We all have goals that seem to be out of reach. But if we
suspend our disbelief for a minute and let ourselves dream, we somehow believe
that they are within reach.
Such is allure of the traditional buckle that is given out
for running 100 miles. It seems crazy to run or even walk 100 miles, but it is
possible since others have done it before. Yet as you age those traditional cutoff
times loom as very large obstacles. Yet at A Race For The Ages (ARFTA)
that obstacle is much smaller since you have as many hours as you are years old,
so your dream seems much more reachable. But you still must accomplish it.
This is the story of two men who had never done 100 miles
but wanted that buckle. They had different reasons but were both focused. Jim
was 69 and from Kentucky and Tom was 75 and from North Carolina.
Right before the oldest runner Don took off there were a few
of us hanging around the starting line talking to the race director and
volunteers. I nonchalantly asked the veterans about a place to eat since I was
not starting until tomorrow night. One of the other runners, who was also early
was Jim. He was early because he mistakenly thought he was starting on Thursday,
but he was starting on Friday. We all laughed. I had asked advice to the race
crew about possible places to eat since I had 24 hours before I started. Jim
was also interested in that answer. They suggested a few places, but I was not
intrigued by any of them.
I searched online and came across a brewpub called Common
John. Their menu looked intriguing and it was close to the race site. As I
walked in it looked like a great place to hang out. As I walked up to the
bartender to see if I sat myself or how the service worked, I saw Jim sitting
at the bar. So, I asked if I could join
him. We sat and shared an early dinner and two beers. We had a great time
getting to know each other over some good beer. Jim was from Kentucky and was determined
to get a buckle. He was also an Army veteran. He was a few years older than me.
Since neither of us knew anyone, it was great to share stories.
The next morning, I was walking the course well before my
start time so I was familiar with it. I heard my name called from some cars and
camps set alongside course. It was Jim. He showed me his setup, and we chatted
with a few other runners from Mississippi. We decided to have lunch together at
the same pub before we started our race. We had a great lunch again, although
this time no beer. We had a great conversation, and he told me his experience
with the VOL State run which covers 314 miles through the state of Tennessee.
He did not finish that race. He had to drop out, which I believe fueled his
desire for a 100-mile buckle even more.
Jim was 69 so he had a three-hour head start on me. I filmed
his start of the race and sent it to him as a souvenir. He returned the favor and
videotaped my start.
Jim’s strategy was to power walk the course since he had so much time to get his 100 miles. Mine was to both run and walk and sleep as little as possible to get as many miles as I could. I wanted more than 100 miles. So that meant most of the time we were separated but every time we saw each other we gave an update. The second night when I was fighting sleep deprivation and was actually weaving a bit when I was running, he told me “Ray you are all over the place.” Which I was and I soon took a nap after hitting the 100-mile mark.
I kept cheering Jim on every time we saw each other. I could
hear it in his voice his excitement when he was getting closer. Even though he
was in pain he was happy. It is the excitement
one gets when one is close to achieving an almost impossible goal.
Unfortunately, I did not see him get his buckle. I was
napping at the time. I was pretty bummed out that I didn’t see it or Jim again.
After he achieved the milestone, I knew he was going to sleep and then would drive
home to Kentucky. It was weird not seeing him as I kept running. I missed him.
We really hit it off.
Have you ever gotten to know someone through someone else? That
is how I got to know Tom from North Carolina. He was a quiet man who was trying
to do 100-miles for the first time at age 75. His daughter Sarah was crewing him and she was
just a delight. She knew almost nothing about ultra running. She was there for
her dad. Yet Sarah soon was a popular person on the course. She started by making
soap bubbles as the runners came by.
Later on, she got ice pops and gave them to the runners as they passed.
Later she got some chalk and drew a hopscotch on the course along with some fun
sayings. She said her father may do this again next year and I encouraged her
to join him and just walk. She was thinking about it.
What I learned from Sarah was that her father was a runner
but had never done 100 miles. He was
determined to do it. The last few years of his life had been as a caregiver for
his wife, Sarah’s mother. She had suffered from Alzheimer’s and sometimes the
only running he could do was running circles in his yard.
Tom was pushing himself, but he took a break to watch a
college football game. He was using his 75-hours wisely. Tom and I would wave to each other on the
course. I told Sarah to tell me when her
father was on his last mile, and I would walk it with him. Which I did.
Actually, the last mile and a half.
It was while I was walking with him that Tom filled in the
gaps of Sarah’s version. His version was that it was very difficult emotionally
to be a caregiver for an Alzheimer’s patient. A woman that he had known for
almost of all of his life was not there. He said when someone has cancer the remaining
time is a time to discuss a shared love. With his wife she did not want closeness
or to be touched. I could tell it pained him. It was then that he said that he
was doing this run to raise money for Alzheimer’s research. He had raised $10,000
and that was what was pushing him. It wasn’t the buckle but the cause. He was
also very upset that the government was cutting funding for medical research. I
could tell this was personal for him. I also know that working for a cause that
he believed in helped motivate him to push through the pain and discomfort.
I had wondered why he ran in his yard when Sarah mentioned
it but I did not ask her. Somewhere in our conversation he said he put his wife
on the porch, and he could then get in his running in the yard and also keep an
eye on her. He was seventy-five but had been an avid runner his whole life. He
had run 5ks, 10ks, half-marathons, marathons, and even a 50k. 100 miles was the
only one left and ARFTA had generous time limits, and he could do
it without worrying about a cut-off time.
I could tell the race was not easy on his body. So, I was
not surprised when he said that he was losing a toenail which I have done
numerous times. He was in pain but determined. Then he said that he would never
do this again. I must admit I was disappointed. I was hoping that he would come
back again with Sarah and that she would join him. I really liked them.
When we got to the finish line for his one-hundredth mile
Sarah was there to greet him and we snapped a few pictures of them together.
It is funny walking that last mile and a half with him I really got to know him. I could not stop though I had more ground to cover and continued on my race which seemed much less important than his. When I was done with my race, I texted Sarah and found his charity and made a donation.
