From Memories of Stas Ionov
Stas and our Running Pack
For those of you that don't know me, my name is John Duddy. I've run with Stas for several years and been lucky to know Irina and Stas. Stas and I were in Sue and Jake’s running pack and I’d like to share some of my thoughts on Stas and our pack.
Sue would usually arrange the time/place to run. You never knew who would show, we’d just say good morning then start our run. I’m usually still getting over my week at work (and Friday night blowing off steam activities), but would roll out of bed when I could and do my best to meet everyone early Saturday morning. Be on time wait maybe two minutes and go. Sue had something to say to everyone and always looked out to ensure everyone had a great time and no one was left out, but that’s just Sue – always caring about everyone.
Sue first introduced me to Jake. Instant Friend – there was never any doubt about that. Jake likes to start his runs slow with plenty to say to everyone – kind of get warmed up – fine with me.
Jake usually had to stop to take a leak 10 minutes into it, but we'd wait..we all would have our turn in the bush.
Then Sue introduced me to Stas. Instant Friend – no doubt about that either. When I met Stas everyone was getting his name wrong….it’s STAS he kept saying! I didn’t really know anyone too well, but we found we had the same pace plus work in a common industry so something right off the bat to talk about. I never got Stas’s name wrong because I heard him correct people about 20 times and how pissed he was they’d get it wrong.
At times, Roger Burry, Diane McEvoy(Teacher whose students call her tuff and buff), Georgine, Louise Cooper (Eco challenge queen), Willie Randolf, Steve James, David Moore (USA today Sports reporter covering Women’s Beach Volleyball and the Olympics – Jake he never let us hold the microphone) and many others would join us on the run. It was always neat to hear what adventure Louise had just been on, but I seemed to find myself spending most of my time with Stas and Jake. Just something clicked. We‘d talk about all these pretty ladies we’d get to run with, politics or just go off on some tangent we’ll never repeat in this crowd. We’d hit a hill, then Jake would decide he’d rather talk to the ladies, so it would be just Stas and I unless David showed. We’d head up the hill not saying much, but pulling each other up that hill. We’d get to the top and wait, but thank each other for getting up the hill.
Most of the time it was just Stas, Jake, Sue, Luann, sometimes Chris and myself. That was really special. We’d talk about the same things, have a great run, then meet Roger Burry sometimes for coffee afterwards. Craig (Luann’s boyfriend – we really did make up a bunch of interview questions for you, but then you turned out to immediately meet our qualification criteria (younger, better looking than us, we’re both married anyway + Sue was going to cream us if we got out of line) so we decided to down play that a little.
We’d run the hub, Sycamore Canyon, Chesebro and Malibu Creek State Park.
Every now and then we’d do the beach run. Start in the valley, run the mountains, down Santa Monica Beach ending in Venice (just so happened to be a bar). It was so clear one day I think you could see Hawaii. It would take us some time to get by the women’s beach volleyball games, but we would usually finish strong! However, my favorite route was running out of Stas’s house and ending back there. One time Irina made us cookies (truboykin or something like that – I tried to pronounce it several hundred times, but never got it).
Stas used to end his running season after the Catalina Marathon. Then it would be Sue, Jake and I depending if I got out of bed. Jake likes to run very early in the summer, which I thought was the real reason Stas would switch to just biking. However, I came to learn that biking was Stas’s passion. It was funny though…the next year Catalina came and went. Jake and I ran the LA marathon and Stas did Catalina. However, Stas kept meeting for runs throughout the summer as long as we could get Jake to run a little later. It was fine with me! I hated getting up early on weekends, too! But I think the reason Stas decided to run more was that the three of us were becoming dependent on our habit. We needed each other to solve all the world’s problems…or at least the problems caused by the democrats.
Stas had another mission. He got me to run Catalina with him. I committed to do it and I never saw him so exited! This was Stas exited…”good”….But he really wanted to look out for my best interests, so we started training on the Los Robles Trail. We asked Jake if he wanted to join us, but Jake told us to stick ….well let’s not go there.
So up comes the Marathon. Stas asks me if I want to sail over with him but the marathon was hard enough without hurling all the way over, so Eve and I took the Catalina express and met him there. Stas, Irina and their friend Eugene show up. You ever met Eugene? He is a once in a lifetime person to meet! We had a great dinner the night before…just a few beers….we were pretty good. The next morning I meet Stas at the boat and we go over and run the Marathon. Had a great time. Get cleaned up and now it’s time to celebrate! That was Eugene’s specialty. Beer, beer and more beer, then we decide to go party on the sailboat in the middle of Avalon Harbor. Stas has to row us over there and the dingy only fits three (including Stas). Then he had to row us back for more beer and dinner. Anyway, Stas had to work quite a bit that day.
Well Stas talked me into Catalina, so I talked him and Irina into camping and rafting down the American River. We had a great time, got very wet.
At the less athletic end of the spectrum…I invited Stas and Irina to join Eve and I at a wine tasting event. Eve and I went over there, Stas and Irina didn’t show. I guess the Simi Valley Fires that shut down the 118 freeway had something to do with it. Stas said he would have made it but Irina chickened out.
I also took up biking. I thought I was pretty strong. Some of us went on a bike ride with Stas. We were not worthy!!! I think he could go faster than us without the chain!!
At the end of last year I had some surgery, then my family and I moved to Capistrano Beach this year (July 4th weekend). It put a real damper on our runs. Plus right after our move in July, I had a stroke and Jake had two vertebrae that would not cooperate. We were emailing each other (with plenty of insults) and copied Stas. Stas had plenty to say to each of us (something about wimps), but then two days later he told us by email he ran off the road on his bike and joined us in the injured club. I thought the subsequent emails we sent to each other were going to result into some sort of injured club Olympic challenge, but our “maturity” took over our “testosterone”.
We still kept in touch. We met the Sunday before Labor Day less than two weeks ago at Sagebrush. Had a couple of drinks and laughed. I never saw Stas laugh so hard. Looking back, I wish so bad Jake could have been there.
I talked a lot about our runs. You want to know about my vision of a perfect run?
Well, it was every run I just talked about.
Stas your departure has left a true void in Jake's and my life. I wish so much that I got an email from you last week telling me you just got run off the road and were only back in the injured club. I'll keep waiting for it, but until then Jake, it’s you and me. Sue, I'm sure you will continue to keep us in line if that is possible.
I'm thankful for the time I spent with you, am honored to have been your friend and I mourn the time I will miss.
Irina, Sophi you have had a special man in your life and thank you so much for sharing some of him with us.
John Duddy
