Posted: June 8, 2006

Athletics: Running Experts to Speak at Grandma’s Marathon

Duluth, Minn.: Grandma’s Marathon, in conjunction with Austin-Jarrow Sports, invite runners and race fans to sit back, relax and get inspired as they listen to the stories and advice of five running experts—Candace Karu, Patti Catalano Dillon, Dick Beardsley, Bill Squires and Kenny Moore. Presentations are on Friday, June 16 in the Edmund Fitzgerald Hall at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center (DECC). This event is free and open to the public.

Candace Karu, editorial director Running Times Magazine, takes the stage at 1:00 p.m. Karu ran her first step at the age of 33. She has since grown to love everything about running and the running community, and strives to tell people about it through the articles she writes. Her position at Running Times has afforded Candace the opportunity to travel all over the nation as a motivational speaker. She shares a wealth of information on topics such as health and fitness, women’s issues and physical and spiritual wellness. Candace believes that running is what keeps her going mentally and spiritually as well as physically.

Following Karu at 2:00 p.m. is Patti Catalano Dillon, a pioneer in women’s running. Dillon got the marathon bug a few months into her running career. In the process of training she learned to live a healthier lifestyle which included quitting smoking. In her first marathon she ran a 2:53:40, qualifying for the 1976 Boston Marathon. Patti went on to set the American marathon record three times, and was also the first American woman to break 2:30 (2:29:34 at New York). Her marathon PR is 2:27:51, which she set at Boston in 1981. A three-time Boston runner-up (1979–1981) and four-time Honolulu Marathon winner (1978–1981), where she set a new course record each time, Patti has also held American or World records at the following distances: 5 miles, 10K, 15K, 20K, half-marathon and 30K. Patti is based in New London, Conn., where she and her husband, Dan, have a running club for home schooled kids, the Connecticut Home Schooled Harriers. Patti is in training to try to qualify for the 2008 Olympic Trials Marathon.

At 3:00 p.m. Dick Beardsley and his long-time coach, Bill Squires, will speak together about their days of being a coach/athlete team and their experiences with the sport of running. Dick Beardsley is known around the world as one of the best marathon runners in U.S. history. Winner of Grandma’s Marathon in 1981 and 1982, Dick holds the course record with a time of 2:09:37. After a series of accidents, injuries and life-altering events, Dick is enjoying running more than ever and will participate in the 30th annual Grandma’s Marathon.

Bill Squires is regarded by many as one of the greatest coaches in U.S. history, coaching many of the greatest distance runners of all time including Bill Rodgers, Greg Meyer, Alberto Salazar and Dick Beardsley. In 2002, Bill was inducted into the National Distance Runners Hall of Fame and was awarded the prestigious Bill Bowerman Coaching Award. He recently published a book titled Speed With Endurance, which presents many of his time-tested training principles.

Rounding out the guest-speaking event at 4:00 p.m. is an Olympic marathoner and Sport Illustrated writer, Kenny Moore. Moore was a star distance runner on Bill Bowerman’s track team at the University of Oregon. He went on to place 14th at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Marathon. In 1969, he broke the American marathon record with a time of 2:13:29 and improved to 2:11:36 the next year. He finished 4th in the Munich Olympic Marathon in 1972. As a writer, Kenny covered every Summer Olympics through 1996 and is the author of Best Efforts, a collection of his SI pieces on runners and races. Kenny also co-wrote the screenplay for the 1998 Warner Bros. film Without Limits, about his college teammate and friend, Steve Prefontaine. In 2001, he was awarded the George Sheehan Award from the National Distance Running Hall of Fame. A diligent student of Bill Bowerman and his techniques, Kenny’s latest project is the first comprehensive biography of the legendary coach - Bowerman and the Men of Oregon: The Story of Oregon’s Legendary Coach and Nike’s Cofounder.

The 2006 Grandma’s Marathon weekend begins on Thursday, June 15 with the SMDC Health and Fitness Expo and continues on Friday, June 16 with the Michelina’s All-You-Can-Eat Spaghetti Dinner, Whipper Snapper Races for Kids, guest speaking presentations and the William A. Irvin 5K (6:00 p.m.). The Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon and Grandma’s Marathon are on Saturday, June 17, 2006 beginning at 6:30 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. respectively. In all, over 17,000 runners and 50,000 race fans from across the globe are expected to participate in Grandma’s Marathon Weekend.

For more information on the 2006 Grandma’s Marathon festivities, visit the web site www.grandmasmarathon.com or call (218) 727-0947.

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