PROFILE--Mary Harada has been running for 50 years

(10-18) Mary Harada grew up in Newton, MA and was always physically active. She played sports in high school, field hockey, basketball and softball. Running was not on her radar.  All that changed when she turned 33 and started to run. Harada, now 83, holds world records in the indoor and outdoor mile (W70), several American records (W70 and W75) in the 3000 and 5000 meter, and is a member of the US Track and Field Masters Hall of Fame.  Her running has taken her around the globe to places such as Finland, Australia, and Spain.  She lives in West Newbury, MA.

She graduated from Boston University Sargent College as a physical therapy major and went on to get her PhD in European History. Post-college, there were no sports available so she played field hockey for Boston Field Hockey - teams were made up mostly of graduates of the seven sisters colleges. “I had limited opportunity for sports until after I finished

PROFILE--Bart Yasso has been running for 44 years

1981 Long Island Marathon

(10-18) Bart Yasso, the retired Chief Running Officer at Runner’s World, has traveled to races around the world from Pennsylvania to Africa, and into the hearts of countless runners he met at race expos and running lectures.  He is one of a few people to have completed races on all seven continents, including the Mount Kilimanjaro marathon. But more importantly to Bart, “It's not the details of the races I recall, it's the people I met.”  To thousands of runners, he is their mayor of running, their guru, their go-to person for advice or simply to say, “Thank you for the encouragement to get out and run.” In his years at Runner’s World, he’s received marriage proposals and many more interesting emails. Now retired, he is still in demand as a speaker but is trying to carve out some time to relax at home in Bethlehem, PA, a rare moment for the Mayor of Running.

Started running: December, 1977. I’m 62 and feel great.

Why did you start running? I was 22 at the time and needed a lifestyle change to get in shape. I was leading a kind of risky life, smoking, drinking and other