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Hanson tabbed Sentinel’s honorary referee for 2016

FAIRMONT – He possesses a unique knack for calming the nerves of even the most anxious prep runners to line up in the lanes at Bob Bonk Track in Fairmont.

He’s articulate, composed and concise in giving the instructions for competing in each particular race on the tarred surface.

In fact, Phil Hanson has been an iconic fixture working the chute area at Fairmont Cardinal track & field meets for nearly five decades.

For his dedication, hard work and passion for track & field, Hanson will serve as the 2016 Sentinel Relays’ honorary referee during the 61st anniversary of the 32-team, outstate elite meet starting at 4:15 p.m. Friday in Fairmont.

The retired Fairmont Elementary School physical education instructor and former long-time middle school track & field mentor, however, encountered a life-changing hurdle that nearly sidelined him from his labor of love in the spring.

Hanson, a physical fitness guru who turns a youthful 77 on June 23, suffered a stroke on Oct. 1, 2015, leaving the left side of his body paralyzed.

“That was quite a setback for someone like me who’s always enjoyed being active,” said Hanson, who’s been an integral part of the Sentinel Relays since 1970. “The doctor told me that I was lucky that it (the stroke) wasn’t worse, and that was due to my level of physical fitness at the time it occurred.”

The stroke left the highly-active Hanson limited to maneuvering around his home with a cane for the entire months of October and November and the first part of December.

“After I returned from Rochester (Mayo Clinic) on Oct. 29, I couldn’t do anything until New Year’s Eve. I finally got strong enough to walk, or as I call it, limp, around the table in our dining room,” Hanson said. “The whole month of November was shot and the first couple weeks of December until I started rehab in Fairmont.

“I’d go two to three times a week (to rehab), and finally started to get some of my strength back in mid-January.”

Hanson diligently worked his way back into shape during the latter stages of the winter by walking around town in conjunction with riding his stationary bike in the downstairs portion of his house in Fairmont.

“I’m up to riding for 12 minutes, two times a day, and I walk around our neighborhood and up by Grace Lutheran Church on a daily basis,” said Hanson. “I also do some light custodial work for three hours at the Pioneer Museum.”

Now that Hanson has his range of motion back, the septuagenarian role model has been experimenting with duct tape patches that will help restore the rest of his sense of balance.

“They (patches) help with the negative ions in your body and accelerate the healing process,” Hanson said. “Now, I’m just waiting to get enough of my balance back to make a trial run on my bike outside.”

“My big goal is to line up and compete in the dualathon in Fairmont on June 11,” Hanson said in reference to performing the biking – 12.2 miles – and running – 3.1 miles – portions of the Fairmont Triathlon.

Hanson, however, already has accomplished one of his goals in returning to work the chute during the Cardinals’ regular-season meets leading up to Friday’s running of the Sentinel Relays.

“I haven’t missed one (Relays) since switching coaching jobs with Leon Schaffer when I first came to Fairmont,” said Hanson. “I started out as the middle school baseball coach in 1968, and Leon was the middle school track coach at the time.

“He wanted to coach to baseball, so after two years, we changed jobs, and I coached track until I retired from teaching in 1994.”

Current Fairmont head varsity track & field coach Bob Bonk was impressed by Hanson’s organizational skills in running middle school meets and practices in the 1980s, and asked him if he wanted to work events at the varsity meets, and the rest is history.

“I love working the Sentinel Relays. The first aspect I really enjoy is the camaderie among the athletes and the coaches at that meet. It’s fun to talk with them in getting them lined up and ready to go. You can’t replace those conversations – they’re priceless,” said Hanson. “Second, the Relays draw the best competition throughout southern Minnesota. It’s incredible the levels that they achieve in each event.

“Third, it’s heartwarming to me to be able to watch generations compete within families, and fourth, it’s great to see the shape that athletes are in today and to know that they’re aware of health and wellness.”

In one more day, Hanson will look to keep the Sentinel Relays running on schedule like a finely-tuned sprinter, and for the 47th year, jog alongside the 4×400-meter relay teams for the final event of the 32-team mega-meet at Bob Bonk Track.

“The 4×4 has to be the most thrilling race because it usually consists of some of the most outstanding athletes in the competition, and on numerous occasions, the final outcome of Relays comes down the results of that race,” said Hanson. “It’s a privilege just to be a part of that, and I wouldn’t trade that for anything.”

And the organizers of the Sentinel Relays are grateful that Hanson is able to continue his legendary streak.

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