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Doc practices what he preaches
By JOE SHAFRAN
I’m sure it’s been happening since earth was created… You’re scraping ice off the windshield one morning and a few days later it’s in the 70’s and you’re out there running in your shorts. I know a lot of you ran the Disneyworld events a couple of weeks ago, and that was good. Weather notwithstanding, where else can you get your picture taken with a larger- than-life Goofey? Sunday, in Eastport, I did see what looked like tulips poking through the ground near the Annapolis Fitness Center. This past Saturday, it was like the olden days. Lot’s of people outside. At the the West Annapolis Fire Station on Jennifer Rd, some of the the firefighers were outside hosing down the equipment and I stopped by to say hello. Long-time volunteer head, Bob Vice, was there and made sure I talked with Linda Burkhart, one of the many runners in the fire department. Burkhart had run the JFK 50 in Western Maryland a few weeks ago and is now training for the Cherry Blossom in Washington, D.C. in early April. I suggested to Vice that he should do some running. He laughed and said he’s content to just drive along in his chief’s car and pace Burkhart. This past Saturday was the opening of the Fleet Feet running store in Eastport and on Sunday morning I saw Scott Broerman ,tidying up. He and his wife Marty own the place and Scott said they were so busy Saturday that his regional manager who was in town just to see how things were going, had to take off his coat and help fit shoes and clothing.
The legislature is in town and I’m sure some of those you see running around the State House could be elected officials. During the campaign , one of the candidates from the Glen Burnie area, Mark Chang, specifically listed himself as a runner on his bio. Also, most all his constituents know that Senator John Astle is a long-time runner. But all the delegates don’t profess to be runners, but do get their exercise. I’m told that a trio of women delegates from Baltimore do a fast walk around the corridors of their hotel each morning. While our past Governor, Ehrlich, was into exercise, he may not have had time to actually run in local meets, However Kendal, the first lady, was usually seen among the front runners of some local races. As for the new Governor, O’malley, he’s already been spotted working out in a local gym and I pretty well know that both he and his wife are runners. Both were early supporters of the revived Baltimore Marathon.
And, other than running and stopping to chat with the firefighters during the 73 degree days, you ask, “what else did I do?” I went back to college and took Professor Tiffin Bumpass’ course in fitness at Anne Arundel Community College, and of course running entered into the lecture. Bumpass, Ph.D , made mention of the woman who was seen running College Parkway in Arnold most mornings and also of the infamous all-weather Speedo Man, who runs in downtown Annapolis most mornings in his swim trunks. How I made out in the course remains a matter of conjecture...
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The Runner of the Week. It’s a man who runs about four days a week, but in seasonal attire near the Anne Arundel Medical Center in Annapolis and generally over the noon hour. The runner of the week is a cardiologist, who I’m sure is demonstrating what he tells most of his patients, the need for exercise... This is Dr. Jonathan Altschuler of Cardiology Associates. He’s a doctor with pull. A few years ago, when his group moved their offices into the Sajak Pavilion, he insisted that as a runner he would need a shower in his office and a shower he has. Jon Altschuler, a few years back, a resident at a Boston hospital, was a pack a day smoker. That was until the day his father, not yet sixty, died of a heart attack. The then young resident quit smoking, took up running and did the New York marathon. He did the Boston with ease in just a bit over three hours and has done well in some of the Marine marathons. But not long ago, when he was slowed a bit with a leg injury, he began to do triathlons. And when he isn’t doing a run or a triathlon you might find him working out at Big Vanilla. And in talking with this busy doctor, I learned something. You don’t bother him on Tuesdays which is his day in the operating room, nor could you have bothered him after 8 P.M. last Saturday when he sat down to watch his beloved Eagles get aced out of the playoffs
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Here’s a hint for runners, especially... I got this in Prof. Bumpass’ college class. Well into athletics, she is big on hydration, something a lot of us forget about. I believe this was multiple choice on one of her exams. Q. How many glasses of water should one consume in a day? A. 8.
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Running Calendar
Sun. Feb. 11, 10:AM. Valentine’s Day 5k. Kinder farm Park. Call Ellen McGee. 410.987.8809.
Try to beat the 2006 winnng time which was about 19 minutes.
Sun. Mar. 4, 7:30 A.M Severna Park. B&A Marathon and Half Marathon.
Visit the Striders web site for detailed information.
Sat, March 24, Washington D.C. National Marathon. www.nationalmarathon.com
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If you have a suggestion for the runner of the week,
please e-mail me with a contact number.
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