Local retiree part of rare running group Published Aug. 14, 2008 By Walt Johnson 21st Space Wing Sports Reporter PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. -- Clyde Landry is proud of his role in the history of the United States Air Force. As a military retiree, Mr. Landry can proudly point to his service as a key element to the success of the Air Force's 60 year existence. One other thing Mr. Landry can be proud of is the fact that he's one of only 55 people who have participated in every Air Force marathon ever run, And this year he plans on continuing his streak, which started nine years ago with the first ever marathon in Ohio. This year the 12th annual U.S. Air Force Marathon takes place Sept. 20 at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, and Mr. Landry will be there at the starting line ready to run the challenging event. The marathon events include the 26-mile marathon, a wheelchair marathon, a half marathon, an individual 10K, and a team 10K. In addition, a 5K race will take place on Sept. 19 at Wright State University. Mr. Landry isn't the kind of athlete that has been participating in sports since he was a young man. In fact he wasn't much of a sports player at all prior to his 37th birthday. It took an event that happened while he was fulfilling his fitness obligation to the Air Force to get Mr. Landry to the point he is in life today. "That was back when we had to run the mile and a half fitness test for the Air Force every year," Mr. Landry said. "In 1983, I ran my mile and a half and felt so bad afterward. I remember running home and collapsing on the bed and saying to myself, 'There has to be an easier way to do this than trying to run it once a year.' So I started walking or running a mile a day four times a week. I was able to build up to the point that, two years later, I was running five miles and I remember saying, 'Wow, what an accomplishment'." Once he began running to get in shape for the fitness test, it opened his eyes to why running is so popular, Mr. Landry said. He knew people could run long distances comfortably, so his goal was to run the mile and a half, which he says doesn't seem like that long of a distance to him now. After he started running, Mr. Landry said he realized the perception he had of runners was far from reality. "I used to drive around before I was a runner, see people running and say, 'Those people must not have a life,'" he said. "I thought they must not because they didn't have anything else to do if they have time to go running. Then I learned its getting bit by the running bug. It's tough when you just start out, but then you get addicted to running. It gets into your blood, and you get to where you enjoy it so much, and you have this feeling of satisfaction when you finish your run." The Air Force retiree did not set his sights initially on running the Air Force Marathon. When he began running, there was no such thing as the Air Force marathon. The Marines Corps however has a prestigious marathon it has run for the past 32 years in Virginia, and Mr. Landry set his sights on running it. However, Mr. Landry never got around to running the Marine race due to time and location hang-ups over the years. So, when the Air Force began its marathon, Mr. Landry was quick to sign up and participate in the event even though he had retired prior to it being established. Running a military marathon was a dream come true for Mr. Landry, because he was never able to make it to the Marine marathon, though he still hasn't given up on the idea of running one in the future. "I still haven't run a Marine Corps Marathon but I hope to one day," Mr. Landry said. "I always wished prior to the Air Force having its own marathon that the Air Force would have one. When the Air Force held its first marathon in conjunction with the Air Force's 50th anniversary, I said, 'I have to do the Air Force marathon.' I went to the first Air Force marathon, and after that I knew I wanted to do another one and I have been doing it every year since." Mr. Landry and the 54 other runners who have participated in all the Air Force Marathons got to wear special bibs at last year's marathon that recognized their accomplishment. Mr. Landry said he's proud of his membership in such a unique club. "I feel good about being one of the few that have run all the Air Force marathons," he said. "I feel it is truly an accomplishment to have done all the marathons. The thing is, no one can enter the group of 55. The group can only get smaller." Mr. Landry said he had a goal to run one marathon a year until he was 60 years old. He only missed one year not running a marathon, 1993, when he retired from the Air Force. Now that he is 61 years old and has run 30 marathons in the past 20 years, he has revised his goals just a bit. With the help of his wife Jean, who he says is with him at every race and volunteers at other races, he plans to make history one day. "I've already reached my goal of running until I am 60, so I have changed that to running until I am 70," he said. "A couple of months ago, a guy in London ran a marathon at 100 years old, so now my goal is to beat his record and run when I am 101 years old."