Challenge for Perry and Huckabee?
Earlier in the year, Texas and Arkansas governors Rick Perry and Mike Huckabee completed their first marathons at the Freescale Austin Marathon and Little Rock Marathon, respectively.
Iowa governor Tom Villsack completed the Quad Cities Marathon on Sunday in 6:09 - his slowest of his four marathons in the last year. But according to the following Quad Cities Times article, Villsack is vowing to run all of his state's marathons before he leaves office.
Wonder if that is a challenge that Perry or Huckabee can aspire to?
Long week hampers Vilsack's marathon
By Sean Moeller
The long stretch of flat road was wide-open behind Iowa governor Tom Vilsack as he crossed the finish line Sunday afternoon as one of the last finishers of the Quad-Cities Marathon.
Almost all of the Happy Joe’s pizza was digested by the rest of the race entrants, the beer and orange slice supplies were severely depleted. Chicago Bears quarterback Kyle Orton already had thrown four interceptions against the Cincinnati Bengals, in a game that started at noon.
Vilsack, coming off an exhausting week of travel and engagements, had been on the marathon course for 6 hours, 9 minutes when he finally was able to stop running for the day. The first thing the governor, who is attempting to run all of his state’s marathons before he leaves office, did when he crossed the line was apologize.
“Sorry it took me so long,” Vilsack told finish line attendants and race director Joe Moreno with sincerity.
It was Vilsack’s fourth marathon in the last year, but he wasn’t going to give in to the quit that always wants to creep into a marathoner’s thoughts near the end of a race.
“It was fine for the first 18 miles, and then I got cramps. I was worried about that,” he said. “At the halfway point, I was right where I wanted to be, on pace for five hours.
“This wasn’t such a great job. It’s nothing to be proud of.”
A long week of duties, including meetings and press conferences dealing with gasoline prices, economic development efforts, a high school football game and numerous public appearances around the state, with little sleep to fuel him, took its toll.
“When you travel across the country twice in a week, it just kills you,” Vilsack said.
The race turned into the slowest 26.2-mile performance of his short marathoning career.
The longer-than-expected day on the course caused a speech he was set to give in Marshalltown at 3 p.m. to get pushed back to 4 p.m., giving him an extra hour to shower and get to his airplane.
“It won’t be a good speech,” said the governor, who told Moreno that he’d wear the finisher’s medal from this marathon with pride.
Sean Moeller can be contacted at (563) 383-2288 or at smoeller@qctimes.com.
Iowa governor Tom Villsack completed the Quad Cities Marathon on Sunday in 6:09 - his slowest of his four marathons in the last year. But according to the following Quad Cities Times article, Villsack is vowing to run all of his state's marathons before he leaves office.
Wonder if that is a challenge that Perry or Huckabee can aspire to?
-30-
Long week hampers Vilsack's marathon
By Sean Moeller
The long stretch of flat road was wide-open behind Iowa governor Tom Vilsack as he crossed the finish line Sunday afternoon as one of the last finishers of the Quad-Cities Marathon.
Almost all of the Happy Joe’s pizza was digested by the rest of the race entrants, the beer and orange slice supplies were severely depleted. Chicago Bears quarterback Kyle Orton already had thrown four interceptions against the Cincinnati Bengals, in a game that started at noon.
Vilsack, coming off an exhausting week of travel and engagements, had been on the marathon course for 6 hours, 9 minutes when he finally was able to stop running for the day. The first thing the governor, who is attempting to run all of his state’s marathons before he leaves office, did when he crossed the line was apologize.
“Sorry it took me so long,” Vilsack told finish line attendants and race director Joe Moreno with sincerity.
It was Vilsack’s fourth marathon in the last year, but he wasn’t going to give in to the quit that always wants to creep into a marathoner’s thoughts near the end of a race.
“It was fine for the first 18 miles, and then I got cramps. I was worried about that,” he said. “At the halfway point, I was right where I wanted to be, on pace for five hours.
“This wasn’t such a great job. It’s nothing to be proud of.”
A long week of duties, including meetings and press conferences dealing with gasoline prices, economic development efforts, a high school football game and numerous public appearances around the state, with little sleep to fuel him, took its toll.
“When you travel across the country twice in a week, it just kills you,” Vilsack said.
The race turned into the slowest 26.2-mile performance of his short marathoning career.
The longer-than-expected day on the course caused a speech he was set to give in Marshalltown at 3 p.m. to get pushed back to 4 p.m., giving him an extra hour to shower and get to his airplane.
“It won’t be a good speech,” said the governor, who told Moreno that he’d wear the finisher’s medal from this marathon with pride.
Sean Moeller can be contacted at (563) 383-2288 or at smoeller@qctimes.com.
posted by WalkSports.com | 9:35 PM
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