NEWSLETTER NUMBER
THREE – September 27, 2002
It is encouraging for those of us who are in our 70’s to know that marathoning may continue after the age of 80. We have three club members in their 80’s who are still active marathoners. I reported on Don McNelly in the first newsletter on February 3, 2002. He is one of a select few in the club who have run more than 600 marathons. He and Wally Herman recently ran the Deux River Marathon at Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
Ed Burnham of Kansas City, MO, started marathoning when he was 70 years old. He had run 100 marathons by the time he was 80 years of age….quite an accomplishment! Lenore and I became acquainted with Ed when he ran the inaugural Yakima River Canyon Marathon on March 31, 2001. We saw him again at the Oklahoma Marathon on November 17, 2001. I ran with him on this double out-and-back course and admired his running style.
My long-time friend Harold Copeland of Richland, WA, and I have been running races together in the Pacific Northwest since 1985. He races often at distances from 5K to the marathon and usually wins an age class award….with many firsts. An aneurism in his leg side-tracked his running for awhile, but he has made a successful recovery and is running well again.
Lois Berkowitz is a busy lady. Lenore and I first met her at our March 31, 2001, YRCM. She is a Training and Performance Co-Ordinator for the Edward C. Levy Co. in Dearborn, MI. The skills from this position she applies to marathoning. She ran her first marathon in 1990 and averages 15 marathons per year….with a peak year of 22. Her count of marathons/ultras is getting close to 200 as she runs in many states and in Canadian provinces. Her most distant marathon was the Great Wall Marathon in China in May 2001. Lois is a 50 States and DC Group member and finisher as of November 1997. She completed running marathons in the Canadian provinces and territories in September 2001 as well. As if she wasn’t busy enough already, she added the job of newsletter editor for the 50 States Marathon club. Her running accomplishments include a 4:23 PR and completing a 50 mile ultramarathon.
While running the Skagit Flats Marathon at Burlington, WA, in September of 1997, Lenore and I met Rick Worley of Kingwood, TX (near Houston). I was impressed when he said his goal was to celebrate his 50th birthday by running all 50 states and DC in one year. During the next three years we saw Rick often as he ran many marathons in the Pacific Northwest. When he completed his megamarathoning goals successfully in early 2000, many of his friends joined him in running the Houston Marathon on January 16, 2002. Lenore and I were pleased to be on hand for the recognition dinner and for this happy occasion. Here is a summary of some of his remarkable accomplishments. He ran one or two marathons on 159 consecutive weekends (3 years and 3 weekends). During this period he ran 200 marathons, completed three 50 states and DC cycles and also completed one cycle of all Canadian provinces and territories. He arranged all of his race registrations, travel and lodging requirements himself and continued to work full time as a petroleum company executive. He also established a scholarship fund for graduates of the Cal Farley Boys’ Ranch in Texas. This scholarship is now associated with the Oklahoma Marathon held in November in Tulsa. Rick certainly has an enviable record, and we look forward to seeing him at the Oklahoma Marathon on November 23, 2001. Bob Lehew, a member of the 100 Marathon Club North America, is director of this well-organized marathon.
Jerry Martin, our wheelchair athlete from Greenacres, WA (near Spokane) had a spectacular race at the Bend Marathon on August 3, 2001, in Central Oregon. He sped to a 1:39:35 PR on a course that starts on the slope of Mt. Bachelor and drops almost 3,000 feet to the city of Bend. His average speed was about 15 miles per hour but it was reported that he came down the steepest hills at 40 miles per hour! Jerry completed his 112th marathon at our second annual YRCM and holds the course record for wheelchair participants.
We’re happy to report that Jose Nebrida is getting better every day….after his April 28th heart attack and subsequent triple by-pass surgery. When this happened, he had just completed the Oklahoma City marathon carrying the American flag in his 12th state following the 9/11/01 attacks. The good news now is that he will be a guest speaker at the inaugural Des Moines Marathon in Iowa on October 6, 2002, and that he will carry the American flag in his 13th state as he walks the 26.2 miles. Later this fall he’ll participate in the New York City Marathon.
Clay Shaw e-mailed us on June 30, 2002, to inform us that he finished the Canadian provinces and territories. Congratulations on this accomplishment!
I’ll be reaching a milestone in my running career on October 13, 2002, when I run Marathon #300, the Royal Victoria Marathon in British Columbia.
We enjoy receiving periodic postcards from Wally Herman with updates on his and Don McNelly’s marathons. He and Don are two of our most prolific megamarathoners. We welcome correspondence from all club members and encourage input for future newsletters.
Our membership has increased to a total of 96 members. We welcome the following new members to the 100 Marathon Club North America: Michael Alsworth, Swindon, Wiltshire, England; Todd Byers, Long Beach, CA; Virginia Farneman, Powell, OH; Alan Morton, Twynn-Gwyness, Wales, United Kingdom; Wally Oakes, Little Lever, Bolton, England; Ray Prizgintas, Los Angeles, CA; Jerry Sullivan, Metairie, LA; Cathy Troisi, Seneca Falls, NY.
The following 100 Marathon Club NA items are available:
We hope you’re planning to join us on April 5, 2003, for the third annual Yakima River Canyon Marathon that Lenore and I direct. Special recognition is given to 100 Marathon Club members, 50 Staters, foreign visitors and first-time marathoners. Jose Nebrida will be a guest speaker at the pasta feed at 7:00 p.m. April 4th at the Selah Civic Center Race Headquarters. If you haven’t run our race yet, be sure to check out our website, http://www.ontherun.com/yrcm, and then join us for a fun weekend with a marathon on an awesome course.
Bob and Lenore Dolphin
10519 126th Avenue S.E.
Renton, WA 98056
(415)226-1518 (Renton)…(509)966-0188 (Yakima)
e-mail: dolphinmteam@earthlink.net