Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician
Fellow, International Academy of Medical Acupuncture
My previous column set the stage for a series of articles examining our local "Masters" of distance running. These 8 runners have roughly 240 years of running experience, and have circled the planet on foot over 15 times. Their wisdom seems worth delving into for future "Masters" and the rest of we mortals.
What motivations are lasting? Sure, some days are so beautiful that it's easy to lace up a pair of shoes and go for a little jaunt; but what internal fires and personality traits are so ingrained that they can drive a man or woman to burn up a HUNDRED pair of shoes? Ah, that's a more interesting topic.
Competition drives some runners, and for some of our Masters that drive was or is a significant force. Mark Patterson ran 10.3 second 100 yards in high school in the early 1960's. After roughly 12 years away from the sport, Patterson found himself enticed back into his spikes by PTC summer track meets. A couple years later, a foray into distance running began at a Newport News park bike path race. The finish was quite memorable: finishing dead last tends to make an impression when you're a champion. Mark's competitive instincts kicked in, and he found himself with 2 major foci: Finishing, combined with not finishing last. Interestingly, that's not where Mark's development into a lifetime runner ended. As he phrased it, "initially it was competitiveness which morphed into a lifestyle." That running "lifestyle" "gives me a peace of mind and body that allows me to encompass life, both good and bad."
Larry Turner's motivations grew out of left field... perhaps literally. Running was in part a means to an end: getting in shape for softball season (curious, since the bases in softball are typically not 5K apart). The example of newly minted 1972 Olympic marathon gold medalist Frank Shorter was the other push that got Turner started. Weight reduction, racing success, and other motivations soon stoked Turner's running fires, but he eventually found an unexpected boon: A community of lifetime friends. "Other runners are my social group" says Turner. "I have made many, many dear lifelong friends through running." Such motivations are certainly sufficient to turn a relatively mundane activity into part of a lifetime, or an integral part of one's life, one's personality, one's life journey.
Jim Bates strongly believes that a lifetime of running has improved his quality of life. How? For Bates, running "reduces my stress level, helps me gather my thoughts, keeps me in shape, and gives me an excuse to be outdoors." Like Bates, Linda Whittaker also chose to run toward a healthy life. She writes: "January 1 of the year I was going to turn 40 I decided that I was going to make a lifestyle change. My entire family is heavy and has numerous health problems. I decided to start exercising on a regular basis. After trying aerobics, biking, and weight training I turned to running. I really enjoyed the freedom and the 'high' you gain from running and knew that was going to be my primary form of exercise."
Whittaker's words reveal a theme that's common to many of our 8 Masters runners: though they have a history of successful competition, the desire to compete in and of itself isn't what bonds them to the sport, the "lifestyle" as Patterson puts it. Community, a way of life, seem to be more common and more lasting themes. Yes, many of our Masters enjoy a feeling of accomplishment, a sense of pride, even the vaunted (and perhaps over-hyped) "runner's high"; but take a gander at 100,000+ mile Rick Platt's life and you'll see more than the trophies galore, more than the newspaper bylines and local and national accolades. You'll see that his life, like those of so many of us, is richer because of the family that is the running community. Sure, it's an extended family; and as with all families, some members are a bit eccentric. Even so, runners share a bond that's quite rich, and while our shoes wear out and are retired forever, the friendships and shared experiences of running last. Perhaps that's one of the secrets of making it, in the long run. In fact, perhaps that's not only the secret of how to survive and thrive, but also one of the most important reasons to participate in the allegedly solo and intensely personal activity that is running.
I look forward to the next installment of this column, where we'll look at a common experience of our 8 Masters: Adversity, and overcoming it. Some of their experiences may surprise you; but patience is a virtue, and like all good runners you must endure as you await my next column. Until then, happy running!
Yours in running, health, & fitness,
| -Dr. Daniel A. Shaye Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician Fellow, International Academy of Medical Acupuncture |
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