Out On The Trail - Running With My Son

The Run Clark Lake 12K (7.5 Miles)
2015 - 10 Years Ago Now
After Todd's HS Graduation

I was a kid who grew up in the country.  I ran.  Once upon a time it’s what kids pretty much always did as a part of play.  The first time I ran as a matter of exercising, aside from getting from one place to another, was with my Dad; down the gravel dirt road we lived on along the ridge above Sparr, Michigan.  It was a tough way to start running as it was all downhill in the beginning.  It made you feel fast though!  The problem was that eventually you had to turn around and head back home.  The hills were steeper back then; albeit I was also smaller.  I went back that way a few years ago; they’ve graded the second hump of that road down considerably.  My guess is that since a couple of people elected to build homes on the north side of the second knoll, they decided to knock off the low visibility crown as a safety precaution.  That particular run was a starting point, however; both for me and the running craze of the 1970’s. (If you’re interested, I once wrote about my start to running in a 2016 blog entry found here: Running-Part#1: The History)

Over the decades of my life, running has taken on different looks, and appearances; sometimes a masquerade to what I’m feeling on the inside.  While the history of my running is something I’ve often felt good about and am proud of, I have also been known to peek down that narrow corridor shrouded in scary shadows; where I’m marred by injuries or frustrated by goals or training.  Fortunately some of that history isn’t all about me, and as we know, a fresh display of sunlight helps burn away the mold of disappointment.  Enter our kids!

My wife Cindy and I spent some great years following our son and daughter to high school cross country and track meets in addition to numerous summer road races.  It was fun to cheer and support them during those years; something we always looked forward to on race day!  Their running was an avenue (or trail) to a bigger picture, where they learned about motivation, discipline, teamwork, and everything in between.  Running the paths and trails of a cross country course was a favorite for our kids.  It helped that they had great coaches that encouraged them and the team.  As parents, we couldn’t have asked for too much more!

Both In Tears
From Pride & Exhaustion
Todd Runs 17:03 (5:41 minute/miles)
For His Fastest XC Meet Ever!
Senior Year - October 4th, 2014

When our son Todd graduated from high school, he decided to run XC (cross county) his freshman year in college.  He was running so much that fall of 2015 that it made for an easy jump into a half marathon race.  I did some research and found one in Waukesha, Wisconsin called the “Last Call Half Marathon,” that was held the first Saturday of December; a perfect time following his cross country season.  That day we earned our medals, running an average of 7:26 minute miles and finishing in 1:37:37.  It was a great race and moment to share together!

Last Call 1/2 Marathon - 2015

I’ve continued running that race ever since.  I enjoy both the course and the community.  When running that half marathon I carry memories of others I’ve run that race with; typically in cold, snowy, or blustery weather!  My daughter Jodi and I ran it in 2016 after her senior year of high school cross country.  It was a race where we started with dry ground and finished with several inches of snow.  I’ve also run it with teaching colleagues I’ve trained with all year long, as well as with former students; now grown adults.

After having a rough second half of running in 2023, when I was battling injuries and the effects of Lyme Disease, my son Todd asked me to join him in running a mid November 2023 run called the, "Abominable Trail Race”.  I was able to piece together an ample amount of training to feel like I could give the 5 kilometer race its due justice.

Race day for the Abominable was pretty darn cold and we nearly froze waiting for our start.  They had fires and heaters available to help ward off the below freezing temperature while we waited, but those were over taken by non-running spectators who were thoroughly enjoying themselves!  Fortunately the race was worth the time it took to start.

November 2023

Todd and I wound through the woods and single track paths in the hills around Lake Geneva, Wisconsin that day; finishing together for our first tandem race in the eight years since the 2015 half marathon.  That race, in retrospect, was also a kick-start to what we’ve been able to run these last 6 months.

While most of 2024 was a bit of a blur, I was able to get into a consistent routine of running.  Once Todd and his wife Emeris returned from Africa this past fall, where they work on Kijani Farm, he decided to once again join me in running the Last Call Half Marathon.   Training for him amounted to a self proclaimed, “Two Month - Couch to Race” program to be ready for the December first, 13.1 mile run.  To be fair, he was in decent shape and regularly played basketball and disc golf.

For me, the joy was in seeing Todd reconnect with a talent.  And while we were able to meet up and run on several different occasions over the weekends this past fall, he was finding self motivation to run and explore different routes where he could train on his own throughout the week.  Following an October weekend of running in Waco, Texas while we visited my daughter Jodi and son-in-law David, Todd and I met in Lake Geneva for two favorite training runs in November along the lakeshore path.  We hammered out a run of 10 miles one weekend as well as a 12 miler that took us all the way to Williams Bay and back.  Running was a side gig to simply spend time with my son; both of us talking and listening.  It was the venue that allowed us to spend time together, and I could learn what he was thinking about in relation to life and a host of other related topics.

Todd & Me Running With David
In Hot Waco Texas
October 2024

Todd & Me - On A Training Run
Along Lake Geneva's Shoreline Path
November 2024

For the half marathon weekend it was really cold!  Although sunny, the temperature read 12 degrees.  But with the wind, it felt like zero!  Due to the frigid weather, the race coordinator had us run 3 sets of a boomerang shaped course with the start/finish at the midpoint.  This was opposed to running a long way out and back where people could be dangerously stranded far from help; not a good situation when a person is already sweaty!  On the plus side, this allowed my wife Cindy and daughter-in-law Emeris to stay hunkered down in the car and watch us each time we passed.  It was the first time that Emeris had an opportunity to see Todd race.  We finished in basically the top third of the runners with a time of 1 hour and 53 minutes and felt good about the way we had run together under those conditions (I also managed 2nd place in my 55-59 age group).

Cindy, Me, Todd, & Emeris
Bundled For The Cold
At The 2024 Last Call 1/2 Marathon

With that longer race under our belt, we decided to sign up for the “Frozen Gnome” 10 kilometer race (6.2 miles) in Crystal Lake, Illinois.  I’ve also run this race on several occasions over the years.  It’s really well organized, has awesome shirts and medals, and is a tough course; up and down steep hills on what sometimes amounts to single track deer paths.  It’s like the good ole days of running in the woods as a kid!  Todd was familiar with the race site of Veteran Acres Park. It was where he and Emeris had their engagement pictures taken in the summer of 2019 - that was after Todd gave Emeris the engagement ring (ironically) on the Lake Geneva shoreline path where we had trained back in November.

Throughout December and into January, Todd and I continued to workout on our own during the week and then met in Crystal Lake to practice running the race trails on Saturday mornings.  A few of those training runs were brutally cold, but it was easier to run motivated with a partner; especially when we’d go out for breakfast afterward.  Chalk up a tally mark in the win column for community events bringing in revenue!

On Saturday, January 11th we got up (really) early and met in the lot next to Veteran Acres Park so we could pick up our Frozen Gnome race packet presented by OMR (Ornery Mule Racing).  For the race itself I decided to wear my “Runner's Image” dry-fit shirt.  I’ll probably have more to say about that in a later blog, but suffice to say, I wore it to honor the (now closed) locally owned running store by that name - whose staff had been there for our family since my wife and I settled in the Stateline area back in the late 1980’s.  It was the least that I could do to represent!

Although I had felt dizzy the day before the race, I was fortunate that it wasn’t an issue while we ran the trails.  With the narrowness of the paths, Todd led and I followed.  We jumped out to a quick start to avoid the bottleneck in the beginning, but then settled into a consistent rhythm.  Runner’s from the longer 50K race were mingled with the 10K that we ourselves were running, but together we were trail runners; which can be a unique group all of their own.

The 2025 Frozen Gnome

The details for that race are that we finished together in 19th and 20th place (3rd in my 50-59 age group and 1st in Todd’s 20-29 age bracket).  The course was technical as trail runs go, which was accented by the light snowfall, but it was also deeply gratifying.  I was running with my son.  My son who had once again found running and was loving both the training and the process.

Not only had we been able to share the experiences of running together, but as I watched him run ahead of me that wintery day, I noticed something else.  Within Todd’s cadence, style, and personality, I could pinpoint certain aspects of Cindy and I as well.  While he leapt logs, weaved around trees, and nimbly cascaded down steep inclines, I saw Cindy’s tenacity and fortitude as his foundation; both he and my wife find ways to forge ahead - even when life is difficult and tough.  At the same time, I could see a bit of myself in his running that day.  He talked easily as the miles clicked by; checking in and encouraging me as we worked up and down the hills.  And when we passed a herd of deer watching us from the side, he raised his hands in thankfulness and spoke softly to them; just as I had done during a practice run a week or so beforehand.  Todd gets it.  He understands the physical and mental lift that running can offer.  And although there are always ups and downs involved with an activity, running can gift us little things we can benefit from while out on the trail; and that’s important.  It’s been memorable running with my son.

See you along The Way…

Rockford Register Star
Father-Son Look Alike Contest
June 2005