We arrived in Albuquerque on a tight schedule, rushed to the expo to pick up our packets, and headed to The 50 States Marathon Club reunion meeting. The meeting room was packed with crazy runners, and the energy and aliveness was noticeable. We each stood and introduced ourselves, and they told us that out of the field of about 400 entrants about 100 would be 50-States Club members, our largest turnout yet.
We were excited when they introduced former Olympian running guru and noted running author, Jeff Galloway, as our surprise guest speaker. Since the early 70s, Jeff has dedicated his life to making running available to all. He has studied, learned, and taught thousands of people about every facet of the sport of running. He has opened the door and set millions of people in motion who otherwise might still be sitting on the couch.
As a true leader, he said very little about himself. Instead, he commended and complimented our club and all of our individual efforts. He said that we would never know how many people were following and watching us and the countless people we encourage and inspire by going for our goal. He said that we inspired him by continuing to test our limits, attempt more difficult goals, and constantly dig deeper than we thought possible into our capabilities. He said that more people have ventured into outer space than have run a marathon in all 50 states. In fact, he said, ten times more people have climbed Mt. Everest than have run a marathon in all 50 states.
It gave us a new perspective, to say the least. He then asked for our questions and proceeded to explain the evolution of his run/walk method. In the beginning, he suggested that long distance runners run a mile and walk for thirty seconds to recover. In so doing, a runner would be fresher at twenty miles and more able to stay strong and fast for the tough last six miles. Over the years, he has tried all kinds of combinations of running and walking for safe, injury free marathoning while improving times and shortening the recovery period after events. He mentioned running five miles and walking one mile, four and one, two and one, and even suggested running 20 seconds and walking 40 seconds in severe heat and humidity or in high elevations.
When my wife, Janet, asked what he recommended for those people running two marathons in two days, he said, “Don’t do it!” He had spent his life promoting injury-free running and just couldn’t condone it. Quite a few folks like us in the audience chuckled and winced at the same time because we were headed either for Roswell, NM or Colorado Springs, CO on Labor Day if we were successful in Albuquerque on Sunday.
We left the meeting, having learned a lot, and I found myself wondering if running and walking to recover might work for me.
The busses began leaving for the 5:30 a.m. start at 4:00 the next morning, and I decided I hadn’t come all this way to not at least give it a try. Better to try and fall short than not try at all, I reasoned. I gave Eddy and Mike my best wishes, and carefully made my way in the dark to the rear of the pack just before the gun went off. I had decided to walk slowly until I was warm enough to try jogging.
The first eight miles were uphill, so it wouldn’t take us long to get warm. It was then I saw a group of 10 to 15 runners who were taking the same slow approach and in the middle was Jeff Galloway! I didn’t know he was running. After walking a while, we heard five beeps from his watch and he said, “Okay, we’re running”. I gave it my best shot to keep up, not knowing what to expect, and after about a minute, I heard him say loudly, “Okay, we’re walking”. The walking for a minute really felt good and by the time his watch beeped, I felt I could jog easy for another minute.
After a few rounds of running and walking a minute uphill in the dark, we were all warming up, and I found a way to jog and walk so my foot didn’t hurt too badly. The incline actually felt good. I was glad I had given it a go and felt privileged to be learning on the job from someone in the know. I remained quiet, cautious, and deliberate with every step. We continued this way at the back of the pack running and recovering, hardly noticing the hills and altitude. I knew that after the first eight miles the course was all-downhill into the Rio Grande Valley, with the finish in Old Town Albuquerque.
As daylight greeted us, we passed a herd of buffalo, and in the distance we could see scores of hot air balloons ascending. It was a beautiful sight. Jeff kept us all on pace, but I noticed that to keep up I had to run a little longer and walk a little less. Somehow, I was barely able to keep him in sight until mile 22, and as he had promised, I was still feeling good considering my condition. Along the way, we had passed quite a few runners who had gone out fast and then flamed out. I slowed down for the last four miles not really caring about anything other than finishing without doing myself any more harm. I even tried running 20 seconds and walking 40 seconds a few times, but eventually settled into a jog so slow that a brisk walker on crutches could have passed me!
It just felt good to know I was going to finish my 32nd state, and I had found my miracle. It came in the person of Jeff Galloway.
(Next week: The American Discovery Trail Marathon, Colorado Springs.)
