South Dakota’s Jerry Dunn, also known as America’s Marathon Man, loves a challenge. For example, in a single year, 2000, he ran 200 26.2-mile marathons. This year, to celebrate his 65th birthday, Jerry ran/walked 65 miles. Recently we got him to slow down enough to answer a few questions.

Fitter After 50: Jerry, tell us a little about your most recent challenge.

Jerry Dunn: Well Ed, since my last great adventure, 200 26.2 milers in the year 2000, I’ve been kind of a slug [completing] maybe 4 marathons [in] 9 years. I was starting to think America’s Marathon Man was done, not Dunn. So my resolution for 2010 was to run and race enough to consider myself a runner again. I ran a little over 500 miles in 2010. I ran a couple of 5K races, some 10Ks and my crowning achievement for the year was taking 3rd place in my age group at the 30K at the Big Horn Trail Run event in June. I was starting to get my edge back. Some time in October I thought to myself, I need to see if I’ve still got what it takes for one more of my outrageous endurance stunts. It came to me…65 miles on my 65th birthday. Thus the challenge was born.

Five years earlier I ran 60 for my 60th birthday all on an indoor track (480 circuits [in] 14 hours and 42 minutes. Not the most fun I’d ever had running, but late January in South Dakota is often quite cold, so I planned accordingly. This year I modified my plan a bit. I reserved the same track as before, but only from midnight on the 29th of January (my actual birthday) until 11 AM that same morning. My goal was to get between 40 and 45 miles done in those 11 hours and then move outside and finish whatever mileage remained. I left the field house at 11:30 AM with 44 miles completed.

My routine during the indoor time was to run/jog 2 laps and walk 1 lap. I was able to maintain that Galloway inspired run-walk regimen, without breaking the pattern, for the entire 11 hours. Some of my loyal, night owl running buddies joined me for an hour or two throughout the night to keep me awake and mobile.

I stepped outside into 28 degree temps, overcast sky and little or no wind. Not a bad day for a 21 miler. My goal was to make it to the Crow Peak Brewery by 6PM for the beginning of my self-hosted party. I arrived at 5:42 having walked the entire 21 remaining miles. HEY, I’m 65. So in just under 17 hours, I had accomplished my goal. As my buddy Gere Munro used to always say: “the pain is temporary… the pride is forever.”

In addition to celebrating the day of my birth, two other celebrations were occurring as well. I celebrated 28 years of sobriety, and, ironic as it may seem, we also celebrated the introduction of Lean Horse Ale.

All in all it was a birthday to remember. Not many 65 year old guys can say they ran 65 miles to celebrate what is commonly known as the retirement year.

FA50: How have you been able to stay in shape to be able to tackle 65
miles on foot when most folks in their 60s can’t seem to get themselves to
jog a couple of miles or make it to the gym on a regular basis?

Jerry: Discipline and grace. Except for the rather long sabbatical from serious training and running that I mentioned earlier, I’ve disciplined myself to just keep on keepin’ on. There’s no secret formula to getting fit, or to staying fit, you just have to find something you like to do that makes your heart beat a little faster, and do it almost every day.

I used the word grace along with discipline and what that means to me is that through no effort of my own, I’ve been given this talent for endurance running. I’m thankful everyday that I can get out of bed, lace up the running shoes and get out the door and run. I realized many years ago that I didn’t need to understand why or how I was able to do what I do but just be thankful that I can and use the talent/gift to motivate and inspire others.

FA50: What role does diet play in your staying so fit?

Jerry: Much less than you might assume. I’m not saying that I don’t pay attention to what I eat, but I don’t have any dietary regimen to which I adhere. I mostly avoid fast foods, although not totally. I don’t drink soda or eat much candy. Simple, fresh and whole foods seem to work the best for me.

FA50: Are there any food supplements you take on a daily basis and what,
if anything, do you take during a challenge to help you to keep going and
to recuperate after the event?

Jerry: I take a generic one-a-day multi vitamin and one aspirin daily. That’s it. During my endurance extravaganzas I consume a lot of HammerGel, Endurox R4, bananas, water, some Reese’s pieces, chocolate milk and I even had a sausage-egg McMuffin at about 10 AM on my birthday run. Afterwards … BIRTHDAY CAKE.

FA50: What is your training like?

Jerry: 4 to 5 days a week. Low mileage most days with a 12 or 14 or 16 miler on alternating weekends.

FA50: Do you do anything in particular to stay flexible?

Jerry: No.

FA50: Is there a spiritual component to these challenges? What about your
mental focus during long runs and challenges?

Jerry: Yes, there is a spiritual component. As I mentioned earlier I’m thankful every day that I’m still healthy and able to run. When I’m in the later stages of one of these grueling challenges I will often repeat the Lord’s Prayer a few times. This serves a dual purpose for me. First of all, I remind myself through praying that what I’m doing is in fact a gift and that the mere fact that I’m doing this feat may be the inspiration someone else needs to get started toward a more healthy life. Second, repeating the prayer acts as a mantra of sorts and takes my mind off the pain and suffering.

FA50: When running extremely long distances, is it agony, ecstasy or a
combination of the two?

Jerry: Some of both. The agony usually comes in the middle to near the end portion of the distance and the ecstasy most always comes after completion. Although there are times during most of these extremely long endurance runs [when] I experience the “runners high” and feel as though I could just float to the finish, unfortunately, that never seems to quite work out in reality.

FA50: What advice do you have for those who have been sedentary for a
while and who now want to get back into shape?

Jerry: Take a realistic look at the condition you’re in right now. Set a realistic long range goal. Establish a routine and be consistent with your chosen activity. And most importantly … take your time. As the saying goes …”It took you all these years to get OUT of shape, don’t expect to get back IN shape overnight.

FA50: What would you tell someone looking to take a birthday physical
challenge, such as a long bike ride or run?

Jerry: I’d tell them what I write at the end of every email I send out: Don’t limit your challenges … Challenge your limits, and have fun doin’ it.

FA50: We understand that you are also a race director. What races do you
have coming up, and why should our readers consider traveling to South
Dakota to take on one of your races/event?

Jerry: My events:
Deadwood Mickelson Trail Marathon, June 5th (Our 10th Anniversary)

Black Hills 100 Ultra Marathon, June 25 / 26th (The Inaugural)

Lean Horse Hundred, August 27 / 28th (6th Annual)

Run Crazy Horse 13.1 / 26.2 October 2nd (2nd Annual)

Why come to South Dakota for one of our events? There is nowhere in the world more beautiful for running and walking than the Black Hills of South Dakota. Ask any of the 20,000 plus participants who have made the trip.

FA50: Is there anything you’d like to say to wrap this up?

Jerry: I’ve noticed that over my lifetime good things seem to come to me later than for a lot of other people, so I’m excited about what life holds in store for me in my post retirement years.

FA50: Thank you, Jerry and happy running.

DUNN  ran  Across the State In 28 hours in 1990 and from  Shore to Shore in 104 days in 1991.    Both of these treks in support of Habitat for Humanity.

DANE Rauschenberg’s project was called: FIDDY 2.     In 2006, Dane ran 52 marathons on 52 consecutive weekends for  L’Arche

DEAN Karnazes called his project 50 / 50 / 50.         In 2006 Dean ran 50 marathons in 50 states on 50 consecutive days for Karno’s Kids, whose motto is: NO CHILD LEFT INSIDE. 

DANA Casanave is running  52 marathons in 52 weeks for the charity 25:40 whose motto is from Matthew 25:40   ’I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers or sisters of mine, you did for me.’      Dana has asked me to invite any of you who are runners to come out and do a few miles with her when she comes to your town.  ( For Dana’s itinerary

My mantra, and the way I tend to live each day of my life is……Don’t Limit Your Challenges ~ ~ Challenge Your Limits.  The people listed above have all challenged the limits of physical endurance.  They have all succeeded.  What common thread runs through all of their extra-ordinary accomplishments? 

 They were giving of themselves for a cause greater than fame and fortune.  They ran so others could benefit from their efforts.

My Challenge to all of you is to get outside yourself and do something nice for someone else.  It’s that random-act-of-kindness thing; the play-it-forward theory; the do-unto-others philosophy.  And as always, I would love to hear about your experience.

Let’s you and I change the world………one act of kindness at a time.

 LEAN HORSE

C. O. P. E.

 Conceptualize   Organize   Personalize    Exercise

 We all are obliged to COPE with a variety of things every day of our lives.  We COPE with trivial matters and we COPE with huge, life altering issues.  Many times we COPE in mindless, habitual ways, and that can be an acceptable way to confront certain situations.  There is no need to put a lot of original thought and long term planning into how you’re going to COPE with your morning drive-time traffic or what you’re going to have for lunch.  But, there are quite a number of things in our lives with which we must COPE that could bear some thought and planning in order to reach the optimal outcome.

An example from my own life…..  “okay, I’ve committed to running from the Golden Gate Bridge to the steps of the Capitol Building in D.C. in support of Habitat for Humanity, how do I COPE with that mission?” 

I use the system that I developed many years ago, and it goes like this:
Conceptualize…..the idea stage.  First you must conceive of what it is you want to accomplish or change in your life.

Organize…this step is the gathering / planning step.  You begin to look at your concept/idea from a practical  perspective.  “How am I going to make this plan work?”

Personalize….what do I know about myself and how I function that will help or hinder my ultimate goal. 

Exercise….put your plan into operation. 

My challenge to you is to select one area of your life that you would like to improve and begin to think about how this C.O.P.E. strategy can take you there.

I am eager to act as your consultant, guide, sounding board or “coach”.  Contact me for input.

My credentials: 64 plus years on the planet; MA in counseling; experience using C.O.P.E. to run from San Francisco to Washington DC, and a few other things; founding and growing a successful business; and reading a lot of really useful books.

So…………..

 Come On People….Engage life.

Conceptualize   Organize   Personalize   Exercise

I know that not all of you who read my blog posts are runners or walkers or triathletes, but most of you are.  And it’s a well known fact that runners, walkers and triathletes have drawers full of tee-shirts they seldom, if ever wear.  Folks…the people in Haiti don’t even have drawers………. much less tee-shirts to put in them.

I received an email this week from a running Chicago Athlete Magazine requesting that event directors and athletes send new and barely used shirts to their office in Chicago and they will make sure they get sent to Haiti.  Here’s the address:

Chicago Athlete Magazine
7842 N. Lincoln Ave
Skokie, IL 60077

This article appeared in their Ezine: Give the Shirt off your back.

I encourage you and your friends to pool your shirts, head to the post office and use one of the “flat rate” boxes available and mail your shirts to Chicago.

I’m sending all of my left over shirts from The Deadwood Mickelson Trail Marathon and the Lean Horse Hundred Ultra.

In closing, here are some quotes from various sources about giving……they’re good.  This is the way we need to live our lives everyday, not just in response to disasters.

The excellence of a gift lies in its appropriateness rather than in its value.

Give what you have. To someone, it may be better than you dare to think.

He doubly benefits the needy who gives quickly.

He who waits to do a great deal of good at once, will never do anything.
– Samuel Johnson

If you haven’t got any charity in your heart, you have the worst kind of heart trouble. –Bob Hope

It is one of the most beautiful compensations of this life that no person can sincerely try to help another without helping himself. –Ralph Waldo Emerson

You can give without loving, but you can’t love without giving.

A gift, though small, is welcome. — Greek proverb

We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.

Plenty of people are willing to give God credit, yet few are willing to give Him cash.

The fragrance always remains in the hand that gives the rose.
Heda Bejar

So don’t worry….be happy.

“Every life will have some trouble, but when you worry, you make it double.”….bobbi mcferrin

There are plenty of things to worry about these days and it’s easy enough to fall into the trap of wasting time thinking (worrying) about stuff that we have no control over.  And to what avail?  Nothing. Naught. Nada.  Time wasted.

I spent all last week worrying about what I was going to “blog” about, and of course I ended up blogging about nothing.  Just like the rocking chair I spent a lot of time moving forward and backward and at the end of the day, in this case at the end of the week, I was still in the same spot.  Moving……yes.  Getting on with life……no.

I’m a strong proponent of living in the moment, and worry puts you either in the past, contemplating what might have been, or in the future, comtemplating what might yet be.  Both these places are filled with futility.  You can’t change the past and you have very little influence on the future.  But what you do have is today.  Or more specifically, you have NOW.

“Now” is a time you can influence.  A time you can control.  You can choose what your “now” is like.  You can chose not to worry, and be happy.  You can chose to do one of those random acts of kindness that I’m always encouraging you to do……they always seem to result in happiness, for both you, and the recipient of your kindness.

Or, you can chose to spend your time doing something good for yourself, like go have a glass of water, or go for a run/walk/bike ride, or go hug somebody and tell ‘em you love ‘em.  Do something HAPPY.

Be the one in your crowd, your family, your workplace that always seems to find something positive in every situation.  And be the one reminding others that we really only have today, and it’s our choice how we spend it.  Worrying…..or being Happy.

This is a word that gets a lot of play in December of each year and often fades into the shadows a few weeks later.

The root of resolution is RESOLVE, like, I resolve to do something.  This word has a little more power, and its meanings carry some strength that” notion” or “vow” just can’t muster. Like…. determination, steadfastness, tenacity, firmness and perseverance.

But even RESOLVE has its drawbacks, so I’m suggesting that rather than make New Year’s Resolutions, you adopt a MOTTO for the New Year.  A motto that you can live by for the next 12 months.

I’ve been using the same one for the last 20 years.  Don’t limit your challenges, Challenge your limits.  It’s so ingrained in me that it has second nature.  So I’m going to add a new one for 2010.  This isn’t an original, but when I read it a few months ago I knew right away that this would work….for me.

GET UP……DRESS UP……SHOW UP

Literal translation: get out of bed; put on your clothes; go somewhere.

My translation:

GET UP means to psyche yourself up for the day, every day.  Use affirmations, gratitude lists, positive platitudes, whatever works for you as a way of “getting UP”. 

DRESS UP…..we’re all actors on the stage of our own lives, so look good when you step out on the stage…..out your front door. Whatever your style of dress, wear it clean and wear it proud.

SHOW UP means you are present in every situation.  You are engaged.  You are engaging.  You are seeking first to understand, and then to be understood. 

Get Up…Dress Up…Show Up may not be right for you, but I’m sure you can think of a motto that DOES work for you and that will bring you to a place next New Year’s Eve that will cause you to smile and say to yourself; “I did it!”

Suggested Mottos:
Get Up….Dress Up…..Show UP

This is MY year.

Always Think before you Act.

Be Here, Now.

I won’t do that again, in 2010.

No matter what you chose for your motto, remember to commit at least 1 random act of kindness every week.  (Send me the good ones so I can use them to).

MARK YOUR CALENDARS:
The Inaugural RUN CRAZY HORSE 26.2 / 13.1 will debut on October 3, 2010.

Help me begin the buzz……we’d love to crack the 29 year old participation record in our 1st year.

Another Lean Horse Event.

This reminded me of a little experiment I performed while running those 5,240 miles I ran in the year 2000 as I completed my goal of 200 marathon distances in one year.  At least 70% of those daily marathons were executed by me running solo on the streets of some city’s marathon course……on a normal day…..when the streets weren’t closed for the race, and as people were going about their daily business.  As you may imagine, I had a lot of free time on my hands, yes, I was running, but for me it was just another day at the office.  My experiment was to make it a point to greet everyone I met with a smile and a “Good morning.”  It was amazing how many faces “lit up” with a smile….and a pleasant reply.  What a great feeling…..for both of us.

As you may recall in my Thanksgiving blog, (the 3 of you who read it), I challenged my readers to “commit a random act of kindness,” but what I forgot to do is request that you report on the results.

So again, I challenge you to do something nice for someone……just ‘cause you can, and let me know how it goes. 

If Dean and I and you do enough of this “feel good” stuff, who knows, the world may begin to look brighter.  Give it a shot.

This bridge was going to come down, at great expense to the State of South Dakota.  One man, Jerry Cole, Director of Parks and Recreation for the city of Rapid City hopped in his car and drove to the state capitol to a meeting and said; “Hey, wait a minute, I’ve got an idea.”  Here’s his idea…6

As the event director of The Deadwood Mickelson Trail Marathon Weekend and The Lean Horse Hundred Ultra marathon (also on the Mickelson Trail), I am excited about the potential of creating another event on this new trail. I am also privileged to be on the newly formed West River Trails Coalition (WRTC) Board of Directors, whose sole purpose is to make sure this vision of a new recreational opportunity is realized.

Our website will be up and running by Jan. 1, so come back join and join our group and watch the progress.

My working name for the new trail is The Rapidoka Trail….it runs from Rapid City to Kadoka, SD.  Whaddaya think?

Last Saturday I was privileged to attend the dedication ceremony of the first ever Habitat for Humanity home (note that I used the word “home”, not house) built here in Spearfish. 

I witnessed the ongoing vision of one man’s dream, spreading around the world.  Millard Fuller’s personal mission statement was “to eliminate poverty housing on the planet earth.”  He knew that was impossible, but he also knew that unless he set out to conquer the impossible, nothing would get done. 

(Habitat for Humanity was founded in 1976. On November 13, 2008, Habitat for Humanity raised the walls on its 300,000th house in Collier County, Florida. The next day, work began on the 300,001st house in Zacapa, Guatemala).

While at the dedication, I witnessed burly contractors crying as they were overcome by the blessing they were receiving from having given of themselves to provide “decent, affordable housing” to a family who was equally blessed by these builders, and the rest of our community who came together in this labor of love. 

The family is thankful to have a new home; the people who came together to build the home are thankful to have had the opportunity to give of themselves; and all of us can be thankful that Millard and Linda Fuller were willing to follow a call to do something “impossible?”

We all live “in relationship to/with one another”, and each of us can, and does make a difference in the lives of the people around us.

So, in this season of thanksgiving, I encourage you to be thankful for who you are….to be thankful for where you are in your life journey, and, I challenge you to commit a random act of kindness*before the end of the day Thursday.

* A random act of kindness is selfless act performed by a person or pr persons wishing to either assist of cheer up an individual or in some cases an animal.  There will generally be no reason other than to make people smile or be happier.