During the late 1960s and ‘70s road racers were in awe of a few “hardy old men" who clearly enjoyed the chase as they did. They earned the respect and admiration of their younger counterparts. Among them were Rev. Harry Trask, Dick Goodie, Elden Collins and Phil Harmon. These were the pioneers of age group running at a time when older runners got little recognition, at least at the awards table. As these durable old timers left competitive road racing, another runner of note caught the fascination of younger runners during the 1980s. This was Carlton Mendell of Portland. Mendell was a nationally-ranked veteran road racer who made a name for himself as an ironman of the marathon and ultras.

Running his very first road race at age 50, this one-time semi-pro football player had run 100 marathons by age 73. In 1992, at age 70, he ran the second fastest marathon in his age group in the country, 3:30 and, when he was 71, he set North American records at 100-K and 50 miles.

A native of New Bedford, Massachusetts, born on Oct. 19, 1921, he credits his involvement in athletics to an aunt who gave him a membership at the New Bedford YMCA. Mendell went to Western Maryland College on a football scholarship. He also ran the 880 in track and took second in a meet against Johns Hopkins in 1941.

Mendell did some racing after college as an aviation cadet at Monroe, Louisiana, where he ran the half-mile. In 1940, Mendell played semi-pro football for the Murphy Club of New Bedford, Maryland, and in 1947 played in the New England Pro Football League with Lonsdale in Rhode Island.

An insurance professional, Mendell first got involved in distance running in 1971 after reading an article about Portlander Dick Goodie, a runner and race director who was involved in the Maine Masters. Mendell ran his first road race at age 50 in the 1972 Portland Boys Club 5-Miler. He quickly became an avid runner and a prolific road racer, running 60 to 70 races a year that typically included six marathons, three in the spring and three in the fall.

By age 62, Mendell, who was 6 feet and 151 pounds, had set 15 national age-group records. In February, 1993, at age 71, he set North American age-group records for 100-K (11:27:10), and 50 miles (9:21:53). On September 2, 1984, at age 62, he finished first overall in a 24-hour race at Brunswick, Maine, covering 125.5 miles.

When he was 64, he won another 24-hour race at Westport, New York on July 20, 1986, covering a distance of 100.5 miles. In 1992, he ran a total of 84 races, and by the time he was 79, he'd run 135 marathons.

Over the years, Mendell has belonged to the Maine Masters, Maine Rowdies, and the Maine Track Club. He was named Maine Track Club's "Runner of the Year" in 1989, and was chosen Maine Runner of the Year in 1992. He was Mainely Running's "athlete of the month" two times. He was also presented with the Bruce Ellis Award by the Central Maine Striders in 1987.

"Since I joined the running community in 1971, I have never met a nicer group of people. It has enriched my life so much," said Mendell in 1994.

Even in the years after his induction into the Maine Running Hall of Fame in 1996, Mendell continued to dominate his age group. For instance, in the annual Mt. Washington hill climb in 1997, he won his age group by over 12 minutes and he holds the course record for his age. He began serving on the Maine Running Hall of Fame Selection Committee in the mid 1990s. Maine Running Hall of Fame member Russ Bradley is a runner who traveled to many races with Mendell and was one of his biggest rivals. Bradley remembers one incident, back in 1993, when he organized a 60-plus team from Maine to compete in the Lake Winnipesaukee Relay Race in New Hampshire. He picked Mendell to be on the team. Most of team members drove down the day before the race, held in Meredith. Mendell decided to make the trip on the day of the race. It started at 8 a.m.

Mendell always arrived at races in plenty of time, so when 7:30 a.m. rolled around Bradley started to worry. "I was a basket case," Bradley remembers. Without Mendell, they would not have enough runners to make up a team. Mendell thought that the race started at Weirs Beach, about two miles from the actual start. He'd been sitting there in his car reading a newspaper when he realized that there weren't any runners around. He found someone and asked where the race started. At 7:50 a.m., Mendell pulled up to the race start. "Our team, ‘The Maineiac 60s’ won our age group that day with a time of 8:09:01," said Bradley, "All is well that ends well!"

Another Bradley tale: "Several years ago at the Killarney's 10-K I had a new training program that was paying off. I had a good one going that day. Nearing the finish line I saw a familiar figure. It was Carlton Mendell. I couldn't believe it! Would I turn it on or turn it off. ‘Oh, what the hell.’ I turned it on and nipped the legendary Carlton Mendell at the tape. Carlton was the first to congratulate me and assured me he didn't have a bad day. He said it was a good time for him. I had ridden up to the race with Carlton and thought I might have to ride home in the trunk of his car. However, he let me sit right up front with him," said Bradley.