By Vicki Hunter
Virginia is a long-time member of Boulder Road Runners and has been an active participant in races as well as an enthusiastic recruiter for age-group teams. Virginia is one of those people you meet and wonder where she gets all her energy and how she does it all. Her infectious energy makes it almost impossible to say ‘no’ when she asks you to join a team. She turns 70 in November of this year, and continues to work at the University of Colorado, run track races, road races and XC; she participates in BBR events, maintains many friendships, as well as her role as a spouse and mother. Moreover, Virginia is a prolific poet and uses her poetry to share her love of nature and the outdoors.
Why are you a supporter of BRR?
Virginia running strong at the 2015 Red Rocks Scramble.
First and foremost, I truly appreciate the track meets! Without that opportunity I would never have experienced racing on the track at various distances and the fun of relays. The camaraderie at the meets is just so uplifting. A ten-year-old yelling, “You can do it!” as you run past just makes you smile. Lining up with a variety of ages is a kick. One year we had a relay time with a combined age of over 200 years!
Also, I love having a Club that supports masters teams and includes a variety of abilities – always need a drop score! Seeing the success of all our teams is inspiring. Finally, the long history of the Club and now its support for unsponsored elite athletes rounds out the comprehensive nature of BRR. It is a unique presence in a very vibrant Boulder running scene that supports the love of running across the many clubs and training groups in our area.
What about being a member is beneficial?
Running with others on our teams, being a part of a local and national presence at USATF events. Knowing that we are providing opportunities for all ages/abilities to come together around the joy of running!
Masters runner, outdoors-lover, and long-time BRR member Virginia, rejoices in her life in Boulder.
Erick Calderon (studios81.com)
Please share some of the highlights from your running and racing over the years:
- I’ve done almost all Pearl Street Miles since 2009, and it remains one of my favorites
- I believe I’ve run all the CO XC Championships since 2014 or 2015 with RevRun and then BRR. Getting people to try something they haven’t ever done before is something I love to do, and why I recruit women to join the older teams.
- 2015 XC Boulder USATF Championships – recruited for RevRun and were about 1/3 of the Masters field! 1st W60 Club – RevRun.
- At the 2019 XC USATF 5k Championships in San Diego, I was on the BRR W60 team that placed 3rd.
- My favorite track distance is the 200m, and the lead leg in 4x100m relay. I love the corner and staggered starts.
- Overall, I love to run on the grass – a few call me the ‘Woman Who Runs in the Grass.’
What advice would you give other ‘mature’ runners?
Try new distances and surfaces. DO NOT be afraid of the grass, feel the curve of the Earth pulling you forward – that applies to all ages. As Melody Fairchild says, “Be curious.”
Beyond running, Virginia is also well-known for her poetry about nature.
Erick Calderon (studios81.com)
As we age, be careful not to listen to others that say we should limit ourselves – as in you’re too old to do… enjoy the people and all the beings that you run with – the birds, bugs, trees, grasses (!), water, air, and being outside in all kinds of conditions. Believe in the blessings of movement in all forms.
Give us a little bit of background on your current work life and how you balance it with your running/other things in your life.
I am still working full time at CU Boulder, but having set training times with RevRun and track meets or races on the calendar helps me keep a training schedule. Knowing I can chat with someone on a Saturday morning long run is sometimes all I need to reduce the stress of work and the world we live in. I also have a creative outlet in writing and sharing my poetry. Sometimes running is mentioned, but more often it is my observations of the world around me on a run that spins its way into the web of a poem, into a celebration of being.
To end, we share one of Virginia’s poems:
learn the flowers
study their perfection
their personalities
breathe in their colors
paint your mind
with each hue
drink the power of
purple gold and green
ingest their invisible perfumes
inhale their untouched nectars
grace yourself with their petals
move gently within their embrace