GUEST SPEAKERS

GUEST SPEAKER

BART YASSO

Bart Yasso Inducted into Running USA Hall of Champions

Emmaus, PA (February 09, 2007) - Bart Yasso, race and event promotion
manager for Runner's World, was inducted into the Running USA Hall of
Champions at their annual awards dinner last week in San Diego. Yasso
was recognized for his contribution, impact and dedication to the sport
of running.

Yasso joined Runner's World in 1988 to develop the groundbreaking
Runner's World Race Sponsorship Program, creating a vehicle for Runner's
World to work with over 6,000 races representing 3.5 million runners per
year. Yasso also invented the Yasso 800s, a marathon-training schedule
used by thousands around the world. He is one of the few people to have
completed races on all seven continents from the Antarctica marathon to
the Mt. Kilimanjaro marathon. In 1987, Yasso won the U.S. National
Biathlon Long Course Championship and won the Smoky Mountain Marathon in
1998. He has also completed the Ironman five times and the Badwater 146
through Death Valley. He has also cycled, unsupported and by himself,
across the country twice.
Upon receiving this prestigious award, Yasso said, "I have crossed over
1,000 finish lines in my running career, but none of those can compare
with the honor I felt with my induction in to the Running USA Hall of
Champions. To receive this honor, in front of the 300 most influential
people in the running industry, is something I will cherish for life."

Running USA is a tax-exempt, non-profit, association founded in 1999
devoted to improving the status of road racing and long distance running
in the United States.

 

Bart Yasso has written a book called My Life on the Run. Bart has incredible stories of his running exploits around the world. This book is guaranteed to be a hit with anyone who runs.

My Life on the Run: The Wit, Wisdom, and Insights of a Road Racing Icon (Hardcover)
by
Bart Yasso (Author), Kathleen Parrish (Author), Amby Burfoot (Foreword)

Purchase the book here.

Lisa Bentley

10-Time Ironman Champion

 

www.lisabentley.com

Career Highlights

11-time Ironman Champion

Motivational speaker

5-time Ironman Australia Champion

3-time Ironman Canada Champion

2-time Ironman New Zealand Champion

1-time Ironman Germany Champion

Ironman marathon best is 2:58 – Ironman Australia

Member of the Canadian Pan American Games Team, 1995 – Olympic distance Triathlon

Actively involved with Cystic Fibrosis charity and honorary member of Cops 4 Cancer

Former math and computer science high school teacher 1992-1999

 

Dick Beardsley

Dick Beardsley: A Short Biography

As a professional runner, Dick Beardsley is best known for his incredible race in the 1982 Boston Marathon. That race, on a very hot day, was dubbed the "Duel in the Sun" as Beardsley battled world record holder Alberto Salazar down to the finish line. Both broke the American record: Salazar winning in a record time of 2:08:51, Beardsley two seconds back in 2:08:53!

After a successful running career, tragedy struck in November 1989. Beardsley was using an auger on his farm to lift corn into a bin when somehow he became entangled in the auger and it began to tear him apart.

That was just the beginning. Over the next few years, Dick was involved a severe car accident, then later was hit by a truck while running, still later he rolled his vehicle in a snowstorm, and finally while hiking one day, the ground gave out and he fell off a cliff! He ended up in the hospital each time and had multiple surgeries to try and put him back together.

Due to all the pain medication he was on, he became addicted—and that's when his life really started to spiral out of control.

Dick has since completely turned his life back around and has enjoyed his sobriety since 1997.

Today, he enjoys life and running more than ever. He is living in Austin, Texas and is a competitive Masters runner, still completing marathons across the U.S. and beyond.

In 2002, he authored a book called "Staying the Course: A Runner’s Toughest Race."

Dick is a captivating motivational/inspirational speaker who visits schools, corporations, and races around the world.

The Dick Beardsley Foundation was recently established to help individuals who cannot afford treatment for chemical dependency. The work of the Foundation will allow Dick to travel to schools around the country, talking to children about positive, active lifestyles and being chemically free.

For more information, go to: dickbeardsley.com