Bob Anderson (born December 28, 1947, in Manhattan, Kansas) is an American runner, photographer, publisher, film producer and businessman. He started running on February 16, 1962, and has been running since then. He currently logs on average 50 miles per week of running and walking. In 2012 he ran 50 races (350.8 miles) to celebrate 50 years of running. He averaged 6:59/mile. A movie called A Long Run covers the event. He was the founder of Runner's World magazine. A desire to find information about running and racing led him to a career in magazine and book publishing for more than twenty years.
After selling Runner's World to Rodale, Inc. in Emmaus, Pennsylvania in 1984, he founded Ujena Swimwear, and Around Town Productions. In 2012 he founded a new sport called Double Racing [a two-stage running race with a halftime recovery break between the legs]. His Double Road Race Federation was established to promote this new sport. in 2014 he started a website called My Best Runs that features and follows the best, most interesting and unique races in the world. On that site he is the editor of the popular column called Running News Daily. He says it reminds him of the days he started Distance Running News (1966) that he renamed Runner’s World in 1970.
In 2014 he and his wife Catherine traveled to Kenya to produce a Double Racing event. They returned in 2015 and produced another successful event. It was on that trip, Bob decided to set up a running related business in Thika Kenya. Today the Kenyan Athletics Training Academy (KATA) is a going concern. Athletes live and train there.
Life and work
In 1966, as a high school senior in Overland Park, Kansas, Bob Anderson was interested in running. He was a 4:41-miler with a passion for the sport. He wanted to learn how to train for a marathon. He searched for information about training and racing and discovered there was little information available so, at age 17, he started his publication.
Anderson started a black and white magazine titled "Distance Running News" and began selling subscriptions. The publication came out twice per year and by its second year, the magazine had 850 subscribers. The circulation grew to 3000 and the publication developed into a magazine published six times per year. Anderson published the magazine by himself for several years.[1]
In 1970, Anderson brought on runner and writer Joe Henderson as chief editor. Henderson was a young newspaper reporter and former Iowa State cross-country champion who had worked for Track and Field News. In that same year, Anderson moved the operations from Kansas to Mountain View, California, and the name of the magazine changed to Runners World. Runner and cardiologistGeorge Sheehan came on board as the magazine's featured columnist and medical editor.[1]
In 1973, the magazine went monthly and added color to the pages.[1] As the popularity of running grew in the United States, the circulation of the magazine increased. Runner's World thrived during the "running boom". According to an article in the Oakland Tribune, the circulation of Runner's World increased from 50,000 in 1975 to 250,000 in 1977.[2] In that same year Henderson left to pursue other writing and editing opportunities.
In 1980, the Daily Herald (Chicago) published a San Francisco (AP) article titled: "Running: Sport of the '70s." The article highlighted comments by Bob Anderson. In that article, Anderson said that in 1970 the number of people who considered themselves runners was 2 million. He also said that according to a national survey of one independent polling company, the number of people who considered themselves runners was 30 million.[3]
He produced the Runner's World Book Series, which included books related to exercise, stretching, aerobics, bodybuilding, yoga, and nutrition. He also published numerous books on running, including The Complete Woman Runner,[5] and The Complete Runner.[6]
As a spin-off of FIT magazine, Anderson published a book series titled The Fit Self-Improvement Series, which covered a myriad of topics including skin and hair care.[8] He also published the Get Fit Book, which featured actress Priscilla Presley on the cover, and he published FIT Magazine presents Your Healthy Pregnancy '84: Jane Fonda's Program for Staying Fit While Pregnant, which featured a cover photo of Jane Fonda holding a baby.[9]
Expanding his publishing pursuits, Anderson put out The Home Medical Book Series; published in cooperation with the Palo Alto Medical Foundation for Health Care, Research and Education.[10]
Anderson then began working with swimwear and fashion photographer Steve Harvey. After teaming up with a swimwear fashion designer, Anderson founded Ujena Swimwear and Swimwear Illustrated magazine. Anderson acts as CEO and his daughter, Lisa Anderson-Wall, has acted as president of the company for more than twelve years.[when?]
For more than 20 years,[when?] Anderson produced "The Ujena Jam Talent Search Week",[11] an event for swimwear models and photographers, which has been expanded to include lifestyle events, fashion photography, casting, workshops and theme parties. A golf, fishing and soccer tournament has been added.[12]
Anderson has created a sister company, Around Town Productions, which has produced four films, including the drama What about Cuba!.[13]
Anderson remains dedicated to photography. His preference for many years was 35mm slide film because he loved the natural skin tones and color saturation the film provided, but he now shoots 100% digital. "I love to shoot in places like Cabo San Lucas. The light is perfect, the weather is awesome and the backdrops are great. All I need is a couple of days, four models and some great suits and I can shoot an entire catalog."[14]
Anderson promotes health and wellness by sponsoring 5km races, and he recently[when?] started a weekly fitness column titled "Bikini Body Fitness" by DeBarra Mayo.[15]
Bob Anderson has photographed over 600 models at more than 350 locations around the world.[16] His mate, Catherine Cross, is the public relations director for Ujena and she is the director for Around Town Productions. He still runs 40 miles per week and participates in road races up to 10 miles. He has lived in Los Altos, California, since 1969.[citation needed]
Double Road Race
In 2012, Anderson founded a new race series called the Double Race series Double Road Race.[17]
A bikini is a two-piece swimsuit primarily worn by girls and women that features one piece on top that covers the breasts, and a second piece on the bottom: the front covering the pelvis but usually exposing the navel, and the back generally covering the intergluteal cleft and a little, some, or all of the buttocks. The size of the top and bottom can vary, from bikinis that offer full coverage of the breasts, pelvis, and buttocks, to more revealing designs with a thong or G-string bottom that covers only the mons pubis, but exposes the buttocks, and a top that covers only the areolae. Bikini bottoms covering about half the buttocks may be described as "Brazilian-cut".
Road running is the sport of running on a measured course over an established road. This differs from track and field on a regular track and cross country running over natural terrain.
Fell running, also sometimes known as hill running, is the sport of running and racing, off-road, over upland country where the gradient climbed is a significant component of the difficulty. The name arises from the origins of the English sport on the fells of northern Britain, especially those in the Lake District. It has elements of trail running, cross country and mountain running, but is also distinct from those disciplines.
Kenneth Clark Moore was an American Olympic road running athlete and journalist. He ran the marathon at the 1968 and 1972 Summer Olympics, finishing fourth at the latter.
Runner's World is a globally circulated monthly magazine for runners of all skills sets, published by Hearst in Easton, Pennsylvania, in the United States. Before its acquisition by Hearst, it was founded and published by Rodale, Inc. in Emmaus, Pennsylvania.
Ambrose Joel Burfoot is a former American marathoner whose peak competitive years came in the late 1960s and early 1970s. He was the winner of the 1968 Boston Marathon. After retiring from competition, he became a running journalist and author. Burfoot was editor-in-chief at Runner's World for many years, and both writes for the magazine and serves as its editor-at-large.
George A. Sheehan was an American physician, senior athlete, and author best known for his writings about the sport of running. His book, "Running & Being: The Total Experience", became a New York Times best seller. He was a track star in college, and later became a cardiologist like his father. He served as a doctor in the United States Navy in the South Pacific during World War II on the destroyer USS Daly (DD-519). He married Mary Jane Fleming and they raised twelve children. He continued to write while struggling with prostate cancer. His last book, Going the Distance, was published shortly after his death.
Joe Henderson is an American runner, running coach, writer, and former chief editor of Runner's World magazine. He currently writes for Marathon & Beyond magazine, and since 1982, a weekly column entitled "Joe Henderson's Running Commentary". He has authored and coauthored more than two dozen books about the sport of running and fitness, including the best-selling Marathon Training.
DeBarra Mayo is an American health and fitness advocate, writer and media personality. She has epilepsy, which has led her to a career involved with maintaining and enhancing health. She has written regularly on the subject of health and wellness in books, magazines and newspapers, as well as on radio and television broadcasts. Mayo has been an award-winning women's bodybuilder and trainer for the West Virginia University football team.
Richard Stephen Benyo is an American journalist and veteran distance runner. He is the editor of Marathon & Beyond Magazine, a magazine devoted to marathon and ultramarathon running. He is also the former executive editor of Runner's World Magazine, and Anderson World Books, Inc. Benyo is the author of 17 books and has written extensively about running, health and fitness.
Hal Higdon is an American writer and runner known for his training plans. He is the author of 34 books, including the best-selling Marathon: The Ultimate Training Guide. He has worked as a freelance writer since 1959, and has written a variety of subjects including a children's book that was made into an animated feature. He has contributed to Runner's World magazine longer than any other writer. He ran eight times in the United States Olympic Trials and won four World Masters Championships. He is one of the founders of the Road Runners Club of America (RRCA).
World Publications was a book and magazine publisher in the late 1960s-1980s started by Bob Anderson.
Gary M. Fanelli is a long-distance runner from the United States who represented American Samoa in the marathon at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. Fanelli's 2:25:35 performance at the Olympics is an American Samoan national record. Known for running in costume, he has been called "the crown prince of road racing", "the king of costume", and "road-racing's longest-running joke".
Altra Running, commonly known as Altra, is an American manufacturing company engaged in the design, development, marketing, and sales of athletic shoes for road running, trail running, and general footwear. Since 2018 Altra is owned by VF Corporation, an American global apparel and footwear company with other brands like Icebreaker, The North Face, Vans, JanSport, Eastpak and Timberland.
The Double Road Race is a long-distance road running competition consisting of two segments or "legs" – a 10-kilometer road run, followed by a five-kilometer road run, with a short rest break in between. The Double Road Race Federation added additional distances in August 2014. Other official distances for Double Racing® include Double 5k (3+2), Double 8k (5+3), and Double 21k (15+6). The race was created by Runner's World magazine founder Bob Anderson.
A negative split is a racing strategy that involves completing the second half of a race faster than the first half. It is defined by the intentional setting of a slower initial pace, followed by a gradual or sudden increase of speed towards the end of the race. Alternate strategies include even splitting or sit and kick. Conversely, the act of completing the first half of a race faster than the second half is known as a positive split.
The history of swimwear traces the changes in the styles of men's and women's swimwear over time and between cultures, and touches on the social, religious and legal attitudes to swimming and swimwear.
Gayle Barron is a former American marathon runner. From 1970 to 1978, Barron placed in the top five in marathons held across the United States and was the winner of the 1978 Boston Marathon. Barron was inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in 2003 and the Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.
Karen Holdsworth was a British marathon runner, who won the 1983 Berlin Marathon.
Judy Shapiro-Ikenberry is a former long-distance runner. Shapiro-Ikenberry won the 1967 Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) Las Vegas Marathon, and was the first USA Marathon Championships winner for women in 1974, at the AAU National Women's Marathon. She also won the 1977 US National 50-Mile Track Ultramarathon Championship.
References
1 2 3 John Brant (2006) "Archived copy". Archived from the original on October 28, 2006. Retrieved September 7, 2006.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Accessed September 7, 2006
↑ Condon, Jane, "New Sneakers From Big Choice", Oakland Tribune, Oakland, California, 30-3C, Sunday August 28, 1977.
↑ San Francisco (AP) The Daily Herald, Chicago, Illinois, Section 4-3, January 1, 1980
↑ photos of Anderson at the White House appeared in Runner's World magazine during the 80s
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