Joe Henderson: I grew up in the Chicago suburbs. I've always loved to...

Who is your all time favorite television character and why? "Scrooge McDuck. A greedy, caustic duck who does what he wants and doesn't listen to anyone, followed around by three young nephews who are always getting into trouble? Clearly, the inspiration for House MD. Also, the guy freaking swam in money. Literally.

Joe Henderson

Our favorite: a former garbage dump converted into a riverside park. I first ran there more than 30 years ago when a marathon passed through this park that later became home to Pre's Trail.

Joe Henderson

more garbage marathon home

Ours is a life of constant reruns. We're always circling back to where we'd we started, then starting all over again. Even if we don't run extra laps that day, we surely will come back for more of the same another day soon.

Joe Henderson

will day back life

These thieves defend themselves by saying, 'I was there all the time, and the officials missed me.' Favorite excuses for missing surveillance checkpoints: jacket covered the number took off the shirt with the number hidden in a crowd.

Joe Henderson

saying me missing time

A lesser but still fundamental rule of racing is that you properly enter the event. Anyone who doesn't but still insists on running interferes with the paying customers.

Joe Henderson

event who you racing

I feared the verdict of the watch, where I either lost the race against time that day or would lose it soon by making the record even harder to break. The time trap had snapped shut.

Joe Henderson

lose day race time

In fact, the bandits steal the drinks and assistance provided along the course. Worse, they cross the finish line and mess up the scoring of legitimate runners.

Joe Henderson

worse finish finish-line mess

Speed eventually neared its peak. The records forced me to work ever harder to drop a less and less time. These time trials came to feel like races, which are fun to run sporadically but not daily.

Joe Henderson

daily me work time

That time is important. It gives a comforting illusion of permanence not found in running by the mile.

Joe Henderson

illusion important time comforting

That's how most of us would feel. But the sport has a few deviants without consciences.

Joe Henderson

us without feel how

The Chip also reduces the damage done by bandits. They still steal drinks and cheers along the course, but no longer scramble the paying runners' results. No entry fee, no Chip, no time or place.

Joe Henderson

place results done time

The hours, minutes and seconds stand as visible reminders that your effort put them all there. Preserve until your next run, when the watch lets you see how Impermanent your efforts are.

Joe Henderson

stand your you effort

The natural urge when running a distance is to push harder and finish sooner - to race against time. Every second behind a deadline is a little defeat.

Joe Henderson

push distance race time

The records fell easily at first. Dozens of seconds peeled away with every running of a course, and I could hardly wait for the next chance to improve.

Joe Henderson

wait first next chance

The results would have stayed on the watch face until the batteries died. But trying to make time stand still this way would have been a mistake. It is just as important to erase times eventually as to save them at first.

Joe Henderson

face mistake time way

They trained mostly by time periods, checking their pace for known distance only on special occasions.

Joe Henderson

only distance special time

This act demonstrates graphically a turning away the past and moving ahead. You now get to refresh your time in a friendly way by running with the watch instead of against it or away from it.

Joe Henderson

you time way past

Time means a great deal to every runner. It means everything to me, because most days miles don't count; only minutes do.

Joe Henderson

everything great me time

When running to fill a time quota, however, the reverse happens. You can't make that time pass any faster by rushing, so you settle into a pace that feels right to you at the moment. Each minute above a quota is a little victory.

Joe Henderson

moment you victory time

A course never quite looks the same way twice. The combinations of weather, season, light, feelings and thoughts that you find there are ever-changing.

Joe Henderson

thoughts you light weather

I grew up in the Chicago suburbs. I've always loved to write, and eventually found that television best fits my strengths. So beyond that, I suppose what inspired me was the idea of being able to work with a group of people week after week to craft entertaining stories.