BIDDEFORD — Calvin Dunwoody started to climb as he programmed the step machine in the cool air conditioning of the fitness room Thursday at the Northern York County YMCA.
“I used to do this with a backpack and weights,” he said, referring to his training methods for reaching the summit of various peaks.
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The Kennebunk resident is no longer climbing mountains, but just weeks away from his 90th birthday, age has barely slowed him down.
YMCA staff fondly call him “Cal” and describe him as an inspiration. He is the oldest male gym member and a regular fixture in the fitness room and pool, said YMCA spokeswoman Kris Allard.
“You look at him and say, ‘I want to be Cal when I grow up,”‘ Allard said.
As Dunwoody picked up the pace on the stair machine, the leg muscles under his tanned skin flexed with each step. Physical activity has played a large role in his life since he retired from his career as a forester for the state of Rhode Island.
Since moving to Maine about 20 years ago, Dunwoody has been visiting the YMCA a few times each week. If the pool is quiet, he swims laps. If not, he spends 45 minutes on the rowing machine, about 20 minutes on the step machine and then wraps up with 10 miles on the stationary bicycle.
In March, Dunwoody finished at the top of his age group during the YMCA’s Annual Indoor Triathlon, completing 20 minutes each of swimming in the pool, cycling on a stationary bike and running on a treadmill. Allard said he won for the age group simply because he was the sole competitor in his bracket, with the next-oldest participants in their 60s and 70s.
“That was my swan song,” Dunwoody said, because he expects it to be his last triathlon.
Dunwoody came to be a triathlete in what he describes as a “backwards way.” In his early 60s, he said he had trouble with a tendon in his foot, which sidelined him from running. He picked up swimming and cycling as a way to stay active.
Then he learned about a triathlon happening in Rhode Island and challenged one of his three sons. The race was a 1.5-mile swim, 56-mile bike ride and a 10-kilometer run, Dunwoody said.
Dunwoody never finished that event, because in the early days of triathlons, athletes changed clothing between legs of the race.
When he arrived at the transition from cycling to running, Dunwoody said his gear had gone missing.
“I said, ‘Well, I’ll try again next year.”‘
The following year he finished with a time that qualified him to compete in an Ironman triathlon in Hawaii. He opted out of that race, but over the course of the next 10 years he completed more than 20 triathlons and raced at least once in each of the New England states.
Well traveled, Dunwoody has also climbed peaks around the globe and spent a 10-year period after retirement climbing the highest peak in each of the 50 states.
He started with Mt. McKinley in Alaska, and worked his way to the lowest peak, Britton Hill in Lakewood Park, Fla.
“You’ve got to have something to look forward to,” Dunwoody said of his ability to keep busy.
In two weeks, Dunwoody will be on a plane to visit his daughter in Washington to celebrate his 90th birthday on July 17.
“I have to keep busy,” he said. “I have to keep doing something. I can’t just sit down in a rocking chair.”
Staff Writer Emma Bouthillette can be contacted at 791-6325 or at:
ebouthillette@pressherald.com
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