Start Line Stories: Life-Long Runner And 20-Time Marathoner Decides to Race Again

Scott Haldane after qualifying for Boston at the 2002 Ottawa Marathon.

Did you know that in 2022, runners from all 50 states and 29 countries signed up to run the Eugene Marathon? And Canada, not surprisingly, is the most represented country outside the U.S. in this year’s line-up – with 113 Canadians already registered. For this week’s Start Line Story, we had the opportunity to catch up with one of those 113 Canadians: Scott Haldane.

Scott turns 71 on April 26th and 4 days later he’ll be running the 26.2 mile race (or 42.195 kilometers in Canada) for his 21st marathon, exactly 40 years after running his first marathon and 15 years since his last. Here’s a little bit of Scott’s story and what’s getting him back to the start line this spring.

Where is home right now? 

Ottawa, Canada.

Why did you choose to sign up for Eugene in 2023? 

I’ve run 20 marathons in my career but haven’t done one since 2008. I had this thing in my head that I was getting too old to run marathons. All my friends had stopped running, but I AM still running so I thought: I can do it, I should run another marathon. And I chose Eugene because I’m a massive Steve Prefontaine fan. It’s been a bucket list thing for my entire running life: to run on the track at Hayward Field.

What is currently motivating you to get to the start line on April 30, 2023? 

The biggest thing is that I’m still going, I’m injury-free and I’m feeling good. I ran a 10K in a blizzard in late January and a half marathon last week. I won my age group last week and yeah, I’m just feeling good. And that’s motivation in and of itself. As I get older, I find that the biggest challenge is staying healthy and getting to starting line… the finish line is the easy part.

What type of training plan are you following and do you have a specific goal for the race? 

I was competitive at one time, so I always set four categories of time goals: 1. I’d be over the moon with this time, 2. I’d be happy with this time, 3. I’d be OK with this time, and 4. I would not be happy with this time. For Eugene, if I was under 4:30 I’d be really pleased, if I’m under 5 hours I’d be happy and if I finish it standing on two feet, I’d still be happy.

I’m actually following Hal Higdon’s novice training plan. It’s a lighter training plan, with only four days a week of running and the heaviest week is only 40 miles. I also do a lot of cross training: hiking, biking and cross country skiing.

How many marathons have you completed? 

20. I did Boston three times and New York twice and both were unbelievable; and the Prague Marathon was especially beautiful and memorable.   

Why run and why choose to race marathons? 

I run because it makes me feel alive. I ran my first race in 1965, so I’ve been running races for 57 years. I think I find at different ages, I’d answer that question differently. I do it now because I can. And because I’m a grandad and I want to keep up with my grandkids. It also gives me something I can work at and something with structure in retirement. Running is part of my identity and I just feel a surge of gratitude every time I lace up my shoes.

Races give me a goal. It’s never been about beating anyone, it’s been about doing the best I can at that time. And of course there’s the social aspect of it. I find at races, you can very quickly become friends.

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Make sure to welcome Scott to Eugene if you see him taking a jog on Pre’s Trail or a walk up to Pre’s Rock and as always, if you see him in the start corral on April 30, give him a big “let’s go!”