JFK, “The Soft American,” and the JFK 50 miler

As the President-elect, JFK penned an important article published in Sports Illustrated magazine which can be viewed at the link below.  His insistence that physical fitness was a key component to our greatest as a nation, eventually saw a nation-wide phenomenon of many communities nation-wide, hosting 50 mile walks. 

In three weeks I will run the JFK 50 mile race. This has been on my bucket list for a very long time, but it has been impossible during the past 20 years as the headmaster if a small boarding school the time surrounding Thanksgiving was always a big NCS event for our parents and students. 

The race website describes the history like this:

The JFK 50 Mile was first held in the spring of 1963.  It was one of numerous such 50 mile events held around the country as part of President John F. Kennedy's push to bring the country back to physical fitness.

When Kennedy was assassinated in November of 1963, most of these events were never held again.  The one here in Washington County, MD changed it's name from the JFK 50 Mile Challenge to the JFK 50 Mile Memorial in 1964.  The JFK 50 Mile in Washington County, MD is the only original JFK 50 Mile Challenge event to be held every year.

Although open to the public, the JFK 50 Mile is in spirit a military race.  It always has been and always will be.  In 1963, the initial inspiration behind the event came from then President John F. Kennedy challenging his military officers to meet the requirements that Teddy Roosevelt had set for his own military officers at the dawn of the 20th Century.  That Roosevelt requirement was for all military officers to be able to cover 50 miles on foot in 20 hours to maintain their commissions.  When word got out about the "Kennedy Challenge", non-commissioned military personnel also wanted to take the test themselves as did certain robust members of the civilian population.

https://www.si.com/vault/issue/43278/16