It’s probably safe to say that Leroy Fanning is enjoying the best days of his life right now.
His daily schedule isn’t what it used to be, but it should be a lot less demanding once you retire.
Fanning had a long and productive career at UTC where he was a professor in the health and physical education department. He was the department head when he retired in 2012 after 41 years on the job and now holds the proud title of UC Foundation Professor Emeritus.
But for a guy who preached fitness and the benefits in brings, he was one who talked the talk and walked the walk.
And he was really good at it.
Leroy was born in San Diego and raised in Morganza, La.
where he earned his undergraduate degree at Southeast Louisiana in Hammond.
He then earned his Masters at UT-Knoxville and later his Doctorate from the University of Georgia.
“I had planned to be a teacher,” the 72-year-old Fanning said earlier this week while relaxing in the lobby of the downtown YMCA.
His teaching career began at Georgia Southwestern in Americus where he was on the faculty from 1966-70. That’s when he came to Chattanooga and that’s where he spent the rest of his teaching career.
He also made a name for himself as a pretty good distance runner.
He played football, basketball and track in high school where he was pretty good on each, but it wasn’t until later that he discovered a love and talent for distance running.
“I thought I was a quarter-miler as I had an older brother who was a world-classed sprinter. I finally figured out that I was a distance runner after I got out of college,” he continued.
He ended up running some 55 marathons with a personal best of 2:34:50 at Chickamauga in the early 80s.
“My first marathon was at Snow Hill in 1975. The first one was ugly as my time was 3:18, but I finished,” he remembered.
“I was later able to run faster than a six-minute pace for four marathons, including once at Boston, once at Huntsville and twice at Chickamauga,” he said proudly.
While Leroy always ran near the front with some impressive performances along the way, he only won one race in his running career and that was a 5K at Sewanee.
“My son was going to school at St. Andrews-Sewanee and he wanted me to come up there for a race. I don’t remember what my exact time was, but it was under 18 minutes and I won,” he laughed.
“My last race was the old Red Bank race in 1985. It was 8.4 miles and Doug Hawley finished hand in hand. I was stronger than he was and would take the lead going up the hills, but he had better leg speed and would catch me on the flats. We really had fun that day, but finally decided to finish together after almost killing each other,” he nodded.
Fanning also got into the Ironman routine in 1983 when he and training partner Steve Underwood went to Hawaii for the world championship. That was back in the day when such events were new and there weren’t nearly as many to choose from.
“Steve and I did a bunch of triathlons to get ready for it, but my time that day was 11:40. I was 11th in the masters division, but Underwood beat me. That was the only Ironman I ever did,” he said.
Fanning and Underwood worked together at UTC and they trained together as well after becoming best friends. They often had memorable races with each bringing out the best in the other one.
“I remember doing the Joe Johnson 10K one year when I kept a 5:15 pace. It was one of my best races ever, but I finished second behind Steve as I couldn’t ever catch him, even on a good day,” he added.
Fanning later got really involved in the Chattanooga Track Club where he served as the vice president for a few years. Rita, his wife of 29 years, later became the first female president of the CTC and served in that capacity for three terms.
“Between us, we managed a lot of races for the Chattanooga Track Club. I credit members of the track club for helping me become a distance runner. Guys like Richard Park, Jay Paty and Joe McGinness were really instrumental in that.
Fanning also got involved in the Tennessee State Parks Running Tour where he was the overall winner in 1986. Another memorable race was a 5K in middle Tennessee where he had a personal best of 15:50, but again finished as the runner-up, this time to Jeff Stracener.
He did the Boston Marathon 10 times and also had 10 races between Snow Hill and Chickamauga. His last trip was in 1996 for the 100th Boston with his personal best on that course 2:36:50 in 1979.
“I was also at Boston the year Rosie Ruiz supposedly ran. I was coming out of the medical tent after getting treated for a blister when I ran into Bill Rodgers. We both agreed that there was no way she ran what she claimed,” he remembered, knowing that she was disqualified the next day.
So after years and years of high-intensity training where his weekly mileage totals could be anything between 50 and 100 miles, what’s he doing these days?
“My knees won’t let me do a whole lot of running, but I can still do three miles. I still do a lot of cross training and I spend more time on my bike than anything else. I’m still pretty fit, but it’s not for racing as that’s a different kind of fitness.
“These days, I probably put more miles on my bike than my car as I go about 20 miles two or three days a week. I come to Chattanooga about once every other week,” he said, knowing that he loves spending time at his spread in Trenton where he loves working in the yard and stays plenty busy keeping the five-plus acres mowed.
“I never had a negative experience with running. I only had one race where I didn’t finish and that was one year in Huntsville where it was really hot. I finally got to the 20-mile mark that year and decided that I’d had enough fun for one day. Somehow I always managed to finish,” he said.
“I take one day off a week from working out, but I’m living my bucket list. I teach a class at UTC every once in a while, but I want to stay active mentally and physically. I miss all of the kids, but I don’t miss all of the political stuff,” he added quietly.
“I never worried about where I finished in a race. I was always interested to see what my body was capable of doing on a certain day.
“I’ve had a great life. I’m married to the woman of my dreams and I had a great job where I wanted to be there every day. And now that we’re both retired, we both enjoy traveling,” he said, noting that they’re preparing for an 18-day cruise to London, Portugal and Spain among other places next month.
Leroy will celebrate his 73rd birthday on July 10, but he doesn’t look a day over 50.
He’s done an excellent job of taking care of his body all these years and he’s had a job where he got to show the results of lifestyle choices. But more importantly than anything, he was able to have a lot of fun along the way and played an instrumental role in many other’s lives as well.
So he’s been to the top of the mountain so to speak and he’s grateful for the opportunities he’s had along the way.
“When that day comes when I take my last breath, I don’t want anyone to shed a tear or to be sad because I’ve had a wonderful life,” he concluded.
(This is another feature on local runners in the Chattanooga area. If you have someone in mind who would make a good story, email John Hunt at nomarathonmoose@comcast.net)