Between The Miles - A Daughter's Perspective

A Celebrity of Sorts

     It is my opinion that runners are a special breed of athlete, especially when it comes to endurance competition. Within the sport, many sub-groups of runners experiment with different distances and levels of difficulty. My father is primarily a trail ultra runner (distances over 26.2 miles or 42 kilometers), still racing distances between ten and fifty miles in his late seventies. You can look up articles about his racing accomplishments dating back to the 1980s and also read interviews regarding his survival through cancer. He's broken several bones in his body from falls on the trail and been run over by a vehicle while road cycling with friends. I promise none of these stories will need embellishment because they are mind-blowing on their own! 

     This project is a labor of love for me and while I wanted to bring you some of the highlights of his life, what I truly wanted to write about most was what it was like growing up as the youngest child of Wayne Miles. Here I'll write about his running, his endurance, his parenting, his accomplishments, and his humanity from my point of view. I'll share some family stories and tell you about him through my conversations with his friends in the running community. I hope you'll enjoy your journey with me between the miles.

Sitting down with my father on the first day I began this writing journey in 2016.

Me: "I'm going to interview you many different times and I'll ask random questions, some of which I've already asked you. Try to give me the first answer that comes to mind because I think your answers sometimes change depending on what mood you're in. So, here we go! What is running, in your opinion?"

Dad: "Hmmm... running is affection for and a love of the trails and the people that make up the running community. I love being around them, seeing them, hearing about their races. I think I have to enter an event or two because if I don't, it will never be more than a pedestrian thing. It started as a release of stress, and I look back at the times when you kids were little and someone in the family would ask, 'Have you run today?' I think it made me a better person to be around because it helped to dissipate stress and anxiety and maybe mellowed me out... some."

Me: "Why did you move from shorter distances and marathons to long distances, the ultras?"

Dad: "I don't know. It seemed to be what I liked most, but I might have to settle for the short stuff now. I'd like to run the 100 yard dash when I'm 85. It'll be like watching a parked car, but I still want to do it. There is more to running than just running. You have to have respect for other runners, respect for the places you run, and respect for yourself especially in ultras. It's important to stand in front of the mirror and know who you are. As an ultra-runner, you know if you're a coward or not. I folded a few times and it's not a good feeling. You never get over it. And in an ultra, more than shorter distances, you get to be competitive with yourself."

Me: "Finish this sentence for me: Running is not...?"

Dad: "I'll get back to you." ...He hasn't yet, and I've asked twice.

Me: "You're a competitive runner, but what does being competitive mean to you?"

Dad: "Competitive runners will understand everything I say, other runners won't understand. A competitive runner starts the race going hard enough to risk failing. A lot of runners start a race, just to finish. For me, if you've never dropped out of a race, you've never really raced. If you've never quit, you've never really tested your limits or run hard enough. People go through life like that. They never put themselves on the line because they might fail. I think, it's the people who have failed and failed and failed, who have had the richest lives. Some people are good enough that they don't have to test themselves and they still win. God bless'em. Those of us who were average and were still able to win, we had to test it out. I consider myself no better than average."

Me: "What do you have to say about cancer?"

Dad: "......(long pause).........Right this minute? Nothing."