He climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro when he was 67 years old and the highest point of the equator when he was 70. He sailed from Seattle to Tahiti with his manufactured solar-powered vessel. He was one of the top U.S.A Masters Track and Field (USATF) athletes. He’s even authored his own book on surviving a tragic wind storm.
And as of last month, 82-year-old Kona resident Joe Wilcox added perhaps his greatest achievement to his decorated life resume.
On Dec. 7, 2024, Wilcox completed a goal that took nearly 50 years to reach. He completed running the distance that is equal to the circumference of the earth, which is roughly 25,000 miles (or roughly 950 marathons). Prior to completing the equatorial circumference of the globe last month, Wilcox finished the polar circumference (24,860 miles) of the earth on Oct. 26, 2024.
Being a well-respected mathematics and science professor for over four decades, Wilcox admitted that keeping track of his half-century progress came naturally for him.
“I’m a scientist, so I like to document things,” he told West Hawaii Today in a recent interview. “So I kept track of how many miles I ran per week. I don’t know how many miles I ran before I started logging them, such as running on the playground as a kid. But some of the early logged miles were before GPS (was invented), so I would measure a distance with a car odometer, and then I would run that distance a number of times.
“I wouldn’t say I don’t enjoy running. I enjoy the motion. But I’ve done it more for the health benefits. My heart rate’s probably in the 40s.”
Wilcox’s running journey en route to reaching his monumental goal was nothing short of impressive. He began taking running seriously in his 30s, when he applied for a secondary teaching position at Auburn High School in Auburn, Wash. While applying for the job, Wilcox was asked if he was interested in being the school’s new track and cross country coach.
“I had mostly been a football athlete in high school and college,” Wilcox said. “But I had read some track and field news. I’d been to some track meets. So I said, ‘Why not? I’ll do it.’
“And then, as I got older, I thought, ‘Well, I’m pretty good at running. I can run a mile in five and a half minutes.’ And so I thought, ‘I’ll make it my goal to break five minutes when I turn 40.’ And so I kept running more and more.”
Wilcox’s newfound hobby led to him competing in marathons by his early 40s. His fastest marathon came in 1983, when he ran in 2:52:46.8. That time would have eclipsed Greek running legend Spyridon Louis, who won the first modern Olympic marathon in 1896.
“A statue in Athens immortalizes his historical victory, so I privately smile at my own accomplishment,” Wilcox wrote in a Feb. 2009 edition of National Masters News.
On top of casually running over the next several decades, some of Wilcox’s achievements included an All-American Masters selection in the 3,000-meter run (12:32.29), 1,500-meter run (5:43.58) and the mile run (6:13.68) in 2008 at age 65. He additionally still holds the 5k record in the Kona Marathon at 18:44, set in 2004.
Serving as an instructor at the high school and college level, Wilcox hopped around quite a bit — living in Kansas, Utah, Washington and Alaska throughout his life. Despite the constant movement, his fitness consistency never wavered, and Wilcox slowly — but surely — crept closer to his 25,000-mile aspiration.
Moving to West Hawai‘i in 2007, his drive to keep working towards his goal was only heightened. Now living in picture-perfect, tropical weather, Wilcox knew he had no excuse to keep staying active. One of his favorite spots to run in town is along the iconic oceanside Ali‘i Drive. As he got closer and closer to his longtime milestone, he ran around 35 miles per week.
“I opened my lanai doors in 2007, and haven’t closed them since,” Wilcox said. “(Kona) is the first place I’ve ever lived where I didn’t think that I was on my way to somewhere else.”
Outside of running, Wilcox made time for several other different ventures, academically and athletically. He has taught full-time and part-time in astronomy, mathematics, physics and oceanography at the University of Hawai‘i – Hawai‘i Community College since moving to the island. Wilcox is also credited for helping revamp the school’s oceanography program. In 2008, he was named Associate Director of the Hawai‘i Space Grant Consortium, contributing written pieces for publications.
Being an avid rock climber in his youth, Wilcox was a part of the infamous Denali tragedy in the summer of 1967 — where he and 12 other mountaineers were caught in one of the biggest windstorms in Alaskan history when trying to reach the summit. The disaster claimed the lives of seven of the 12 climbers. Surviving to tell the tale, Wilcox authored White Winds (available to purchase on Amazon) in 1981, which recounts his memories on the mountain.
“The winds were probably 150 miles per hour at 20,000 feet,” Wilcox recalled. “I was one of the lucky ones.”
Since then, Wilcox has spoken at dozens of university lectures and mountaineer gatherings on mountain weather safety.
Years after his rock climbing days, Wilcox purchased and manufactured a solar-powered sailboat for the purpose of being environmentally-friendly for his long voyages. He captained passages from Seattle to Kona in 2003 and from Kona to Tahiti in 2005. Before venturing to Tahiti, Kealakehe High School students got the privilege of visiting WIlcox’s boat for research and educational purposes.
“There were nights when the waters were rough, and there were nights when things went smoothly and it was very calm,” Wilcox recalled of his oceanic journeys. “The night sky was amazing (at sea) — it’s very transparent and there’s nothing between you and the stars. It was a very unique experience.
“Running is only one segment of my life. I’ve done some other pretty intense things.”
No matter how many endeavors Wilcox juggled, he always managed to find consistency with his fitness to ultimately reach his seemingly-impossible running goal — which was his biggest piece of advice when asked about recommendations for staying active at an advanced age. While he admitted that he’s scaled back the intensity of his workouts since reaching the 25,000-mile mark, he still finds time each week to get some movement in.
“Different things work for different people,” Wilcox said. “For some, it’s about keeping track of what you do. For others, it’s about the enjoyment of just being out and moving, and they never write it down. (What’s important) is finding the right consistency for yourself and what works for you.
“My Olympic coaching friend once said, ‘It’s all about consistency and specificity.’ And of course, being the best you can be. I think those things go a long way.”
Special mahalo to Ann Smith for reaching out with this story idea.
