Runner's World October 2013

LOCATION Badlands National Park, South Dakota RUNNER Autumn Campbell THE EXPERIENCE Miles of rugged paths cut through the rocky buttes and spires of one of the world’s richest fossil beds, where rhinos and saber-toothed cats once roamed. “If only these ancient walls could talk,” says Campbell, who ran through the barren landscape just before sunset last September. “I would love to hear their account of history.” FOR DIRECTIONS, RESOURCE INFORMATION, AND DOWNLOADABLE WALLPAPER IMAGES, VISIT RUNNERSWORLD.COM/RAVERUN.…

IT’S BEEN SAID that e-mail is a scourge of the modern workplace, but on a recent Friday I got a great one from RW Associate Editor Nick Weldon. Nick had been corresponding with Erin Hurley, one of the runners we interviewed for our issue on the Boston Marathon bombings. Erin was running the race when the first bomb went off on Boylston Street, right where her boyfriend, Jeff Bauman, was waiting for her. He lost both legs. We told his story, too, about how a spectator named Carlos Arredondo had helped get Jeff into a wheelchair and rushed to an ambulance, undoubtedly saving his life. Because photos of Jeff and Carlos had been seen all over the world, and because Jeff helped authorities identify Tamerlan Tsarnaev from his hospital bed,…

BORDERLINE It was a wonderful surprise to find the article about Ayded Reyes in the August issue (“Running Down a Dream”). Overwhelmingly, the discourse on undocumented students—many of whom, like Ayded, have committed no crime—is often negative and full of the erroneous use of the word “illegal” as a noun. I am a doctoral student working on a dissertation on students like Ayded who would qualify for the DREAM Act. I am also a runner and know how positive and supportive the running community is. My hope is that Runner’s World readers who do not support the DREAM Act will thoughtfully consider Ayded’s story. The article serves as an important reminder that immigration often prevents individuals from obtaining what should be a human right—an education. —CAROL E. JOHNSON, Tempe, Arizona…

NADIA RUIZ, a 28-year-old teacher, spent the last three years chasing a dream: earning entry into Guinness World Records as the “youngest runner to complete 100 marathons.” But for Ruiz, going for the record was about more than just accolades and hardware. “I teach at an inner-city school where lots of kids think that because they come from an immigrant or a poor family, they can’t go for big goals,” says Ruiz, who teaches high school biology in Los Angeles. “I want to show them that anything can be done, no matter their background.” Ruiz’s parents moved to Norwalk, California, from Ecuador two months before she was born. Her father found work as an electrician, her mother as a cashier at a fast-food restaurant. At one point, there were four…

Where running and culture collide 1 BOSTON STRONG Ben Affleck presents an ESPY Award to Dick and Rick Hoyt, the father and son duo who have raced the Boston Marathon for 31 years. 2 ON THE RIGHT TRACK? Shannon Rowbury is now “coaching” Lindsay Lohan after the two randomly met at a Nike store. The Olympian suggested interval workouts for the actress, who says she wants to run the L.A. Marathon. 3 RUNNER’S ROAD West 228th Street in the Bronx is renamed Ted Corbitt Way to honor the ultrarunner and NYRR cofounder who lived there from 1955 to 1974. 4 CYBER SPEED NFL rookie Robert Gill is a YouTube star; a video of him clocking 25 mph on a treadmill garners 2.9 million views in four weeks. 5 FANCY FOOTWORK…

DEAR MILES, On a popular running path, I sometimes end up holding the same pace as a complete stranger. Should I say something? Any rules on this? —KATRINA S., Chicago Rules? It depends. If the path is fairly crowded, there’s no need to address someone running nearby, beyond maybe a polite “hello.” It’s elevator etiquette: You’re all stuck there, sharing this space en route to somewhere else, so what are you gonna do? If the path is wide open, however, no amount of talking will lessen the awkwardness of matching strides with a stranger. It’s just creepy. Instead, either surge ahead or fall back, then resume your normal pace—at a polite distance. Oh, and personally, I don’t mind when strangers talk to me on a run. As long as it’s…