One fast Galloping Geezer - Polar Bear Grand Prix 70-74 Age Group Winner
After graduating from law school in 1975 I began a fulfilling but sedentary career in corporate tax and accounting. I soon took up running as a way to get regular exercise. That quickly led to road racing in the 25-29 age group. I'm now in the 70-74 age group and retired from my career but with no plans so far to retire from running.
Not being a fan of treadmills, I run outdoors year round. Getting out the door in the winter has required less effort since 2012. That was when I started running Polar Bear Grand Prix races. They make winter running more fun and those Scenic Loop hills make getting out to train more of a priority.
On Saturday mornings when I’m not racing I usually run with some other not-so-young guys at Pope Lick Park. In races with team entries, like the Polar Bear races, we run as the Galloping Geezers. Seneca Park is my “home course” but I also run a lot in Cherokee Park and in my neighborhood.
Most of my races have been in the 5K through half marathon range. Longer races and the higher training mileage they require tend to turn running into a chore for me. That’s why I’ve run very few marathons and might partly explain why I've had very few running injuries.
Competition, whether against myself in setting PRs or against other guys in my age group, has always made racing more fun for me. It motivates me to train with a little more intensity than I need just to finish and that seems to enhance my overall fitness.
My favorite River City Races event is the Downtown Doubler 15K on the Ohio River Greenway. One of the photos I’ve submitted is of me at the finish of that race in 2022. The other is of me in 2021 with my grandnephew Lucas, an obvious non-runner at the time who has since taken up toddling.
I highly recommend RCR events to anyone looking for a way to combine outdoor exercise with fun. They’re well organized, quite casual, and not overpriced. You can walk if you can’t run, no one will care if you’re slow (whatever that is), and you’ll get tasty treats at the end.