The Riverside Press-Enterprise
Temecula man plans cross-country run for Native American youths
Robert Eilek got an “F” in high school algebra in the late 1960s.
His teacher told him some people can do math, others can’t and guess who you are.
Not the words of encouragement kids need.
It ate away at Eilek for decades. Not to be defeated, he enrolled in the math program at Cal State San Bernardino, commuting nights from Temecula after he was done teaching. He was determined to prove, at least to himself if not that math instructor from long ago, that he could do it.
In 1993, he earned that coveted college math degree.
Now 70, he’s at it again with an impossible dream — this time planning to run across the country to raise money for a charity, Running Strong for American Indian Youth. Eilek has Santee Sioux ancestry.
Again, he’s out to prove to himself he can do it.
He long has been a long-distance runner, cranking out at least 80 miles a week. He has been running since 1972, when he watched marathoner Frank Shorter win Olympic gold in 1972. Within minutes, he was off.
Quite the shift from the way he started as a smoking, heavy-drinking kid from Minnesota.
He later joined the Air Force, finishing at March Air Force Base. After working as a land survey tech for Riverside County, he realized what he really wanted to do was teach. He was hired in 1978 as a Temecula Middle School teacher, a challenging age group from which some run.
For once, Eilek didn’t run.
He retired in 2019 and initially hoped to start his ultimate run in March 2020. Then foot surgery and the pandemic delayed him.
Now he’s hoping to launch from the Oceanside Pier on April 30 on his approximately 3,000mile run to New York City and a jump in the Atlantic Ocean three to four months later.
He’s in the midst of planning and is looking for somebody to drive a support vehicle alongside him. He also needs donations for supplies and that vehicle. If you wish to help, Eilek can be reached at runningman51@hotmail.com.
Of course, his email address would reference running.
Regardless of how much support he gets, Eilek is determined to make his run. If pushing a stroller with his supplies across our land is his only option, then so be it.
When Eilek was teaching, he told kids they needed to be passionate about what they were doing, be honest, persevere and be willing to accept difficult challenges, such as running across the country as a senior citizen.
He did a marathon in 2008 that was the best lesson of all for his students. He was running in Death Valley (Remember, he likes challenges) and at about 15 miles, simply ran out of gas. Didn’t matter. He was finishing the 26 miles.
Not the wisest move because he ended up in a medical tent. He recovered quickly and was soon ready for another marathon.
Asked why he keeps running despite the blisters, broken toes and strained knees, he said the exercise is relaxing, keeps him in great health, gives him time to contemplate life and solve problems, and lets him continue to be a role model just like he was for so many middle schoolers for so many years.
“One thing for sure is that this has been a dream of mine for many years, and as Rod Stewart once sang, ‘Never give up on a dream,’ ” he said. “I am determined to do this.”
It’s going to happen.