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49 °F Forecast | Road Cams Monday, April 4, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend November 30, 2004 Gladys �Glady� Burrill, 86, of Prospect. A big step up For Gladys ‘Glady’ Burrill of Prospect the Honolulu Marathon is just another challenge to meet By PAUL FATTIG Mail Tribune Gladys "Glady" Burrill has never entered a marathon in her life. But the pilot, mountain climber, desert hiker and Arctic Circle adventurer will tell you there was a time when she had never flown, never climbed a mountain, never walked across a desert, never seen an ice floe. At 86, she figures it’s high time she stepped out on a marathon. The Prospect resident is expected to be the oldest participant in the Dec. 12 Honolulu Marathon. She will also be the oldest woman to ever compete in the 26.2-mile event expected to draw about 23,000 runners, rapid walkers and wheelchair entrants. "Too many people worry about age," she said in a telephone interview from a condominium she keeps with her husband, Eugene F. "Gene" Burrill, in Honolulu. "But age is only a number," she added. "It’s so important to keep your body and mind active." Advertisement Keeping active has never been a problem for the mother of six children, 18 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. In addition to raising a family, she and her husband started the Eugene F. Burrill Lumber Co. in 1941. The mill in White City operated for nearly 60 years. The Burrills, who retired half a dozen years ago, were at their Waikiki condo last year when they watched the start of the marathon. "It began at 5 (a.m.) with fireworks and everything," she recalled. "It was an emotional thing that hit me. I wanted to do it." With her mind set and with Eugene’s enthusiastic support, she began training in January of this year. Her husband was an avid walker but no longer walks as much, thanks to a bad back acquired from years of heavy labor. One of the rapid walkers in the event, she trains by walking up to 20 miles a day, although most days it’s a shorter distance. With 22,161 finishers last year, the Honolulu Marathon is now the third largest in the country with only the New York City and Chicago marathons being larger, said Pat Bigold, spokesman for the Honolulu Marathon. But a lot of Hawaiians will be watching Oregon’s octogenarian during that state’s 33rd annual distance run, he said. She has been featured in The Honolulu Advertiser, the state’s largest paper and on regional television, he observed. "She has tremendous energy," he said. "I know. I’ve walked with her." Bigold, 53, who exercises regularly, did a 12-mile rapid walk recently with the Jackson County resident in the Waikiki area. "When I said ‘good-bye’ to head back to where I live and she kept going, I knew I had overdone it," he said. "I had tremendous muscle cramps. She tends to outwalk a lot of younger people." He has watched her stride past others sweating their way up Diamond Head, the biggest incline in the marathon. Although a group of Japanese entrants have yet to register, she is the oldest yet to sign up, he said. Four years ago, a 90-year-old Japanese man entered the race, finishing in seven hours, he said. She is also expected to complete the race in about seven hours, he estimated. Joining her will be son Mike Burrill Sr., grandson Mike Burrill Jr., and his wife, Carolyn. A longtime family friend from Prospect, Ed Scriven, who has been training with her, also will be at her side. It’s the eighth marathon for Scriven, 63, a retired U.S. Forest Service employee. He ran the first six, but had to walk the last one after pulling a muscle. "I was kind of apprehensive at first because of her age but after walking with her I have no doubt Glady will make it," he said. The Prospect duo have been training several times a week, often walking 13 miles at a stretch, although they occasionally do an 18-miler. Although she has never competed in a marathon, she expects to walk across the finish line. "I really don’t feel it when I finish 20 miles — it’s no big deal," she said. "I eat healthy. I’m mostly a vegetarian. I’m not a dessert eater. I don’t smoke or drink. "I’ve been walking practically all my life," she added. "You can stop and smell the roses when you walk." Except on marathon day, of course. Come Dec. 12, she will rise at 2 a.m. to be at the starting line at 3:30 a.m. as required. Then the woman who has climbed Mount Hood, who earned her pilot’s license in 1960 despite being afraid to fly, who walked the Arizona desert and who ventured into Alaska’s Arctic Circle last year will step out. Although there will be a sea of participants, she won’t feel like she’s among strangers since friends and family will be walking alongside, she said. And at least one special family member will greet her at the end of the marathon. "Gene’s going to be at the finish waiting for me," she said of her husband of 65 years. Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 776-4496 or e-mail him at [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers home equity loans helzberg Distance Education Diamonds Slippers Student Loans afsa teleconferencing Memory Foam Mattress w2 forms Tatoo Fasa Advertisement s