Need some inspiration to get moving?
Look no further than Ray White. He’s walking 150 miles this summer in Pueblo, just in time for Colorado’s 150th anniversary and his own 90th birthday.
Yep, that’s 150 miles.
White stays healthy by staying active. He has a busy social calendar, spends time with family, enjoys classes at the YMCA and takes to the city’s walking paths and sidewalks whenever he can.
This summer, he decided to join a special challenge designed to get Pueblo residents moving outdoors. When one of his medical providers told him about the Pueblo 150 Challenge, White eagerly said “Yes.”
Now, the 89-year-old is averaging at least two miles a day. So far, he has logged more than 100 miles toward his goal of walking 150 miles by Colorado’s official 150th birthday on Aug. 1.
On most days, White listens to an audiobook while he strolls. He uses his phone to connect directly to his hearing aids, while his phone also tracks every step. His favorite destinations are the path near the Pueblo Nature & Wildlife Discovery Center and Confluence Park, where the Arkansas River and Fountain Creek join.
Challenge participants log 150 miles of outdoor activity in Pueblo during June and July by walking, running, riding a bike or even paddle boarding in the community. The challenge commemorates Colorado’s sesquicentennial.
For White, walking isn’t just a pastime. It’s his way of staying healthy, independent and active.
“I really enjoy walking,” he said. “Anything is better than sitting.”
A love of walking leads to a big challenge
Kim Arline is the UCHealth pharmacist who encouraged White to join the challenge.
She also is a community fitness advocate, as chairwoman of a Pueblo nonprofit organization called Pueblo Active Community Environments or P.A.C.E. The organization, which promotes a walkable, bikeable community and active outdoor lifestyle in Pueblo, sponsors the Pueblo 150 Challenge.
The two regularly trade book recommendations when White comes to the UCHealth Coumadin Clinic in Pueblo for his appointments with her every four to six weeks.
White has had a mechanical heart valve for 20 years. He needs regular blood tests to make sure that the blood-thinning medication he takes remains at the proper level and that he isn’t at risk for blood clots that could cause a stroke or other serious complications. Arline has been caring for White for more than a decade.
When Arline saw White at an appointment this spring, she mentioned the challenge to him, recalling his previous tales of walks in Pueblo.
“I said, ‘I’ve got a challenge for you,’” she recalled.
Logging steps, one day at a time
White was immediately interested, and in June, he started logging his steps on his phone.
Even before the challenge started, White averaged more than 6,000 steps per day, except one week this winter when he was sick.
At the end of each day, he translates his steps into miles and logs them on a document titled “PUEBLO CHALLENGE 150.” He is among more than 300 participants taking the challenge – and likely the oldest, Arline said.
At the beginning, White figured he would need to walk 2.38 miles per day to hit 150 miles by the deadline. By early July, he had surpassed 100 miles.
Given the recent Aspen Acres wildfire and health dangers associated with smoke wafting over Pueblo, challenge organizers decided to allow indoor miles – on a treadmill, for example. White has moved some of his walks indoors to the YMCA.
Creating a more active community
For Arline, encouraging patients aligns with Arline’s professional goals and her passions outside of work.
Arline is a runner, cyclist and hiker. Her advocacy work began 20 years ago when she applied for – and won – a federal grant to build a multiuse trail to her children’s elementary school. She has continued to advocate for a connected trail and bike lane network to make physical activity easier for all ages and abilities. Seeing patients in the hospital with preventable illnesses fueled her passion for her advocacy work, she said.
Each year, Arline and other advocates at P.A.C.E. create a summer fitness challenge to encourage people to get outdoors and explore Pueblo. This year, they tied the challenge to Colorado’s 150th birthday and broadened the challenge, encouraging people to get outdoors on wheels (bikes, skateboards, roller skates), on foot (walking, hiking, running) or even by paddle (stand-up paddleboard or kayak). People who ride scooters or electric bikes with pedal assist also are welcome to join the challenge.
To participate, people who live and work in Pueblo County must log at least 150 miles of outdoor activity from June 1 to Aug. 1. Participants can mix and match activities and personalize the challenge – for example, logging a 150-mile bike ride in one day. Participants who submit their record of 150 miles by Aug. 5 are eligible for a cash prize drawing.
Stimulating both his mind and body to support healthier aging
On a recent day, White saw Arline at the clinic and told her that he has been reading “Goliath: Life and Loathing in Greater Israel” – he’s on chapter 33. Not long ago, Arline recommended the bestseller, “Theo of Golden,” to White. They talked excitedly about their favorite parts.
And oh, by the way, he told her, he had already logged 1.6 miles for the day. He was meeting a friend for coffee later, and “I may go back to the gym afterward,” he said.
White is full of praise for Arline.
“Oh, she’s marvelous,” he said. “She’s an excellent pharmacist. And that goes way beyond being clinically trained. She’s also a very caring person.”
Arline said she always looks forward to seeing Ray for his clinic appointments.
“I hope to age as well as he has and stay engaged in the world,” she said.
White’s love of reading traces to a lifetime spent as a scholar and educator.
Earlier in life, White planned to become a minister. Then he took a history class at what was then San Jose State College.
“I knew where I belonged, and it wasn’t in a pulpit, it was in a classroom,” he said.
He earned his undergraduate degree in history in 1959 and went on to get a Doctorate in Education from Northern Arizona University, with his dissertation research focused on Christian schooling.
He and his wife, Ruby, moved to Pueblo years ago; she died nine years ago. He lives in Pueblo with his daughter and one of his three granddaughters. His son lives in Idaho.
White said he doesn’t see himself to be an athlete, and he was never one for team sports. But he enjoys exercising and took up walking more than a decade ago. He loves getting outdoors and moving, and walking gives him an opportunity to listen to audiobooks.
Each day, he makes sure to exercise, read and pray for other people, he said.
“That has kept me intellectually vibrant,” he said.
Chasing the challenge together
White isn’t Arline’s only recruit to the Pueblo 150 Challenge. She persuaded some of her colleagues to join, too.
Shawna Holden, a pharmacy technician, logged 58 miles in June and knows she will have to step up her pace in July to make the goal.
“I have to catch up to Ray,” she said with a laugh.
As for Arline, she’s logged 380 miles on her bike. But she’s not done yet.
“I’ve got to catch up to Ray on my foot miles,” she said.
Earlier this month, White parked his car at the nature center and headed for the path.
He grabbed the hand-carved walking stick that a friend made (he estimates he’s walked 300 miles with it), pulled on his hat and headed east under the shade of trees along the path.
Ducks and geese swam in the Arkansas River nearby, while bicyclists called out “on your left” as they passed White.
“Good morning,” White called out to another walker.
To anyone who’s struggling to get moving, White’s advice is to start with a few steps.
“I say, ‘Walk around the block,’ and if you can’t walk around the block, walk around the house. Anything is better than sitting on the couch.”
After that day’s morning walk, White planned to meet friends at the YMCA for a potluck lunch and his regular Silver Sneakers class for older adults.
As for the challenge, White is certain he’ll hit his 150-mile goal.
After he does, he will celebrate a milestone birthday of his own: his 90th birthday on Aug. 30.
On that day, just like every other day, White will slip on his shoes, press play on an audiobook and head out for an invigorating stroll.
“I walk for my own longevity,” he said. “It’s good for me. It’s important to stay healthy, and I enjoy it.”