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By Davy Crockett
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Spartathlon, an ultra of 246 km (153 miles), takes place each September in Greece, running from Athens to Sparta and with its 36-hour cutoff. It is one of the toughest ultramarathons to finish.
In Part 1 of this series, episode 88, the story was told how Spartathlon was born in 1982, the brainchild of an officer in the Royal Air Force, John Foden. Three servicemen successfully covered a route that was believed to have been taken in 490 B.C., by the Greek messenger, Pheidippides. The 1982 trial run set the stage for the establishment of the Spartathlon race. The race’s 1983 inaugural year is covered in this part won by Yiannis Kouros of Greece.
| There are now six books in the Ultrarunning History series by Davy Crockett, available on Amazon. https://ultrarunninghistory.com/urhseries/
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The Founding of Spartathlon in 1983
After John Foden and two others finished the historic 1982 trial run between Athens and Sparta, Foden told those at the finish, “You need to make the route we have run, a race.” However, he did not think seriously that a race would be organized anytime soon. Michael Graham Callaghan (1945-2013), an Athens businessman, and a member of the British Hellenic Chamber of Commerce (BHCC) in Greece was the driving force and the founder of the formal Spartathon race.
Back in 1982, Callaghan had helped Foden organize his trial run and obtained sponsors. Callaghan was at the finish in Sparta and awarded the three finishers crowns of olive leaves. A month later, Callaghan received a kind letter from Air Marshal Thomas Kennedy from the Royal Air Force (RAF) in Germany, thanking him for his support of Foden’s 1982 RAF expedition run from Athens to Sparta.
The letter included, “John Foden has told me about the invaluable help you gave the expedition when it found itself in financial straits that made its abandonment seem certain, and also in revamping its low-key publicity into a campaign that achieved international TV and press coverage. I should like to thank you most sincerely for your interest and your enterprise which prevented the possible cancellation of the expedition, and your initiative in recognizing that its success could be used to reinforce the friendly relations that exist between Great Britain and Greece. We are all very much in your debt.” This kind letter further helped Callaghan become captivated with the idea for a race and he charged ahead to make it happen.
Plans for Spartathlon come together
Just four months after the historic 1982 RAF expedition, in February 1983, the Hellenic Amateur Athletics Association (SEGAS) announced that Spartathlon would be held on September 30, 1983. The name for the race combined the Greek words for Sparta and Feat. Officially that first year it was called, the “Open International Spartathlon Race.”
A multi-national team of supporters came together led by Callaghan and was based at the British Hellenic Chamber of Commerce in Athens. Under Greek law, Callaghan was not allowed to be the actual president of the organization, but he was the first race organizer. Foden said, “My idea to have a race would never have taken off if were not for Callaghan’s energy, enthusiasm and talents as a salesman. At the start he might not have known much about running and relied on the advice I gave him during visits to Greece, but he soon became very knowledgeable.” A group of Athens-based British businessmen were signed up to be the main sponsors for the 1983 race.
Entrants
Forty-four men and one woman from twelve countries were entered into the first Spartathlon. They arrived in Athens four days before the race, on September 26, 1983, and took a two-day bus ride to preview the course and sight-see. At Sparta they were honored by the Mayor of Sparta at a taverna dinner. Returning back to Athens, they had lunch with the Mayor of Athens and the British Ambassador. A few of the runners are highlighted.
Yiannis Kouros
Yiannis Kouros was born February 13, 1956, in Tripoli, Greece. His father was a carpenter and the family lived in poverty. They did not always have enough food, requiring Yiannis to perform his first manual laboring at the age of five. He could not afford to go to the movies, so he went to a stadium to run for fun.
At the age of sixteen, he began formal athletic training and started running races. At first his coach dismissed Kouros as being “a mediocre athlete who just didn’t have the build to go fast.” But he progressed to be one of the top high school runners in Greece. He was a junior champion at the 3,000 and 5,000 meter distances.
In 1977 at that age of twenty-one, Kouros ran his first marathon in 2:43:15. His times continued to improve to 2:25 in 1981. Soon he discovered that he excelled far more at ultra distances. In 1981 he worked as a guard at an athletic stadium. In found time to train about twice per day. By the end of the year, he asked the Sports Council to send judges to witness his attempt to run 100k, running on a 20k road course, seeking to set a national record. He finished in 7:35 but no judges came.
By 1983, the year of the first Spartathlon, Kouros, age 27, had finished 25 marathons, but he was not well-known outside of Athens, Greece, certainly not known internationally among ultrarunners. He said, “I read about a race from Athens to Sparta. I wanted to sign up. I had confidence I would complete the race and that I would probably be the first Greek to finish.”
“I knew part of the course, especially the last third of it. I made a plan that I should cover it between 21 and 22 hours. But I thought that those experienced runners who had also world records and great performances should finish in less time. I never thought it would be easy. In contrary, I considered it heroically.”
Eleanor Adams
Eleanor (Puckrin) Adams was born November 20, 1947, in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Her parents were Thomas William Puckrin (1898-1976) and Eleanor Mary Cumisky (1913-1995). Eleanor started running as a teenager. She had three older brothers, Arthur, Thomas, and Philip who were all accomplished athletes. She joined their local athletic club, but as a girl, was not allowed to run further than one mile on the track and 2.5 miles on the road. She later progressed to middle distances and cross country and ran competitively until she married John C. Adams in 1970.
Adams then gave up running for the next eight years and had three children. In 1978, at the age of thirty-one, she took up jogging again to try to regain some fitness. Adams first marathon came in 1980, the People’s Marathon at Solihull, England, where she finished second with 3:26:41. She soon broke three hours routinely.
Adams said, “I never had heard of ultrarunning at the time in the early 80s. I was focusing on being a marathon runner because women were just starting to be accepted in running marathons.” A British women marathon squad was established with the top ten women marathon runners and Adams was ranked 12th. Her primary goal was to make that squad.
One weekend she was intending to run a marathon at Leicester. She noticed in the newspaper that there was going to be a 12-hour event at Nottingham. Her three children were small and she thought they could play in the infield as she ran. So, she and two other teammates went to the 12-hour race. She intended on only running the marathon distance, but things went so well that she kept going.
As she ran, the race director told her she was on pace to break the women’s 50-mile world record. (25:00) She said, “I thought the race organizer were having a joke when he told me that I was about the break the 50-mile world record. I had no idea about world records. I finished second overall in the race.” She ended up setting five women’s world records for distances between 20 miles and 50 miles in 6:41:02. Unfortunately the records were not ratified because the rules called for three timekeepers to be present.
The race director invited her to try an upcoming six-day race, the first in Britain to include women. But, in order to enter, she needed to have finished a 100 miler in 24 hours, which he had not yet accomplished. It was proposed that a solo 24-hour race be put together for her to qualify, but she didn’t feel ready for that and said she would run in the next 24-hour race. In November 1982, Adams did run and covered 124 miles and was the overall winner, the first woman to win an ultra overall in England. She then set her sights to run in a 1983 6-day race in Nottingham, England. She reached 409.67 miles which was a world record.
Adams heard about Spartathlon from Malcolm Campbell (1934-), an experienced ultrarunner and an influential British running administrator, who offered to arrange for her travel to the race with a large contingent of the top British ultrarunners. She recalled, “There was a race across the across the mountains in Greece called, Spartathlon, Athens to Sparta. I knew all about Athens to Sparta. I used to teach history for a time. So, I knew the historic aspect of it. The whole thing sounded really interesting and fun.”
Adams had difficulty being allowed to run in the inaugural race because she was a woman. She explained, “Because the race was based on a historical military event, the race officials were very much against having a female competitor and it was only due to the intervention of male ultrarunners that I was allowed to compete. I didn’t know until the very last minute that I would be going to Greece. I did no specific preparation for the event.”
Still an ultrarunning rookie, Adams said, “I had no idea what I was doing. The whole thing was hugely exciting, and I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I knew there was a big hill to go up and down, but other than that I was in very much ignorance of anything. The buildup to the race was great because we were there a few days before. There was quite a lot of hype connected with it. There were quite stringent cutoffs. I was the only lady taking part.”
Finally in Greece, on the bus previewing the course and sight-seeing, she said, “It’s going over that mountain in the dark that worries me a little. It’s a tiring course for someone who’s only run round and round a track. It will be a real challenge.”
Dusan Mravlie
Dusan Mravlie (1953-) was from Yugoslavia (now Slovenia). He started his running career in 1977 while serving in the army. He said, “In the barracks with soldiers who were master skiers, we were recruited to take part in the Dražgoš patrol run. I competed and Slovenians as a skiing nation, of course, strongly beat everyone else.” He went to work in Pokljuka to operate a cable car. He skied and ran a lot, not having anything else to do.
Mravlie took up ultrarunning in 1979, running in several of the massive 100 km races and gained experience going over 100 miles by reaching 128 miles in a 1983 24-hour race in Czechoslovakia. He signed up for Spartathlon, confident that he would do well.
He said, “I am a fanatical long-distance runner, so you can imagine how excited I am at the thought of taking part in this spectacular historical event, especially because this is the first time it is being held.”
Patrick Macke
Patrick Macke (1955-) was an artist from Great Britain, but in 1983 was living in Austria. He began serious running in 1976 at the age of twenty-one. A few months later, he ran his first marathon with Malcolm Campbell and finished in 3:09. He was hooked and started running sub-three-hour marathons regularly. His lifetime marathon best was 2:22 at the Frankfurt marathon in 1982. Macke ran his first ultra in 1979, a 50K.
For several years he preferred the marathon and 50K distances as opposed to the longer ultras. Spartathlon would be his first time going after big miles, starting his life-time association with with the race. That first year he just hoped to finish and planned to run the entire way with Edgar Patterman(1934-) of Austria.
Ed Dodd
Ed Dodd (1946-) of Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, a math teacher, was one of three Americans in the field of the inaugural, Spartathlon. He had become introduced to running in 1960 in high school when he joined the cross-country team. Into college, he continued running and progressed to running marathons. Dodd ran his first ultra in 1977 at Lake Waramaug 50 km in Connecticut and became hooked on ultras. Together with Don Choi, he helped bring back the 6-day race which had not been held since the early 1900s. He organized the Edward Payson Weston Six Day Track Race in New Jersey where he reached 328 miles. By 1983, his best 100-miler was achieved on a track with a time of 18:50:43.
Dodd was invited to run at Spartathlon by Dan Brannen. “The only reason I went, was that my way was paid. There was no way with three little kids and a high school salary that I could afford to fly to Greece and spend a week away from my job to run a race. Dan Brannen called me up and said he had been asked to go but he couldn’t. The woman who was funding the trip was willing to send anyone he recommended. She was an American woman married to a Greek Naval officer. I said ‘sure I’ll go’ and she made all the arrangements.”
Marvin Skagerberg
Marvin Skagerberg (1938-) of New York City was another American in the field. He had accomplished running 405.5 miles at a six-day race earlier in the year. He said, “The interesting thing about Spartathlon is definitely the historic angle and of course it’s a multi-day race which is growing increasingly popular in the United States.” John Wallis, 46, of Michigan was the third American. He was a very experience ultrarunner and had about ten 100-milers to his name.
On the preview bus ride, Dodd and Skagerberg said, “I’m just intrigued with the opportunity of running in the footsteps of such an historical figure as Pheidippides.” “I think most of us couldn’t resist running the Spartathlon because we would be sharing a course that was run by another human being 2,500 years ago.”
Other Runners
John McCarthy, one of the original three runners from the 1982 trial run came back to run again. John Foden was also there but not running. McCarthy said, “Because I have done it once already, I found I had to come back and do it again. We are hoping that it will become a regular event. I’m as terrified now as I was last year. It is a daunting task, but I think I can do it.”
A Greek runner said, “I first admired Pheidippides when I was a schoolboy. I’m very lucky to be here in Athens to run in this event. Besides, I like to meet foreigners and make friends in the spirit of friendship and peace. I am a fanatical long-distance runner, so you can imagine how excited I am to being able to take part in this spectacular historic event, especially because it is the first time it is being held.”
The Start
In the morning at dawn, the runners were bused from the Ledraa-Marriott Hotel to the start at Panathenaic Stadium of Athens that was rebuilt for the first modern Olympic Games in 1896. Dodd said, (6:00) “We got to go into the stadium and look around. There were really long straight-aways and quick turns.” The race started outside the stadium at about 7 a.m., ran through the city, and down along the Mediterranean. The youngest runner was 22, and the oldest 54.
Athens to Corinth
Dusan Mravlie, the runner from Yugoslavia, took the early lead and held it through the first 34 kilometers. Manolis Prokopakis drove a car with a big race timer. He kept up with the first runner all the way from Athens to Sparta.
Adams recalled, “The first 50 miles to Corinth was very busy traffic-wise. The fumes were horrible and it got hotter as the day went on with no shade along that way and very little in the way of refreshments.”
“Water holes” (or aid stations) were set up for the runners along the route every five kilometers. It was reported, “Here the athlete could obtain water for sponging down as well as for drinking, light refreshments, and first aid.” But most of the stops only had warm water and coke to drink, with a little food, some rice pudding, cookies and crackers. Pouring warm water on the head did little to help combat the heat. Dodd, without any crew, had to find more support. “I remember running into stores on occasion in small towns to try to find something to drink.”
Adams added, “I remember going through villages where they were having all-day parties allowing running going through to grab things to eat. It was for my liking and very palatable. I remember getting very dehydrated because there was literally just a big bottle left at the side of the road which you just helped yourself to as you ran past.” At some mountain villages in the evening, farmers sitting in taverns were seen offering runners kerbabs off their own plates and the brandy or wine that they were drinking.
At the 31 km mark Mravlie was in leading followed by Alan Fairbrother, 27, of Great Britain and Yiannis Kouros, 27 of Greece. The rest of the field had become widely separated. Kouros surprisingly took the lead at 34 km. He reached 71 km (44 miles) in five hours.
Corinth to the Mountain
The first cutoff point was at about mile 52 after the Corinth Canal. Runners needed to arrive there by 6 p.m., eleven hours. When Kouros crossed over Corinth Canal, he did so about two hours before the most optimistic estimate by race organizers. Many of the runners did not make this cutoff either because of lack of training or because of the stifling heat.
After Corinth, Kouros became upset because he thought the course was not following the route Phiedippidis took. He said, “I got annoyed and started shouting when after Corinth we headed to the right (northbound). When Phiedippidis reached the Isthmas, he knew Sparta was to the south, the man was in a hurry.” Clearly, he disagreed with the route that John Foden had researched that tried to use ancient military routes. Kouros continued, “I had strange feelings about the falsification of the history that was taking place once again in my country and at the same time, I had to work hard to find thoughts to make me keep going.”
After Corinth there were many miles of dirt road which made it challenging for those who were road runners. Skagerberg said, “Long sections of back roads were very nearly trail running. After the course left the highway, we saw only small villages and miles of vineyards, donkeys grazing with ancient wooden pack saddles, and racks of currants drying.”
After eight hours and about 56 miles, Kouros held a 3 km lead over Mravlie. Fairbrother was still in 3rd, several more kilometers back.
By late afternoon, Macke, Adams and Dodd were about 30 km behind the leader, Kouros. They passed by ancient Corinth as the sun was going down.
During the evening, children would come running out of each little village to greet the runners. American John Wallis would teach them how to high-five as he ran by. They would then run into the village and see all the citizens out in front of the taverna cheering them on. After midnight, the villages were sleeping, but still there were always three or four volunteers maintaining the aid stations and checkpoints.
After dark, disaster struck Dodd’s race. “During the night, my light went out. A Greek runner came up on me. I didn’t speak Greek and he didn’t speak English. I somehow told him that the battery had gone out. He had someone helping him. We got to a town and they went into store with me and we bought batteries for my headlamp. I don’t know what I would have done with that because he was going faster that I was and couldn’t hold him up.”
Out in the dark there were eerie sounds. “Once it got dark it was a little eerie running down this dirt road in a foreign country hearing these howlings going on off in the dark. Barking animals. I don’t know if they were dogs. I had never run a true trail race before. I was a track and road person, so this was very unusual to me.”
Adams commented, “When we got to the mountain it was dark and we had a guide to take us up and over. It was quite surreal looking back down the mountain seeing all these little twinkling lights because we had to carry torches.” Dodd added, “On the mountain, I knew I was running short on time. They had people situated at various locations, I guess to point us in the right direction. It wasn’t a very difficult mountain, but I got to it in the middle of the night.” Skagerberg said the final ascent of the mountain was steeper than the last mile up Pikes Peak, though the descent down the other side was easier.
Adams remembered that there were no course markings, but Dodd said that it wasn’t possible to get lost, certainly not on the mountain. He never had any anxiety when he came to a turn because of the number of helpers. Dodd made it to the top and then started his run down. “When I came off the mountain, I said if I don’t really run, I’m not going to make the 105-mile cutoff. So the last five miles down the mountain I ran it like a cross country race which was a big mistake. By the time I reached the checkpoint, I was pretty whooped.”
From the Mountain to Sparta
Much earlier when Kouros reached the mountain top, he shouted, “where are you compatriots?” He said his voice echoed off the mountains. But his fast pace took its toll and he chilled and was shivering as he ran down to the Arcadia plains.
Kouros reached Tegea (105 miles) at 16:48, a few minutes before midnight, several hours earlier than anyone expected a runner to arrive. The Tegeans had to be alerted of his very early approach and turned out to welcome him. Mravlie arrived about two hours later. Korous maintained a mechanical rhythm and continued to expand his lead.
Many hours later as Dodd was making his way over the Mountain, he came across fellow American Marvin Skagerberg. Dodd said, “I remember going through a small town late at night, and he was lying on a bench. I asked him how he was feeling and he said, ‘Not too well.’ I kept going. We both made it over the mountain. We had to be at the Nestani (mile 107) checkpoint by 24 hours. I got there about 24:05. I sat down all dirty from the mountain, washing my legs off. Marvin came in and sat down next to me.”
Skagerberg recalled, “At 7:04 a.m., I screamed a very bad word at the gorgeous Greek countryside. Three-quarters of a mile short of the 24-hour elimination point, I ground to a halt and walked slowly in. I was doubly disappointed to see Ed Dodd a quarter mile ahead, also eliminated by just a few minutes.” The third American Wallis had packed it in a few kilometers earlier when he saw that it would be impossible for him to make the cutoff.
But Dodd explained, “The official came up and said, ‘You two are the last two over the mountain. Even though you missed the cutoff we will let you keep going.’ Marvin said, ‘That’s OK, I’ll stop.’ I said, ‘Oh great, I’ll keep going.’ That was a dumb thing to do. So I got up and kept going. Within ten kilometers I was shot. I just sat down in an olive orchard and waited for someone to pick me up and take me to the finish in Sparta.” Dodd was totally out of fuel and badly dehydrated with no crew. He made it to about 112 miles (180 km).
Skagerberg had a theory about their DNF. “We three Americans had probably eliminated ourselves with a tactical error. We had run the first 50-mile sector very slowly, between 9:40-9:55, assuring that we came through the 85 degrees day fresh and ready for a good run all night. But the next 55 miles were more difficult than we had anticipated, steep and rough dirt tracks that slowed us and kept us in time trouble.”
Adams kept plugging along. She saw a mountain wolf at dawn. “I was always attracted to doing things that were difficult. Ultras were made for me in many ways. But in a lot of ways they weren’t. I was very good at sleeping and I was absolutely hopeless in eating. I suppose mentally I had the toughness, drive, and focus. The mental attribute were all there.”
The Finish
At Sparta, the British organizers had declared that the winner would not be expected at Sparta until 10 a.m. or 27 hours. Irene The lead car with with the montitors reported that Kouros was nearing Sparta. Word was sent on ahead to Sparta and race staff awoke the mayor and informed him to gather the people at the statue.
It was reported, “At a quarter to five in the morning, Kouros was only one kilometer from the statue of Leonidas. Leading towns people, race officials, and a few citizens of Sparta were waiting at that early hour to greet the seemingly tireless Greek runner, a 20th century Pheidippides.” Irene Watson heading up the race headquarters in Athens reported, “On of our team was placed behind the statue with an open land line and she excitedly reported as Yiannis was approaching until he touched the statue of Leonidas.”
Kouros recalled, “I arrived at 5:50 a.m. in the morning at the crack of dawn when everybody was fast asleep. What Phiedippidis did, going to Sparta just for a message, and bring back a message to Athenians, I’d like to think myself as a messenger.”
Two Spartan girls offered the victor water, a symbol of Greek hospitality from a two-handled cup, a faithful copy of a tara cup in the museum of Sparta. The mayor of Sparta place a wreath of olive leaves on his head. Kouros said, “I’ve never ran so far in my life. I just wanted to see what I could do against experienced runners.”
Mravlie finished nearly three hours later and Fairbrother finished third, walking it in nearly six hours after Kouros won. Only sixteen of the 45 starters made it to the finish in less than 36 hours.
Adams passed Macke coming down the hill into Sparta. He was having great difficulty. The British runners who had previously DNFed came along the last stretch to give out bottles of water to the Brits still running. Adams finished in 32:37:52 and Macke finished in 32:55:51. Adams said, “I finished in a dreadful state. I wore a pair of what would have been trail shoes at that time. But of course there was a lot of road. The first 50 mile were all on pavement. Wearing trail shoes was not great on the feet.” Macke was thrilled with the experience in Greece. He said, “This event is much more than just a race.”
The Awards
During the evening, an awards ceremony was held, attended by several thousand people overflowing the city square and cheering from windows and rooftops while bands played. A leading Sparata citizen gave a moving tribute that called for a return to the Olympic ideals. “We must turn back to the origins of the Olympic ideals. Athletics exercise the body, cultivate the mind, and draw nations together in the common struggle for freedom, democracy, justice, and peace. These ideals are well-served by Sparathlon athletes to whom we offer our heartfelt thanks, at the same time wishing that each one of them may become a Pheidippides, carrying the message of Spartathlon to the ends of the earth.”
The top three finisher received replicas of ancient urns, each filled with Spartan earth. The mayor of Sparta said, “Anciently, as Spara offered its earth to foreigners, to have done so would have signified submission and subjection. Today, however, this gesture symbolizes love and friendship. In making it we wish and hope that your splendid idea on initiating this footrace may take root in this state soil and may soon take its place among the events at the Olympic games.” All the finishers received plaques and then a dinner was held.
Skeptics
Because Kouros was an unknown and won by a staggering margin, there were many doubters, especially among the Brits. Adams recalled, “He was accused of cheating, getting on a motorbike. It was not inconceivable for a local person knowing the route to cheat. No one knew him as being anything more than a good marathoner. He wasn’t known outside of Greece. So, there were huge question marks about his performance.”
After a day of rest another dinner was held at the hotel in Athens, mostly attended by the British runners. Dodd said, “I remember them absolutely convinced that Kouros had to have taken a ride. There was no doubt in Mike Newton’s mind.” Newton was the world record holder for 48 hours and all distances to 500 miles, including six days. Skagerberg said, “Only time and more verifiable performances will serve to establish the credibility of the official winner. His time would extrapolate to about 170 miles in 24 hours over a very difficult course. One would certainly expect to see him attempt a world record at 24 hours somewhere in Europe soon.”
Skagerberg was still thinking of the Kouros victory on the flight home. He wrote, “After I settled in my seat, I thought about the race. There had been a lead vehicle, and also a supply truck on which we had left some supplies for the night as there were no drop bags. The truck had been pulled to the front and was never seen by us slower runners. ‘Wait,’ I said to myself, “the lead vehicle and the truck was with the front runners for the whole time, and the officials were British! How could Yiannis have cheated?” I was a Yiannis supporter from then on.” Irene Watson who headed up the race headquarters said, “Yiannis was tracked throughout. We all knew he was not cheating.”
A few months later, Kouros was invited to run in a three-day 200-mile stage race across Austria. They had a car with him the entire time and Dan Brannen was there to witness. He crushed the field again. Kouros was never seen walking, even while passing through 30 aid stations. His slowest mile during the three days was faster than eight minutes. He won by more than three hours, even with taking a wrong 3 km turn that cost him about 20 minutes. After that race, the ultrarunning community started to believe that he was the real deal. Kouros would return to Spartathlon the next year and truly make history.
Both Yiannis Kouros and Eleanor Adams (now Robinson) have both been recognized by many ultrarunning historians as being the greatest ultrarunners of all time.
Sources
- Spartathlon – British Spartathlon Team
- Spartathlon – historisk aspekt
- RAF Exppedition – John Foden
- In the Footsteps of Pheidippides (1st Spartathlon – 1983)
- Yiannis Kouros 1983 Spartathlon Finish
- Eleanor Robinson results
- Legends of Spartathlon – Episode 8 – Eleanor Robinson
- Katie Holmes email, Oct 24, 2022
- Interview with Ed Dodd, Oct 4, 2021
- Johnson City Press (Tennessee), Sep 29, 1983
- The Billing Gazette (Montana), Sep 30, 1983
- Tallahassee Democrat (Florida), Oct 2, 1983
- Ultrarunning Magazine, Sep 1982, Dec 1983
- Comments by Irene Watson, Oct 9, 2021