Monday, October 10, 2005
I Remember 1981 When I Started Running
On July 10, 1981 I turned 30 years of age. It shocked me! Not enough to change my entire life but enough to make me change a part of it. I had always believed that I would probably die a violent death at an early age and thought that if I somehow actually managed to make it to 30 years old, I would probably live to be 100. So when the day came and I was still on this earth, I realized I had about 70 years left to live and had better get my act together if I wanted to enjoy them. I realize it is only speculation on my part that I will live to age 100 but hey, I might be right, so I better prepare.
That summer I made a vow to myself that I would get myself in better physical shape and as a means to that end, I declared that I would run and finish the Honolulu Marathon the following year, December 1982 to be exact. Yes, I decided that I needed to make my body endure 26.2 miles of running in order to help me be able to live for another 70 years. I allowed myself until January of 1982 to begin training, so I had another 6 months of party time before I had to get serious.
I thought about how I was going to accomplish this goal during those six months. Hawaii had a lot of runners, at least at that time, and there was a road race scheduled pretty much every weekend somewhere on the island of Oahu. At least I could accumulate various t-shirts from the races as part of my endeavor. I decided to enter my first road race in my town of Wahiawa in March of 1982, a 7 mile run that covered territory I would be using for training.
I began my training in January of that year. As a prelude to this, I quit drinking alcohol and coffee on January 1st and I quit smoking pakalolo that day as well. All of this was temporary and was to help me get on track with my running program. I bought a new pair of running shoes, I think they were New Balance. I took off on my very first run one afternoon and managed to run non-stop for about 3/4 of a mile before I stopped, leaned over the edge of the sidewalk and puked my guts out. What a nasty feeling! And here I was now 3/4 mile from home and feeling very sick to my stomach. Apparently not drinking alcohol didn't mean I would never puke again. I walked home and vowed not to run as hard the next time.
I don't think I puked any more during my practice runs and little by little I increased my distance from less than a mile to about 5 miles without stopping. By the time the March race came around, I was able to run the 7 miles in about 52 minutes, which averaged about 7 1/2 minutes per mile. Not too bad for a 30 year old beginner! And I got my first of many Hawaii race t-shirts.
But the feelings I had coursing through my body after that run were amazing! My body felt so alive and so strong and vibrant, I could hardly believe it. This was truly the way I wanted to spend this coming year, runing and running and running. Honolulu Marathon, watch out. I would be ready and I would complete it.
Funny thing about living in paradise, nearly everyone drinks. And I don't mean social drinking, I mean lots of drinking. One would think this wouldn't be the case, after all it is paradise, but I saw more drinking in Hawaii than anywhere I've ever ived. And road races are no exception. What I found after my first race was a beer truck. Wow! A beer truck parked there dispensing free beer to any runner who wanted it, and we all wanted it. I ended my dry spell for beer that day. I had already started drinking coffe again. But I kept on running. There was always a beer truck at the end of the race. Sometimes two or three and plenty of food and all for the $10 or so entry fee.
I entered road races most every weekend that year and got many t-shirts and lots of experience running with pain. The body never, ever feels 100%. Especially as it gets older, there is always something or other that hurts or aches or doesn't feel quite right about the human body. But I managed to run through all of that and steadily increased my distances working towards my goal of the marathon in December.
In October I ran in a half-marathon, a prelude to the full event. I started the race with a friend of mine, George Giddens, a 6 minute miler. I was pacing about 7 minute miles by then but running with George, I needlessly kept up a near 6 minute mile pace for the first two miles or so before I let him pull away from me. That fast start nearly killed me and by the end of the 13 miles, I had to walk a small distance to finish. Clearly I wasn't yet ready for a full marathon.
None-the-less the day came around for the marathon. Getting practically no sleep the night before I was downtown by 4:00 AM, ready to start this thing off at 6:00. There were 12,000 runners that day and it took several minutes just to get up to the actual starting line. I had a good kick going and the split time after the first 10K was less than 40 minutes, way too fast! I slowed down going over Diamond Head and maintained a steady pace until somewhere around the 20 mile mark. My legs were like butter by then and I grudgingly slowed down to a walk to get some water and continued walking for a mile or more.
I didn't like being passed by so many people, so finally I started running again, slowly at first, then picking it up as I felt able. By the last 2 miles or so the adrenalin was rushing and my legs were pumping like they never had before. I stormed towards the finish line, and my picture, with a smile on my face and a very exhausted body. 10 minutes of cool down time and lots of water and I was fine and dandy and ready to drink some beer. I finished in around 3 hours 40 minutes, an average of over 8 1/2 minutes per mile, and something like number 7,000 out of 12,000. Not terribly incredible but then again not too shabby for a 30 year old just having fun.
I continued running the following year even running around the island in a relay event that was more demanding than the marathon. 6 of us took turns running 3-5 mile legs around the island of Oahu, a total of 133 miles. We started at 10:00 PM and finished the next afternoon at 3:17 PM. 17 hours and 17 minutes. I ran six legs for a total of about 23 miles and that was a real killer. Our relay team called ourselves the Naval Athletic Distance Striders or NADS. Thay way when our fans cheered for us they could say "Go NADS, Go NADS!". It's true. I never ran another marathon and the next year, 1984, when I got out of the Navy and moved to Orlando, Florida, I ran in a few more road races but the desire wasn't in me anymore. I quit running as a hobby and took up golf instead. It's much easier on the body.
That summer I made a vow to myself that I would get myself in better physical shape and as a means to that end, I declared that I would run and finish the Honolulu Marathon the following year, December 1982 to be exact. Yes, I decided that I needed to make my body endure 26.2 miles of running in order to help me be able to live for another 70 years. I allowed myself until January of 1982 to begin training, so I had another 6 months of party time before I had to get serious.
I thought about how I was going to accomplish this goal during those six months. Hawaii had a lot of runners, at least at that time, and there was a road race scheduled pretty much every weekend somewhere on the island of Oahu. At least I could accumulate various t-shirts from the races as part of my endeavor. I decided to enter my first road race in my town of Wahiawa in March of 1982, a 7 mile run that covered territory I would be using for training.
I began my training in January of that year. As a prelude to this, I quit drinking alcohol and coffee on January 1st and I quit smoking pakalolo that day as well. All of this was temporary and was to help me get on track with my running program. I bought a new pair of running shoes, I think they were New Balance. I took off on my very first run one afternoon and managed to run non-stop for about 3/4 of a mile before I stopped, leaned over the edge of the sidewalk and puked my guts out. What a nasty feeling! And here I was now 3/4 mile from home and feeling very sick to my stomach. Apparently not drinking alcohol didn't mean I would never puke again. I walked home and vowed not to run as hard the next time.
I don't think I puked any more during my practice runs and little by little I increased my distance from less than a mile to about 5 miles without stopping. By the time the March race came around, I was able to run the 7 miles in about 52 minutes, which averaged about 7 1/2 minutes per mile. Not too bad for a 30 year old beginner! And I got my first of many Hawaii race t-shirts.
But the feelings I had coursing through my body after that run were amazing! My body felt so alive and so strong and vibrant, I could hardly believe it. This was truly the way I wanted to spend this coming year, runing and running and running. Honolulu Marathon, watch out. I would be ready and I would complete it.
Funny thing about living in paradise, nearly everyone drinks. And I don't mean social drinking, I mean lots of drinking. One would think this wouldn't be the case, after all it is paradise, but I saw more drinking in Hawaii than anywhere I've ever ived. And road races are no exception. What I found after my first race was a beer truck. Wow! A beer truck parked there dispensing free beer to any runner who wanted it, and we all wanted it. I ended my dry spell for beer that day. I had already started drinking coffe again. But I kept on running. There was always a beer truck at the end of the race. Sometimes two or three and plenty of food and all for the $10 or so entry fee.
I entered road races most every weekend that year and got many t-shirts and lots of experience running with pain. The body never, ever feels 100%. Especially as it gets older, there is always something or other that hurts or aches or doesn't feel quite right about the human body. But I managed to run through all of that and steadily increased my distances working towards my goal of the marathon in December.
In October I ran in a half-marathon, a prelude to the full event. I started the race with a friend of mine, George Giddens, a 6 minute miler. I was pacing about 7 minute miles by then but running with George, I needlessly kept up a near 6 minute mile pace for the first two miles or so before I let him pull away from me. That fast start nearly killed me and by the end of the 13 miles, I had to walk a small distance to finish. Clearly I wasn't yet ready for a full marathon.
None-the-less the day came around for the marathon. Getting practically no sleep the night before I was downtown by 4:00 AM, ready to start this thing off at 6:00. There were 12,000 runners that day and it took several minutes just to get up to the actual starting line. I had a good kick going and the split time after the first 10K was less than 40 minutes, way too fast! I slowed down going over Diamond Head and maintained a steady pace until somewhere around the 20 mile mark. My legs were like butter by then and I grudgingly slowed down to a walk to get some water and continued walking for a mile or more.
I didn't like being passed by so many people, so finally I started running again, slowly at first, then picking it up as I felt able. By the last 2 miles or so the adrenalin was rushing and my legs were pumping like they never had before. I stormed towards the finish line, and my picture, with a smile on my face and a very exhausted body. 10 minutes of cool down time and lots of water and I was fine and dandy and ready to drink some beer. I finished in around 3 hours 40 minutes, an average of over 8 1/2 minutes per mile, and something like number 7,000 out of 12,000. Not terribly incredible but then again not too shabby for a 30 year old just having fun.
I continued running the following year even running around the island in a relay event that was more demanding than the marathon. 6 of us took turns running 3-5 mile legs around the island of Oahu, a total of 133 miles. We started at 10:00 PM and finished the next afternoon at 3:17 PM. 17 hours and 17 minutes. I ran six legs for a total of about 23 miles and that was a real killer. Our relay team called ourselves the Naval Athletic Distance Striders or NADS. Thay way when our fans cheered for us they could say "Go NADS, Go NADS!". It's true. I never ran another marathon and the next year, 1984, when I got out of the Navy and moved to Orlando, Florida, I ran in a few more road races but the desire wasn't in me anymore. I quit running as a hobby and took up golf instead. It's much easier on the body.
# posted by OH @ 8:01 AM 
