Cleveland Caldwell Advancement of the Sport Award – 2011 – Chuck and Jana Davis

“The award is given in recognition of those who make significant contributions to the advancement of the sport, whether through research, education or some other area of expertise.” The recipients of this award tonight are just like pretty much everyone who is nominated for annual awards:  Humble, self-deprecating, and just plain altruistic.  There are hundreds of stories about how these two have inspired new and veteran runners; I will share just two of them to illustrate the kind of people I’m talking about (sources remain anonymous!):

Story #1:  “When I ran the Boston Mini Marathon, Chuck Davis was 1/4 mile ahead of me at around the nine mile marker.  Chuck had to stop and tie his shoe and I was able to catch up with him.  As we ran together and he asked how I was doing, I told him my right foot was hurting and it felt like an electric shock each time I landed on it.  He started to small talk with me and although I was unaware of it, he was also slowly picking up our pace.  He distracted me to the point where I was not focusing on my foot and we had run farther than I thought we had.  As we approached the finish line, I told him to please finish in front of me but he said “No, you go” and he stopped, as my momentum took me forward across the line.  This is an example of a true coach and mentor and someone who enjoys helping others to achieve their goals.”

Story #2:  “When I first joined the Trailblazers, Jana would run with me so I did not have to run alone while trying to keep up with the pack.  She makes sure that the person running the slowest pace always has someone to run with.  She gives so much time and energy to making sure the Trailblazers are accommodated.” 

Well, you know what they say, “Behind every man, there’s an even better woman!

This dynamic couple has raised our membership numbers, raised running awareness in the community, and raised the bar on making successful runners of all abilities feel great about themselves. 

They continue to set workouts for everyone in their group, and encourage volunteerism in addition to participation in local races.  Chuck is now a new board member, as well.

Some of the Trailblazers say what motivates them to get out there and do the workout is their “Inner Chuck” or “Inner Jana”. 

I would say that is definitely the way to advance the sport of running!