Learning From the Legends,pt.6. Bill Rodgers

What more can you say about Bill Rodgers? He's a living legend,one of the all-time greats of American distance running, a man who has a long and deep love of running. In March I posted, Learning From the Legends,pt.3, which provided some of Bill's running achievements that are remarkable to say the least. If you didn't read it, just go to the right of this page under Archive and click March and it will take you there. With the Boston marathon around the corner I thought it was only fitting that we offer a quote from one of Bill's interviews from the '70's. His observations on the essence of running reveal the love he has for what I call, the greatest and purest of all sports.Oh yes,lest we forget,"Boston Billy" won the New York City marathon and the Boston marathon four times each between 1975 and 1980. What is so appealing about running? "One of the most important things about running is the relationship of man and woman to earth and nature. As we become increasingly involved in technology,science and business,we should not lose that instinct,that feeling for the earth. Running is a very natural activity. If you get too caught up,you find yourself constantly seeking to make running something that it isn't. You should let it be what it is. A very simple activity. Running has become too complicated for many people and they wind up turning sour on the sport,or losing the focus of their direction."