70-year-old man sets World Record marathon time

BALA CYNWD (WTXF) - While everyone else is slowing down as they get older, Gene Dykes is speeding up -- albeit at a very steady pace.

The 70-year-old Bala Cynwyd native is a decorated marathon runner, with more that 100 races under his belt.

This past week, Dykes broke the World Record for his age group by 25 seconds at the Jacksonville Marathon.

A former computer programmer, Dykes was not always fleet of foot. When he attended college at Lehigh University, he was a golfer and a bowler.

But 12 years ago his competitive juices pushed him to start running.

"I'm a competitive kind of guy, but mainly competitive against the guy in the mirror," Dykes said. " I always want to beat my time from the previous year."

Sports medicine experts say that Dykes greatest advantage is that he didn't start racing until he was 58, which helped preserved his knees and joints.

With a rack of finisher jackets, a trove of trophies, and closet full of running shoes, Dykes has a few more miles on him and he's happy to inspire others his age to start.

"The important thing is to have a little bit of competitive spirit and want to try to do a little more than last week," Dykes said.