Ed Whitlock M85 Age Group Mile record

Great feat indeed, but at 6:38, the M85 1500 record is worth about 7:11 for the mile. Ed's M80 record is 5:48.

6:38.42 Antonio Tejada Vergara MEX 11.04.1921 Guatemala City 24.08.2006

No. We did not ask for it.

Ed obliterated the previous 85-89 age group record of 8:04.7 by 46 seconds!

He is not even close to peaking for this year. I said it was only June.

“I am really a long way from being in peak condition, I am not as fit now as I was earlier this year,” Whitlock wrote in an email to Runner’s World. “I am relieved the mile went as well as it did, rather than being ecstatic about the result.”

The race clearly didn’t set him back too much, because three days later, he ran a 7:22.28 mile at the London Pacers Galloping Goose Mile, just missing another record.

http://www.runnersworld.com/masters/whitlock-wins-another-world-record-at-age-85#

There will be many, many people at this forum that will be very interested in a race called "London Pacers Galloping Goose Mile".

Is the race named after Robert Young or Paula Radcliffe?

(Sorry about that. I could not stop myself.)

Go Ed Whitlock!!!………..The Real Deal.

Can't imagine an 85 year old pushing themself at the mile distance.

Ed is off the charts, an amazing athlete. Great to watch his accomplishments. Most runners are pretty much done by age 60 or so after a life time of running. I know a few runners that were world class in their prime and by age 60 would be lucky to run a ten minute mile.....or in some cases even be able to run a mile period.

Does anyone know how tall Ed is and what he weighs?

Thanks.

Ed deserves a gift. Something real nice. Like a trombone. And not one of them rusty ones either.

broken arrow wrote:

Ed is off the charts, an amazing athlete. Great to watch his accomplishments. Most runners are pretty much done by age 60 or so after a life time of running. I know a few runners that were world class in their prime and by age 60 would be lucky to run a ten minute mile.....or in some cases even be able to run a mile period.

Does anyone know how tall Ed is and what he weighs?

Thanks.

Sure. No problem.

Ed is 10 feet 7.75 inches tall and he weighs 976.4 pounds with a bodyfat percentage of 0.33%.

Ed is absolutely off the charts in every impossible way.

So it is pretty much the same old thing. Nothing new.

Of course it is only June.

Video of Ed's WR race: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPO3FTB3w-g

Anyone know when he is racing next (or if he has made plans to yet, I guess)?

Ed is an inspiration to all of us who listen to our aging bodies, feel the passage of time in our bones, and keep on lacing up the shoes and heading out the door. Ed's got 27 years on me, so I've got absolutely nothing to complain about. If I look anything like that at 85....well, the embalmer will have done a f--king fantastic job and deserves whatever he charges. :)

Impressive. How long can he keep this streak up. Someone needs to do an RNA-seq on his muscle tissue.

wowowowow wrote:

Impressive. How long can he keep this streak up. Someone needs to do an RNA-seq on his muscle tissue.

I already tried to get a muscle biopsy last year. It turns out that Ed is afraid of big needles and he ran away.

Unfortunately…I could not catch him.

Here is my new plan:

1) wait 3 years.

2) increase my mileage, hills, and speedwork during this time period.

3) next time I am going to sneak up from behind Ed and surprise him.

I was so impressed by this it made me laugh, since I just ran a very competitive 1 mile track race (on a nice track) in 7:21. I just turned 65 last month. So Ed would have handed me my time at the finish. And given me 20 years to catch up! Way to go Ed, you are an inspiration!

5-7, 115 pounds

Just another average Ethiopian.

Balian wrote:

5-7, 115 pounds

I started coming on these boards in about 2001 and thinking Ed was awesome because he was doing what he was doing in his early 70s. Now he's 85 and still killing it! So inspiring.

And, I think Ed holds a record on these boards too, as he is probably the only person in he running world that no one has ever said a bad word about here.

U Asked For It wrote:

He had that light, smooth stride back then too. I'm convinced that is a huge part of his longevity, much like Lagat.

txRUNNERgirl wrote:

Check out this photo from 1952!

http://www.drbrd.com/images/scgs/mug_shots/ed_whitlock_1952_ic_relay2.jpg

Agreed about the stride. Beautiful form. Amazing, considering his age.

btownrunnin wrote:

I started coming on these boards in about 2001 and thinking Ed was awesome because he was doing what he was doing in his early 70s. Now he's 85 and still killing it! So inspiring.

And, I think Ed holds a record on these boards too, as he is probably the only person in he running world that no one has ever said a bad word about here.

Ed is just incredible. I get teary-eyed just watching videos of his interviews.

btownrunnin wrote:

I started coming on these boards in about 2001 and thinking Ed was awesome because he was doing what he was doing in his early 70s. Now he's 85 and still killing it! So inspiring.

And, I think Ed holds a record on these boards too, as he is probably the only person in he running world that no one has ever said a bad word about here.

You spoke too soon....

Any older athlete runs fast and the trolls come out and say it can't be done unaided.

Anyways, congrats to Ed.

former canuck runner wrote:

btownrunnin wrote:

I started coming on these boards in about 2001 and thinking Ed was awesome because he was doing what he was doing in his early 70s. Now he's 85 and still killing it! So inspiring.

And, I think Ed holds a record on these boards too, as he is probably the only person in he running world that no one has ever said a bad word about here.

You spoke too soon....

http://www.letsrun.com/forum/flat_read.php?thread=7396406

Any older athlete runs fast and the trolls come out and say it can't be done unaided.

Anyways, congrats to Ed.

Oh boy. Now I am really mad. Here are some words of wisdom from Ed Whitlock:

Based on his past encounters, Whitlock tries to steer clear of doctors.

“About 15 years ago, when I was having trouble with my knees, I did go see a doctor,” Whitlock said. “I went to a specialist and their diagnosis was nothing could be done and [my] running days [were] over…So I’ve done a lot of running since then.”

The STUPID DOCTOR came up with the STUPID IDEA that ED WHITLOCK should STOP RUNNING!

The doctor is obviously mentally deficient and a jibbering idiot.

Here is more:

This seems as good a point as any to supply some data to support your growing suspicion that Whitlock was blessed with extraordinary genes. Sit in his kitchen and listen to him descend stairs, and you would think a teen was about to join you for afternoon tea. Whitlock, who says, "I stay away from doctors, they're bad people," last had a physical exam when he was 40. His uncle Arthur was Britain's oldest man when he died in 2000 at age 108. Whitlock last took an aspirin during World War II.

Of course, all great runners have good genes. What are the Whitlock secrets? There have to be secrets, right?

Only that there are no secrets. "I'm always willing to say what I do," Whitlock says, "but I don't know that it would work for any particular person. Everybody has to find out what works for them."

I don't follow what typical coaches say about serious runners. No physios, ice baths, massages, tempo runs, heart rate monitors. I have no strong objection to any of that, but I'm not sufficiently organized or ambitious to do all the things you're supposed to do if you're serious. The more time you spend fiddlediddling with this and that, the less time there is to run or waste time in other ways."

Whitlock also has a philosophical reason for stripping running to its essentials. "Running should be a pastime," he says. "All sports should be a pastime. There shouldn't be all this professional stuff. I believe that Paula Radcliffe is drug-free, but I do think she pushes the envelope of being a professional runner to the extreme. I don't mean to single her out, but she's living an artificial existence. She's always away from home or sleeping in an altitude chamber. She has this entourage of people constantly around her poking and prodding. That's so far away from what I do and how I would want to live. Monomania leads to terrible things.

Whitlock says, "Age-grading tables are a great motivator. My main interest in them is to see if I'm going downhill faster than the tables say I should or see if I can beat the tables." But then, in another winked-at contradiction, he says, "There are problems with them. I suspect they're easier than they ought to be on the upper age groups." Then he sighs, pours himself more tea and starts talking about the challenges of staying healthy enough to tackle the 80-plus marathon world record of 3:39:18.

To quote Whitlock one last time, "All people are strange in different ways."

(Paula Radcliffe came up in this interview with Ed. That is just a coincidence.)

I ask what else he does all day. He mentions the newspaper, the Letsrun.com message board, and "mucking about with an online stock market account."

Go Ed Whitlock!!!……………………..the Real Deal.