COURTESY MickFoto/NERunner
Larry Cole runs to the finish line at the Paddy’s Shillelagh Shuffle three-mile race in West Newton in October 2014. It is the last of the six races in the New England Runner Pub Series. It is also a benefit for Athletes Unlimited, a local charity for children with special needs.
FALMOUTH – When the New Balance Falmouth Road Race kicks off Sunday morning, among the 12,800 runners will be Larry Cole, looking to hold onto his title.
“I won my age group last year so I’ve got a free entry this year,” he said.
Cole, an avid runner, won the 80- to 84-year-old age category last year. Now 81 years old, he is looking to defend the title this year.
He is expecting more competition this year. Last year, there were three others in the category.
“I expect there will be, because I know some people I have encountered at other races who have just turned 80,” he said.
When he first started running in his early 70s, he was able to run an eight-and-a-half minute mile. Now he runs more like an 11-minute mile.
But at Falmouth, he is hoping to best his time last year of just under one hour and 20 minutes.
“I’ve been training hard,” he said.
Cole has lived on the Cape since 1997. He served as a Harwich selectman from 2006 to 2010 and also served as Harwich’s representative on the Cape Cod Commission.
Cole said he has run the Falmouth race at least four times.
He runs 40 to 45 races a year in the region and planned to run a five-mile race in Quincy this week as part of his preparation for the Falmouth race.
COURTESY LARRY COLE
Larry Cole at the Plymouth America’s Hometown Thanksgiving Race in November 2014. He stands with Karla Hanson of Holden, who turned 60 in 2015 in time to run the Boston Marathon in the 60 to 64 category.
Cole said he began running in 2006 after receiving a flyer from the American Stroke Association with an invitation to help with fundraising by running a marathon or a half-marathon. Cole’s wife had been disabled by a stroke. She has since died.
He decided to participate in that race and kept going, joining the Cape Cod Athletic Club and the New England 65+ Runners Club.
When asked what he likes best about running races, Cole is succinct. “The finish,” he said.
But he said he likes the social element of races, celebrating with people afterwards. He uses the running to train for his other athletic interest. He has played old-timers ice hockey for decades.
“Running is a way of staying in condition,” he said.
Cole said he enjoys the Falmouth race.
“I like the distance and I like the course. It’s hilly in some places, but it goes along the ocean so it’s scenic and it’s the biggest running deal on the Cape,” he said.
Cole, a Korean War veteran, will be wearing a Heroes in Transition T-shirt in support of the Mashpee nonprofit organization that helps veterans.
More than 75,0000 spectators are expected to line Falmouth route this year.
Cole said he looks forward to people cheering on the runners.
“Even for those of us finishing later in the race, there’s still a good crowd of spectators,” he said.
Like other races, the fellowship at the finish line of the Falmouth race is a fun part of the experience, Cole said.
“You get on that field afterwards and there are just thousands of people. You know a lot of them. You have time to chat and have a beer afterwards,” he said.
The New Balance Falmouth Road Race kicks off at 9 a.m. Sunday, August 16.
Cole said he is ready.
“I’m just hoping for not too hot a day,” he said.
By LAURA M. RECKFORD, CapeCod.com NewsCenter
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