Words of wisdom:  “When I went to high school, you were some kind of fruitcake if you ran, like you were naked in the wind. Nobody else ran. There were no cheerleaders.”

Over his long racing career, Rodgers was known by two nicknames: “The King of the Roads” and “Boston Billy.” Both attested to his dominance of road racing from 1975-85 and his four wins at the venerable Boston Marathon (1975, 1978-80). But few knew that just a few years before, Rodgers didn’t run at all and was working a menial job taking out the garbage at a hospital. The rest of his life was in shambles as well, as he spent most of his free time (and money) hanging around in bars smoking and drinking. “I remember thinking, ‘This can’t be it. There has to be something to life other than drinking and smoking.’” And there was. He began jogging very slowly and when his bicycle was swiped, he began running 1 ½ miles to his job and back. When he was fired from the hospital, Rodgers found he had time on his hands and devoted himself to regaining the kind of shape he had been in college. Within a year, he ran his first marathon and dropped out but, “I had learned what it means to pace yourself,” says Rodgers. Six months later, he ran another one and within a year he placed in the top 15 at the Boston Marathon. Remarkably enough, the following year—1975—he set the course record at Boston and an American record of 2:09:55. Rodgers also won the New York City Marathon four times, as well as the Fukuoka Marathon in Japan, and became a running icon as the most popular, influential marathoner in American history. Now 59 years old, Rodgers lives in Boxboro, Massachusetts and owns Bill Rodgers Sports in Boston. He is a member of the National Long Distance Hall of Fame. He continues to run and race.