New(-ish) Flyer Profile -- Colleen R



Colleen R

Hello, my name is…

Colleen, and I’m a new(-ish) Flyer. I’m an ecologist, and I live in the East Village.  I’ve actually been a member for about a year now, but I was a bandit on the downtown run for almost a year before I officially joined the club.  (I have something of a problem with commitment….)

When I first moved to New York three years ago, I was overwhelmed by the number of local running clubs.  How to choose among such a wide array?  Since most clubs are very Central Park-oriented, it was the downtown running group that originally drew me to the Flyers.  The Downtowners sucked me in and made me feel part of the club long before I officially joined. I’d like to take this opportunity to give a shout-out to David G, who is especially good at making newcomers feel welcome and included.  

I liked how social the Flyers seemed to be, especially compared to other groups I’ve run with in the past.  As much as I love running, I don’t want to hang out with people who can’t talk about anything else.  The Flyers are a diverse group that likes to have fun, which is more important to me than split times.

Those Who Can’t Throw or Catch, Run

My history with running stems from my complete ineptitude with any sport involving throwing, catching, or, even worse, making a ball connect with a stick.  I joined the cross country team in junior high because it seemed to be a sport in which hard work could get you almost as far as talent.  I was never a star runner in high school, but I liked the sort of kids who gravitated toward the cross country team (I guess I still do!)



Colleen Puppeteer

Like many people, I drifted away from running after I finished school. But in 1997, I became a professional puppeteer. Oddly enough, this turned out to be a very stressful job. I was on tour for nine months at a time, driving from town to town in a van with another puppeteer and working 60-80 hour weeks. I found that I desperately needed an escape from work, the van, and the endless stream of motels where we lived.  Running provided me with fresh air, relaxation, and much-needed time alone.  

By the time I finally gave up the road and went to work for the Delaware State Park system, I was addicted to running.  I ran my first road race in Delaware in 1999 and, with the support of my first running club, the Downstate Delaware Striders and Riders, I trained for the Jersey Shore Marathon in 2000. I had assumed that the marathon would be a one-time event, but after the race, I realized that I had qualified for Boston.

In the Footsteps of Legends

Boston is the quintessential marathon for me.  When I was a kid in Massachusetts, we got Patriots’ Day off from school, so my dad took me to watch the marathon.  He had grown up in Boston watching the marathon in the days of Johnny Kelley the Elder and Ellison "Tarzan" Brown.  To a poor kid during the Depression, the marathon was one of the most exciting events of the year: a world-class sporting event that anyone could see for free.  

Colleen with Dad

When I came along, my dad took me to cheer on the greats of the ‘80s, including Joan Benoit and Grete Waitz.  The runners were like mythical heroes to me, achieving a feat beyond the ability of mere mortals. When I learned that I could actually run in Boston, of course I had to do it. I spent the next winter training through the ice and slush in New Haven, where I had started forestry school, and since then I’ve been hooked on marathoning.  I have finished 15 marathons, including two extremes of Boston: the wet, windy, and cold Nor’easter in 2007, and the sweltering heat in 2012. Both times, the Boston fans were amazing, but in 2012 I also had the support of the giant Flyers family at Boston, which made the whole experience much more enjoyable.

Climb Every Mountain - Hiking in the Dolomites

Though Boston is my first love, it was actually the NYC Marathon that led me to move to New York.  In 2009, I was in a transition period.  I had a new job that I could do from anywhere in the U.S., and I needed to figure out where to live.  I had some friends in New York, and I was spending quite a bit of time in the city anyway, but it was my experience running the 2009 marathon that clinched my decision.  

Colleen R, Colleen Campbell, and Nick Jesdanun
NY Flyers Awards Gala 2012

The day before the marathon was Halloween, and I went to the Village Halloween Parade, which is both one of the best parties in the world and an amazing display of puppet artistry.  The next morning, I headed to Staten Island to begin what seemed like a run through all of the nations of the world.  I’d never seen such cultural diversity packed into such a small space, and everyone, from the Dominican families in Sunset Park and the Orthodox kids in Williamsburg to the Harlem gospel choir, was out supporting the runners.  I thought, “this is the town for me.”  And I haven’t been bored since.

-Colleen R