Thanks....unfortunately my best times were non winning times. I got sucked along and then got lost in the afterburners of the elite guys.

I thought I was hot stuff in High School until I went to a good running college and found that I was run of the mill.....ended up fifth man in Cross Country on the Western State Conference Champ Team....and was the third leg on the 4x relays......I felt like a 912 or the third stringer on a SuperBowl team....along for the ride.

Lasted two years and I was toast...discovered beer, the beach and cars......One guy on my team was the AAU world champ in CrossCountry they ran it in Morrocco?....1974 or 75....Bobby Thomas, Dwight Stones the high jumper was also on our team....he was a nut job.

As to shoes....yes good shoes are important. I was given a free pair of Nikes when I was 14. Always wore them.

Then in College we had a shoe deal with Adidas. They never fit me right. Constant blisters. Then the knee problems and the first ACL went....rest is lost in a beer buzz.

If that was Western State in CO, that's still a pretty quick team. My wife ran distance track and CC at Colorado Mines -- the engineers never really had a chance against the Western and Adams State kids.

At least she got to say alot of "Hey, I've run behind her, too!" when they showed the last Olympic Trials on TV.

I run 4 miles/day, 3 days/week on the trails around Los Alamos. Been doing it for some time now, and still the best thing about running is _stopping_. Ugh!

mike
'78SC

Len,
As one of the older people on this board, I can look back on this with a little experience, I think. I was a sprinter, broad (long nowadays) jumper and hurdler in HS & played on the football and basketball teams. I always hated running and do to this day. I always looked at people who ran long distances as not being real athletes (no talent), but merely people who learned to put one foot ahead of another and keep doing it for a long time. I did do a lot of exercise though. While I worked at a job in the mountains (Sierras), I logged enough miles to go across the country and half way back (fighting fires, climbing, patroling, long trips with heave packs - about 3,900 miles) and it took its tole. Moses & Rick are right. Take care of your knees, hips, and everything else. I can tell you it's not fun when they are worn out when you get older. I still walk (4 to 6 miles) while exercising with hand weights, and I still take backpacking trips in the mountains. I would say walking (up hill if you have a place to) is the best. They say you can get 85% of the aerobic conditioning of a runner by brisque walking. Plus you still burn up essentially the same amount of calories walking as you do for the same distance running. Save those knees & everythinbg else for later on.

So if you are clomping like a clydesdale, should you not even bother? Can you learn to be more efficient?

Never clomped like a Clydesdale.

MikeZ, where did you go to college? Was it Long Beach State?

This is what I was refering to in my above post.

I know the feeling. I went to UCI and ran into Steve Scott.
That's when I hung up my spikes.

mjohnson one of the girls I coached just used her eligibilty up at Adams. She was a 4 or 5 time all-american there. I think she'll be a great marathon runner someday. Her husband is the same. Beth and Josh Merrick ring a bell?

Thanks guys, sounds like running is not a good fit for me. I've already snapped one ACL earlier in life (did the hammy replacement)and the accompanying meniscus damage so I would be behind the eight-ball to start.

I'll think of something, thanks.

Len,

Orthopedic surgeons who do knee replacements love long distance runners.

Try biking, swimming, an elliptical machine of fast walking. They will all give you a great cardiovascular workout and your knees will thank you.