It Never Hurts to Keep Your Mind Open to a Few Numbered Omens.

treally hit home when I read Dick Beardsley’s article in M&B about the number omen (see volume 6, issue 1). I had gone through the same type of experience about eight years ago.

Training for a fall marathon, I was feeling great! A week before the race, I went down to Madison, Wisconsin, to run in the Race for the Ages 10K. We started according to age, with the oldest starting first. It’s great to watch the easy pace at such an event. Some of the early starters expect to be passed by a lot of runners; some of them plan on holding on for a great finish.

There were a few real speedsters starting behind me. Not far enough behind! Bev Lampe was one of the first starters, and she was calling out positions as faster runners passed her. Bev has placed in her age group at Boston. When I passed her, she let me know I was in third. Dave Allen had already passed me as a minute’s advantage over him did little good. Just before the finish, another youngster came by, so I had fourth.

At the race, I had heard about a Univeristy of Wisconsin race at the library, craftily called the Library Run. It had been delayed for some reason and was to start in a couple of hours. Why not run two races in one day?

At the library mall, I met my daughter, Katherine; she was a student, and several of her friends had decided to run the race. When I told them I had come in fourth earlier that day, they kind of did a “Yeah, sure,” not believing me for some reason.

THE START OF SOMETHING “OMENOUS’”

Well, I was the oldest award winner at that second race, by about 20 years. Those out for cross-country couldn’t run in such a low-key race. Bucky Badger awarded me fourth place.

So that was two fourth-place finishes on the same day.

The next week was St. Louis Marathon week. It was a warm day, but I felt good the whole way. I came in eighth overall and second in my age group. See, that’s like one plus one and four plus four.

issue of M&B and there is Dick Beardsley’s “Most Unforgettable Marathon.” He explains all about the omen with 209 and of course 902 being the mirror image. So I buy his book, Staying the Course: A Runner’s Toughest Race. What else could I do after I realized how much we ran alike?

So to make this story longer, I even read the book. It was amazing, and I was looking for an omen in my own life.

Well, I was born on March 1, 1951, so my wife, Deb, had a big party for my being 51 and born in ’51. Lots of friends and plenty to eat.

Two months later was my first marathon after turning 51, the Journey’s Marathon in Eagle River, Wisconsin, a nice rural run with plenty of wildlife scattered along the way. And what bib number did I get from the race director but 151. Well, that was a number I had to live up to: first over 51. The race went well, cool at the start, wind picked up later, but I was headed for the finish and saw the clock ready to change minutes and sprinted to get under the magical 3:15! But failed. A second over.

I did get first in my age group, but as the race director announced my time, I realized that 3 hours, 15 minutes, and 1 second was the right sequence of numbers for my birthday: 3-1-51. An omen come true.

Printer: Insert Tybee Island Marathon ad