopped by armed gunmen though, explaining what he was doing – seeing their faces light up who then called ahead to the next checkpoint where he was greeted with open arms. He climbed to the summit of Mexico’s highest peak (a winter ascent!) – Pico de Orizaba (or Citlaltepeti), at 18,491 feet. It straddles the states of Veracruz and Puebla, and is the 3rd highest peak in North America behind only Denali (Alaska) and Logan (Canada). It is really worth looking into the reporting of Kevin Seiff of the Washington Post.

(The route up Pico de Orizaba. Photo from exploringtherockies.com)

(The summit of Pico de Orizaba. Photo from summitpost.com)

He was followed by his own film crew who took great pictures and he relates his conversations with Silva. Kevin had just run a 2:48 marathon before meeting with Silva, and tried to run with him on a “typical” 30-mile day. Just as I would have, Kevin thought he surely could keep up with a 54-year old who’d been running for over 1500 miles, and had been having some physical problems. Little did he know that toward the end of that day, they had to climb (jog) over a mountain on a rocky trail (the support vehicles had to take a different route). He realized he’d blown it, said good-bye, and quickly retreated to find the support crew going down the rocky road. I love Kevin’s reporting as they first met to run together: “His toenails were falling off. His left calf hurt. And his right hamstring. And basically everything else. He was 1,574 miles into the journey, deep in the mountains of central Mexico. Silva guessed we’d run 32 miles or so, but he wasn’t sure. ‘I’m not feeling great. You’ll have to be patient with me,’ he said so tenderly that I believed him.” As Kevin wrote in his article: “The run he says, is meant as a pivot away from the country’s narcos-tequila-and-beaches caricature; a nod toward something less Hollywood, less Instagrammed.”

This storied runner obviously still had his mojo going quite well!! I found out that Silva started coaching kids in his hometown, and over the years it became his profession– coaching people of all ages. He was a national hero after all. And then he started organizing races, formed his own company, and still leads a very active life, supporting runners all over Mexico.

(The route going over the “veins” of the country. Photo from cronica.com.mx)

In trying to find out if he made it to Tulum, I went through the Internet asking, “Did German Silva make it to Tulum today?” I was saddened to see that the vast majority of articles that day wrote about all the killings going on in Cancun, Tulum, and other popular Mexican resorts. Silva obviously has a huge role to play – or rather a very long path up a very steep slope to change what’s going on in Mexico!!

I was also happy to see his work promoting a good, healthy running community which earned him many accolades – the Abebe Bililla Award for promoting running in the Mexican community; and through the NY Road Runners, the King Felipe of Spain “Prince of Asturias Award” was given to Silva and Tegla Laroupe! Oh, my gosh – Tegla Laroupe! I’d forgotten about her too! So, of course I had to look her up! I’d forgotten she won the NYC Marathon the same years as Silva, and for a while she held the world record of 2:20:43. And she established the Tegla Loroupe Peace Foundation “Peace Through Sports”. And her story has to be told now.

(Tegla and German, happy winners in New York City. Photo from wsj.com)

She was one of 24 siblings, her father having 4 wives – part of a tribe of northern Ethiopia. Her father told her she was useless and would end up just babysitting the rest of her life. Well, school was 10km away, which she ran to and from every day. She realized she was faster than others, and tried to get help from a national sports federation, but was deemed too small and skinny. HA! She went on to win all the most prestigious marathons in the world many times over! And her dedication to promoting world peace through sports caused Kofi Annan (Secretary General of the United Nations) to name her the United Nations Ambassador of Sport.

(Photo from Pinterest)

So, what do we learn about all these extraordinary runners who came from incredibly humble backgrounds? They both excelled beyond their wildest dreams, and with their winnings, they gave back to the world in wonderful ways. I can’t help but ask, dear reader … you probably haven’t come from such humble beginnings, but how are you (we, me) giving back to the world that has nurtured you? Yes, you’re working to provide a comfortable living for yourself and your family, and once that’s taken care of….what else can you give? I think this running community of ours (BSWD) is a great place to start, as most of you already know firsthand!! And I congratulate all of you who are giving so much to this great running club of ours. The Secretary General of the United Nations probably won’t be giving you an ambassadorship anytime soon … but heck, then you’d have to start a global running organization, and your life wouldn’t be yours anymore. So I DO admire Germán’s and Tegla’s ability to give their whole lives to helping others. Their example is a great shot-in-the-arm to do our part as avenues open up! Happy March, and happy melting of the snow and ice 🙂

-David

The Mature Runner: And A New World Record For…Cyborgs?!

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By David Summerfield

While speaking with a fully documented “senior” BSWD runner (Greg Young, now in his 60’s) I was interested to hear his take on last month’s article. Sorry to get personal Greg … but you read it, and I listen. Greg and I (and others I’m sure) are seriously looking for ways to keep running well, and more than “well,” like being faster than all the other 60-year olds (or whatever age-category you’re in). And Greg divulged that even running well into his 100’s. He’d have a heck of a time breaking any records. In fact, it came out that his streak of strong marathons is perhaps coming to an end…I remember hearing something like “I think the Half Marathon is better for me now.” This explains his interest in any and all methods of running strong (…meaning fast and most probably stronger than he is now). I had mentioned that as the coming technological singularity occurs, the smarter-than-human computers will have figured out how to completely reverse the aging process. And this will include the taking of a wild cocktail of newly invented anti-aging chemicals/pills, as well as having one’s personal DNA sequenced – with the end result being sent a daily “read-out” which is received via smartphone, all thanks to having a monitoring chip in the brain sending constant signals to a lab somewhere. You’ll know what supplements you need to take when you get up the next day by just viewing the app. (How tedious! Isn’t there some software somewhere that can trigger the insertion of pills you need automatically while you sleep, for heaven’s sake!) This simple process will easily correct (or change/modify/eliminate) offending nucleotides or cells, which allow the body to age! An arresting thought! And this is not to just make bodies not age but to eliminate all disease, so the thought of running sub-three hour marathons would be common among us more mature athletes? Isn’t that what all Mature Runners desire? Hmmmm, wouldn’t rules have to be established to keep the playing field fair, or would world records become meaningless at this point?

On the news this week was a story of a 105-year old woman (Julia Hawkins) who broke the world record for the 100-meter dash in 62 seconds (105-110 year category). A retired schoolteacher from Baton Rouge, LA, she was quite upset that she didn’t break one minute.

So, I tried picturing myself running a 100-meter dash. Up here in the Beartooth Mountains, I can jog a 14-minute mile pace for a while (when I’m warmed up, “feeling good,” and on a paved road down in the valley) and that would be a 52.5 second 100-yard dash. Oh, and 105 years is only 30 years away…so keep it up David 🙂 And Greg, you have to not slow down to a 8:25:17 marathon when you’re 100 (Fauja Singh’s record) and at 90 years, you have to beat his 5:40:01. Just how strong is this desire to run faster times for all distances? Suddenly, the ‘ole brain is telling me would it really be THAT bad to have a “smarter-than-human” computer (and don’t call it a robot/AI, that’s too scary!) come up with what we all need? What if the best solution will be to interface one’s physical body with computer technology? I’m referring to having a computer hooked up to my body somehow … besides “just” having chips inserted here and there…so when something in the body triggers a signal at some Medical Terminal Lab which in turn arranges for various serums/chemicals to flow into the bloodstream while I’m sleeping… Wow – if the goal of running strong and well to break records is that important to us humans (and something tells me the human is absolutely capable of allowing this to happen) will we really go that far? Cyborg-land, here we come? Now, that IS scary!

Let me tell you about “scary”! While writing this I remembered a kind of nightmare I’ve had from years ago. It happened while watching Star Trek: First Contact movie 25 years ago. I had forgotten how deeply the character Borg had bored into my psyche. Most of you have watched this movie, but as a memory refresher, Borg uttered the following:

“We are the Borg. Lower your shields and surrender your ships. We will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Your culture will adapt to service us. Resistance is futile.” (quotes-gram.com/borg-quotes).

I can still hear the Borg’s voice. Chilling. Digging a little deeper, I found some very disturbing facts. Most of us are already cyborgs, by definition. Don’t believe me? This is NOT science fiction. A cyborg is a cybernetic organism, which is a being having both organic and biomechatronic body parts. Or, a person whose physiological functioning is aided by or dependent upon a mechanical or electronic device (Collins English Dictionary). Now that’s getting pretty close to exactly what’s happening more and more these days! I won’t name my friends who have already had artificial body parts put in! Furthermore – a cyborg is a human linked to a mechanical device for life support (Lexic.us). Yes, this happens every day – it happened to my brother! The Oxford Dictionary simply says “a fictional or hypothetical person whose physical abilities are extended beyond normal human limitations by mechanical elements built into the body”. That makes some articles seem not so far out. My constant use of an iPhone can make me a cyborg. Ingesting ibuprofen to thin my blood which reduces the pain during my physical exertions makes me….a cyborg? I don’t have any artificial limbs or body parts yet, but that’s perfectly normal these days. Wait – I got rid of cataracts by having new lenses put in my eyes. There you go – I’m definitely a cyborg. My physical ability to see was “enhanced” by inserting 2 little non-organic pieces of plastic into my body. Of course, the list goes on, and I doubt there are many (any?) people reading this who are not cyborgs in one way or another. So, we better get used to it, and we just need to refrain from ever saying “Resistance is futile, Earthling”. I really didn’t think this article would go this far when I started. That’s what I get from using a laptop and googling everything I want to know. And, after all, I haven’t agreed to have some high-tech company (see Elon Musk’s TechLink for example) install a port somewhere…like behind my head…so people don’t notice it too much…and once plugged in, it would simplify writing this article, right? Good grief ….