"Keep the jog alive."

National Masters Meet Includes Former NFL All Star, Body Builder, And More
by Bob Weiner, National Masters Track Media Chair
Runner's World Online (March 31, 2004)

Sid Howard, 65, of Plainfield, NJ appropriately owns and manages "Super-Fast Deliveries" (for furniture, household, and business items) when he is not running--but that isn't often. Back from winning double gold at the World Indoor Championships in Germany earlier this month, Sid repeated his wins here in the mile and 800, but did not need to best his recent American records of 5:23.1 and 2:19.4. All around the track, Howard is recognized as one of America's best ambassadors for the sport and mission of masters track with his enthusiasm and support for everyone involved from athletes to organizers.

CANADIAN POSTS MIRACULOUS MILE
By Joe Reardon/ Track Notebook
THE BOSTON HERALD (Monday, March 29, 2004)

Howard still on run

Sid Howard has no intention of slowing down any time soon either. The 65-year-old Howard has been on a tear of late, breaking American age-group records in the 800-meter run (2:19.4), 1,500 meters (4:56.36) and the mile (5:23.1).

The soft-spoken Plainfield, N.J., resident's 60-year-old mark of 2:12.71 in the 800 is still the fastest ever run.

Howard is still on a high from the recent World Masters Indoor Track Championships in Sindlefingen, Germany. Racing against some of the best Master athletes in the world, Howard used his deadly kick to take home the gold medal in the 800 and 1,500.

"The Lord blessed me with this gift and I'm sharing my gratitude," Howard said matter of factly. "I hope when they call for all the guys 100 and over to the starting line, I'll be one of those guys."

Howard wasn't about to share first place on the Reggie Lewis track. Racing in the 65-69 800, Howard got off to a strong start and was never challenged as he crossed the line in 2:23.79, nearly three seconds ahead of Mack Stewart of Katy, Texas (2:26.36).

Howard plans to rest up over the next few weeks and focus on August, when he'll be competing at the nationals in Decatur, Ill., and the North American Championships in Puerto Rico.

Howard hopes his achievements on the track inspire both his peers and younger athletes. "If anybody can see me and take a benefit from anything I've achieved, that's important to me," he said.

Relay Records Fall
Runner's World Daily (January 25, 2002)

The New York Road Runners Thursday Night at the Races was the stage for the shattering of two 4x800 meter indoor relay records, by two Central Park Track Club Teams, last night at the Armory Track and Field Center. The men's team, anchored by Sidney Howard (2:19.6) with Norman Goluskin, Dan Hamner and Jim Aneshanley, broke the U.S. and world record for the 60-69 age group by 17.6 seconds, with a time of 10:15.2. Howard said, "I want people to know age has no barriers in completing a task. No record means as much as a team record." On the women's side Devon Sargent, Kim Mannen, Julia Casals and Sue Pearsall smashed the U.S. record by 27.24 seconds, with a time of 10:34.2.

Central Park Track Club photo album

Howard's way is to keep on running
by Greg Hopkins, The Royal Gazette, Bermuda, January 17th, 2002

Any of this weekend's International 10K athletes who have set themselves a goal of 39 to 40 minutes might want to take a look over their shoulder for a slightly built runner, wearing a red and white cycling cap with the peak turned up.  If they see him, then they can say they ran with a reigning US and World 800 metres champion – because that is exactly the crown held by evergreen American, 62-year-old Sid Howard.
While Sid will not be in contention with the much younger, elite runners battling for overall victory, the New Jersey resident, who considers Bermuda his second home, still has the same competitive spirit and determination of those over half his age.

And he has a history in the sport that few of them will likely match. Howard's infectious personality has brought him many friends in Bermuda over the years but he credits the warm reception from the Bermuda people he and his late wife, Sandra, received back in 1977 when they visited the Island on holiday for his many subsequent trips. He has returned to Bermuda every year since '77, competing in both Race Weekend and other top local events, with the exception of 1997 when his wife of 39 years passed away.  One of his six children, daughter Cynthia, who was brought to the Island in 1978 on holiday later married a Bermudian and has lived here since 1981.  Howard also proudly boasts 18 grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

With a character as colourful as his leather stars and stripes jacket and matching cap, the president of his own family messenger service in New York for the past 32 years, located just two blocks from the ill-fated World Trade Center, smiles at the suggestion his daughter moving to Bermuda gave him somewhere to stay on his annual visits.  "It wasn't planned like that", he says, adding after a slight pause, "But it came in mighty convenient."

It would be impossible to credit all of his achievements in a sport for which he is so clearly passionate but at the forefront stands his world and US records in the 800 metres on the track.  "I set the 800 world indoor record in 1999 when I turned 60 in New York when I ran 2.14.75, and the same year in Gateshead, England, I set the outdoor record of 2.12.71," he recalls.  So highly regarded in the US for his performances in 2001, he was voted "Runner of the Year" by the New York Road Runners Club and "Track Runner of the Year" by the USTAF, the first time a runner has received both awards in the same year.

Dogged by a hamstring injury last year, he still won the silver medal at the Masters World Championships in Brisbane, Australia, but vows to return with a vengeance this year. "I like to use Race Weekend to prepare me for the season, I have the National Championships in March in Boston, which will be my focus," he adds. As busy he is competing in the US, Howard also has an impressive record of runs in Bermuda.
"Apart from 1997, I have run every May 24 (Derby) since 1981 without a number," he says, adding with a broad smile: "Actually I got a number one year but it caused so many problems, I said never again."  The Princess to Princess road race is also a favourite. "I have run about 10 Princess races, if it is the week before the Race Weekend I run," he said.  

Some of his fondest memories, however, are of the early '80s when he recalls running with the likes of Ray Swan, Jeff Payne, Gary Wilkinson and Jim Butterfield. "Most of those guys are not running any more but they have remained great friends. I remember running the MAAC run around the Botanical Gardens in 1980 and winning. Jim Butterfield gave me a nice map of Bermuda, and we have remained friends ever since," he said.  Racing on Saturday is a priority to Howard, but giving back is just as important. "Every year I help out on Front Street with the mile races and on Thursday and Friday I always help handing out numbers," he said.  

His enthusiasm to run, his desire to win, his obvious enjoyment of life do not appear to wane, nor his love of Bermuda and his intention to return for as long as he can.  "Bermuda is a beautiful and interesting island, but I just love the people," he says.  So watch out for race number 130, and the trademark cycling cap, because you will be seeing a class act in action.

1999 RUNNING RECORD

• CJRRC Hangover 5K, Westfield, WJ, January 1, 18:55, 32nd overall, 1st M50-59

• Bank of Butterfield Bermuda International 10K, January 16, 41:22, 32nd overall male, 4th male 50-59

• Powerbar Invitational Meet, New York City, January 22, 600m, 1:41.38, 1st M50-59

• USATF-NJ Masters Indoor Championships, Hackensack, NJ, February 14, 1500m,  4:52.5, 1st M50-59

• New Balance MAC Indoor Championships, New York City, February 19, 800m, 2:16.99

• MAC Indoor Masters Championship, New York City, February 26, 800m, 2:14.75 (World Record in Men 60-64 age group)

• USATF Eastern Regional Indoor Masters Championship, New York City, March 14, 1500m, 4:48.4, 1st place

• USATF National Indoor Masters Championship, Boston, March 26-28, mile, 5:11.17, 2nd place M60-64

• USATF National Indoor Masters Championship, Boston, March 26-28, 800m, 2:17.96, 2nd M60-64

• Cherry Blossom Run 10K, Newark, NJ, April 18th, 40:28, 51st place overall, 1st M60+

• Newark Distance 5K, Newark, NJ, April 25, 19:44, 24th overall

• Run for Freedom 5 Miler, Newark, NJ, May 9, 31:44, 66th overall

• Ridgewood Elite Mile, Ridgewood, NJ, May 31, mile, 5:23, 1st M50+

• USATF-NJ Masters Outdoor Championships, Tinton Falls, NY, June 6, 800m, 2:15.2, 1st place

• President's Cup Night 5K, Millburn, NJ, June 14, 19:02, 1st M60-69

• MAC Masters Outdoor Championship, Jamaica, NY, June 19, 800m, 2:19.39, 1st place M60-64

• Randolph/GSAC International Meet, Randolph HS, NJ, June 27, mile, 5:23.6, 1st place

• Firecracker 4 Miler, Cranford, NJ, July 26:11, 69th overall, 1st M60-69

• XIII WAVA World Championships, Gateshead, UK, July 31-August 8, 800m, 2:12.71, 3rd place M60-64

• XIII WAVA World Championships, Gateshead, UK, July 31-August 8, 1500m, 4:41.63, 4th place M60-64

• USATF National Masters Outdoor Championships, Orlando, FL, August 26-29, 800m, 2:17, 2dn place M60-64

• Harlem Renaissance 5 Mile Classic, Harlem, NYC, September 11, 31:27, 1st M60+

• Fifth Avenue Mile, New York City, NY, September 25, George Sheehan Memorial Mile Men 60-69, 5:12.1, 1st place

• Fred Lebow Cross Country 5K, Van Cortlandt Park, NY, September 26, 20:40, 1st M60+

• Kurt Steiner Cross Country 5K, Van Cortlandt Park, NY, October 17, 20:57, 1st M60-64

• NYRRC Cross Country Championships, Van Cortlandt, NY, November 14, 20:51, 1st M60-64

• USATF National Masters Cross Country Championships, Homdel, NY, November 21, 20:41, 3rd M60-64

• Peter McArdle Memorial Cross Country 15K, Van Cortlandt Park, NY, November 28, 1:06:47, 1st M60-64

• Hot Chocolate 10 Mile Run, Central Park, NY, December 4th, 1:07:01, 1st M60-64

• Holiday 4 Mile Run, Central Park, NY, December 19, Central Park, NYC, 25:37, 1st M60-64

HONORS

• Central Park Track Club Most Valuable Track & Field Performer of the Year

• M60-64 Masters Track Athlete of the Year as selected by the USATF Masters Track & Field Committee

A BRIEF CHAT

The following article appeared on March 17th, 1999 on Runner's World Daily as A Brief Chat with Sidney Howard by Peter Gambaccini:

On February 26,  his birthday, Sid Howard of Plainfield, NJ set a 60 & over age group world record of 2:14.75 for 800 meters at New York's Armory Track & Field Center. Howard has won 18 national titles indoors and outdoors at distances ranging from 800 meters to two miles. On March 14 at the Armory, he will try to break  the world age group record of 4:37.80 (by Britain's Maurice Morrel in the 1500); at March 27's National Masters Championships in Boston, he'll go after Henry Hawk's mile mark of 5:13.38 . Howard, owner of a messenger and delivery service, has six children, 17 grandchildren, and one great grandchild. In 1998, at age 59, he got his B.S.W. from Kean College in New Jersey.

        RWD: Was this 800 record something you had pinpointed and been building up to?
        Howard: At the National Master indoors in Boston last year, when I was 59, the winner (in the 60-plus group) ran 2:16.7 and just missed it; the record was 2:16.64 by Earl Free of Canada. I said "Oh, man, I should have a chance at this." I had run 2:16.5 last year. I usually run 800s from strength training, but this  year, I did it off of sprint training. Usually I go and do 400s and 600s and 1000s, but I ran mostly 200s and 150s working out with the Central Park Track Club sprint coach, Brian Denman. Since November, I've been working out with weights. I really wanted to break this record.

          RWD: Are you grateful that the Armory got the new banked track this year?
          SH: There's no way I would have been able to run that time without that track. It helped me at least a second, maybe a second and a half. But I worked for it. This is the fastest time I've run indoors since '94.

          RWD: Why did you call this your second happiest birthday?
          SH: My first son was born seven days before my birthday in 1960, when I was 21. That was a very happy moment. This is second.

           RWD: Your friends and family surprised you after the race with a vegetarian tofu cake? Is that part of the diet you've embraced?
           SH: It had no animal products - no milk, no butter, and no sugar. Even the icing was done with fruit. The basic flavor was carrot. In Febraury 1978, I stopped eating meat. In July of 1978, I started running.

           RWD: Where you any kind of active guy before that? 
           SH: I had run in high school. I was a co-captain. But I failed woodshop and math after the eleventh grade. I was ineligible to run cross-country. So I quit school at 17 and joined the Air Force. I didn't do any kind of competing again until I was 39, 22 years later. That was when my son came in the house and said "Dad, they got an old man's race at the high school." It was a 35-and-over mile. I ran a 5:05. That October, at the New York City Marathon, I ran 3:02 on three months of training.

         RWD: Is it getting any tougher to train at age 60?
         SH:  I'm lucky that I was introduced early on to a coach, George Wisniewski, who specialized in track as well as roads and put them both together. The track has helped maintain my turnover. A lot of guys who ran just the roads learned that it takes a lot out of your legs. I have just as much enthusiasm as I had when I was 39 years old. And I've been lucky. I'm never been injured and down for more than a couple of months.

          RWD: You race in Bermuda every year, don't you?
          SH: Every year for 21 years. For three straight years now, I ran a 7.2-mile race, six days later a 10k, and a day later a half-marathon. I've won in my division all three races for three straight years. I would go down there and I wouldn't run track until I came back. I was more of less building my base and having fun at the same time. It's one of the greatest islands anywhere. The people are unpretentious. they treat you like a celebrity even if you're just coming to visit. As far as the running goes, there's nothing but hills. The only flat part of Bermuda is the airport.

          RWD: We saw you at a meet in 1998, when two masters milers got into a bumping match. At the end, the winner turned around and taunted the runnerup. You took the winner by the hand and walked him over to the other guy and insisted that they shake hands. What prompted you to do that?   
          SH: I figured it had no place. The winner was on my team and he's an excellent runner; nationally, he's been nominated for runner of the year in his age group. The other guy, whom I met that day, was from Hartford, and I didn't want him to think our team was arrogant and that it represented our style. That bothered me. I wanted my teammate, who's younger than me, to know that this behavior is not necessary because he's a star in your own right. This is going to take away from what he can do. No matter how good you are, if you don't show good sportsmanship, you are never going to respected in this field. That's what prompted me to do it. I know that in the heat of battle, you do and say things that you regret later. I don't know what came over me, but I wanted those guys to say "whatever happened, that's it." To this day now, those guys are friends.

BIRTHDAY PRESENT

February 26th, 1999 was Sid Howard's 60th birthday.  On this evening, Sid set the world record time of 2:14.75 for the 800m at the MAC Championships at the Armory Track & Field Center in New York City.  We have a photo album for this occasion.

ACT YOUR AGE!

(May/June 1999 issue of New York Runner)

1999 FIFTH AVENUE MILE

Sid Howard believes he is the only person to have run in every edition of the Fifth Avenue Mile since it began in 1981.  But Howard has never provided a greater thrill --- to himself or to his spectators --- than he did in this year's George Sheehan Memorial Mile for ages 60 to 69.  Although Howard, a New Jerseyan, has the world indoor 800-meter record to his credit, his impressive resumé has been missing one key stat.  Namely, a victory --- ANY victory --- over longtime rival Fay Bradley.  This year, Bradley arrived by bus from Huntsville, Alabama for the showdown.

And it was worth the trip.  Approaching the 60th Street finish line, Howard and Bradley resembled adolescent sprinters, dueling tenaciously and even bumping in the final 200 yards.  Howard's ultimate surge gave him the edge, 5:12.15 to 5:12.41, thereby earning this race a prime spot on any highlight reel of Fifth Avenue Mile history, right alongside Sidney Maree's world class 3:47:52 back in the inaugural year.

By Peter Gambaccini, in New York Runner, November/December 1999 issue, page 85.

KEEP ON KEEPING ON

The following article by Mike Tymn  appeared in the 1999 January/February issue of Running Times