{"id":6288,"date":"2019-10-10T16:03:28","date_gmt":"2019-10-10T23:03:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/sports\/?p=50000000347"},"modified":"2019-10-11T12:28:30","modified_gmt":"2019-10-11T19:28:30","slug":"despite-parkinsons-and-possible-meteor-strikes-tom-pontac-keeps-running-the-lb-marathon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/sports\/despite-parkinsons-and-possible-meteor-strikes-tom-pontac-keeps-running-the-lb-marathon","title":{"rendered":"Despite Parkinson’s and possible meteor strikes, Tom Pontac keeps running the LB Marathon"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tom Pontac, one of 15 legacy runners participating in Sunday\u2019s 35th Jet Blue Long Beach Marathon, was describing not only what it’s like to have run in all 35 events, but what it\u2019s like to do it as an 83-year-old dealing with Parkinson\u2019s Disease.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt this point, it\u2019s really just about keeping my balance,\u201d he said. “I tend to lean to the left and forward now. I probably had a few mini-strokes on my left side as well. I keep reminding myself: You have to move with intent. With Parkinson\u2019s, things that used to be normal\u2014running, walking downstairs, standing up straight\u2014you can still do, but you have to think about it because it\u2019s not a natural reflex. The part of your brain that stores muscle memory isn\u2019t operating the way it should, so you have to take the dopamine.\u201d<\/p>\n

He paused to reflect on what he was trying to explain, then added:\u00a0\u201cHaving said all that, screw it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Indeed. Pontac has run in every Long Beach Marathon and then some, including the race\u2019s incarnations before that 1982 launch, even if the last few appearances have been scaled back to the 13-mile, half-marathon variety.<\/p>\n

Still, there is nothing leisurely about how the Seal Beach Leisure World resident has pushed himself to this point. Having run in some 300 marathons, Pontac decided in 2015, just seven weeks after undergoing 44 weeks of radiation treatments for cancer, he would focus on half marathons instead.<\/p>\n

Then came the Parkinson\u2019s diagnosis.<\/p>\n

Devastated, he said he curled up in bed for a week, deeply depressed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was thinking: What the hell else is next, a meteor strike? I finally figured out, that isn\u2019t going to work. Let\u2019s go run.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even if it means he needs to bring along a couple of trek poles to stay steady, even if it means recruiting some loyal friends to run alongside him for support.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Tom Pontac, 83 of Seal Beach, will run in the Long Beach Marathon (he is doing the half marathon this time) with two aides by his side as he battles Parkinson\u2019s Disease. He is also a cancer survivor and has run in more than 300 marathons in his life. He is one 15 surviving \u201clegacy\u201d runners who did the original race in 1982, in Seal Beach Thursday, October 10, 2019. Photo by Thomas R. Cordova.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Pontac isn’t one to go the expected route. Consider that, at age 60, he left behind a career in commercial furniture sales and challenged himself go to Cal State Long Beach and get a bachelor\u2019s degree in psychology, plus a certificate in gerontology so he could help create programs helping older athletes. One of those challenging him? His wife, Dr. Jeanne Pontac, a psychologist who works with U.S. war veterans.<\/p>\n

The CSULB degree led to Pontac starting the Leisure Leggers running club 20 years ago where the average member is in their 70s, their late<\/em> 70s.<\/p>\n

As Pontac\u2019s marathon career started in his 40s, it has taken him from L.A. to New York, Paris and London and grown to include ultra-marathons\u2014he’s competed in a dozen such events on Catalina’s rugged terrain\u2014he said at one time he was doing an event every other week for a year in his 50s, often finishing in three-and-a-half hours. He\u2019s thankful to get through a half-marathon now in about two hours, and appreciative of the crowd support along the way that helps fuel his energy.<\/p>\n

As part of the Long Beach Marathon\u2019s legacy group, Pontac has pride in \u201cbeing the living link to the very first race. We appreciate the respect we get from the organizers. This really make us old geezers feel pretty special. It ain\u2019t over til it\u2019s over.<\/p>\n

“Someone once asked the patriarch of the Flying Wallendas family why they continued to do tightrope walking when, time after time, some would fall off and die. He said: \u2018When I\u2019m up on the wire, I\u2019m alive. The rest of the time, I\u2019m just waiting.\u2019 That\u2019s how it still is when you cross the finish line of a race. You are alive in a full way that you can\u2019t experience any other way. The only limitations you have is what you put into your mind.<\/p>\n

\u201cI heard a story once about Clint Eastwood\u2014he just turned 88 and was still directing movies. He was asked how he kept such a young attitude. He said: \u2018I wake up every morning and say to myself, ‘Don\u2019t let the old man in.\u2019 That\u2019s what I do, get up every morning, start stretching, and don\u2019t let the old man in. Maybe you can\u2019t lift as much weight or swim as far. But there is very little you can\u2019t do. You just might not be as fast as you used to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

As proof to himself, he started going to a boxing club, Rock Steady Boxing, twice a week to help combat the Parkinson\u2019s, which he says has not gotten to the stage where he feels tremors. He’s also is on the rowing machine three times a week.<\/p>\n

\u201cActually, I\u2019m in better shape now than when I was first diagnosed,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

And yes, you may have noticed, Pontac is a bit of talker. He’s also a published poet and continues to write verse as a therapeutic way to keep sharp. At his most recent birthday celebration, six months ago, he decided to write one about himself.<\/p>\n

As he shared it with friends, he did so by singing it to the tune of \u201cLook At Me, I\u2019m Sandra Dee,\u201d from the hit musical \u201cGrease.”<\/p>\n

Look at me, I\u2019m 83<\/em><\/p>\n

With a few infirmities<\/em><\/p>\n

Still my child is wild and free<\/em><\/p>\n

Although I\u2019m 83<\/em><\/p>\n

Look at me, I\u2019m 83<\/em><\/p>\n

Lousy with serenity<\/em><\/p>\n

The kid inside, I cannot hide<\/em><\/p>\n

Although I\u2019m 83<\/em><\/p>\n

Look at me, I\u2019m 83<\/em><\/p>\n

The future still looks great to me<\/em><\/p>\n

It looks as if it\u2019s my fate to be<\/em><\/p>\n

Around at 83<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Pontac is one of 15 runners who has participated in all 35 Jet Blue Long Beach Marathon and Half Marathons<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":17071,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","inline_featured_image":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":"","_":"","_author_alias":"","cap-aim":"","cap-description":"","cap-display_name":"","cap-first_name":"","cap-jabber":"","cap-last_name":"","cap-linked_account":"","cap-newspack_employer":"","cap-newspack_job_title":"","cap-newspack_phone_number":"","cap-newspack_role":"","cap-user_email":"","cap-user_login":"","cap-website":"","cap-yahooim":"","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_email_html":"","newspack_email_type":"","newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_hide_page_title":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_show_share_buttons":"","newspack_sponsor_byline_prefix":"","newspack_sponsor_disclaimer_override":"","newspack_sponsor_flag_override":"","newspack_sponsor_only_direct":"","newspack_sponsor_url":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_show_updated_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"coauthors":[545],"class_list":["post-6288","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6288","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6288"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6288\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17071"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6288"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6288"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6288"},{"taxonomy":"newspack_spnsrs_tax","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_spnsrs_tax?post=6288"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=6288"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}