Answer: run a half-marathon and a 10K.
Actually, our hero Mike Fremont was only 96 when he ran – or tried to run – the 2019 Daytona Beach half-marathon in early February, a race I did two years ago, which is why I mentioned it to Mike. I liked the race because it started and ended in the massive NASCAR Daytona stadium and gave us a chance to run a lap – just like the drivers, though they go a bit faster on their laps. It was out and back, with a small stretch on the beach.
Unfortunately, this year – when Mike ran it – the course had changed and involved zig zagging through a maze of city streets. And, to make it worse, big winds – probably 20-30 mph, which I can verify from my training run an hour north in St. Augustine – blew directional signs down. Mike, and probably several or many other runners, got lost, missed the cut-off, and wound up running about 14 miles – for which he got zero credit. C’mon folks, if you’re a race director, you should appreciate the opportunity to showcase a 96-year-old running 13.1 miles. I don’t think they’ll see him again. Nor me.
Fast forward to February 24 and the 41st annual Sunrunners 10K on Vero Beach, Florida, which was, literally, on the beach. Despite having injuries, Mike competed in the race, one he’s done for the last 20 years.
As Mike told me, “Don’t think I mentioned it but 10 days before this race I stepped off a two-foot-high platform while I was carrying laundry at 9:30 in the dark and broke a rib, along with hitting a knee, elbow and head. The next day I spent six hours in an emergency hospital and it
took a week for me to get out of bed each day without help.”
Regardless, he ran the race and complained that “Under normal conditions my time would have been about 100 minutes or 1:40; instead it was a dismal 1:59.”
So that answers the question about what do you do when you turn 97, even if you’ve just broken a rib and are hurting elsewhere. And, Mike, you’ve earned the right to complain about your time in the race. After all, you’re 97 – a LifeNut for all seasons and all the right reasons.
Actually, our hero Mike Fremont was only 96 when he ran – or tried to run – the 2019 Daytona Beach half-marathon in early February, a race I did two years ago, which is why I mentioned it to Mike. I liked the race because it started and ended in the massive NASCAR Daytona stadium and gave us a chance to run a lap – just like the drivers, though they go a bit faster on their laps. It was out and back, with a small stretch on the beach.
Unfortunately, this year – when Mike ran it – the course had changed and involved zig zagging through a maze of city streets. And, to make it worse, big winds – probably 20-30 mph, which I can verify from my training run an hour north in St. Augustine – blew directional signs down. Mike, and probably several or many other runners, got lost, missed the cut-off, and wound up running about 14 miles – for which he got zero credit. C’mon folks, if you’re a race director, you should appreciate the opportunity to showcase a 96-year-old running 13.1 miles. I don’t think they’ll see him again. Nor me.
Fast forward to February 24 and the 41st annual Sunrunners 10K on Vero Beach, Florida, which was, literally, on the beach. Despite having injuries, Mike competed in the race, one he’s done for the last 20 years.
As Mike told me, “Don’t think I mentioned it but 10 days before this race I stepped off a two-foot-high platform while I was carrying laundry at 9:30 in the dark and broke a rib, along with hitting a knee, elbow and head. The next day I spent six hours in an emergency hospital and it
took a week for me to get out of bed each day without help.”
Regardless, he ran the race and complained that “Under normal conditions my time would have been about 100 minutes or 1:40; instead it was a dismal 1:59.”
So that answers the question about what do you do when you turn 97, even if you’ve just broken a rib and are hurting elsewhere. And, Mike, you’ve earned the right to complain about your time in the race. After all, you’re 97 – a LifeNut for all seasons and all the right reasons.
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