After four decades of tradition, a long-standing fitness event called “The Quad” is seeing its founders retiring and stepping back from the games.
Past and present supporters of the Quad attended a Banquet at the Brewerie at Union Station Sunday afternoon, where they shared achievements and memories.
For 40 years, Erie County has been home to one of the most successful and long-running fitness events in what its founder says is unlike anything else in the world.
“There’s only one Quad Games in the Universe and it’s right here in Erie,” said Craig Latimer, the founder of the Quad Games.
The Quad Games have thrived in Erie since their inception back in 1983, featuring four races held throughout the year.
Those races centered around swimming, biking, running, and skiing. But after some time, the games became about more than winning.
Participants became a tight knit community.
“I thought that hey, this’ll be a really good way for people to stay in shape, do four events a year, four different sports over the course of the year. It’ll be a nice yardstick to measure yourself,” Latimer said. “But I never imagined the social relationships that would come out of it. This thing became like a festival of friends.”
After 40 years, founders and organizers are stepping away from the quad and thanking all of its participants over the years.
Throughout the Quad Games 40-year history, there have been many competitors but only some that have competed in all 40 years of events.
“At the completion of a given event, your next challenge is to be prepared for the next event. So, when the swim is over, alright I’ve got to get ready to for my bicycle. It just keeps you so active over the whole season,” Rick Rodland, a 40-year competitor in the quad.
“Finally, after about 30 years, everybody’s saying, ‘you’ve got to keep it going, you’ve got to keep it going.’ So, all of my friends kept edging me on in order to get out there all the way to the 40s,” said Ron Graff, another 40-year competitor in the quad.
Graff said that in his later years, he had to do some serious training in order to continue staying strong enough to compete, but it’s always worth it.
“This probably couldn’t happen anywhere but Erie,” Graff stated.
Latimer said that while he is stepping away from the quad, others are moving forward hoping to continue to build the games into something spectacular.