Bob Winn

"Son, someday you’re gonna be a great runner."

Bob Winn credits his Wells, Maine, High School teacher Joe Murphy and running coach Ron Hankel for their influence in establishing his running career in 1973. “Joe got me going and Ron taught me what running was all about,” Bob remembers. He won the Western Maine Regional cross-country championship in 1977, finished second in the State Class B cross-country championship and State 2-mile meet, and, as an honor student, received the Senior Athlete Award.

At Central Connecticut College from 1977 through 1981, Bob was All-New England in cross-country and 10,000 meters, setting a school record 29:22 in that event. He set personal records (PRs) of 14:15 for 5K and 8:58 for 2 miles and achieved All-East honors in indoor track and cross-country. A three-time NCAA Championships qualifier, Bob was awarded Central Connecticut’s Gladstone Award as the school’s top senior athlete.

His post-collegiate successes were sparked by a comment from his idol, Maine Hall-of-Famer Ralph Thomas, who slowed down after passing Winn in a race, and said, “Son, someday you’re gonna be a great runner.” Winn has never forgotten that remark and says, “Ralph was a huge influence, I was always in awe of him.” Bob was also mentored by Hall-of-Famers Rick Krause and especially Brian Ziggy Gillespie, who helped coach Winn to greater times in the 1980s and 1990s.

With lowered mileage, increased speed work and rest, he set or shattered numerous course records at various distances, predominantly in Southern and Western Maine, and set these PRs:

4:10 mile

8:48 2-mile

14:10 5K

18:45 4-mile

23:38 5-mile

29:22 10K

1:02 20K

Marathon career highlights include:

several Boston Marathons

wins at Maine Coast and Casco Bay 2:23:46

4th at Philadelphia

2:26:38 as the first American at the 1994 Montreal Marathon

a lifetime best of 2:21 at the Columbus Men’s National Marathon.

At the prestigious Manchester, Conn., Thanksgiving Day Race, he placed 16^th in 23:02 for 4.76 miles against an international field. Other career highlights include:

winning the Portland Boys and Girls Club 5-miler

breaking the first-leg course record at the Lake Winnipesaukee Relays

a course record win at the Monmouth 15K

Maine Runner of the Year 1998

New England Runner Magazine Runner of the Year

Maine Track Club’s Runner of the Year 1992, 1994

USATF National ½-Marathon champion 2008.

Bob says, “I really love cross-country; it’s my best type of running.” As evidence:

Maine TAC Cross-Country Champion

top Maine finisher at the New England Cross Country Championships

National Masters Cross-Country Champion 2008, 2003, 2001, 1998

USATF Outstanding Cross-Country Athlete 2003.

Severe allergies and asthma have been challenges throughout his life. “I’ve learned to live with it, and tried not to let it bother me,” he says. “I wouldn’t have run this long if I did.”

Following his mentors, Bob Winn has taught and coached in Maine high schools for several years at Lawrence, York, Kennebunk and Wells, where his teams have won conference and regional meets, producing several state champions. “I like kids”, he says. “They help keep me running.” Aptly named, Bob Winn was the youngest honoree at the time of his induction into the Maine Running Hall of Fame in 1997.