Writers have calculated that Forrest Gump ran more than 19,000 miles in his eponymous movie — enough to cross North America almost three times.
Here in Plant City, a local man has logged enough mileage to circle the entire world more than three times.
Richard “Buddy” Mines, 79, committed to running at least 1,000 miles a year when he was 37 — with a goal of one day reaching 75,000.
“I was overjoyed when I hit 75,000,” Mines says. “I was really, really pleased, but then I thought, ‘I think I’m going to try and do some more.’ I don’t know if it was a good idea, but I thought it was, and I still think it was.”
There was no point in not continuing to keep track of his mileage — by the time he reached his goal, he had completed 60 marathons in 42 years, run all over the country, endured intense weather conditions and had just grown to love running so much that he couldn’t bring himself to call it quits. Injuries have slowed him down recently, but such is the life of an extreme athlete.
ALWAYS AN ATHLETE
Even before he started recording his own progress, Mines was a runner. Perhaps he wasn’t as serious about it as he became in his late 30s, but pounding the pavement was his go-to method for staying in shape throughout high school.
He needed to: In addition to playing football and basketball, Mines also manned the outfield for Valley High School’s baseball team. He’d play out in right field, but his coach would hit the ball to left and expect Mines to run out there and field it during practice — which he was usually fast enough to do.
Although he was good enough at baseball to play for a semi-pro team, Mines really wanted to join the military. However, some injuries prevented that from happening.
“When I graduated from school, I had some ulcers, and I had had two concussions,” Mines says. “I was classified as 4-F, so I was declined.
“The first concussion, we were playing football out in the yard one afternoon, and some older guys were out hitting golf balls,” he says. “We didn’t know it. We were always finding golf balls in the yard and didn’t know where they were coming from, and then one hit me on the head — right above the temple. The second time, I was playing basketball when I tripped and hit my head on the same side. But, I think I’m OK.”
With that out of the question, Mines got into the hotel industry — in which he worked for 38 years. But, he still wanted to do something to stay in shape, and his eldest son helped him realize what that was.
GETTING SERIOUS
In Richard Mines Jr.’s first year at Virginia Military Institute, he was able to convince his father to take up running as a more serious hobby. Buddy liked the idea, and he went all-in. It was then that he began to keep track of everything related to his runs: how far he traveled, what the weather was like, and even what pair of shoes he wore each day. He’s never stopped writing everything down, even to this day.
“I have a big box with everything,” Mines says. “But, it’s too heavy to carry.”
Because he would work 17-hour days at the hotel, Mines ran either late at night or early in the morning. For a while, he did this every day. It became easier when he retired, because he could then run whenever he wanted. And, of course, he took full advantage of the freedom.
“I’ve ran all over Plant City,” Mines says. “Sometimes, I’d run from Plant City all the way to Temple Terrace — about 30 miles if you go down there and back. I used to do it quite frequently — it was easier going down there than it was going back up. But, I’ve run all over Knights Griffin Road, down U.S. 92 and County Road 574, and I quit doing that, because it got too dangerous.”
Although he’s happy with some of his long, daily runs, Mines is most proud of his marathon mark: he’s completed 60 since 1978, when he ran his first one with Richard Jr.
MARATHON MILESTONE
One reason Mines often eclipsed his goal of 1,000 miles per year — at one point running 2,800 — was marathon training. Not only did it give him another goal to work for, but also it gave him the opportunity to do something for fun with his sons and family. Richard Jr. was there for his father’s first marathon (Richmond, Va., in 1978), his last (Little Rock, Ark., 2005) and everything in-between.
“He and his brother (Barry) have both ran in several marathons with me, and they still run,” Mines says. “They used to tell me — they would always finish before me, but they would come back and meet me — ‘Hurry up, Dad! You can pass out after you cross the finish line!’ They were kidding, but that was just the expression.”
Mines used to complete one to three marathons per year, all over the country: Boston, New York City, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., are just a few of the spots he’s visited, and he’s known in D.C. for having run 20 Marine Corps Marathons. He has many great running stories, but there was one in particular that sticks out: the time he ran through a hurricane in Texas.
Buddy and Richard Jr. were running a marathon in 2001, in Fort Worth, when the storm came through. All runners were instructed to get off of the course, but not all of them listened.
“You’d cross the bridge and, the wind was so strong, you had to stay in the middle of the road,” Mines says. “The wind would blow you off to one side, and then you had to get back to the other side. We kept going and, I guess after about two miles, the winds and things ceased. It stopped raining. But, all the water stations — the tables were turned over, they were gone. I remember a big piece of tin blew over and almost got me on the leg.”
He wrapped up his marathon career in 2005, and continued running just to rack up mileage and stay healthy.
NO SIGNS OF STOPPING
At 79, Mines’s running-related injuries are catching up with him. A few slipped discs in his back and a big toe that’s been numb since 1980 weren’t enough to stop him back then, but a partial-knee replacement in 2007 has limited his ability to run long distances.
Now, Mines likes to run around Walden Lake and do three to eight miles per week. He still keeps a log of his progress, but at this point, he’s just running to see how much he can add on to his total. His doctors are somewhat reluctant to let him continue running like he does, but they learned a long time ago that Mines isn’t going to be stopped so easily.
“I can rest when it’s all over,” he says.
Contact Justin Kline at jkline@plantcityobserver.com.