Do you have a tradition you have kept since the 1970s? A family recipe, a fishing trip, a phone call on the same birthday every year? Then you already understand Henry Kozlowski and Randy Burt.
The first Chicago Marathon was run on September 25, 1977. According to the race organizers, these two men had been on every start line and every finish line since. Going into this year’s race, the 48th, they had finished every single one.
Burt is a retired corporate healthcare executive from Antioch, Illinois. He is 78. Kozlowski is a retired computer systems analyst from Wilmette, Illinois. He is 76.
The Chicago Sun-Times reports that they are the only two runners who can make that claim. There used to be three. George Mueller, 78, a retired dentist who lives in Chicago’s Loop, was part of the group until last year.
He has a suggestion for his two friends. “We were a trio. But now Henry and Randy are the dynamic duo. I told them, ‘You have to figure out who’s Batman and who’s Robin,’” Mueller told the paper.
What Is the Story Behind the Shorts?
Kozlowski has a signature look: cotton gym shorts from his high school days. The school, then called Lane Technical High School, issued them in 1966, or possibly 1967. He brings them out once a year.
“They’re a little snug, not as comfy as they were when I was in high school, but they still work,” he told the Sun-Times.
And the long-term plan? “They’ll wear out the same time I do,” he said. “Maybe I’ll have them bronzed.”
Do not expect a sentimental reason for wearing them. “They’re just the shorts I had. I wore them,” Kozlowski said. He even got out of gym class in his junior and senior years by volunteering as a lifeguard at the school pool.
Many of his gym memories come from school dances instead. He served on the social committee and helped decorate the gym.
“I enjoyed asking girls to dance, especially the wallflowers, the girls no one asked to dance who were sitting there looking glum,” he said.
He graduated in 1969, two years before the all-boys school went co-ed. And for the record, he washes the shorts after each use.
When he posed for a photograph near his home in Wilmette, Kozlowski declined to model them. “I don’t do catwalks or runways,” he said. Instead, he wore them on his head like a beret.
Mueller has opinions about his pal’s shorts. “You can’t un-see it once you see him in these shorts. It just doesn’t go away. It’s vivid in my mind right now,” he said.
Why Keep Lacing Up?
Here is the part that may surprise you. Kozlowski said he does not even really like running. To him, the race is a yearly way to stay motivated and avoid becoming a couch potato.
His best time came in 1981: 3 hours and 50 minutes. This year, he hoped to finish in under eight hours.
“It will be a very slow run. Kind of a controlled stagger, really,” he said.
Sound familiar?
On Sunday, October 11, the 48th Chicago Marathon sent more than 54,000 participants through 29 Chicago neighborhoods. Carey Pinkowski, the executive race director, summed up the day. “Whether you’re competing for a title, coming back for another finish, running your first marathon or supporting a charity, Chicago gets behind you,” he said.
Coming back for another finish. That line could have been written for these two.
What Comes Next?
According to the organizers, both men take the race one year at a time. They also have their eyes on the 50th Chicago Marathon, which the organizers say will be run in 2028. Kozlowski said he hopes to finish 50 marathons before he hangs up the shorts for good.
One year at a time is a plan anyone can borrow. Think of the tradition you have kept since the 1970s, and put next year’s date on the calendar. Gym shorts optional.