Bill Coad – Entertainer Business Owner and Joggler

We first learned of Bill Coad from the rec.juggling group. It turns out that he’s actually joggled a marathon. He is a 44-year old entertainer (most recently at Niagara Falls) and retail business owner who is located in Buffalo, NY.

JYAJ: What is the story of how you got into joggling?

COAD: I had been running 5 miles each way to and from work when I discovered joggling. I realized that joggling would give me more juggling time without taking any more of my free time. My first races were at the 1992 Montreal IJA festival.

JYAJ: Why did you start joggling?

COAD: When I first learned to juggle, I wanted to practice whenever possible or practical and the time that I was running seemed readily available.

JYAJ: What is your joggling racing history?

COAD: I’ve done a marathon (CAL International marathon), several public 5 & 10K’s, and at least a half dozen IJA 5K’s. Since I think of each one as a favorite, the only standout is a least favorite. I had done several IJA 5K’s without dropping. One hot and humid year, there was a spectator on the sidelines who thought a splash of water would help cool the jogglers. I dropped after getting a cup of water thrown in my face and it felt frustrating to think that was the reason my dropless streak had ended.

JYAJ: What is your best story about joggling?

COAD: I beat my best marathon time by more than a half hour when I joggled. I had never run before my first marathon; I was in shape from swimming 70 miles per week. After I started running, I picked a marathon based on a convenient weekend which happened to be 30+ miles on steep mountain trails. I finished 11th out of more than 100, but still no respectable time. When I decided to joggle a marathon, I picked a decent course and properly trained and dropped my time by 37 minutes.

JYAJ: What kind of training do you do?

COAD: Most of my training has been swimming while running is either a social activity or a commute alternative. When I was training to joggle a marathon I added some weight training for my arms with lots of reps using light weights.

How long do you think you will keep joggling?

COAD: I’ll keep joggling as long as I find time to do any running. It seems like a waste of effort to run without joggling.

JYAJ: Do you eat a special diet?

COAD: I tend to burn lots of calories during training, so I set goals not to lose weight. I find that I can put down a 1000 calorie banana shake without spoiling my appetite for a full meal shortly afterwards.

JYAJ: Do you have any advice for would-be jogglers?

COAD: When first learning, pick a wide open space such as an empty parking lot where you don’t need to look for obstacles such as trees and curbs. This will let you look at the balls you’re juggling. Once you get the hang of it you can watch where you’re going without focusing on the balls. When first starting, it may help to toss a single ball back and forth while running.

JYAJ: Where do you see the sport of joggling in 10 years?

COAD: I’m not sure if 10 years is the realistic time frame, but I would think that joggling could be the stepping stone for juggling to become an Olympic sport.

JYAJ: What impact has joggling had on your juggling skills?

COAD: I started joggling when running to and from work each day. When the clocks changed for daylight savings, I could no longer see my dark colored beanbags. With no quick access to buy a new set, I made my own using brightly colored. I found that my custom made beanbags made multiplex juggling relatively easy and that soon became my favorite form of juggling. I’ve since made hundreds of beanbags, several dozen of which are used by other jogglers.

Thanks Bill! Looking forward to seeing you at the IJA Joggling races next year in Kentucky.  And go here for more for more joggling interviews.