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“Prof” Thomas Henry Cureton (1875-1957) of Williams, Arizona, was a significant Grand Canyon rim-to-rim contributor. Through his selfless service in the 1920s, he passed on the love of the inner Grand Canyon to a generation of youth who lived at the doorstep of the Canyon. Over several years, he guided about 50 youth across the Canyon and back, teaching them minimalist camping skills and how to love the Canyon while hiking on the developing inner Canyon trails. Fascinating and very detailed accounts of their Canyon adventures have been recently discovered and are preserved in this article. His pioneer rim-to-rim efforts inspired and launched hikes involving thousands of boy scouts to hike rim-to-rim in the decades to come.
Cureton was also the grandfather of future rim-to-rim record holder, Allyn Carl Cureton (1937-2019). What led Thomas Cureton to make such an impact on the youth of Williams and to introduce them and the citizens of Williams to the joy of crossing the Grand Canyon rim to rim?
| Get Davy Crockett’s new book, Grand Canyon Rim to Rim History. Read more than a century of the history of crossing the Grand Canyon Rim to Rim. 260 pages, 400+ photos. Paperback, hardcover, Kindle, and Audible. |
By late 1892, many of the original six-day professional pedestrians had left the sport, using their winnings to establish other careers, some of them pursuing illegal activities. Frank Hart had another terrible health scare during a six-day race in Wisconsin. News had spread across the country that his running days were finally over, that “he will never be seen on the track again.” But running professionally had been part of his life for fourteen years. At the age of 36, now referred to as an “old pedestrian,” Hart was determined to continue to compete and prove his doubters wrong.
This definitive history of the 100-mile races presents the rich history of many, both men and women, who achieved 100 miles on foot. Part one of this history includes tales of the trail-blazing British, the amazing Tarahumara of Mexico, and the brash Americans. Many of the early legendary, but forgotten, 100-miler runners are highlighted.
Tales include fistfights on the track, strange hallucinations experienced while trying to run for six straight days, love scandals, corruption and bribery that crept into the sport, sickness, death, and even murder.
Thomas Joseph Osler (1940-2023) of Camden, New Jersey, was a mathematician, former national champion distance runner, and author. His published running training theories have made a deep impact on distance running for multiple generations. His book, Serious Runner’s Handbook became a classic book on running. He was the first to verbalize in a way that was really understandable to most athletes. Runner’s World wrote, “Tom Osler was among those who helped push and pull America toward the running mania of the 1970s.”