Paul Soskind
by Amy Duquette
I first met Paul Soskind at a PPTC monthly meeting.
"Oh, you’re the walker?" I asked.
"Yup." Paul replied, straight faced.
Then he paused for a moment, pointed at me, and said, "OK, next race, you’re my target." I chuckled, but he was
serious. Those familiar with Paul’s "walking" realize that it’s no joke. One of his race-walking PR's is 26:58
in the 5K. This type of "walking" is certainly no stroll in the park.
Before taking up race-walking, Paul was running. Before running, Paul, an only child born and raised in Brooklyn,
was ‘kicking the can’ in the streets of Bath Beach. This led him to what he considers his first love, soccer.
It was obvious that he could run faster than all his teammates, but he would soon be drawn to much longer distances
than the sprints soccer required. He attended Lincoln and then Lafayette High Schools where he ran a near 50-second
quarter mile on the track team before being moved to the half mile and mile. However, Paul’s interest was not in
sprinting, but in testing how many times he could loop around the track. Ten miles was the highest he reached at
that time. He liked venturing into "uncharted territory", pushing his body to go where it had not been. These
early miles were perhaps the makings of what would be a multi-marathoner and ultra-marathoner.
Paul finished college in New York and then began to work as an art teacher and physical education teacher in the
city schools. During this time, he took a break from running. He returned to the sport three years into his
professional career when he was looking for some relaxation after a day of teaching middle school. On New Year’s
Day 1976 he was out for an early morning run when he was knocked down with great force by an intoxicated partier
from the night before. Paul landed hard on the ice. The injuries from that fall resulted in a cast being placed
on his right leg from his ankle to his hip. He was out of work for the rest of the year. Paul's not the type of
person to be out of motivation or hope in any situation. "I’m like a snake and shed my skin to fit into any
situation that does not fit. I’ve adapted to change all my life." So Paul let himself heal and as soon as he
could hobble around the park he was out there again. Phil Heit, one of the original PPTC members, saw him in the
park with his crutches and urged him to heal up and then join him in his marathon training. Phil encouraged Paul
to go slow and build up his miles.
The advice was taken and Paul joined PPTC that year, with Harry Murphy’s approval. He saw Paul run when he was in
high school and recalled the name and the talent and welcomed him into the exclusive club. In 1977 Paul ran his
first marathon in New York. He was expecting a 3:30 finish, but crossed the line at 2:56. "I was at the 1/2 at 1:30
and did not even feel like I was running...As soon as I finished I was thinking of longer distances, wondering what
I could do." Three weeks later, wasting no time to test his inquiry, he finished his first ultra-marathon race, a
50 miler, in 6:50. At that finish, he was finally tired.
Paul went on to complete a number of marathons, he lost count after 25 or 30 26.2s, and maybe 75 to a 100
ultra-marathons. At the beginning, he averaged about eight a year. When he broke Ted Corbitts’ American Record
in the ultra completing 134 miles and 1,341 yards in a 24 hour endurance test, Ted personally sent him a
congratulatory letter, welcoming him into "uncharted territory".
In 2001, Paul would again have to shed his skin and adapt. His race times were slower and his recovery times were
getting longer. Then at one point, after sitting for a very long time he stood up to what felt like "...fire in my
knee. The doctor said they could scoop it out now, and do a replacement later, but I said, No thanks, I’ll find
something else." Paul believes that "when something does not work, you better let it go and find something else
or you’ll be committing a slow suicide."
So he never ran again and began race walking. He never felt knee pain again, lost a substantial amount of weight
and wishes he discovered it 30 years ago. He walks every day until he needs a break, averaging 35 to 40 miles a
week. "Walking is very difficult. It is way more intense; you use your full body and the experience is like a
sprint. (Other runners) have tried it but gave up because it was too hard. I feel good every morning when I wake
up. Walking took about 20 years off my life." Paul will be 65 this October and plans to continue to improve on
his times for the next ten years.
The NY Road Runner’s community has embraced Paul as a consistent figure in the field of race-walking. He is
recognized by many as "the walker". A documentary film on race-walking, titled ‘From The Hip’ featuring Paul
and fellow NYC race walker, Alex Davidson, as they compete through the Queens Half Marathon and is due to be
released soon. Paul continues to race various distances, including a 6-hour race in Staten Island where he
completed a little over 50K.
Paul is still discovering new things about himself through his racing, but his has many varied interests. He
has continued to paint oils, frescos and mosics. Paul is well read, especially in poetry, and has long been
attracted to vintage cameras. He’s also studied Tarot cards for over 20 years and has a mythical affinity that
keeps him very open to spiritual experiences. He’ll engage very quickly in conversations about our unconscious
and how it works. Seeking harmony within the body and doing things in life because we are each on our own
journey, not because others expect things from us, is a passion for Paul.
For each mile Paul has run or walked on the asphalt, he has world experiences and stories to tell. "You know
how they say a cat has nine lives? Oh, I’ve probably lived seven and a half of mine by now." These various lives
include his hitchhiking adventures across the United States in the 1960’s and his work experience in a cannery
in Alaska. Paul has flown on the Concord twice. He was an avid scuba diver and stunt pilot in the early 80’s
until those hobbies were sidelined by a bad cased of bacterial meningitis. Paul was a jazz guitarist until he
fell off his motorcycle onto his left side, leaving his left thumb unable to fret a guitar. "I think we should
always avail ourselves to opportunities whenever they come along" he believes. The remainder of Paul’s nine
lives will surely incorporate many miles and many new adventures.