Princeton resident Susan Wilson (right) competed at the Penn Relays against Elizabeth Leander (left) and 100-year-old Ida Keeling (center) in the 100-meter dash.
By Bob Nuse, Sports Editor
Susan Wilson doesn’t consider herself a sprinter.
But for one day she decided to give the sprints a try and in doing so came away with a win at the Penn Relays.
Wilson, an 86-year-old Princeton resident, was the top female finish in the 80-and-over Masters Division of the 100-meter dash at last week’s Penn Relays. She finished in 26.78 to win the event.
“I have been running for over 30 years,” Wilson said earlier this week. “But I am more of a slow runner. I have never done a sprint before. This may have been a once in a lifetime experience. It was very exciting. I had never been on the infield of a track before. Seeing all those people running at the speed they run was impressive. They run like the wind.”
The field for the Masters Division included five men and three women. One of the three women that Wilson finished ahead of was 100-year-old Ida Keeling, whose time of 1:17.33 set a world record for a competitor of at least 100.
“The biggest inspiration of the day was the 100-year-old woman in our race,” Wilson said. “She was fabulous. It was really incredible and I will never forget it. I feel very fortunate to have been able to do it. It was very inspirational to see be there to see what she did.”
Wilson doesn’t see any world records in her own future — at least not in a sprint. She’s used to running a little further and the shorter distance isn’t necessarily her cup of tea.
“I found out the women’s record for the Masters age group is 18 seconds for the 100 meters,” Wilson said. “I ran 26.31 so I wasn’t going to be setting any records. I don’t think whoever has the record is going to be looking over their shoulder.
“I have run recreationally and I enjoy it. People see me and they ask if I am still running so I felt some obligation to do it.”
Wilson got into the Penn Relays through her friend, Susan Hrabchak, who is a competitive runner and tri-athlete.
“My friend’s son goes to Penn and she told me about it and how to get entered,” Wilson said. “She was a big help to me. She got me where I needed to go. She is such a competitor. She took me down there and she told me when the gun goes off just go straight down there to the end.”
While some may look at the shorter 100 meters as less of a challenge, Wilson thinks she’ll stick to what she has been doing.
“Believe me, sprinting and what I do are two entirely worlds,” she said. “At the moment my legs are sore and it is tough to walk up the steps. Check in with me in nine months and I can let you know if I would do it again.
“There are all sorts of people in this town who could do what I did. Maybe seeing that I did it will inspire other women to do the Penn Relays. One good thing is the man who organized the race said next year he is going to give the women their own race. The man who won was 88.”
And Wilson won’t ever be fooled by the 100 meters being an easy task.
“I will never look at a football field the same way again,” she said.
