Catching up with legendary Minnesota marathoner Dick Beardsley
Participants in Grandma's Marathon in Duluth run along the shoreline of Lake Superior.
Photo courtesy of Grandma's Marathon
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Audio transcript
CATHY WURZER: Grandma's Marathon is this weekend in Duluth. Ahead of the big race, we thought we'd talk to one of the marathon's most well-known champions, Dick Beardsley. Beardsley is a Minnesota native. He's known across the state for winning the 1981 and '82 Grandma's Marathons.
He's also a best-selling author, motivational speaker, and fishing coach in Minnesota. As a matter of fact, I don't think I've ever done an interview with anyone live from his fishing boat, which happens to be in Bemidji. Dick, welcome to Minnesota Now. How are the fish biting?
DICK BEARDSLEY: Well, not too bad. In fact, one of my guide clients, Mark Nisley, from Pine City, Minnesota, just had a fish on that the hook popped out. But yeah, we got a few walleyes in the live weld and catching a bunch of northern pike and having a heck of a good time.
CATHY WURZER: Good. I'm so glad to hear your voice. I'm glad you guys are having a good time out there on the lake. Say, I admittedly don't know a ton about running, but I always thought a marathoner needed to taper, running less, recovering more before a race. But I understand-- because I read your autobiography-- you galloped off one last run before the 1981 Grandma's Marathon race, 20 miles in an hour and 41 minutes.
And your coach at that time was angry, thinking you blew it. You didn't. You won the race. What do you reme-- what do you remember thinking about leading up to Grandma's?
DICK BEARDSLEY: Well, I remember going into that race, it was my very first Grandma's Marathon. And being a Minnesota boy, I was so excited. And my mom and dad were going to be at the finish line. It was the first time they ever had a chance to see me run a marathon. So needless to say, I was super excited.
And yes, about 10, 11 days before the Grandma's Marathon in 1981, I did my last long run, about a 23, 24-miler. And if I would have kept going for another couple miles, I'd have run like a 211, 212 marathon. I remember talking to my coach, and honest to gosh, if he could have put his hand through the phone and grabbed me by the neck, he would have shook me up and down. And he was afraid I probably left it out on the course or out on the training course. But no, that day back in 1981, golly, you couldn't have asked for a nicer day for a marathon.
It was 48 degrees at the start, 48 degrees at the finish line. There was no wind, a little fog and mist coming in off of Lake Superior. And another Minnesotan, probably in my opinion, one of the best distance runner this state has ever produced, Gary Bjorklund, who's from a little town of Twig, which is outside of Duluth. And Gary was the defending champion. And so him and I ran basically from the time the gun went off together.
We're all by ourselves for the first 19 miles. And then I was fortunate to be able to pull away from Gary the last few miles. And nothing but great memories and having my mom and dad at the finish line. And my dad, who never showed a real lot of emotion, was crying when I came through the finish line, hugging me. And it's something, even though it's been over 40 years ago, I'll never, ever forget.
CATHY WURZER: In the book, you say that that '81 race was the zenith of your career. And that surprised me because I thought the famed duel with Alberto Salazar in the Boston Marathon would have been it.
DICK BEARDSLEY: Well, obviously-- and that's what most people think is that that 1982 Boston Marathon with you and Salazar, who was the world record at the time, record holder at the time, and we finished less than two seconds apart at the end, which he ended up winning. But the reason Grandma's is, for me, at the top of my list is first off, I love the Grandma's Marathon. I love Duluth. I bleed Minnesota.
And to have my-- and it wasn't about winning the race or setting the course record or anything like that that day. Like I said earlier, it was about having my mom and dad there and them had never seen me run a marathon before and my dad, who never had the opportunity to play sports growing up. And I was the only boy in our family. It was a big, big deal for me and probably even a bigger deal for my dad.
CATHY WURZER: Say, let me ask you. Many athletes have superstitions. Do you have superstitions? Did you have superstitions or any-- you're laughing-- before a race?
DICK BEARDSLEY: Oh my gosh. Are you kidding? Yes. So at the time-- I'll tell you a quick story here. Oh, hold on here. I just got a-- I got a fish on.
CATHY WURZER: Oh, no! [LAUGHS]
DICK BEARDSLEY: I had my rod sitting down. And honest to gosh, it about pulled it out of the boat. Well, let's see--
CATHY WURZER: Like I say. I've never done a live interview.
DICK BEARDSLEY: I'm not making this up.
CATHY WURZER: No. I know. I heard your rod in the background.
DICK BEARDSLEY: Yes! Oh, it's a nice-sized northern pike. So you can hear the drag on my--
CATHY WURZER: I can hear the drag. Do you want to just put the phone down and try to get the fish in the boat? Would that be helpful?
DICK BEARDSLEY: Nope. Mark netted it for me, and he's good for now. I bet that's never happened too often to ya, huh?
CATHY WURZER: I have to say, no. In my long and checkered career, that has never happened to me ever on the air live.
DICK BEARDSLEY: See, isn't that what you love about Minnesota?
CATHY WURZER: Yes.
DICK BEARDSLEY: We are so blessed with what we have--
CATHY WURZER: We really are. Gary, I have to say-- that is so funny. Dick, I have about 30 seconds left. I got to ask you. Do you still get up at the crack of dawn to run?
DICK BEARDSLEY: Well, no. Actually, I get up before the crack of dawn. I get up between 3:00 and 3:15 every morning. I go out for my six-mile run. I'm slower than molasses in January, but I still love doing it. And then I take people out fishing the rest of the day. So I can't complain about that.
CATHY WURZER: I'm going to have to get to Bemidji, and you and I are going to have to do some fishing. That's what we're going to have to do here, Dick.
DICK BEARDSLEY: For sure.
CATHY WURZER: All right.
DICK BEARDSLEY: Absolutely.
CATHY WURZER: Well, for goodness sakes, take a picture of the fish and send it to me. I want to see this thing.
DICK BEARDSLEY: Well, thank you so much for having me on. I sure do appreciate it.
CATHY WURZER: Thanks, Dick. Dick Beardsley has been with us. He's the winner of the 1981, '82 Grandma's Marathon. He's also a best-selling author. Check out his book, motivational speaker, and yeah. Yeah. He's a fishing guide in Minnesota.
He's also a best-selling author, motivational speaker, and fishing coach in Minnesota. As a matter of fact, I don't think I've ever done an interview with anyone live from his fishing boat, which happens to be in Bemidji. Dick, welcome to Minnesota Now. How are the fish biting?
DICK BEARDSLEY: Well, not too bad. In fact, one of my guide clients, Mark Nisley, from Pine City, Minnesota, just had a fish on that the hook popped out. But yeah, we got a few walleyes in the live weld and catching a bunch of northern pike and having a heck of a good time.
CATHY WURZER: Good. I'm so glad to hear your voice. I'm glad you guys are having a good time out there on the lake. Say, I admittedly don't know a ton about running, but I always thought a marathoner needed to taper, running less, recovering more before a race. But I understand-- because I read your autobiography-- you galloped off one last run before the 1981 Grandma's Marathon race, 20 miles in an hour and 41 minutes.
And your coach at that time was angry, thinking you blew it. You didn't. You won the race. What do you reme-- what do you remember thinking about leading up to Grandma's?
DICK BEARDSLEY: Well, I remember going into that race, it was my very first Grandma's Marathon. And being a Minnesota boy, I was so excited. And my mom and dad were going to be at the finish line. It was the first time they ever had a chance to see me run a marathon. So needless to say, I was super excited.
And yes, about 10, 11 days before the Grandma's Marathon in 1981, I did my last long run, about a 23, 24-miler. And if I would have kept going for another couple miles, I'd have run like a 211, 212 marathon. I remember talking to my coach, and honest to gosh, if he could have put his hand through the phone and grabbed me by the neck, he would have shook me up and down. And he was afraid I probably left it out on the course or out on the training course. But no, that day back in 1981, golly, you couldn't have asked for a nicer day for a marathon.
It was 48 degrees at the start, 48 degrees at the finish line. There was no wind, a little fog and mist coming in off of Lake Superior. And another Minnesotan, probably in my opinion, one of the best distance runner this state has ever produced, Gary Bjorklund, who's from a little town of Twig, which is outside of Duluth. And Gary was the defending champion. And so him and I ran basically from the time the gun went off together.
We're all by ourselves for the first 19 miles. And then I was fortunate to be able to pull away from Gary the last few miles. And nothing but great memories and having my mom and dad at the finish line. And my dad, who never showed a real lot of emotion, was crying when I came through the finish line, hugging me. And it's something, even though it's been over 40 years ago, I'll never, ever forget.
CATHY WURZER: In the book, you say that that '81 race was the zenith of your career. And that surprised me because I thought the famed duel with Alberto Salazar in the Boston Marathon would have been it.
DICK BEARDSLEY: Well, obviously-- and that's what most people think is that that 1982 Boston Marathon with you and Salazar, who was the world record at the time, record holder at the time, and we finished less than two seconds apart at the end, which he ended up winning. But the reason Grandma's is, for me, at the top of my list is first off, I love the Grandma's Marathon. I love Duluth. I bleed Minnesota.
And to have my-- and it wasn't about winning the race or setting the course record or anything like that that day. Like I said earlier, it was about having my mom and dad there and them had never seen me run a marathon before and my dad, who never had the opportunity to play sports growing up. And I was the only boy in our family. It was a big, big deal for me and probably even a bigger deal for my dad.
CATHY WURZER: Say, let me ask you. Many athletes have superstitions. Do you have superstitions? Did you have superstitions or any-- you're laughing-- before a race?
DICK BEARDSLEY: Oh my gosh. Are you kidding? Yes. So at the time-- I'll tell you a quick story here. Oh, hold on here. I just got a-- I got a fish on.
CATHY WURZER: Oh, no! [LAUGHS]
DICK BEARDSLEY: I had my rod sitting down. And honest to gosh, it about pulled it out of the boat. Well, let's see--
CATHY WURZER: Like I say. I've never done a live interview.
DICK BEARDSLEY: I'm not making this up.
CATHY WURZER: No. I know. I heard your rod in the background.
DICK BEARDSLEY: Yes! Oh, it's a nice-sized northern pike. So you can hear the drag on my--
CATHY WURZER: I can hear the drag. Do you want to just put the phone down and try to get the fish in the boat? Would that be helpful?
DICK BEARDSLEY: Nope. Mark netted it for me, and he's good for now. I bet that's never happened too often to ya, huh?
CATHY WURZER: I have to say, no. In my long and checkered career, that has never happened to me ever on the air live.
DICK BEARDSLEY: See, isn't that what you love about Minnesota?
CATHY WURZER: Yes.
DICK BEARDSLEY: We are so blessed with what we have--
CATHY WURZER: We really are. Gary, I have to say-- that is so funny. Dick, I have about 30 seconds left. I got to ask you. Do you still get up at the crack of dawn to run?
DICK BEARDSLEY: Well, no. Actually, I get up before the crack of dawn. I get up between 3:00 and 3:15 every morning. I go out for my six-mile run. I'm slower than molasses in January, but I still love doing it. And then I take people out fishing the rest of the day. So I can't complain about that.
CATHY WURZER: I'm going to have to get to Bemidji, and you and I are going to have to do some fishing. That's what we're going to have to do here, Dick.
DICK BEARDSLEY: For sure.
CATHY WURZER: All right.
DICK BEARDSLEY: Absolutely.
CATHY WURZER: Well, for goodness sakes, take a picture of the fish and send it to me. I want to see this thing.
DICK BEARDSLEY: Well, thank you so much for having me on. I sure do appreciate it.
CATHY WURZER: Thanks, Dick. Dick Beardsley has been with us. He's the winner of the 1981, '82 Grandma's Marathon. He's also a best-selling author. Check out his book, motivational speaker, and yeah. Yeah. He's a fishing guide in Minnesota.
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