Courtesy Photo | George Banker during the 2013 Marine Corps Marathon. Banker has participated in 30 of...... read more read more
JOINT BASE MYER-HENDERSON HALL, Va. - When marathon enthusiast, Army Ten-Miler Operations Manager and Marine Corps Marathon Historian George Banker heads to the 2014 MCM starting line, he will be wearing bib number 100.
There is no coincidence about Banker being paired with the triple-digit number because Oct. 26, 2014, he will run in his 100th 26.2 mile race.
The 64-year-old Banker began his marathon running career in 1982. He’s raced in 30 out of the past 31 Marine Corps Marathons, and he’d have a Joe DiMaggio-type consecutive streak going if he didn’t opt for the New York Marathon instead of the MCM in 1986. The Boston streets know of his feet – he’s raced the April Beantown marathon three times. In Philadelphia, the Penn Relay Marathon clock has timed his paces. Banker ran his first-ever marathon April 17, 1983. As he hits the 100 mark, he promises to keep running. Some years, he participated in as many as six marathons.
But Sunday morning at 8 a.m., a milestone run is in the offing. All the 26-plus miles may not be glitzy, but Banker knows when to look good. Marine Corps Marathon experience has taught him how to style and profile, and to do it with self-deprecating humor.
“I’m one of these lazy runners; I raise my feet just high enough off the ground just to keep from tripping ... In that last six miles, that’s when there’s a lot of people along the course and that’s when you got to look good when you’re coming down [toward the finish]. I tell runners to keep a little bit in the bank for Marshall Drive – that hill at the end. It may be short, but let me tell you, you just want to get your body up that hill. Once you get to the top, you can run like crazy.”
Banker is definitely an old school-type of long-distance athlete. He’s a firm believer of one step in front of the other and is not a big believer of marathon eve carbohydrate loading, shoe chips and on-course GPS devices.
“When I did that 3 hour and 4 minute marathon [at Houston in 1988], all I had was water,” he said. “I had none of this high-tech stuff. Another thing is to not pass up any water stations. Even if you think you’re not thirsty, drink something anyway.”
His racing philosophy coming up to his 100th overall marathon and 31st MCM is elementary and simple. Each race has its own history and an unforgettable story will unravel during each 26-mile run.
“All of them [the marathons] are different,” Banker said. “I feel just like this is the first one. People say this is just another run and don’t worry about it, but you do worry about it.”
His stories are captivating and his advice is Zen-like. He has become a MCM ambassador and his mentoring explains the side-nuisances of the marathon week to rookie runners.
“I tell them: ‘Do not expect to sleep good Saturday night.’ Wednesday, Thursday and Friday is when you get your rest because Saturday night, your mind will be playing tricks on you,” Banker said while he recalled his own mid-October dream where he misplaced his running shoes before his 100th marathon race. “When you get into that race, your emotions are going to jump to a completely different place. You’re going against the clock. It is hard to duplicate in training what is going to happen in the race.”
| Date Taken: | 10.22.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 10.22.2014 16:56 |
| Story ID: | 145822 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE MYER-HENDERSON HALL, VA, US |
| Web Views: | 516 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Bank on Banker: George Banker heads toward his 100th marathon start Sunday, by Jim Dresbach, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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