Oscar Aiken. 2006-2021

Running Icon Dies

An icon of the Vermont running community passed away Friday. Oscar, a mixed breed but mostly yellow lab, breathed his final breaths at home surrounded by family. Oscar was a prolific runner who trained for hundreds of miles and scores of marathon runners -- including years as an honorary member of Vermont's Run With Jan group. Always ready to run, play, eat, or sleep, Oscar engaged in a never-ending quest for food until one week shy of his 15th birthday. He is survived by 4 humans, Gladys the black lab mix, cat siblings Waffle and Pesto, and 11 chickens whom he protected and visited daily. His family feels fortunate to have shared in such a joyful and wonderful life for so many years.

Dear Oscar, Happy November! Have you been enjoying the cooler weather? Longtime Admirer

 

Dear Admirer, Thanks for your support over the years -- it has been the joy of my lifetime to be such an inspiration to my legions of adoring fans! 

This morning, my old footpads just couldn't grip the hardwood floor. My human helped me stand up and guided me across the hardwood and slate to the door. Interestingly, I could grip the layer of frozen granular snow on the deck better than the hardwood.

With my human guiding me for balance, I wandered around the grassy yard -- by the lilac bush, the raspberries, the flower garden, you know. All the good bathroom spots.

It's definitely not the old days when I'd get up and just go run ten miles. But I do love November -- my birth month. And it was nice to get out in some sub-thirty-degree weather and think about the winter ahead and all the fun to be had. 

Keep up the top-flight admiring. It does make a difference for an old dog like me!

Oscar