Fountain of Youth

Together, they run one of the most successful running specialty and event marketing and management companies in the United States. But the story of Jon and Betsy Hughes is really a love story:  a love for one another, a love for running and a love for making a difference in the lives of others. Listen in as the owners of Track Shack join Marc on FOY to talk about their journey as fitness entrepren...

Pickleball may have a silly sounding name, but it's one of the fastest growing sports in the United States.  There are more than 4.8 million players in the U.S., almost double the number from just five years ago, and more than 70 countries around the world playing pickleball. 81-year-old Dick Johnson won gold medals in mixed doubles at both the 2022 US Nationals and National Senior Games.  In this...

Scientists have proven beyond a doubt that healthy longevity is more of a lifestyle choice than it is a genetic blessing. Even if we are genetically predisposed to a long life, or conversely, if we're genetically predisposed to a short life, we do have the ability within us to overcome those predispositions, good or bad, by the lifestyle choices that we make each and every day. The stories of acti...

More than 90% of all the people who join a gym will quit within three months of first going and of those who don't quit, nearly 10% go to the gym less than once a month. Dr. Neil Kanterman was one of those with an on again/off again relationship with working out. Until he walked into a Crossfit gym and found community. In this episode of FOY, hear Neil's journey from out of shape ophthalmologist t...

What do rocket scientists do for fun?  Leza Harrison learned to ski as a student at Rollins College.  And she kept on skiing, while she worked as an engineer for NASA's space shuttle program and beyond.  Now 70, she's won over 30 national championships.  In today's FOY episode she tells Marc what keeps her skiing and how she succeeds as a masters athlete. GB Classic: Listen to our full interview w...

Chances are you had a bow and arrow set as a kid.  Or have watched either Robin Hood or Brave and thought archery was pretty cool.  So did Rod Menzer.  Only Rod discovered a local archery center in his hometown and found a passion that carried him all the way to a world championship.  Today Rod leads USA Archery, and he joins Marc on FOY to talk about the sport that's truly accessible to people of...

George Bernard Shaw said. "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing." Maybe he had Jo Dill in mind.  As an athlete, coach and administrator, Jo Dill has kept on playing for seven plus decades, in spite of many times having to create her own opportunities. In this episode of FOY the masters basketball, bowling and cornhole player, Dill talks with Marc about wha...

When Lynda Leopold was 9 years old, one of the worst tornadoes in Kansas City history ripped through her home, killing her mother and brother and ripping her dog from her arms.  She was thrown a quarter of a mile down the road and suffered devastating injuries.  It would take 51 surgeries to rebuild her, but resilience is Lynda's middle name. Now in her 70s, she's a masters swimmer determined to k...

When the U.S. Barefoot Waterskiing National Championships were first held back in 1978 Joe Knapp competed.  And he's competed every year since.  In 2021 Knapp, 66, swept titles in slalom, tricks and jumping in the senior men's division claiming his eighth U.S. overall title.  Joe shares with Marc what keeps him going, on the water and in life, and his end game for waterskiing – hint, it's not any...

In 1967 Kathrine Switzer became the first woman to officially register and run in the Boston Marathon; but that was just the beginning.  By the end of the race, she had her life's mission:  to provide opportunities for women all over the world to experience the same empowerment she felt through running. Switzer founded a global running initiative that has created events in 27 countries with over 1...

Studies show over 54% of adults can't swim well enough to save their own life and 39% of adults couldn't swim a single lap.  Yet swimming is an exercise that is as close to a fountain of youth as you can get. It's low impact, reduces blood pressure, increases muscle mass and bone density and flexibility, improves oxygen and blood flow to the brain. It's great for your overall cardiovascular health...

Once you've excelled at the highest level in your sport, won world and national championships, it's easy enough to walk away, to retire.  Or maybe be content with success as a national team coach.  But not Sue Baross Nesbitt. The masters artistic swimmer came back to the pool after nearly 40 of not competing and became a world champion again. In this edition of FOY Sue and Marc discuss why she ret...

If you talk to enough master's athletes, you realize very quickly that they have all encountered setbacks of some kind in their participation in their sport.  But it's how they respond to those setbacks that determine their longevity in sport and sometimes in life. Andy Leighton is a former tennis player who was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease more than a decade ago.  In this episode of FOY And...

Lia Coryell is an accomplished athlete with incredible skills. A two-time Paralympian archer, she also has progressive multiple sclerosis. However her example and her message are probably the greatest thing about her. And it's extremely important to all of us, every single one of us as we age, even if we're not athletes….maybe especially if we're not athletes. You are more than what happens to you...

Ray Glier has been a journalist for 40 years. He's a guy who could be writing about anything, and has: NFL, MLB, CFB and more. But what he loves to do more than anything else is write about masters sports for his newsletter, Geezerjocknewsletter.com. In this week's FOY Marc and Ray chat about some remarkable stories of masters athletes from around the world, and what Ray has learned from them. To...

What's more convenient than a team doc who's on the team?  Respected orthopedic surgeon and masters volleyball player Dr. Boyd Haynes joins Marc on FOY to talk about the variables we can and can't control in the aging process, the importance of motion and flexibility as we age, and the balance playing volleyball with The Bone Setters adds to his life. Read more about March 2020 NSGA Athlete of the...

Can you succeed as an elite athlete without animal protein?  Masters runner Ellen Jaffe Jones has done the research and is living proof you can. The accomplished masters athlete, personal trainer, coach, speaker, and author of six books joins Marc Middleton in this episode of FOY.  They discuss the family medical history that impelled her to choose a plant-based diet, the difference it's made in h...

In Episode 2 of Fountain of Youth, Marc Middleton chats with Del Moon, the Communications and Media Director for the National Senior Games Association - also known as head storyteller.   Sure, some masters athletes are former college stars and past Olympians.  But as Del relates, many are ordinary folks who have overcome adversity to keep on competing, in their 60s, 80s and even past 100. To watch...

In our premiere episode of Fountain of Youth Three-time Olympic gold medalist  Rowdy Gaines gives host Marc Middleton a fascinating inside look behind the scenes of the Tokyo Olympics, explains how the US boycott of the 1980s Summer Games affected him, and why he has such a passion for masters sports and masters athletes. To watch the video stories Marc & Rowdy talk about go to: A Masterclass in L...

Fountain of Youth podcast, coming January, 2022