Chapter 53 : my first fun run; my last fun run and some in between

"The Mercury" newspaper published an article I wrote about a fun run. On the 21.2.86.  The original article is reprinted below. The newspaper edited the article and added a few photos.  

My first fun run coincided with the very beginning of the running boom. The running boom was triggered by James Fixx. James Fixx’s story began in 1967. He was 97 kgs and smoked two packs of cigarettes a day. Ten years later he was 27 kg lighter and smoke free. He attributed his changed lifestyle to running.  James Fixx wrote a book called “The Complete Book of Running”. In 1977 it became a best seller and sold more than one million copies.  The book discussed the physical and psychological benefits of running.  The running boom began. James Fixx was a media star. Virtually everybody in that first fun run I entered knew of or had read James Fixx.  

James Fixx had a heart attack and died in 1984 at the age of 52. His heart attack was attributed to a genetic predisposition for heart problems and his previous lifestyle. The running boom continued unabated.  It was around the time of James Fixx the phrase fun run was first used to describe an organized run for multiple disparate people.  Fun runs began, originally in USA, and the idea quickly spread around the world.  Other sports should be jealous of fun runs. They introduce non-athletes to running. Some of these fun run participants will go on to enter competitive athletics. Other sports don’t have a way of getting non-participants to participate in their sport. Most fun runs are open to all who want enter. There is no restriction. And the rules are simple. Everybody can easily enter and easily follow the rules.

My first fun run was about 1978 when I was at university in Melbourne and was around Albert Park Lake. The place appropriated today by F1 cars. My last fun run was Cross the Bridge in Hobart 2017. Almost 40 years of fun runs.

Almost 40 years of standing in a crowd of people waiting to start running.  Some are stretching. Some are jogging. Some are standing on one leg and stitching the other leg. Some are talking or greeting friends. We are standing outside the massive stadium that houses cricket and football. There is no uniform. Nobody is dressed identically. There are some similar shirts or tops. Advertising or promoting something; commemorating some past event.  Some of the shirts tell people what team they are in. Very egalitarian. Everybody is treated the same. And very global. Anywhere in the world the procedure would be similar and easily understood. Anybody anywhere in the world could run in any fun run occurring anywhere else in the world. It is a global event not an event specific to Hobart. People all around the world run in similar ways. Everybody runs uniquely. 

What changes have occurred in the last 40 years?  James Fixx said that regular running would increase life expectancy. Ignoring the potential physical benefits has it been worth it? Has it been fun? Has it been a good way to spend my ideal moments?  Have I benefitted? How have the changes in society of the last 40 years mirrored the changes in the fun runs? 

Back in 1978 the fun run was promoted and advertised in the local paper. My recollections are: you turned up on the day; you paid your entry fee at a trestle table; you were given a number to fix to your shirt; the gun went off; everybody followed the guy in front; you ran; you finished running; they gave you a certificate with your time written on it; you went home.

Today on-line entering of races exists. The internet also makes results and photos available on-line. It is possible to have instantaneous on-line recording of results. I remember the Gold Coast Marathon. A few years ago when running the race I wore an electronic timing device. At the half way point I crossed over a bump in the road which recorded my time. It was possible to sit in Hobart and see a live recording of my time at the half way point of the race.  The race hadn’t even finished. At the finish my time was once again recorded and uploaded. Nobody rang to ask me how I’d gone. They already knew. The information was available instantaneously to the whole world.

In fact the system works so dramatically well I tend to get upset with slight glitches or the slightest slowness.  With entries and results and race calendars the change has been dramatic. With this change caused by the internet my expectations have gone up. I now expect to be able to enter any race any time I like and to view any results instantaneously. I get upset at the slightest gremlin. I would tend to think that the internet has resulted in positive changes to fun runs and that it would be impossible to separate fun runs from the society hosting them.

The other change to entries nowadays is the waive you have to sign. This is a change in society which has resulted in a change in fun runs. Today expect to sign a form saying whatever happens you will not sue anybody. Years ago, whatever happened, nobody sued anybody. Nowadays everybody signs a form and then nobody sues anybody. Once again fun runs and society have changed together.

I s search the crowd of runners for someone I know and somewhere to stand. I head towards the back for security. The race starts and I don’t. I walk and eventually cross the line and start dodging other people and jogging. I spend my time working out where to run. Should I go around them or not. If I follow this person they may drag me. The other runners slow me down and speed me up. They slow me as I avoid them. They carry me along in their slipstream.  I am stunned by the number of people. And I know virtually none of them. Where have they all come from? There are crowds and crowds of people I would like to know. Most of them must live in Hobart and yet I have never seen them before. They have appeared and they are running. With me. We are all in this together. All heading in the same direction.

The fun runs. The basic idea hasn’t changed. You start together, run the same course and people are defined by the time it takes them to run the course. Prizes to the fastest. My memory is that all the early races had watering tables. Trestle tables with plastic cups. Much like today’s system.  Right down to people chucking their used cups on the road. The road still gets littered. Nothing has changed. Today more runners are fussy about what they drink. Their particular drink. There has been an increase in knowledge has meant more people have an opinion on what should be drunk and eaten. 

Today every fun run seems to be raising money for a particular charity. The charity and the fun run are promoted simultaneously. Both sides seem to benefit from this symbiotic relationship.  Any fun run appreciates support. And any charity needs additional promotion. A charities, business or government department will provide some sort of support. To aid with marketing and managing the event. A lot of fun runs need to run somewhere exciting.  Or somewhere unusual. They need a gimmick. Like the bridge. You can run a cross the bridge any time but to have a lane of the road closed to all except runners is exciting.  To run across the bridge with other people is exhilarating. It’s special.

More people run as a member of a team now compared to 1978.  People seem to like running as part of a team. With their workmates. Once again I see both groups benefitting. The fun run gets more entrants. The work place gets improved team spirit at work. The staff should work together better. Might even make them fitter and take less sick leave. The average fun run is within the limits of the average healthy adult.

Since 1978 the type of person running in fun runs has changed. In 1978 my memory is of predominately young males. Like me. Now I see a lot more females running.  Often more females than males.  Fifty: fifty would be ideal. It would accurately reflect our society.   The age of the entrants has also changed. The average runner now is older. In 1978 it was rare to see an old man. It was worthy of a comment. Not now. Once again the more the age of the entrants accurately reflects society the better. A certain age doesn’t consign you to certain things or areas. Age should not limit or restrict people. People of all ages should mix with people of all ages and then all people will benefit.

If you compared the time of the average runner 40 years ago with the time of the average runner today I feel that today the average runner is slower. The other area fun runs have to reflect society is in disabled people competing. The number of disabled people competing should accurately the society we belong to. The disabled people should compete with the able bodied. There should not be a line in the sand which separates the disabled form the able bodied. Everybody should be in together.  Whatever the disability. The physical disability is the obvious one. Intellectual or emotional disabilities are more difficult to address. How do we encourage participation from someone suffering a mental illness? That’s the new frontier.

Clothes have changed. More special running clothes. More clothes specific for a purpose. More materials which are designed for sweating bodies. Less people throw on the shorts they spend all day Saturday in. Shoes have improved. Which is good not only sartorially but helps prevent injuries. More females wearing make-up. So I have been told. This is something I don’t notice.

The finish teases us and then we run past it, up the road and back towards it. At the finish is a clock which gives the race time and a bump in the road.  My partner tells me there is a table with bananas. I head towards it.  I would love a banana. Another improvement over the years is multiple events starting or finishing around the same time. It means people of different abilities and ages can participate together.  It results in more people running for fun.

Over the years every fun run I have entered I have never come first or last. Is that glass half full or empty? Have I beaten the guy who came last or been beaten by the winner. Neither. It is a personal challenge. A personal test. An activity that brings enjoyment.  It does more than that. It has helped increase my self-awareness. It has helped keep me fit for work. It has help me make friends. It has improved my social life. It has improved me emotional. It is 40 years of positives.

The prize giving. There are prizes for different ages and sex.  Some races have prizes for certain disabilities such as wheelchair athletes.  I don’t even consider getting a prize. If there was a prize for my particular age, sex and disability I would win. I would be the only one entered in my special category. I look around and most people are the same. Prizes were given for their particular category they would win.  Which means everybody wins. 

Chapter 52 : The bike track

Reprinted from The Mercury:

Good hearts make pulsating artery of our city even better

ALAN CARLTON, Mercury

February 13, 2017 

I START my jog without thinking. And then I suddenly have to think.

A car is approaching. If it turns I will have to wait for it. If it goes straight I can now safely cross the road. The car turns without indicating. Luckily I thought he might do that. I wait for the car and the car continues on its way. We both continue our journeys.

I approach the bike track. I glance up and down the track before entering. I’m safe to enter. I enter and start my run along the bike track. I can see a cyclist hunched forward, head down, bottom up, pumping his feet and approaching me. He seems safe. A sudden sound behind me and suddenly a bike veers in front of me. Bit close. Just missed me. I didn’t hear a thing and now the bike has overtaken me. The bike prepares the way for me. I follow him as the cyclist I was watching sweeps past me on my right.

Cyclists approach me from ahead and sneak up from behind. Legs are pumping furiously and bikes glide effortlessly. Wearing tight closely fitting shirts, racing shorts, work pants with bicycle clips, backpacks, fluoro vests, helmets with hats peeking out underneath. I try to read each shirt before it flashes past. Sometimes I manage both the front and back.

Approaching me are two cyclists. Talking continuously and riding abreast towards me. I veer towards the left of my side of the bike lane as these two approach. They are overflowing their lane but they are more in their lane than my lane. They are very happy and I smile as the two of them pass me. What could be nicer than a bike ride with a friend?

Well I suppose talking to a friend on a mobile phone as you ride. This is my next encounter. A lady riding and talking loudly on her phone. I wonder if the person on the other end knows where their call is going. I wonder if the cyclist is aware of anything around her. Her phone may connect her to her friend but it repulses everybody around her. I avoid her and anywhere in her vicinity.

I pass some proud parents. Their kids lead the way as they meander their way along the track. Another pleasure to see. They are not a danger to me but their lack of speed contrasts dramatically with the speed of some of the bikes passing me. I can see the ingredients for an accident.

I can hear the next bike before I see it. It is a motorised bike. It doesn’t slow or observe the view. It motors remorselessly up the track. Unlike most of the cyclists it is not riding for health or the environment or with its friends.

A man is wearing in-line skates. His feet make grand sweeping gestures across the track. Silently. I pass a man in a hurry to zip his fly up. He can’t hide the puddle on the track.

Another runner says, “Hello”. He must be running faster than me. He has caught up to me. Now I need to speed up and chat or let him overtake me. I speed up slightly. We talk about the coming running races around Hobart, the weather and our kids. I enjoy the talk and a cyclist says something as he goes past. I don’t know what he said but I realise we have been wandering. It is possible a part of me ventured onto the other side. I was distracted.

I approach a road crossing the bike track. There is a barrier which blocks half the track. I see a cyclist approaching with speed. I get out of his way, stand still and wait for, “Thank you”. Instead he brushes past me as close as possible and I receive a glare which says, “Get off my track.”

His attitude seems to be. I will treat you, you annoying nuisance, the same way I have been treated by cars. I stand and look around. Shadows from the gum trees shimmer on the track. Above me birds flock in the gum trees. The river meanders slowly in the distance. No dolphins are visible at the moment. A sailing boat veers near to shore. A man hopefully throws a fishing line from the shore. I glance up the track at the rapidly disappearing cyclist and then recommence my run.

A powerful swarm of cyclists approaches and threatens to overwhelm me. The bike track is busy today. Full of happy people using it. I think I will head towards the hockey fields.

Looks good. I run around the outside. The grass is soft and sponge like. I am approaching a dog and a dog owner. The dog approaches me followed by the owner yelling, “He’s never done that before.” Well that is very reassuring. The dog doesn’t do that every time he is taken for a walk. Is that supposed to please me? Is that something I should rejoice in? As I rub my leg and resume my run I comfort myself. I am lucky. He’s never done that before. I have just met a well behaved dog acting out of character. I head under the Brooker Highway to some neighbouring fields. One guy is practising hitting golf balls. And while intently watching the flying golf balls I head to the next field.

On the next field I see a sign which says, “No golf. No dogs”. A few more laps and then I head up the footpaths and between the houses.

One guy is blocking the footpath with his gates. He has done this so he can take his car out for a drive. Ah well. I run around. When they return and park their car in their driveway they will move the gates off the footpath.

I return from my run and hop into our car. My partner and I are on a small journey that heads back past where I was. As we cross the bike track I spot a cyclist. The cyclist gives the car a hand signal for something we have done. I am distracted from “our indiscretion” by the cyclist. It is the same guy who passed me on the bike track. He rode dangerously close to me. He doesn’t recognise or remember me.

I peer at the long grass, wire fence, the disused railway track and the path with white line up the middle. It cheers me up. It is a living, pumping, pulsating artery from the heart of Hobart through the northern suburbs.

The bike track attracts rules and regulations which are obeyed to some extent by some people. Let’s ignore them and celebrate Hobart being alive.

The rules aren’t winning. It is the heart that wins. A good heart wins. A heart full of empathy, respect and love wins. So how do you get the people on the bike track to show love, respect and empathy for the other people on the bike track? How do you get them to think of the other uses that they meet?

I don’t know. People vary. People who respect others will do it anywhere. And people will change. One day a person will happily greet you on the track, the next day resent your presence.

The more people think of others the happier and more joyous their life will be. Being good to others will make people happy. I know people will read this and say I should practice what I preach.

The reality is people will not suddenly do what I write about. Some guys will solemnly obey one rule and ignore the next. Who cares? What matters is if they are interfering with other people or creating work for other people. Love and respect. Empathy and community feeling. A feeling of belonging to the community. A feeling that you are will be listened to. These are the things that matter.

I like a cafe that is busy, that is full of satisfied punters. To me that means the cafe is serving good food and makes good coffee. That is the place I will head for. But when I go to the cafe I want the place empty. Then I can more easily get what I want. I want a busy cafe which is empty.

The bike track is the same. I love to see it busy and full of people. That reinforces in me that it is an important part of our community. But when I go on it I prefer it to be devoid of crowds. Very sparsely populated. It makes my life easier.

Alan Carlton is a former Hobart dentist. He retired in October 2015. He has lived in New Town since before 1993. In 1993 Paul Keating promised Hobart a bike track if re-elected. He delivered on that promise.