The Monster Runner Award

The Monster Runner Award is designed to celebrate the runners in our community who excel in race finishes, overcome personal challenges, run personal bests, contribute to a better life for those around them, and go far beyond their comfort zone to find something special within.

Jane Dods is one of those unmistakable figures on the running scene – at 73, she’s still as competitive as ever, winning her age group in nearly every race she participates in. Recently, Jane took on the challenge of a muddy, hilly (1,000 ft elevation gain), grueling Shotgun Trail Blast 10K, winning her division, just as she had a week earlier in the Lucky Clover 5K, averaging 10:50 per mile pace. To date, Jane’s run hundreds of races, including 40-plus marathons (an average of 2 per year over the span of her running career). Jane’s running journey began in earnest in 1978 (when running wasn’t fashionable for women), and within a year she had finished her first marathon – the Western Hemisphere Marathon. She boasts a lifetime marathon best of 3:40:52, and is particularly proud of qualifying for Boston at age 50.

Those of you who see Jane out running on the paths and streets of Eugene or Springfield, would never know she’s a girl from Hollywood. She was born and raised in the big city, where she majored in music at UCLA, but Jane was always looking for new adventures and new challenges. Her travels have taken her global – living in Paris for a year and in Australia for another. She notes that travel has always been a significant part of her lifetime of happiness – and it was a journey up the interstate in 1990 that led her to the Eugene area. Finally being tired of the L.A. freeways, she relocated for work and the green of the Emerald Valley, never regretting the move.

After all the running and miles of travel, Jane’s still not finished. When asked what inspires her, she comments, “To get to the unknown.” She wants to keep running as long as she can - hopefully a walk or run on her 100th birthday. What has she learned through all her experiences? “The more you do it, the better you get, and ultimately it’s worth the work because the accomplishment feels so good,” she says. Jane’s obviously been working at reaching her goals for some time – she even remembers her first race, a kids run at age 3, where she won a big bunny. Seventy years later, the awards keep piling up. Thanks to Jane for being a great example of how we can all make a choice to actively seek the experience that leads to our personal unknown.