Don’t tell 75-year-old marathon runner Leslie Mayer he’s “amazing” for training for the upcoming Damon Runyon 5K Run, a cancer research benefit to be held Sunday, Aug. 15 at Yankee Stadium. And don’t tell him it’s “incredible” that he’s still active and fit “at his age.”
“Let me tell you, there are people my age, people older than me, who can run in half the time I do,” he said. “There’s a 5K race in Teterboro, near the airport, and there was a man there, 70 years old, and he ran the race at 7 minutes and 48 seconds a mile. And he beat a friend of mine who is 53 years old by 10 seconds.”
Mayer, a Secaucus resident for the past decade, has been running for about 35 years, and has used long distance running to help him deal with everything from problems at work to his own recent battle with cancer.
“As a cancer survivor myself, I feel I should do whatever I can to help raise money for research.” – Leslie Mayer
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Running is therapeutic
Mayer, who works at a car dealership in Paramus, said he first discovered running years ago when he was working in New York City. He said it helped him deal with the pressures of work.
Through running, he said, “What I discovered was that all the problems from work just left me. Sometimes when you have a good run, you don’t even realize how far you’ve gone or how fast you’re going because everything is away from you. And I discovered that I could use that to clear my mind, and when I returned to the problems at work, it was as if they resolve themselves because you’re able to see things much clearer.”
Already a veteran of the New York City Marathon, in which he has competed seven times, Mayer has gotten his daughter hooked on long distance running. She has run that challenging race five times, in addition to the Chicago Marathon, her proud father said.
Running the Runyon
Currently Mayer is preparing to compete in a race that takes an unusual course through Yankee Stadium.
“In order for the course to add up to a 5K distance, we have people run the bleachers and go up and down steps,” said Kim Kubert, events coordinator for the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation. “The race gives participants, especially those used to more traditional urban courses, an opportunity to run a different, more challenging course.”
The foundation uses the race, which debuted in November, to raise money for cancer research, a cause near and dear to Mayer’s heart.
“As a cancer survivor myself, I feel I should do whatever I can to help raise money for research,” he said.
Beat cancer
Mayer was diagnosed with tongue cancer in 2006 when he was 68 years old. His treatment, which included a six-hour operation and radiation therapy, slightly affected his speech. But, true to form, he used long runs to help him cope.
“Once I receive clearance from my doctor I went right back out there. It helped to alleviate some of the pain [of treatment],” Mayer noted. “And the body has to be strong to fight off the cancer, and running is great for building up strength. But whenever I’m feeling tired, emotionally or spiritually, even a short run can make you feel very good about yourself, that you’re able to do that. And that’s also important when you’re fighting a disease like cancer.”
Mayer said the diagnosis hasn’t slowed him any, but he acknowledges that age and time have. He can no longer run as fast has he one did, and he has lost several seconds off his best times.
And, he adds, “I have no knees. I’ve had three ACLs [knee surgery]. But I still run. For as long as I’m able to do it, I’m going to keep running.”
E-mail E. Assata Wright at awright@hudsonreporter.com.