Nov 20, 1999

Your article in the December issue of Runner's World clearly expressed the problem with most of the baby boomer generation. You are self-righteously conceited.

Why can't you acknowledge the possibility that indoor treadmill users might also be real runners as well? I use treadmills for most of my training, and I also live in the Northwest. I like them for many reasons:

1. They are consistent in "terrain." I don't have to concentrate on an
uneven, dimly lit paths. A twisted ankle or knee stops my training cold.

2. I can control the amount of work my heart is doing via speed and incline,
ultimately maintaining my heart rate to the (almost) exact rate that I am
aiming for that morning.

3. I get the constant moral support of other runners around me each morning, eliminating the need to get an actual running group together that early (usually five A.M.).

4. The indoor temp allows me to run in reasonable attire, and not have to
bundle up in too much clothing.

5. I actually enjoy the one- to two-hour endorphin release I get on the
treadmill, and I don't focus on the negatives around me (as you seem to do).

6. Treadmills allow me and my wife to run "together," even at the
drastically different paces that we keep. This is a great time we spend
together, and we can push eachother better in the gym than seperated by a mile of cold, wet and dark.

7. My wife feels safer on the treadmill than on the local trails, at any time of day or season.

Why can't you get off your high-horse and accept that other runners may actually enjoy an indoor run? (Val K'shai, Bellingham, Washington)

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