Tuesday, Nov. 01, 2011

Wahula evangelizes for marathon running

To say Ron Wahula loves running is an understatement.

To say he wants everyone else to love running, too, is putting it mildly.

Give Wahula a microphone and an audience, and he will out-evangelize even the most skilled preachers as he convinces the unconverted to get off their couches and hit the ground running.

In a little more than seven years, Wahula has expanded the Raleigh Galloway Running Program from a modest group of 200 beginning marathoners to the largest local Galloway program in the nation.

This year, 502 runners have been taking to the trails and pounding pavement all over the Triangle.

On Sunday, Wahula will make his debut as the Raleigh City of Oaks Marathon's first paid race director.

In March, Wahula will embark on his first ultramarathon as he attempts to run 50 miles in the Umstead Endurance Race.

A lifelong runner, Wahula has contracted full-blown marathon mania, for which there probably is no cure.

Wahula, 60, has joined the 50-State Marathon Club and pledges to run a marathon in every state in the nation by the time he is 66. He has run marathons in 11 states, Greece and Canada. The North Raleigh resident has completed 27 marathons during the past 23 years.

"I ran my first marathon in 1988 on a dare," he said of his first 26.2-miler, in Houston.

Wahula was 37 and had been a runner in high school, but since then, his sporting life was spare.

"At that time, there were not many sports available for 37-year-olds," he said. "I knew it would be hard. We had no performance gels, no running shoes and no training programs."

He did have a mighty desire, and to prepare for the race, he consulted a book on marathon running written by Olympian Jeff Galloway. Wahula managed to finish the marathon in less than five hours.

Galloway has built his career on training marathoners through a pacing method that combines segments of running with walk breaks on the theory that anyone can run a marathon, minimize injuries and continue running well into old age.

By 2000, Wahula had moved to Raleigh, and he joined the Raleigh Galloway Program as a participant. He became director in 2004.

"I am a happy middle-of-the-pack runner," he said. "My personal record is 4:26, achieved in Detroit."

Wahula, who earned an MBA from Michigan State University, spent his early career in transportation management with Federal Express and retail management and sales with Verizon.

As City of Oaks marathon director, he believes he has found his dream job.

"I was made for this," he said.

Two weeks from race day, Wahula figured every single one of the nearly 4,000 runners he expects at the starting line Sunday had sent him an email. "I'm getting 200 emails a day," he said.

In addition to the City of Oaks Marathon and Rex Healthcare Half Marathon, the race includes The News & Observer Old Reliable 10K road race and a YMCA-sponsored Kids' Marathon Mile. Proceeds benefit the Leukemia& Lymphoma Society, the Rex Foundation and Girls on the Run.

Wahula has loaded the race with all the amenities he can think of and afford, from washcloths for runners coming off the Umstead Park Trails to sports gels to a finisher's medal that is so large it comes with a display stand.

Wahula can't control the weather, but is prepared for it.

"I have ordered 4,000 ponchos in four colors, plus clear, for runners in case it rains," he said. "I am dedicated to providing runners every comfort I can think of."

If over-delivering is Wahula's game plan for success, seeing success in others is his motivation.

"I believe in promoting a good healthy lifestyle, and if I can get in front of people, I can help them catch the fever. I'm a darn good cheerleader," he said.

But talking's cheap, he admits. The proof is in the running.

"It doesn't matter how many marathons you run. Every one of them is hard, and finishing is an accomplishment," he said. "Completing a marathon requires persistence and dedication, and that applies to everything you do in life."

To say Wahula is persistent and dedicated is putting it mildly.

Call him, and you'll hear the Rocky-themed ringtone. Hang out with him more than five minutes, and you'll find yourself lacing up a pair of running shoes.

Show up anywhere near the marathon or expo this weekend, and you'll likely walk away fired up about running the race next year.

Wahula's mantra for running and life is one he loves to hear when he's out pounding the pavement on his way to a finish line somewhere in America.

"Run, Ron, Run!"

Notebook

Carolina Challengers: The Consolidated Football Federation's Carolina Challengers are raising money to pay for a trip to the Pop Warner Little Scholars Super Bowl at Disney World in December.

The organization has launched a "$30,000 in 30 Days" campaign that started last weekend at the Challenger Bowl, the team's final regular-season game. The Challengers are a Pop Warner flag football and cheer team for Triangle youth with disabilities. Now in its third year, the organization includes 35 players and cheerleaders.

Visit www.cffchallengers.com for more information.

St. David's volleyball: St. David's School's varsity volleyball team outlasted Cary Christian School to take the EPIC conference championship, going a full five games and winning 3-2.

Tennis championships: Two local tennis teams are among 11 state champions in the inaugural N.C. League State Championships Oct. 14-17 in Greensboro, N.C.

Aileen Carroll's Hasentree team from Wake Forest won the adult women's 3.0 state championship, and Lisa Buyaki's Millbrook Exchange team from Raleigh won the adult women's 3.5 championship.

The tournament featured more than 400 players and 72 teams.