29 Jan 2004 PTCRC HALL OF FAME INDUCTEE BILL MCBRIDE
The Peachtree City Running Club lost one of its original members on August 3, 2008. Bill McBride was a 30-year resident of Peachtree City and had been running almost as long. He was retired from the Environmental Protection Agency where he was the Director of Grants and Contracts.
Bill joined the running club after receiving a phone call from Mary Ann Crofton asking him to attend a kick-off meeting. He attended that first meeting and the rest is history. The names of those attending that meeting are engraved on the plaque at the water fountain located next to the boat dock. Bill describes his joining as the “third best move of his life.” His second best move was moving to Peachtree City and of course “my best move was marrying Linda,” his wife of 35 years. Bill and Linda have three children, Debbie, Mike, and Scott and three grandchildren with another on the way at the time of his passing.
When Bill was eight years old, his father decided to give up farming and become a white-collar worker. He landed a job as the Business Manager for the Georgia State Prison in Reidsville. Actually, the prison is located six miles from Reidsville but has always been associated with the town.
So Bill’s father packed up and moved his family from the family farm to a several thousand acre “state farm.” Housing was furnished for the employees, so Bill actually lived on a prison reservation. His house was located about 200 yards from the women’s prison and about a half-mile from the men’s. In those days prisoners that had become “trustees” were allowed to work in the homes of some of the employees or do other special jobs around the reservation without supervision. Bill’s father arranged to have a trustee assigned to the McBride home. So Bill grew up with prisoners doing housework, preparing meals, doing laundry, and sometimes even babysitting.
Bill considered his childhood to be unique because he got to know some unusual people and got to roam freely over several thousand acres of forest and farmland. He described is as a “Huckleberry Finn” experience. One of his most memorable experiences was his association with the trustees that were better known as the “dog boys.” The kennel for the bloodhounds that were used to track down escaped prisoners was located on the reservation. The dog handlers who used to care for and train the dogs were the trustees. This was an enviable position for the prisoners because these trustees were not required to report to the main prison each night for the “head count” and “lock down.” They were furnished meals and living quarters at the kennel. Bill and his friend got to be good buddies with some of the dog handlers, and they let them lay trails for the dogs to track when they were training or exercising the dogs. Bill describes those days as his first running experience.
Bill also served his country in the U.S. Army. He served a short tour on active duty as a tank driver at Ft Knox, home of the Armor branch, followed by six years in the Georgia National Guard.
Bill was a charter member (1981) of the Peachtree City Running Club. He was the second member to hold the office of President (1983). He was the Classic Race Director in 1987 and again in 1989. Other club responsibilities included Classic Registration Director for three years and Finish Line Coordinator for three years. He designed the current Classic 15K course that has since become a favorite of many runners and has been voted the “best course in Georgia” by Running in Georgia magazine.
There haven’t been many running club activities that Bill has not been involved with. He was the first to organize a long-distance relay team (Georgia Lake to Lake 1989). For years he arranged the club transportation to the Peachtree 10K Road Race and was the local coordinator for the Atlanta Track Club’s 5K/10K Grand Prix Race held in January every year in PTC.
The fact that Bill did not start his running career until he was in his 40s did not deter his excellence. Among his many accomplishments: The Boston Marathon, the London Marathon, the New York Marathon, Hood-to-Coast Relay 2nd-place Master’s Team, overall winner of the Atlanta Track Club’s Grand Prix Series, and winner of the PTCRC Grand Prix Series, to name a few. Bill’s PRs included a 16:50 5K; a 35:46 10K (Peachtree Road Race); a 1:16 Half Marathon (Savannah); and a 2:54 Marathon (Macon Marathon).
When it comes to triathlons, Bill is a legend in Peachtree City. He first began doing triathlons with the original PTC triathletes back in 1982. He participated on and off until the late 90s when he decided to do the Floridian (Ironman length) Triathlon. He finished the race with some difficulty but with a determination to improve and maybe, just maybe, qualify for the Ironman World Championship in Kona. Two Ironman Triathlons later Bill did just that when he placed second in the 2002 Florida Ironman. On a warm evening in 2003, Bill, with many PTC friends in attendance, crossed the finish line of the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii.
As a founding member of the Peachtree City Running Club, Bill has been instrumental in making it such a success. He has served in multiple leadership positions in addition to simply being a constant volunteer in countless functions over the past quarter century. The club owes him a salute of gratitude for all the selfless work he has done over these 25 years. Thank you Bill.