John Hurd wiped his brow on a hot Friday afternoon as he slipped on his bright yellow track shoes. He took his place beside the orange cone set up on the Destin Elementary track and prepared to go.
The Navarre man took a few jumps before settling into position and when he saw the sign to begin, he shot off like a rocket.
Hurd said he always wanted to be an athlete. Now, at the age of 81, he is just that.
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“I got the bug,” the Navy veteran said of his sprinting career that took off some 20 years ago when he was just 61. “I’ve been running sprints since that first race.”
Hurd has done more than race, he has won 156 medals — 99 of which are gold — for sprinting in the 50, 100, and 200 meter dash in local, state and national competitions. Just a month before his next competition in September at the Pensacola Seniors Game he says he suspects he’ll be bringing home a few more medals.
“I train year-round,” Hurd said slowly, catching his breath after running a 50-meter dash. “I love it. The sport can be discouraging, don’t get me wrong. But what in life is worthwhile that isn’t discouraging.”
While most men his age are sitting back watching episodes of "Gilligan’s Island," Hurd makes the trek to Destin to run on the rubber track.
He likes to start his training, which he calls “dull and repetitive,” with a walk around the track and then a slow jog.
“That’s the furthest I’ll ever run,” Hurd said. “I’m strictly a sprinter.”
Then he stretches and gets ready to run. Hurd alternates between running five 100-meter sprints and running a mixture of sprints, from the 50-meter to a 200-meter. Then he stretches again.
“People honestly don’t believe me when I tell them what I do,” Hurd said. “Most men my age aren’t really around any more. Doing this keeps me out of drug stores and doctors offices.
“I plan on setting records when I’m 100."
Contact Daily News Staff Writer Angel McCurdy at 850-315-4432 or amccurdy@nwfdailynews.com. Follow her on Twitter @AngelMnwfdn.