On April 24, a few weeks ago, he accepted the challenge of running in an event hosted by Drake University and Blake Boldon, the former director of the Indianapolis Marathon and currently the director of the famous Drake Relays. The race is called the US 1 Mile Championship - the Grand Blue Mile. So off he went, flying from Cincinnati to Des Moines, Iowa. And he also flew in the mile, establishing a new American record in the men’s 95-99 category with a time of 13.55, 53 seconds faster than the previous record set in 1990 by a 95-year-old. Nice going, Mike.
But he wasn’t finished. On Friday, April 27, Mike competed in the masters 800 meter race and, though he didn’t set another record, his time of 6:46 was faster than a lot of younger Americans could manage. As Blake commented in his email, “More than that, it will help Iowans and a broader audience realize that retirement - and life in general - isn’t intended to be spent on a couch.” Blake gets it.
And, to spice up this newsletter, here’s a video of Mike in Iowa –
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDBxJGcgeUE
How does he do it? Well, if you’ve read the blogs on this site, then you should know that LifeNuts is based on his lifestyle – a vegan diet, exercise, sense of humor, stress management, good investing, and all the other qualities that Mike has. Oh, I should include that he ran a 5K at last weekend’s Flying Pig marathon. No rest for the wicked!
Life is full of choices: to set running records or keep track of meds. And, old age creeps up on all of us without much notice. LifeNuts know the answers.