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    He's been called the Pied Piper of the Second Running Boom. Once an overweight couch potato with a glut of bad habits, including smoking and drinking, at the age of 43 Bingham looked mid-life in the face—and started running.

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School Days

Posted on September 7, 2011 by John J Bingham

What a wonderful day. My travel schedule allowed me to visit my son and grandchildren this week, just in time to be here for their first day of school.The twins are actually entering first grade and the little guy is starting kindergarten. They are all at the same school which will certainly make life easier for everyone.

I walked each them to their new classrooms, watching all the anxious parents – and some grandparents – and eager children and teachers. I suppose it’s the same scene that was being played out in schools all over the world. Children, parents, and teachers all meeting at one of life’s crossroads. For this time, at least, they have all been thrown together. The hope is that they will all bring their best selves to the situation.

It’s been way too many years for me to remember the specifics of my first day at school. There are vague memories of standing outside the red brick school building that is still being used today. I have images of children lined up like soldiers waiting for permission to enter the school. The parents may have been there in the background, but they weren’t stationed in the hallways with their iPhones and digital cameras recording the moment. It seems to me that we were faced that experience without parental assistance.

I do remember my son’s first day of school. I took him in the sidecar of a 1967 BMW R60/2. He looked like a character right out of Hogan’s Heroes. We got to the parking lot, took off his helmet, and – with some hesitation – walked into the school. I think I was probably more emotional about it than he was. When I peeked in the school window he was there in class, making new friends, and enjoying the start of a new phase of life.

It reminded me that each phase of life has some of the same elements. Each big life change requires courage whether that’s meeting a new first-grade teacher or lining up with 30,000 people and attempting to complete a marathon. It’s also true that no matter how many people are there, no matter how many people are with you, supporting you, or taking your photo, you are – in the final analysis – alone. Even if we are surrounded by thousands of other participants we have to take every step on our own.

In the end, though, that’s what makes going to the first day of school or finishing your first half marathon so rewarding. It’s facing the fear of doing something that we’ve never done before that helps us discover the courage to explore whatever new paths our lives take.

Waddle on, friends.

John

An Accidental Athlete is available now. BUY THE BOOK

Review An Accidental Athlete on Amazon or Barnes and Noble

What others are saying: Read your book, loved it, it was wonderful. It made me laugh, it made me cry. In it I saw glimpses of myself. I may be old  and I may be slow, but I am an Athlete, I am a Competitor, I am a Runner! Wow, thanks John, for enabling me to see that! D W, Senior-Onset Athlete

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, The Courage to Start,No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

Order your copy of John’s NEW book An Accidental Athlete today.

Have a question for John? Write him.

Filed under: Bingham, Half Marathon, John "the Penguin" Bingham, Marathon, motivation, Penguin | Tagged: , | Leave a comment »

Anzio

Posted on August 17, 2011 by John J Bingham

The father of a very good friend of mine, let’s call him Bob, was a great guy, and a World War II Army veteran. We joked that he lived his life just 3 beers from Anzio. Anzio was the site of an Allied forces landing (Operation Shingle) and ensuing battle (known as the Battle of Anzio) during World War II. American forces (5th Army) were surrounded by Germans in the caves of Pozzoli in February 1944 for a week, suffering heavy casualties. We knew that when he popped the top off the fourth Pabst Blue Ribbon we were going to start hearing war stories.

I don’t know how old he was then. I was 18 or 19. My guess is, though, that he was then a lot younger than I am now. And I’m beginning to understand. Although I don’t drink Pabst Blue Ribbon [I did drink more than my share] I’ve become aware now that I’m well into my 60’s that I am often tempted to start telling personal war stories or stories about the good old days.

It starts innocently enough. Someone mentions a place, or an event, or a situation and it triggers some memory. I do my best to quietly listen while my mind races around my own experience. I doesn’t matter if it was a pleasant or unpleasant experience. Once my mind goes into that cave there’s no getting it back.

I see this most often around my grandchildren. Even though they are only 5 and 6 years old I somehow believe that I need to bring them up-to-date on the historical nuances of my life. Sentences that begin with “Did grandpa ever tell you about” are already met with rolling eyes. It’s only going to get worse as they, and I, get older.

There’s a t-shirt that reads “The older I get, the better I used to be”. For runners it should read “The older I get, the faster I used to be”. For the most part, it’s true. For most of us the fastest years of our running lives were the youngest years. Even if, like me, you didn’t start until you were a bit older you were still younger than you are now.

And maybe it’s OK. Maybe as we get older the stories that stay in the front of our minds are the ones we want to remember that most and the ones that we want to tell most often.

So the next time you start telling a story that no one seems to want to hear, think about Bob. In the end he wasn’t telling us about Anzio, he was telling us about himself.

Waddle on,

John

An Accidental Athlete is available now. BUY THE BOOK

Review An Accidental Athlete on Amazon or Barnes and Noble

What others are saying: Read your book, loved it, it was wonderful. It made me laugh, it made me cry. In it I saw glimpses of myself. I may be old  and I may be slow, but I am an Athlete, I am a Competitor, I am a Runner! Wow, thanks John, for enabling me to see that! D W, Senior-Onset Athlete

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, The Courage to Start,No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

Order your copy of John’s NEW book An Accidental Athlete today.

Have a question for John? Write him.

Filed under: Bingham, John "the Penguin" Bingham, motivation, motorcycling, Penguin, Running, Training, Walking | Tagged: , , | 1 Comment »

Summer in the City

Posted on July 20, 2011 by John J Bingham

It’s gonna hit 100 degrees here in Chicago today. That’s the air temperature. That temperature, and the humidity, makes it feel like it’s, I think, 136 degrees out. I don’t care what anybody says, that’s hot.

But, I want to run or walk or do something active today. I’ve gotten out that last two days into the 100 acre wood and could probably do that again today. There’s shade on most of the path. And the temperature drops to, I think, 127 degrees in the shade. Look, you know it’s hot when the deer are standing neck deep in the small ponds.

What am I going to do? As soon as I finish this blog I’m going downstairs to Jenny’s Gym and walk/run on the treadmill. You read that right. I’m giving in. I’m conceding. I’m wimping out. I’m using my head. We say that there are old motorcyclists and bold motorcyclists but there are no OLD, BOLD motorcyclists. I think it’s true for runners too.

We runners and walkers tend to be a little obsessive about our activity. At least I am. And this year, now that I’ve hit the 200 day mark, I am especially obsessive. And cautious. I am not going to do anything today that risks my not being able to do something tomorrow. So, I’m heading downstairs and inside.

There will be people running along the lakefront today. There always are. Maybe they don’t have a choice. More likely they think they don’t have a choice. Their training schedule calls for a 5 mile tempo run today and – no matter what – they’re going to get it in. I get their commitment but question their judgement. It’s fine to be disciplined. It’s fine to have a schedule and sticking to it. But it’s not fine to ignore the truth about what’s going on around you.

The truth is that no matter what your training schedule calls for just getting out and walking is better than not doing anything at all. If, like me, you have access to a treadmill then you can adjust your schedule to something you feel comfortable doing on a treadmill.

Or, you can just take a day – or a couple of days – off. OFF.

You can’t finish if you don’t start. Please folks, let’s be careful out there.

John

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, An Accidental Athlete,  The Courage to Start, No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

Order your EARLY copy of John’s NEW book An Accidental Athlete today.

Have a question for John? Write him.

Filed under: Bingham, John "the Penguin" Bingham, Running, Training | Tagged: , , , , , | 5 Comments »

A Historic Ride

Posted on July 13, 2011 by John J Bingham

There’s an old adage that says “You can’t step in the same river twice.” The philosophical position is that a river is always changing. As a life-long motorcyclist I would add that you can’t ride the same road twice. Neither you nor the road are the same.

This is certainly been the case for me. US Rt. 50 runs East-West across the center of the United States from Annapolis to Sacramento. I’ve ridden every mile of it East to West once, and have ridden bits and pieces of it many times over the past 40 years. One of my favorite stretches is from Clarksburg, West Virginia through Romney, West Virginia, on to Winchester, Virginia. Riding that road on a new bike is a form of initiation. If a motorcycles handles well and makes me smile on that part of Rt. 50 then I know the bike’s a keeper.

Before the Interstate Highway System made traveling long distances by car accessible to almost everyone, it was only the brave and adventurous spirits who dared to take off from, say Chicago with the goal of getting to Los Angeles. That road, US Rt. 66 is probably the most famous U.S. highway, but it isn’t the most beautiful or most interesting. Nearly every highway that starts with a U.S. has got a history and nearly all of them are worth riding or driving.

This year Coach Jenny and I set off  headed East from Chicago to meet up with my son and grandchildren for some well-earned vacation time and the celebration of my son’s 40th birthday. Unlike most trips where the “getting there” was the least important element, this trip we made getting there, and getting back, one of the highlights. Heading East we traveled on US 35 and 50. Heading back West we traveled on US 30, known as the Lincoln Highway, US 40, known as the National Road, and US 6, known as  the Grand Army of the Republic Highway. We spent a little time on US 250 which, depending on where you are, is either a North-South highway or an East-West highway. Good luck with the GPS.

There is an entire country of small towns and of people out there living along those roads that you’ll never see from the Interstates. Some of these towns and people are flourishing. Most are not. A few have found ways to keep themselves viable. Most just seem to be waiting for the inevitable. You know the old joke: will the last person leaving town please turn out the lights.

In case you’re wondering, yes, I kept up my streak. I’m at 194 days of moving, intentionally, for 30 minutes or more. And yes, some days it was exactly 30 minutes.

But we moved, intentionally, for hundreds of miles every day for no particular reason except it was what we wanted to be doing. Sounds a lot like what  running and walking or any other activity should be.

Waddle on,

John
John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, The Courage to Start,No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

Order your EARLY copy of John’s NEW book An Accidental Athlete today.

Have a question for John? Write him.

Filed under: Bingham, John "the Penguin" Bingham, motorcycling, Penguin | Tagged: , , , , | Leave a comment »

White Line Fever

Posted on July 5, 2011 by John J Bingham

I’m taking a few days off to vacation with my family and to celebrate my son’s 40th birthday. I’ll be back next week with a brand new blog. In the meantime, please enjoy this classic.

http://www.teampenguin.com/chronicles_archive/20011029_white_line_fever.php

Filed under: Bingham, Half Marathon, John "the Penguin" Bingham, Marathon, Penguin, Running, Training, Walking | Tagged: , | Leave a comment »

What to do now?

Posted on June 28, 2011 by John J Bingham

Ever notice how the simplest ideas can blow up in your face? You know, sometimes what seems like a quiet idea, something that will attract no attention and create no personal problems develops a life of its own and you find yourself hanging on to the tiger’s tail?

To review; I was injured for nearly the entire year of 2010. It started in January with a slipped sacroiliac joint. A failed injection then a SUPER injection and I was able to run and walk comfortably. Then came the cuboid subluxation syndrome, which I created on a motorcycle trip and then aggravated for months by running on it. By December I was ready to get back at it. I missed being active.

So, I challenged myself and my Facebook friends and fans to join me in committing to 30 minutes of intentional movement every day for 100 days. And, much to my surprise over 10,000 people joined up. Now we’re on to the 100 Days of Summer which is more about play than intentional movement. And here’s my problem.

I did the 100 days. I nailed it. Every day. 30 minutes at LEAST. For 100 days. Then, on day 101 I kept going. And on day 102 and 103 and 104. You get the idea. It’s now day 180 and, you guessed it, I’m still going. I’m just a couple of days short of being half-way through the year and I’m still on it. NOW WHAT?

OK, the WHOLE truth is that I’ve been walking, mostly, cycling every now and then, and mixing in some running when the mood hits me. But mostly I’ve been walking. And I have been enjoying it. More than that, I’ve found that I really look forward to it, the walking that is.

I’ve walked alone. I’ve walked with Jenny. I walked last Friday with fellow announcer Ian Brooks and I walked on  Sunday with my friend Indro. I walked with them. Nearly no one ever wanted to run with me. I was too slow. People said they wanted to. I got invited by clubs to go “run” with them, but it never worked. I always ended up running – in the back – by myself.

Something’s different about walking. It seems, almost by its nature, to be social. And the pace lends itself to conversation. Or, when I’m alone, to contemplation.

I tell myself at the beginning of each new month that I’m going to focus on running. One of these months I will. For now, though, I’m on a roll and I’m not going to do anything to risk getting banged up again.

Yep. You guessed it. I’m going to try to move every day for an entire year.

Waddle on, friends.

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, The Courage to Start,No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

Order your EARLY copy of John’s NEW book An Accidental Athlete today.

Have a question for John? Write him.

Filed under: Bingham, Half Marathon, John "the Penguin" Bingham, Marathon, Penguin, Running, Training, Walking | Tagged: , , , , | 1 Comment »

The Art of Winning

Posted on June 8, 2011 by John J Bingham

In the Art of War, Sun Tzu emphasized the importance of positioning in military strategy, and that the decision to position an army must be based on both objective conditions in the physical environment and the subjective beliefs of other, competitive actors in that environment.

On the surface that might not seem to have anything to do with running. And, until last Friday afternoon I would have agreed with you. Sure, I understand that, to a certain extent, positioning in a general sense is important in road racing. If you want to run with the front pack you need to be IN the front pack. But I never thought about both the objective and subjective elements that Sun Tzu was talking about.

What changed? Last Friday, at the Legends Panel of the Dodge Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon and Half Marathon, Meb Keflezighi, Rod Dixon, and Jim Ryrun were discussing their running and racing careers. To hear them tell it, the outcomes of road races and track races were very often determined as much by the winning strategy as by the winning talent.

It got REALLY interesting when I asked Meb and Rod, both winners of the New York City Marathon, how each of them, in their prime, would have beat the other. There was a little bit of good-natured chat, but when I pressed them their eyes narrowed and the warrior in both of them surfaced.

Meb, Olympic silver medalist in the marathon, is probably best known for his skill at distances of 10K and beyond. Rod, the Olympic bronze medalist at 1,500 meters is widely regarded as the most comprehensive  runner of all time having been world-class at every distance from 800 meters to the marathon. No one before or since has enjoyed the scope of success that Rod did. This conversation, though, was about the marathon.

Rod went first, explaining in great detail how he would insist that Meb run Rod’s race. He said he would set out to control Meb’s every move from the very start. He said he’d move around the road, surge and relax, and do everything he could to make Meb run the way he, Rod, wanted him to run. He said that if he could get inside of Meb’s head he could beat him. Most importantly, as an Olympic medalist in the 1,500, he knew that if they were together and mile 25 he could win.

Meb didn’t waste any time responding. No way Rod would get inside his head. Meb starts with a plan and stays with the plan. He isn’t influenced by what’s going on around him. Finally, with more that a little sparkle in his eye he said that if they were together at mile 20 that he, Meb, being a 10K guy, would put his head down and punish Rod.

At the end they were smiling, but you knew that BOTH thought they could have won. Both believed that they had what it takes to beat the other.

And that’s what made the both champions, not just of the New York City Marathon, but of life. It would have been one hell of a race.

Waddle on, friends.

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, The Courage to Start,No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

Order your EARLY copy of John’s NEW book An Accidental Athlete today.

Have a question for John? Write him.

Filed under: Bingham, Half Marathon, John "the Penguin" Bingham, Marathon, Penguin, Running, Training, Walking | Tagged: , | 2 Comments »

A Day of Our Own

Posted on June 1, 2011 by John J Bingham

June 1, 2011

HAPPY NATIONAL RUNNING DAY!
That’s right. In case you missed it this is National Running Day. I had no idea until I got a call from a journalist who wanted to know my thoughts on – well – National Running Day.

Before you get too excited about running having come into the national conscience, let me remind you of a few other days.

January 13 is … National Blame Someone Else Day
January 14 is … National Dress Up Your Pet Day
January 19 is … National Popcorn Day
January 20 is … National Buttercrunch Day
January 21 is … National Hugging Day
January 22 is … National Answer Your Cat’s Question Day
January 23 is … National Measure Your Feet Day
January 24 is … National Eskimo Pie Patent Day
January 25 is … National Opposite Day

And that’s just a few of the days in January!

But, it’s still cool that there is a National Running Day. I’m not sure I understand exactly what we’re supposed to do today. I mean, it seems pretty clear what you’re supposed to do on National Dress Up Your Pet Day. I guess we’re supposed to run. Or walk. Or walk-run. Or run-walk. And, I guess we’re supposed to do it in public and make a big deal of it. Well, I probably won’t be doing that. I don’t care if anyone else does, but I won’t.

Running has always been a deeply private part of my life. It’s not that I haven’t run with small groups and in large events. I have. But, for the most part running has been my time to be with myself, by myself. It’s my time to reflect, to remember, to forget, to figure out, to just plain wonder about things. Running also been my time to undo the damage – physical, emotional, and spiritual – that I’d done to myself.  Even now, with 20 years of running behind me, I still find scraps of memories – good and bad – stuck in corners of my mind that I thought I had cleaned out long ago.

So while I’m happy that there’s a National Running Day, for me every day is a running day. And some of the most important running days have been the very days when I haven’t run.

Waddle on, friends.

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, The Courage to Start,No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

Order your EARLY copy of John’s NEW book  An Accidental Athlete  today.

Have a question for John? Write him.

Filed under: Bingham, Half Marathon, John "the Penguin" Bingham, Marathon, Penguin, Running, Training, Walking | Tagged: , | 2 Comments »

Classic Chronicle: Of Penguins and Prefontaine

Posted on May 25, 2011 by John J Bingham

John “The Penguin” Bingham.

Filed under: Bingham, Half Marathon, John "the Penguin" Bingham, Marathon, Penguin, Running, Training, Walking | Tagged: , | Leave a comment »

Passing the Baton

Posted on May 23, 2011 by John J Bingham

I know this is Monday, or at least it’s Monday as I write this. Moving ahead I’m going to try to blog every Wednesday morning. The Summer/Fall/Winter event season is upon me and once it starts I’ll be traveling Thursday through Monday nearly every week until Christmas. So, think “Tuesdays with Morrie”, but “Wednesdays with the Penguin”.

And, as I said last week, I’m relatively new at this personal blogging. Jenny [jennyhadfield.com] has been a successful blogger for years, on RunnersWorld.com and other sites. She seems to be designed for the digital medium. She’s learned how to distill ideas into their essence. It’s quite a talent. I, on the other hand, tend to be a story-teller and my thoughts – like now – can sometimes wander like a child chasing butterflies. But I’m trying.

In the words of the Buffalo Springfield song, “There’s something happening here. What it is ain’t exactly clear “. With the ascent of American runners into the top echelon, the growth of the destination events, especially the half marathon, and the shift in the running demographics from nearly all men to – in some events – upwards of 70% women, there’s something happening here. I can’t put my finger on it yet, but it’s there.

In 1997 I met with the then president of a major running apparel company. I explained to him that there was a new running boom on the horizon, that they were a bit older, a bit slower, and that a whole lot of them were female. He told me straight out that I was wrong. Most people, and especially women he opined, would try running for a little while and then retreat to their basements and living rooms with their Jane Fonda videos. His company has since gone out of business.

When I was writing as the advocate – and almost the only advocate – of the second running boom I was viewed by many as a carrier of the disease of mediocrity that was trying to infect their beloved sport. What they didn’t understand was that I was fueled by their ridicule. I was right. I knew I was right. And they weren’t going to scare me off.

These days, though, I have stopped shouting. I have stopped waving my editorial sword at race directors, sponsors, and running specialty manufacturers. Most, not all, but most get it now. The battle for acceptance is over. We’ve won.

It’s a good feeling, but it is a different feeling. The baton has been passed to a generation of runners and walkers who will never know what it’s like to finish a marathon in 5 hours and be DEAD last. All I ask of those who carry the baton forward is to remember that a lot of very good people made this possible.

Waddle on,

Filed under: Bingham, Half Marathon, John "the Penguin" Bingham, Marathon, Penguin, Running, Training, Walking | Tagged: , | 7 Comments »

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