Observing Betsy Callanan at packet pickup in the Hess Running Center is watching an exercise in futile patience. Holding her place in line, she opens a conversation with fellow runners only to be distracted as her three-year-old son demands her attention. Then she discovers her five-year-old has shed his shoes and headed to the children's center. Chasing him down, she is informed that her seven and eight-year-old boys are making a beeline to the ice cream store at the other end of the mall. "It's like this all the time,"she exclaims, "but I love it!"

Orchestrating the three-ring circus generated by four young boys can be quite a challenge for any mother. A challenge of a different sort awaited Betsy in the local running circuit when she turned forty last September. In a region where master's women often win the women's division outright, she is now making her presence known. So far in 1997 she has set PRs in every distance from 5K (19:39) to the marathon (3:16:35). She recently dropped another two and a half minutes off her previous 5M best while winning the master's division in 32:10 on a hot, humid, and hilly York Bon-Ton course.

She says running gives her the energy, both physically and mentally, to keep up with her four sons. There are days when she believes that running the marathon is probably a lot easier. Running starts her day around 4:30 giving her time alone. Time to think and time to pray, time to dream and time to plan her day. It helps to center her when she feels overwhelmed by the demands and responsibilities and energy of her children. The sport gives her something that is just her own.

Earlier this year an incredulous friend called Betsy after seeing the results of the B&A Trail Marathon. Though she had mentioned her running habits to him in previous conversations, he had casually dismissed her stories as the dreams of a delusional housewife. Maybe she had been captivated by the spirit of the Olympic games and was living out her fantasies by generating fairy tales. The anemic, asthmatic Betsy that he remembered from an earlier era could smoke more cigarettes, drink more alcohol, and close down more bars than anyone else in Georgetown. That was hardly the type of behavior associated with outstanding marathon performances.

"I have an addictive, excessive personality that led me to overdo the partying scene in my earlier years,"she says. "When I started working my way through college though, I matured to the point that I realized I had to give up the cigarettes and booze before I destroyed myself. Also, between working and studying for my degree I didn't have the time to party anymore. I grew up a lot in just a few years."

At some point Betsy replaced the substance abuse in her life with running. True to her overindulgent personality, she preferred to concentrate on the marathon as opposed to shorter distances. "I have always been obsessive that way,"she explains, "and I felt the marathon suited me more than anything else. In one way, it's very similar to a night of partying in that both activities can make you feel quite bad. But drinking can never give you the sense of accomplishment, that feeling of self-worth, that comes by finishing a race, no matter what your time or place."

At first Betsy trained and ran alone. She told herself that she needed the time alone for herself, but deep down she was intimidated by the competitive aspects of racing. She had not participated in track in high school or college, and carried humiliating memories of always being the last choice in schoolyard pickup games. Why should she put herself in such an embarrassing position now when she could easily avoid the trauma? For years she resisted all attempts of her friends to integrate socializing and running. Her solo efforts were an escape from a perceived critical competitive environment.

In the past few years Betsy has discovered that running can be better shared with others. She credits Maureen Hall with much of the early encouragement. The discovery of running friends and their assurances have helped her train at ever higher levels. Over the winter two events transpired which have elevated her motivation and subsequent performance. First, she reached forty, which has a magical rejuvenating effect on a myriad of thirty-nine year old runners. Secondly, she was recruited to join a Hood-to-Coast relay team. The intimidation factor returned. "I would like to go, but I don't want to slow you down. I'll be the slowest one on the team. I don't want to hold everybody up,"she protested to team organizers. In the end, she capitulated, and began adding speedwork to her training repertoire.

In addition to her regular regime, Betsy has been running the Baltimore Road Runners Summer Track series. The 400s, 800s, and 1600s increased her leg turnover. She entered 5K road races as a supplement. Twice a week, she meets other runners at six in the morning for tempo runs or half-mile repeats on the roads surrounding Loch Raven Reservoir. Still, there are those extended runs that begin long before dawn. "When I'm running through the woods on a cool morning, watching the sun rise and a mist hover over the water, I feel so alive and at one with all of Creation. I know at that time that running enhances every aspect of my life-physically, socially, mentally, and spiritually. Talking comes easy for me now on a long run, whether with other people or with God. It makes it easier for me to get know both people and God in a deeper relationship."