What would you do for your 60th birthday?
Do you blow up 60 balloons? Or maybe buy yourself 60 tulips? What about tucking into a $60 steak?
Mike VanderKwaak, a Chilliwack ultra runner, would have none of those things. Instead, he decided that for his 60th birthday he would run 60 miles.
His friends reminded him that Canada is a “metric country,” Bruce Gritter said in an email to The Progress.
“You could run 60K and no one would think the less of you,” they said to him.
But, Gritter reported, VanderKwaak decided that the run would be 60 miles or bust. That’s the equivalent of running from Chilliwack to the Horseshoe Bay Ferry terminal. And for those wondering about the metric conversion, that’s about 96.5 km.
“I’ve got a bunch of miles on this old frame or mine,” said VanderKwaak. “Why not see if I can go sixty more?”
On March 9, surrounded by his friends and family, some of whom ran with him and biked next to him, VanderKwaak ran not just on flat ground, but up a mountain or two, or three. And, in 14 hours, he completed the accomplishment he calls his 60-4-60.
“I couldn’t have done without the support of so many people, especially my wife Patty,” VanderKwaak said. “Above all, I’m thankful.”
Now this begs the question, Gritter said: “What will he do for his 70th birthday or 80th?”
This story was submitted by Bruce Gritter and edited for publication.
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