Syracuse resident completes a 48-mile trail in the Grand Canyon in two days — with nephew in tow

By Aaron Gifford

Fifty-seven-year-old Dave Oja may very well be the most passionate walker in Central New York.

His true love, running, has evolved into something else. He once ran the Boston Marathon and is a long-time organizer of the Syracuse Festival of Races. But in the past decade, he’s slowed down his pace enough to hear the birds, smell the flowers and observe the region’s natural beauty.

“My knees just took too many miles on too hard of a surface with too much of a mass,” said Oja, of Syracuse. “Running was a great activity to be able to eat all you want and not gain weight. But you can do that with walking, too. It just takes a lot more time.”

Oja took up running after graduating from Syracuse University some 35 years ago. He still runs some, but avoids going downhill, limits himself to less than four miles per run and never runs two days in a row. But with walking, he often treks 12 miles a day.

To motivate himself to walk daily, even on the coldest days in winter, Oja needed a focal point. So he set his sights on the Grand Canyon, training hard in February, March and April in preparation for the mid-May adventure at one of the most gorgeous tourist attractions in the world.

Oja’s family, well aware of his competitive spirit, feared he might overdo it pushing himself for a personal best in an unfamiliar place. So his nephew, 42-year-old Jody Apap, was assigned to walk with him. Oja was thrilled to have company, but soon realized that his role would also be to help the much less fit Apap go the distance.

“He was assigned to keep me from turning it into a race,” Oja said. “He was my leash.”

Added Apap, “The shape he’s [Oja] is in, it’s beyond words.”

Before departing west, Oja and Apap, who lived downstate, completed a preparation walk at the hilly Highland Forest in Fabius. They covered 17 miles the first day and 21 miles the second day. Still, the Grand Canyon had significantly higher elevations that Highland Forest, with the toughest stretch increasing by 3,000 feet (to 8,000 feet above sea level) in less than five miles. There is also dramatic climate change, with temperatures varying from the mid-90s at the bottom of the canyon, to below freezing at high elevations.

“You have to be ready,” Oja said, “to face extremes.”

After May the canyon is dangerously hot for long-distance walking, and after October snow on the higher elevations makes the trek too treacherous.
In addition to his usual walking gear, Oja brought two T-shirts and two long sleeve shirts, one heavy and one light. Instead of gloves he brought an extra pair of socks to put over his hands just in case it got really cold. He also had a hat, sunscreen, a head lamp, energy bars, pretzel sticks, four ½-liter bottles for water, petroleum jelly for blisters along with skin tape and bandages. And, perhaps most importantly, both men brought cameras.

They stayed in a lodge overnight, waking up early to continue their journey. They covered 48 miles in two days, enjoying the wildlife, the solitude, the beautiful rock walls that are among the natural wonders of the world and the deep blue desert sky.

During the day, they saw lizards, rock squirrel and colorful birds not seen east of the Mississippi. At night, with the aid of head lamps, they saw sand-colored bats flying within a few inches of their faces to cobble up spiders, beetles, centipedes and other crawlers that come out after dark.

“At night you to have to worry about snakes and scorpions, tripping over a rock or falling off a ledge,” Oja said. “It is pitch black out there, but if you have a head lamp and you’re paying attention, it’s walkable. I learned just how doable nighttime hiking is.”

While resting along the trail, the pair met a 79-year-old man who was completing his fourth Grand Canyon rim walk, and planning to do his fifth at the age of 80. It was then that Oja decided that he’d return again within three years, and do it again at age 80 or beyond.

The downhill portions of the trek caused minor injuries to Oja’s feet, and he expects to lose both big toe nails. He scaled back his walking regimen slightly since returning in May but planned to return to his usual routine soon.

Apap said training for and completing the hike has put him in his best physical shape in over 20 years. He said the canyon is the most spectacular sight he’s ever seen.

“From the rim it’s so awesomely big, it’s really hard to get your brain around it. But the smaller canyons inside the larger canyon — and there are thousands of them — any one of them would be a monument in any other state in the country,” Apap said.

Oja is self-employed as the coordinator of the Syracuse Festival of Races, and he provides promotional and technical support for other foot race venues. Running has been good to Oja and he is still seen as the guy who is all things running in Central New York. But to anyone who wants to listen, Oja has more to say about walking these days.

His favorite places are Highland Forest and Green Lakes, both in Onondaga County; though this time of year his neighborhood on the east side of Syracuse near the DeWitt border is lovely. He noticed the first robin of the year in mid-February and the first goldfinch in late May.

“The thing about walking is you can do it wherever you live. There are a lot of things you can hear and see and smell that you wouldn’t notice if you’re stuck in your house or your car. It’s nice to see things in your neighborhood that you never noticed before. It’s absolutely lovely out there.”

His advice for aspiring walkers: For starters, just get out and walk. If you can’t set aside an hour a day, how about 30 minutes? But don’t limit the routine to nice weather. To get through miserable months like February, set your sights on preparing for organized walking events at city parks or Highland Forest, or organize your own spring, summer or fall family walking day at any of the state parks in the region.

The physical benefits: weight control or loss, lower blood pressure, stress reduction and cardio vascular improvement. Walking also give you a chance for some alone time to think, reflect, sort things out in your head and just enjoy some quiet time.

Oja won’t endorse any type of shoes or gear. He says if you’re comfortable in sneakers, loafers, Crocks or cheap flip-flops, go with what you like.

“Don’t waste your money on fancy crap,” he says. “And you don’t need pedometers or heart rate monitors,” he said. “That junk can keep you from wanting to get out and walk. The beauty of walking is, everybody walks. One-year-old babies walk; elderly people walk; People walked 50,000 years ago. It’s accessible to everyone. There are so many good things about walking.”

Runner hailed as model and inspiration in Syracuse

By Mary Beth Roach

Lennie Tucker’s e-mail address says it all— lennieruns@aol.com. The 70-year-old Fayetteville resident has run in countless races since she came to Syracuse in 1969. Nowadays she runs with a group from the not-for-profit organization Felder-Syracuse to develop track programs for youth, assist in ongoing community competitions and lay the groundwork for a sports and training facility. The retired kindergarten teacher is also a published author and is spearheading a new reading endeavor.

In short, Tucker runs circles around friends and associates.

A graduate of Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia, Kansas, she decided she wanted to teach in either New York or California. So what made her decide New York state? Well, as she said, with an impish grin, “I had a ride to New York.”

o whomever gave Lennie that ride 40 years ago, there are thousands of students and running enthusiasts who say thank you.

Entering Syracuse University in 1969, she earned her master’s degree in just one year, while raising four children, ranging in age from 3 to 8.

The living conditions for this student-mother were less than optimum, but as she recalls, “I figured for one year, we could do anything.”

Being near campus, she saw a number of women running through her neighborhood, and this caught her attention. While she enjoyed running as a child, she said that she rarely saw many females involved in it. She realized now “it was an okay thing to do,” and she renewed her interest in earnest.

At the age of 39 or 40, she began to train for the annual Mountain Goat Run, a 10-mile run through the city of Syracuse that incorporates two long, tough hills on either side of Syracuse (hence the term, “mountain goat.”) “The Goat,” as it’s known, is comprised of one or two shorter races, culminating with the 10-mile trek. New runners to this event might start with one of the shorter races, but not Lennie. And in just one year, she started taking on ultra-distance races, such as a 50-miler on the Hannibal track the following year. She recalls that she completed that in eight hours and five minutes. Seems an arduous undertaking, but she’d asked herself, “What else could I be doing; that I’d rather be doing?” And throughout her ultra-distancing career, her children often came along to keep track of lap counts for her.

But she doesn’t measure her success in this field by how many miles she’s logged or how many medals she may have, but how many young people’s lives she’s touched whether in the classroom or on the track.

After receiving her master’s degree in elementary education, with her certificate of advanced study in early childhood education, she began working in the Syracuse City School District. While at Elmwood School in the early 1980s, she wanted to see more opportunities for physical education for the students. So, instead of just wishing it, she took it upon herself to start a running program, bringing the youngster into the gym at the start of their school day.

“Get them active first thing in the morning,” she said, “to get their brains going.”

Many of the kids took to the sport immediately, and in that first year about 25 to 30 of them sought to enter one of the races in the Mountain Goat. However, entry fees and transportation to downtown Syracuse, where the race begins and ends, were hurdles for some. But for Lennie, hurdles are only things one gets over, not things to hold one back. Through her determination, the generosity of an anonymous donor and the support of then-school Superintendent Lionel “Skip” Meno Jr., a runner himself, she was able to make sure those kids were on the starting line the morning of the race.

Her retirement from the City School District in 1993 allowed her to put even more of her boundless enthusiasm into creating and expanding running programs, especially those geared to children. And although this veteran of 10 or 11 Mountain Goat Runs no longer runs the course, she is one of its biggest cheerleaders. One can often find her at the finish line, encouraging that last runner through the chute, whether she knows them or not.

In the summer of 2004, Lennie heard from then-Fowler High School sophomore Shomari Felder, who told her that he and teammates were practicing high-jumps in the school’s cafeteria, but they couldn’t get the bar high enough. She decided that a sports and training center was needed for the community. So, she rounded up some of her friends and formed a grassroots Felder-Syracuse, with the intent to expand running initiatives for local youth and to spearhead fundraising and public relations campaigns to create the Felder-Syracuse Stadium in downtown Syracuse, behind the former Central Tech high school.

Although their efforts generated keen interest, the group fell short of its financial goals.
Felder-Syracuse members became aware of plans at Onondaga Community College for a new recreational facility, and they met with representatives of the college. The group also reached out to area high school coaches, who began a letter-writing campaign to get a regulation track (200-meters with six lanes) for meets to be held for Section III high school athletes. Syracuse University’s Manley Field House will no longer be available after this school year, so area track-and-field officials were in need of finding a new venue.
Dr. Debbie L. Sydow, president of Onondaga Community College, presented these letters and other letters of support to the Onondaga County Legislature who approved funding for the new Onondaga Arena and Sports Complex. The Felder group has two advisory people on the OCC Arena advisory group.

The facility is in the design phase currently, according to OCC chief public affairs officer Amy Kremenek. It is scheduled for a 2011 opening, but the final design and construction will depend upon budget and other factors, Kremenek added.

As a member of Felder-Syracuse, Lennie helped to develop the week-long track and field camp, offered through the Syracuse Department of Parks, Recreation and Youth programs. The camp’s instructors are high school student-athletes who teach the youngsters, aged 7 to 12, the proper technique for sprints and middle-distance running, throws, horizontal and vertical jumps, and cross-country. The benefits are multiple. Not only do the kids get some physical fitness and develop their skills, Lennie explains, but often the instructors find their own niche and go on to careers in education.

“This knife cuts a lot of ways,” Lennie said, adding that the camp is “the most rewarding thing I’ve done.”
The camp is one of the more popular programs offered by the Syracuse Parks Department, according to Parks Commissioner Pat Driscoll.

And while Lennie may no longer be in the classroom, her love for learning and students is still quite strong. In 2003, she published “The Teacher’s Voice,” praised by Amazon.com as “poignant collection of essays, short stories and poems. . . (it) gives light to a profession that gives so much and expects little in return.”
Its editorial review states that “from stories focusing on the school nurse to a little boy whose silent generosity touched a whole classroom, Lennie Tucker writes her stories in a melodious manner, telling the tale of a kindergarten teacher who loves her job and her students.”

During extremely hot summer weather, when it is not safe for the children to be out on the track, Lennie and her instructors will gather the children under trees and read books. She always had a big bag of books at the ready.

A few years ago, while working at the cheese booth at the New York State Fair’s Dairy Products Building, she went on break, pulled out the books, went to a corner of the exhibit hall, and began reading to whomever might pass by.

Asked if she received any odd looks from fairgoers, she said, smiling, “I’m past embarrassment.”
Her boss at the fair, Robert Harrington, was so impressed with her initiative that the following year he offered her space at the booth to do her readings, and now she has a small stage at the Dairy Products Building during the run of the fair.

And she is opening a new chapter of her reading adventure, seeking opportunities set up at events open her bag of books and read to people. During the holiday season, she asked if she could read to the youngsters who came to the Syracuse Parks Department’s Festival of Lights at Burnet Park. While they and their parents waited for the horse-drawn wagons at the event to take them on rides through the park and to see Santa Claus, she would entertain them with her stories. Event organizers liked the idea of giving them another activity to do while they waited, but they weren’t sure she’d have much of an audience. Lennie remained undaunted. The kids loved it, and she had eager listeners for more than two hours.

“We have been fortunate enough to have Lennie Tucker as a part of our parks and recreation programs for a number of years now,” said Commissioner Driscoll. “She is truly a model and inspiration to all who work every day to make things better for kids in our community.”

Try Stretching and Balance to reduce injuries during a fall

By Chris Motola

An object in motion tends to stay in motion—at least as long as it keeps its balance.

In the experience of Ron Olmstead, director of rehabilitation at Crouse Hospital, the capacity for physical activity has more to do with precedent than age. Active young people tend to become active seniors. While it may be harder to start running marathons at age 60, Olmstead notes that there’s nothing inherent in the aging process—disease notwithstanding—that makes it impossible.
“Senior’s muscles aren’t much different than younger people’s,” says Olmstead.

It is, of course, important to consult a primary care physician before embarking on a new course of strenuous activity.

In fact, Olmstead says seniors tend to be very well informed about concepts of cardiovascular health. Most consider walking to be a good exercise.
Other areas of fitness tend to be overlooked.

“Seniors don’t think about stretching or balance,” says Olmstead. “They’re most focused on cardiovascular exercise.”

Stretching can reduce the likelihood of injury during falls and other missteps. Olmstead compares tendons and ligaments to rubber bands—the more elastic they are, the less likely they are to break.
Equally important, and probably more overlooked, is balance.

“Falling is a traumatic experience for the elderly,” says Olmstead. He notes that those who have suffered a fall tend to play it increasingly safe, relying on walkers and other assistance devices when they many times would be better served by strengthening their sense of equilibrium.

“Some of the things we give [seniors] are the wrong things. People will walk around Wegman’s or the mall, but how often do you practice standing up and sitting down?”

Balance has three components, according to Olmstead. The visual component relies on sight and the ability to process space and proximity. Sensation and touch are another component and help negotiate uneven surfaces like sand, mud or even carpeting. Finally, the vestibular system—the part pertaining to the inner—helps regulate a sense of equilibrium. Olmstead says the reason children like merry-go-rounds, swings and getting dizzy is that those activities provide vestibular stimulation. Such “exercises” would be, theoretically, just as productive for adults if not as socially acceptable.

Simple Balance Exercises

• Stand and Sit: Just stand up from a seated position, then sit back down. For added difficulty, try this from the floor rather than a chair.

• Tight-Rope Walking: Don’t worry, you won’t need a net. Simply walk heel-to-toe in a straight line for 10 or more steps then walk backwards toe-to-heel an equal number of steps.

• Balance on One Leg: Simply hold your weight on one leg for 30 seconds or more, then switch legs.

• Bike riding: A great way to mix your cardiovascular and balance workouts.

Formal Exercise

• Tai chi chuan: A soft martial art focused on slow, flowing motions. The stances help develop both flexibility and balance.

• Yoga: Using body weight, yoga employs various “poses” to develop strength, flexibility and balance.

• Pilates: Originally a rehabilitation program for the injured, pilates focuses on stabilizing key muscles and the body’s core.