Monthly Archives: November 2015

Book Review: The Animal Keepers

Posted on November 30, 2015 by Jon Waldron

In the spring of 1985, Donn Behnke was a social studies teacher at Stevens Point Area High School in Wisconsin, and already a very successful Track and Cross Country Coach at the high school level. In nine years of coaching, … Continue reading →

Posted in Books and Movies, Coaching, cross country, High School Runners, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Frazz at the Races

Posted on November 27, 2015 by Jon Waldron

A confession: I read and enjoy the daily comics — or the “funny pages” as they used to be called — in the Boston Globe. Yes, every morning I flip impatiently past the world news and the brilliant feature writing … Continue reading →

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From the Archives: Gradus ad Parnassum

Posted on November 25, 2015 by Jon Waldron

[There was frost on the ground this morning, and idle thoughts of warmer places reminded me of the Thanksgiving eight years ago when Ann and I took an uncharacteristic vacation in the U.S. Virgin Islands. This post was originally published November … Continue reading →

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In From the Cold

Posted on November 23, 2015 by Jon Waldron

  It’s enough to make you question the very tenets of free-market capitalism. I don’t mean income inequality or the disappearing middle class or manufacturing workers being left out in the economic cold. I mean actual runners being left out … Continue reading →

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True Calling

Posted on November 20, 2015 by Jon Waldron

The fall season’s over, and winter sports have begun. The die-hard runners still gather after school to run together, but the numbers are modest compared to the official practices that took place every day for almost three months. In a … Continue reading →

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‘This Beautiful Sport’

Posted on November 16, 2015 by Jon Waldron

My running friends will be happy to know that I no longer have any excuse to skip mid-week track workouts, tempo runs, and hill repeats. Saturday was the last meet for the Concord Academy team, and so, as of this … Continue reading →

Posted in Coaching, cross country, High School Runners | 2 Comments

In Memoriam: Colin Welland

Posted on November 13, 2015 by Jon Waldron

The working title of the script was originally “Runners” — about as boring as you could imagine. In retrospect, the whole project seems beyond improbable. David Puttnam, who would produce the film, happened to be convalescing from a case of the flu … Continue reading →

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Days of Reckoning

Posted on November 11, 2015 by Jon Waldron

“These are days of reckoning for track and field, the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), and for fans of athletics everywhere, as details of systematic doping and well-paid cover-ups make their way into the public eye. It’s a familiar … Continue reading →

Posted in PEDs and Drug Cheating | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Youth and Its Discontents

Posted on November 4, 2015 by Jon Waldron

Were we tougher back then? Maybe. It’s the first Tuesday in November and the last workout before the league championships. Today’s workout is a “T” run — team, tempo, and togetherness — and most of the team has, indeed, made … Continue reading →

Posted in Coaching, cross country, High School Runners, Weather and Seasons | Tagged | 4 Comments

The 1983 Bostonfest Marathon

Posted on November 2, 2015 by Jon Waldron

Last Friday, October 30th, was my son Loren’s 29th birthday. He was born just a few minutes before midnight, which meant that he just missed being born on Halloween. It’s true that by arriving on the 30th, he avoided having … Continue reading →

Posted in Marathon, My Back Pages, Race Reports | Tagged , | 42 Comments