Run hills to race better

The Boston Marathon's Heartbreak Hill is probably the most famous, but anyone who races in the Upper Midwest is going to encounter hilly courses. When they name a climb, such as Stink Hill in the Pictured Rocks Road Race or McKinley Hill on the Traverse City Cherry Festival 15K route, you had better be ready.

What's next?

One of the most interesting aspects of getting older is the perspective one gains watching innovation change our world. I'm not quite old enough to remember sitting around the radio on Sunday evenings listening to Jack Benny. But I am old enough to remember our first television.

Creatures of the night

Hold up a black piece of construction paper and ask someone what they see. After getting a blank look, tell that person "It's a black cat eating licorice in a coal bin." If you're under the age of ten, that's funny.

Gene "The Machine" Curnow

While frantically entering the official finishing times of Grandma's Minnesota Mile runners on September 11, 2011, some commotion just past the finish line caught my attention. As I swiftly moved in that direction, someone asked me if I knew who it was on the ground behind the T-shirt table. When I said, "No," I was told, "It's Gene." (1)

Walk this way

I cannot think of a duller description of a trail by a lake than "lake shore path." That phrase narrows down the possibilities to only a half zillion areas of trampled grass along a half zillion lakes. But say the words "Lake Shore Path" to Kelly Hayden, village administrator of Fontana, Wisconsin, and her voice brightens over the phone.