Dick Beardsley Marathon Running Camp
Every September, a group of about 30 campers and 8 coaches get together for a week long running camp. Most people ask in wonder, “A running camp? You go on vacation for a week to run?” I usually answer, “It’s not just to run - we have seminars, roundtable discussions, some group runs, and a ton of fun. Ok, so we do run a 1/2 marathon at the end of the week.” That usually confirms to them that there are some really crazy folks out there.
In 2003, I went to Dick’s inaugural camp as a camper. After that, I started going as a coach. When you hear “marathon camp,” you might think that everyone there is an elite runner. Not the case. We have runners, walkers, people who have never run a marathon but want to, and people who have run 100s of marathons. We are all ages, all sizes, all abilities, all speeds, all walks of life. But the one thing we have in common is that we all love to run and to be around others who love to run.
We generally have about 30 campers, some of whom have been to camp before. Every year, we make new friends - real friends who meet in other places throughout the year to run races together, who open their houses to each other, and who truly “stay in touch.” Some of the returning campers come back for the primary reason of reuniting with their friends once a year.
Joe Henderson, one of the coaches at camp, said, “We come as strangers, and we leave as family.” So, you see, we do go to Dick’s camp to run, but it is much more than just a running camp…