MPRRC Newsletter

The 2000 Marathon Readiness Series has had another successful series
of races. Those who ran in any or all of the races, know the thrill of getting up long before sunrise (or shortly after sunset) and driving a long way in order to start running a race in the dark. And then, as you ran through each aid station and quenched your thirst with a cup of water handed to you by one of the cheerful teenagers, did it ever occur to you that the kids at all of the aid stations-some of whom also helped with late registration-had to get up between 2 and 3 a.m. in order to help set up before 4 a.m. and this was after (for many of the youth involved) making a 5:45 a.m. cross country team practice five days a week? So, after you have had an enjoyable jog of 15K (Hickam), 20K (Barbers Point), 25K (Schofield), 30K (Kapiolani Park) or half marathon (also Kapiolani Park) and enjoyed the refreshments provided after the race, please realize the reason there were cones on the roadway, mile markers at most of the races and plenty of young volunteers helping, is because a lot of sacrifices have been made.

If there are any areas of our races you think need improvement, I
have a job for you. It pays nothing. The hours can be long and the work hard. For the most part, the satisfaction you receive will be knowing you did a good job as a volunteer and helped make the race a success.

The year is coming to a fast close, and the Honolulu Marathon is
almost here. If you are not well trained to run 26 miles, don't sweat it, because there's not much you can do now, except my "Don't try this at home" crash training program. This program has been modified somewhat, and the results are not guaranteed, but only someone nuts would run a marathon with no preparation. (I've done it four times -3:16 -3:11 - 3:02 and 3:01). You'll need at least three weeks to train, so if you end up with less than that much time to prepare, all you can do is be well rested, fully hydrated and fully carboloaded. (Then run, walk and pray.) For two weeks, every third day, run long-at least for the amount of time you expect to finish the marathon. You can throw in walking breaks, but not more than a minute at a time. By the end of the two-week period, you will have a fair base. In between the long runs, do an easy jog of a mile or two the first day after the long run, and then on the day before the next long run, you can do a little pace work
(200 or 400 meters at the pace you want to run in the marathon-only 4
intervals). This will not make you world-class, but if you just do short (less than three miles) runs the week of the marathon, and rest for 60 to 72 hours (no running) before your race, and don't start out too fast, you might survive.

See you at the finish line.

Maybe you have never heard of Eric Stabb before, but you might have
seen him. He is taller than the average runner, and with his red hair he is very noticeable at any race. Eric Stabb has lived in Hawaii for three years now, having moved from Wisconsin to Hawaii to get his PhD. in microbiology at UH. Actually, he had no intention of running so many races before moving out here. An injury in his calf in 1995 made Stabb focus more on getting his degree than running.

But moving out to Hawaii was also a good move for his calf, and he
could finally start running again. Whenever he shows up at a race, you can be sure that he will place near the top if not winning. This year, he won Johnny Faerber's 10K, the Cinco de Mayo 5K and the

Alzheimer's 5K Memory Run, among others. He also won a fast 3000-meter race on the track ahead of Jonathan Lyau and Christian Friis. It was fast, by
Hawaii standards, but for Stabb it might have felt a little bit slow, with a time that was 38 seconds slower than his personal record of 8.11 for the 3000
meters.

In Wisconsin, Eric Stabb's first priority was to play basketball, but he did
not see as much improvement on the court as he did on the track, so he
switched to the track team in 8th grade in 1982. Since then, running
has been an important part of Stabb's life. After high school, he started out as a walk-on at University of Wisconsin, but slowly worked himself up to be
part of a team that eventually won the Big10 title.

And also during his collegiate years, he scored some impressive personal
records. On the track:1500 meters at 3:48.8; 3000 meters at 8:11; 1;5000
meters at 13:56.2; 10,000 meters at 29:34. On the road, he has posted times
of 23:35 for the 8K and 29:40 for the10K.

Coming back from injuries is difficult, and it is hard to accept that you might not be able to run as fast as you used to, but Stabb keeps racing here in Hawaii, and his personal records after moving out here are: 1500 meters at 4:09; 3000 meters at 8:49; 5K at15:19 and 10K at 32:26. Most of the times were set this year. Stabb was also part of the winning team at the Perimeter Relay, The Mushroom Track Club. Driving in a small van with a lot of runners, as you do at the perimeter race, is a different experience. But Stabb had done it before when he rented a van with his post-collegiate teammates and drove from Wisconsin to Montana to compete in the USATF National Cross Country Championships where they finished tenth.

Currently, Stabb is concentrating on his studies and hopes to secure
a teaching position at a university. In the meantime, you might meet him on
his favorite run around Ala Moana Beach Park, Magic Island and Kakaako Park, or when he is out running with his teammates from The Mushroom Track Club.
These include Jonathan Lyau, John Smith, Clint Sheely, Pete Boksanski, Peter
Hursty, Christian Friis and Paul Oshiro.

You can also check out the Mushroom Track Club on the net.

Each year, I select two Hawaii runners to go with me to Japan. This
year, it was Heather Matz-Jorris and Debbie Hornsby. I received a call from San Diego's Cheryl Brady-Sheremeta and was able to get her in because of her
second place finish in the Maui marathon.

We all met at the Japan Airlines counter on Oct. 21 and arrived in Tokyo
eight hours later, Oct. 22, losing a day in flight. The Ichinoseki representatives gave us a wonderful welcome.

The next morning at 6 a.m. we went for a 5K run around the Imperial Palace.
We were joined by runners from Hong Kong (two Aussies living there) and
Taiwan. We had three guides, so we were in good hands. At 9 a.m. we took the Bullet Train (Shinkansen) to Ichinoseki. a ride of 2 1/2 hours, north from Tokyo. The Sunroute Hotel was across from the train station. Heather, Debbie and Cheryl picked up their running numbers when they checked in. They were given 20,000 yen spending money and a hotel room key. All expenses for the Japan trip were paid for: airfare by Japan Airlines, hotel, food, train and even long distance calls to Hawaii.

The mayor of Ichinoseki, Tobei Asai, came to our table and presented
each of us with a pair of wine glasses. We saw elite runners everywhere: Keizo
Yamada (Boston Marathon winner in the 50s with a 2:14 time); Tsuneake Takahashi, 66, a Honolulu Marathon age group winner; and Toshihiko Seko's speedy runners. Two years ago, Eric Wainaina of Konica Co. ran and won in 1:03 and came in second in the Sydney Marathon in 2:10.

The elite runners were introduced. I read letters from Mayor Harris, Governor Cayetano and Lt. Gov. Maizie Hirono. We all raised a toast for a successful marathon and the food started coming, everything from sashimi to sukiyaki.

The half-marathon started at 10 a.m. Sunday, the next day. In Ichinoseki the
weather is cool. And it was raining from early morning. I used an umbrella
throughout the race to take pictures. Heather, Cheryl and Debbie stood in
front of the starting line: numbers 712, 713, 714. Heather ran strongly
with a second pack of male runners, while Cheryl was about two minutes back.
Debbie was working to stay in the middle of the pack. I was surprised that Heather came in second overall and first in the 30-and-above division in 1:21. Cheryl's time was 1:23, good for third overall and second to Heather. She was the first master's runner. Debbie finished at 1:41. Heather and Cheryl received trophies presented by the mayor of Ichinoseki.

In the evening, Ichinoseki officials took us to a teahouse for a big party.
We exchanged gifts and drank sake. We made a toast for a lasting friendship
between Hawaii and Ichinoseki. I yelled "banzai!" three times! In the
excitement, I wore the wrong shoes back to the hotel. Someone else
apparently had the same color and style of shoes.

The next day, we went to a kimono store to dress the three visiting runners
in Japanese attire. They looked fantastic! Please note the pictures! We
also visited historic Hamarikyu Garden and took part in a tea ceremony.
We went to Asakusa-the Sensoji Temple. It's also famous and has a
big red round lantern in front of the building. You go there and pray for your loved ones. Kannon is the god of compassion and has great power to release human beings from all kinds of suffering. We took a boat cruise around Tokyo from Asakusa to the Port of Tokyo. We passed 14 bridges of all shapes and designs. The cruise was very relaxing as we sat on the upper deck. I saw the Hawaii runners off at the Marunouchi Hotel and said aloha.

I went to visit my wealthy relatives who had a room reserved for me at the Imperial Hotel. This is a more luxurious hotel in the 4- or 5-star class. When you have the toilet seat heated and with a press of the button it flushes warm
water on your buns-that's class!

Sharon Calligan, chair in charge of membership for the club, is moving to
Las Vegas with her husband, Chris. The club wishes her the best in her new
life closer to family on the mainland.

Succeeding Sharon as membership chair is Judy Inazu.

If you want it done, give it to a busy person. It's an old saying, but I
suppose that's why former Mid-Pac President, Duke Frey, selected Sharon
Calligan to coordinate membership for the club five years ago. She started with a hard-copy list of 450 names and the mandate to record changes in our roster as members enter and leave the club. It was the sort of challenge that would appeal to an achievement-oriented woman driven to do things the right way.

From the get-go Sharon was determined to let none of our members fall through the cracks. At stake were the lists of people who pay the member
rate (of $2) for 19 of our 24 club races, the same people who are eligible
for recognition and awards in our racing series, the ones who receive this
newsletter in the mail, addressed with labels she prints from her computerized list.

It's a good thing Sharon is organized, because, though newly retired, she's
never had a lot of time to spend on membership. Sharon is a busy person.
At 61, she's one of the top three race walkers in the state; she does volunteer work at a nearby elementary school twice a week; she is passionately involved in tournament cribbage, and she is often off to the mainland visiting her five kids and seven grandchildren.

Taking care of membership was a job that appealed to her because she
could do it at home and on her own time. She had never worked with Microsoft
Excel, so it took a while to get the hang of the spreadsheet program and to
adapt it to the club's membership needs. Eventually, she had it to a place
she calls, "automatic," giving her more time for things like race walking.

Sharon got into race walking four years ago when a chronic neck ailment made
it impossible to enjoy running. "Race walking is a very technical sport," she
says. "There's so much to think about. It's also more of a total-body workout than running, because we use our arms and torso more vigorously. The best part is the low-impact nature of the activity. I can be competitive again without re-injuring my neck."

Competitiveness was the last thing on Sharon's mind when she got into
running in the early 1980s. Even earlier, while living in Oregon, her doctor
had recommended jogging to her as a way to lower her blood pressure.
"My ex-husband and I owned four dry-cleaning establishments at the
time," she says. "We had six employees, but Terry and I carried most of the load, in addition to raising three kids and working 16-hour days. There was a lot of stress, and I really needed to jog, but you know what the weather is like in Oregon." It wasn't until she got to Hawaii that Sharon took up running. Soon
she began noticing her name in the race results and wondering how good she might become. Ruth Heidrich, then president of Faerber's Flyers, invited Sharon
to join the group. "Faerber's is where I learned to push myself," she says. "I started going to a lot of races, seeing if I could better my times. I liked the
camaraderie of standing around with friends afterwards, waiting for the
results to see how we placed."

Sharon is still out there. She's done all of the Great Aloha Runs, most
recently as a race walker. "There aren't many of us," she says of her cohorts in the race-walking community. "But in Barbara Seffans group, Great Strides, I've found a home and an outlet for my competitiveness." Still interested in her performances, Sharon did 1:09 for the Straub All-Women's 10K this year, an average of 11:07 per mile. (If you don't think that's fast, try walking a single mile at that pace. And remember, you've got to keep one foot on the ground at all times, and a straight leg passing under you.)

Race walking remains an important part of Sharon's life for health reasons.
Her father and his sister both died of heart attacks in their early 50s, so
she is cognizant of the risks associated with not exercising. She says she
can feel the way her body misses exercise if she doesn't race walk for several days. Like many of us who need to exercise for health reasons, Sharon
hopes to emulate her mother's longevity. She is 86, active in United Way, the Girl Scouts, her church and bridge club. "I suppose I learned how to be busy
from my mom," Sharon says, not overstating her case at all.

They're all grandmas and grandpas-or old enough to be. And they have
one thing in common, these septuagenarians, they can probably outrun their kids and grandkids in a road race. Their average age is 72, and among the six of them who got together to run the Hana Relay this year, they teamed up to set the record for the oldest team ever to run the grueling 52-mile route from the airport in Kahului to the ballpark in sleepy Hana, where the run ends and the party begins.

Now, Joe Alueta, who's been race director of the Hana Relay for the past
five years of its 29-year history, says the organization hasn't kept any
records in this particular category, but he doesn't know of any other group
of senior citizens who ever churned the course in under nine hours-the cut-
off to qualify for masters group awards.

So who are the super six who brought home another age-group record for the
Mid-Pacific Road Runners? Familiar to MPRRC members and other Hawaii runners who see them at nearly every race on the calendar, they are:
Frank Wallace at 64, the baby of the team; John Humphrey, 73, Bob
Henninger, 75, "Slippah Man" Naoto Inada, who turned 79 just in time for the event; and Ellen Humphrey, 72, and Marie Boles, 73, two veteran female
runners who made it a mixed masters (and faster) team. Total team age: 436
years. Total time: 8 hours and 31 minutes, an apparent age-group record for
the event.

As always, Naoto Inada ran in slippers, which drew a lot of comment from
spectators along the way and won him a fan club of young women who cheered him on toward finishing his three legs of the relay. Ellen Humphrey,
concerned that three legs wasn't enough mileage for the weekend, ran a
couple of extra legs for the exercise.

Bob Cooling, now probably the best of the 75-80 age bracket runners
in the state, took to the road following health problems in the summer of 1975.
An insurance executive at the time, Cooling weighed 175 and had high
blood pressure when he did a treadmill for Dr. Jack Scaff. Cooling at that point had no running experience from his school days. Scaff suggested a visit to the Sunday morning marathon clinic at Kapiolani Park.

Cooling showed up and by December turned in a 3:57 marathon, not a
bad start in the road race business for a 51-year old. Today he weighs 155 and placed first in his age group in last year's Honolulu Marathon, logging a 4:42 in a field of 33 male competitors in the 75-80 age bracket.
"When I was 70 in 1994, I finished behind a German who beat me by four
seconds. My time was 4:00:50," Cooling recalled. "Although I qualified for
Boston six times, I only went once, in 1990 at age 65, and turned in a
3:43," he said. "I trained for Heartbreak Hill at Wellesley College by doing the
Tantalus 10-mile loop every week."

Cooling's best marathon out of 21 (all on the Honolulu course, except the
one in Boston) came in 1986 when at age 62 he clocked a 3:27. He has 13
marathon medals for finishing in the top 5 percent in various age groups
over the years.

Bob is a native of the west side of Los Angeles, graduated from the
University High teacher training school attached to UCLA and in 1947 became
a Bruin graduate. He was a naval officer on a troop transport during World WarII. Cooling came to Hawaii in 1964 after stints in Prudential's regional offices in Los Angeles, Denver and Seattle. He worked on corporate group insurance and pension plans, among other insurance products, but retired in 1990 as a vice president at Hawaiian Trust, specializing in employee benefits.

"Before a marathon, I do the usual carbo loading during the week but without the protein depletion phase," Cooling said. "I might have spaghetti on Friday night, eat cereal on Saturday morning and green salads but not much
more. "I take plenty of fluids, and water works best for me. Sometimes I
sleep very well before a race, sometimes not. You never know," Cooling said.

These days he also runs along Ala Wai, while in the water, his granddaughter
trains in her solo kayak.

Geoff Howard Finishes High in National
Masters Meet Running Events in Oregon

By Lyle Nelson

Geoff Howard hits a brisk stride in the Windward Half-Marathon.
Photos by Tesh Teshima

Geoff relaxes after March's Maui Marathon.

Geoff won his 60-65 age division at the Race for the Cure.

When he circled the famous track at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, in
August, Geoff Howard may have encountered the ghosts of Duck distance greats from the past: Steve Prefontaine, Dirol Burleson, Grelle, Kenny Moore.
These four and many others turned the University of Oregon campus into the
venue and mecca for national track greatness for several decades.

Howard was there three months ago to compete in the National Masters
Track and Field Championships. Runners from all over the nation compete.
It was a good setting for masters competitors. The age subdivisions
started at 30. Geoff, president of MPRR from 1998 to last January, chose to compete in the 1,500-, 5,000- and 10,000-meter events in his 60-64 age group. Twelve men competed in each event, Howard said.
"I did the 5,000 on a Thursday, 10,000 on Saturday and 1,500 on Sunday," said Howard. " There were no preliminaries in these events, although there were in the sprints in other races."

Geoff took a 6th in the 5,000 in 17:31, a 4th in the 10,000 in 36:28 and a
9th in the 1,500 in 5:32. "We used all eight lanes in these events," he said.

Howard has been competing in masters events at Cooke Field at the
University of Hawaii along with many other MPRR regulars. "A number of Hawaii men were in Eugene, including Jack Karbens, Ron Pate, Walter Ritte from Molokai and Hank Warrington, who won both the 100 and 200," Howard said.

Geoff is undecided about running in next year's nationals, scheduled
for the Louisiana State track in Baton Rouge. While in Eugene, Geoff and his wife were housed in campus dorms and he enjoyed warming on the tree-lined bike path that runs along the Willamette River. Later, the couple traveled the Oregon coastline.

Howard, with about 30 marathons under his belt, has done a 5K in Portland and once ran a marathon in Vancouver, B.C. He is a native of Harrow on the outskirts of London, came to Hawaii in 1964 and has lived here since.
At MPRR he has been a capable administrator, tireless organizer and a
frequent winner in his age group at any distance.

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Beijing Beckons with its International
Marathon, Shorter Events, Scenic Tour

By Joan Davis

If someone had told me 10 years ago (other than a psychic) that I would be in China, I would have said, "They're crazy." Well, after my injury in April and eight weeks in a cast, I had to have some kind of goal and incentive. The doctor only authorized a 5K or 10K.

The reasons I could not refuse this chance included: (1) It's the millennium, (2) It's the year of the dragon, (3) My 60th birthday, (4) Being a Beijing Marathon participant, and (5) Doing the Great Wall.

The Oct. 15 Beijing International Marathon includes a half marathon, 10K and
5K events as well as a full and half marathon for wheelchair participants.
Organized by the Chinese Athletic Association, it draws more than 2 million
spectators along the course, from Tiananmen Square to the Olympic Sports
Complex Stadium.

What stories and memories I have from 10K in China and other
experiences there!

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The "Beware of Vicious Beast" placard sometimes seen at the entrance
to the strange-looking tent at our club races is intended humorously to ease a
situation brimming with tension or anxiety. Some questions are unavoidable but others that may seem important should best be handled by the worker inside the tent when he is finished or at least has things under control.

Bart Mathias is the antithesis of that "vicious beast," but expecting him to
find someone's finishing place-unless he or she is among the first few-amongsometimes hundreds of entrants, is mentally disruptive to a person trying to clarify overall results. When race results appear in the newspapers a day or two later, it isn't because someone has waved a magic wand to make it happen but because someone has worked patiently and quietly behind the scenes to make it all happen.

It is impossible to recount all of his efforts but, as an example, Bart spent many hours over days before the recent Schofield 25 K run inputting data into the computer in preparation for the event, then spent most of the race morning inside the tent, interpreting, coordinating and printing results. That's one instance among many. He is a computer whiz who loves working with the equipment.

But he also loves running and racing too. If a few more club members with
computer expertise would volunteer to help occasionally, he could do both.
Bart turned 65 this year and is one of MPRRC's, and Hawaii's, fastest
runners in the 65-69 age category.

Here are some requests for help and tips from Bart:

1. If you've already drawn a number or bib for an event, try to bring the
number with you. It's not easy to assign a new number to an entrant the
morning of the race.

2. Wear your number, please, on the FRONT of your person. It must be visibleto finish-line crews BEFORE your foot crosses the finish line. If it's
pinned in back, hidden by a short, crumpled in your hand or pocket or hat, it has to be deduced by another time-consuming step that can lead to mistakes.

3. It's not easy to control your finishing momentum, but, if you can, try to help the volunteer at the back of the chute, if there is one, record your
number in order, as a double-check to the computer.

As club statistician, Bart assembles a variety of race-related statistics
for us. His efforts are immeasurable. He does it willingly, uncomplainingly, even happily. He deserves appreciation and help from all.