Social distancing, circa 1977

Our most loyal blog follower and team supporter is Marty McGowan (Class of 1973). He was really digging our “social distancing” series, especially the fact that our athletes were exclusively wearing team gear. Our team is proud to rep the Foxes, and so is an old codger like Marty, who has been doing it for longer than most of you have been alive! Marty shared with me this cool (and embarrassing) picture of him in Central Park after the 1977 New York City Marathon. He entered it at the last minute when a friend couldn’t run and he ran under that friend’s name! The date was October 23, 1977. Marty’s time (yes, I looked it up) was 2:50:53 and he placed 381^st out of 3,664 in the marathon. He’s pictured here with his friend Richie Logan, who ran 2:51:04.

Here is the email Marty sent me with this photo: Old guy memories. I ran the entire NYC Marathon in 1977 wearing my Marist singlet backwards, or inside out or however you want to call it. I was so nervous putting the singlet on that I didn't realize that Marist was backwards (no one pointed it out to me either,'till the race was over). Here's a picture that my Mom took in the Central Park Sheep Meadow family reunion area of me and a friend Richie Logan. I hadn't planned on running the marathon that year. I was doing 70+ mile weeks concentrating on races up to the half marathon that summer. I think my longest run that summer was about 18 miles, and I only did that once. A week before the race a friend, Ned Hayes, who had entered the race, became too injured to run. Ned asked me if I wanted his number, so I ran as Edward J. Hayes. Simpler times back then, for sure.