Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture
Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

A newsletter for faculty, staff and students

September-October 2004 • Vol. 30, No. 5

Sixty-year-old UA faculty member will run in New York Marathon

By Karen Eskew, Communication Specialist
Center of Excellence for Poultry ScienceUniversity of Arkansas

While many of his peers are making plans for retirement, Craig Coon, a University of Arkansas professor of poultry nutrition, is finalizing his plans to run in the New York Mara-thon this November. At 60 years old, Coon has already completed marathons in Chicago, Dallas, the Twin Cities and in Duluth, Minn., and this race will mark his fifth one in five years.

“It’s my ultimate goal to run a total of 10 marathons before I’m done,” said Coon.

In order to prepare, Coon runs approximately 50 to 55 miles per week. “Last year I ran around 70 miles per week. This year I’m trying to have more ‘resting’ days during my regimen and just work harder on the days I do run,” said Coon. “I’m hoping to prolong my running career by cutting back on the total mileage and giving my body more time to recuperate between runs.”

Typically Coon has placed in the top 10% of his age category for each race; a pretty outstanding record considering he only started running at age 50.

“I get a lot out of running. It gives me tremendous peace of mind,” said Coon. “As a long-dis-tance runner, you spend a lot of time alone. During these times I have time to think. I also like to pray.” Coon went on to say that running gives him a “real sense of accomplishment.”

And considering how tough it is to qualify for the New York Marathon, just being able to compete in this famous event is an honor.

“There are only a few ways to qualify for New York,” said Coon. “The first is to have an out-standing time. Another is to win in the first round of the lottery drawing-- which is how I qualified. Typi-cally runners go into the lottery several times, before their names are drawn. Since I am at the bottom age of my category, it’s a terrific time for me to run the race and hopefully do well.” Other ways to qualify for the race include living in another country, or by running in at least six New York sanctioned races, a feat that is difficult to do if you live in another state, like Coon does.

If you’re curious what a typical week in Coon’s training involves, he responded, “It starts with a long run on Sunday, roughly around 20 to 22 miles from my home at the the marina in War Eagle, down highway 412 through Nob Hill, Sonora into Springdale and back,” said Coon. “Then from Tuesday through Thursday, I do lots of 800-meter repeats and one-mile repeats as hard and as fast as I can in order to work on my speed.” Coon went on to say that training on the hills in Northwest Arkansas have pro-vided him an “edge” during his past races.

So what’s in store for this poultry nutritionist after New York? “Well, last October I did well enough in the Chicago marathon that I am eligible to compete in Boston next April, so that’s where I’m headed next,” said Coon.

Coon has been a faculty member in the poultry science department at the University of Arkansas since 1997.