Unlike most younger stars, Whitlock has no team, coach, training partners, massage therapist, nutritionist, sports psychologist, shoe contract or high-altitude training camp. He does no stretching exercises or weight training. He has no special diet.
Whitlock, who is 5 feet 7 and 112 pounds, does all of his training in a cemetery. He covers a third-of-a-mile loop on a paved path. He does not count laps, stopping when, for example, his watch indicates three hours. He said he would not run on roads because drivers aim at him.
Whitlock's 2:54:49 would have placed him 306th in the 2004 New York City Marathon, or among the top 1 percent of the 33,000 finishers. At New York, only 480 runners broke three hours, the gold standard of marathon excellence and a time few runners beyond middle age approach. Last year, the second-fastest 70-or-older marathoner in North America ran 3:24:28.
Last update: 14.02.06, 23:54
