80-year-old Grand Island man runs fastest recorded mile by an American in his age group

Less than a week after setting a new national record in the road mile for his age group, Lynn Rathjen already has his sights set on the next accomplishment.

The 80-year-old retired physical therapist is training to break the age group records in the 800 and 1,500 meter races at the national championships in Alabama this weekend.

“If the conditions are right, I'd like to run about 2:46 in the 800 and in the 1500 about 5:47, 5:48, something like that," he said, while running along a street in his Grand Island neighborhood.

And Rathjen has good reason to believe he can do it.

On July 6, Rathjen raced the Lincoln Mile in a time of 6 minutes and 17 seconds. That mark beat the previous American record for 80-to 84-year-old men by more than 50 seconds, though the official record is still pending.

Lincoln Mile organizer Ann Ringlein, who has known Rathjen for almost 50 years, said she was amazed to see Rathjen move so smoothly.

“I'm like, ‘Who is this? This older person just flying by, just like the elite runners?’ He was finishing the race with the same form - not quite the same speed - but the same form, the same - just flying up in the air. And that just doesn't happen in that first heat" she said. "I mean, as we get older, we just get stiffer, and we are clunkier, but not Lynn.”

But Rathjen was hoping he could’ve gone even faster.

“It was kind of a hot and humid day and so I knew that that would compromise the time a little bit," he said. "I was hoping for like a 6:08, but then 6:17 was what it came out to be, but I was okay with it.”

Rathjen ran track at Beatrice High School and spent several weeks on the track team at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln before deciding the sport wasn’t for him.

He didn’t pick up running again until his 30s, when he ran alongside his son, Andrew, in local 10K races. Rathjen’s quest for age group records didn’t begin until recently.

“I was 74 when my son said, 'You know, you're going to turn 75 next year, and you can get some of these records. So why don't we go to the outdoor meet and see how you do against some of these guys?'” he said.

The following year, Rathjen set the road mile national record for the 75- to 79-year-old age group at the Lincoln Mile.

Since then, Rathjen’s also set age group national records in the 800 meter, 1,500 meter and 3,000 meter races at the U.S.A. Track and Field Masters Indoor Championships in Florida.

His training regimen consists of fewer miles than most other elite runners. Rathjen says other competitors he’s met run more than 100 miles each week, but he averages closer to 20.

“It's mostly easy runs, except for once a week, I'll do something fast, or do some intervals. And about every other week I would do a tempo run, and that's about it," he said.

He credits the strategy with keeping him relatively injury-free. As for his diet?

“I had people asking me that at the Lincoln Mile. They said, 'What do you eat? And I said, Well, pizza.' So I don't really have real specifics on diet. I just eat whatever there is, and a lot of it," Rathjen said.

Rathjen said he’s enjoyed chasing after records, but he considers it a small part of his life. Instead, he looks to his faith and grandkids as his life’s priorities.

"I glorify the Lord with everything that I do, and I want to glorify the Lord with my running," he said. "And so that's what's really important to me. And if I didn't get any notice at all, I mean, if the record just got put in there and you could see it there, that'd be fine with me, because I don't really care that much.”

Rathjen's son Ryan said he's always looked up to his father because of his faith and work ethic.

“I've always strived to be as much like my dad as I can," he said. You know, people don't ever want to grow up to be their parents, but honestly for me, that would be a great thing.”

While not every 80-year-old can run a 6:17 mile, Lynn Rathjen encourages people of all ages to consider aerobic exercise well into their senior years.

“We used to say you may not live longer, but you'll be healthier during the time you live," he said. "But now they're actually saying there's a correlation with doing aerobic exercise and actually living longer. So I would encourage people to consider doing some type of aerobic exercise, biking, running, walking, but keep active.”

Rathjen plans to follow his own advice and said he’ll consider going after 85-year-old age records if he’s still "alive and going."