Bob Moats

Year Inducted: 2015

 

 

 

 

 

Personal Records:

1500m... 4:39

5K... 16:15

5 miles... 26:57

10K... 33:24

15K... 52:40

10 Mile... 59:57

Half-marathon... 1:16:58

Marathon... 2:49:49

 

 

 

 

In the spirit of the running community in Dayton there is, and has always seemed to be, a bond of camaraderie that is difficult to always articulate. There are runners, coaches, and contributors who are an integral part of that spirit and have been for decades who may not be the fastest runner or the winningest coach, nor even the all encompassing race director or volunteer. However, there are those who are exceptional in one or more of these three criteria and whose presence has become weaved into the Dayton, Ohio running community in a significnt measure. Bob Moats is one who fulfills that exceptional criteria.

 

Road Racing

Bob has excelled as an outstanding age group runner for more than three decades in the Dayton and southwest Ohio area. Over the years, at various distances, he has finished ahead of a number of those great runners already in the DDRHOF. He has run over 600 races in the past 31 years at distances ranging from 1500 meters on the track to marathons on the roads. He has consistently been a top tier runner locally and has excelled as an age group competitor both regionally and nationally.

 

Bob's favorite distance to race is the half-marathon. He has run over 65 half-marathons, including 40 during his 50-59 age group time period. As a grand master runner, Bob has won his age group in a number of well known half-marathon races including: Air Force (2004, 2008, 2009), Memphis St Jude (2008), Detroit (2009), Spirit of Columbus (2009), and ORRRC (2009, 2010). His half-marathon PR (1:16:58) was run at the Dayton River Corridor Classic in 1988.

 

Between 1985-1996, he raced nine full marathons finishing eight of them in 3:14:00 or faster. He crossed the finish line under the 3:00 hour mark three times and just missed breaking it on two other occasions. His marathon PR was run in 1991 at Boston (2:49:49) where he has run three times.

 

Other PR's for Bob include: 1500 meters (4:39) at age 35; 5K (16:15); 5 miles (26:57); 10K (33:24); 15K (52:40); and 10 miles (59:57).

 

The number of local and regional races he has placed in over the past 31 years are too numerous to list here.

 

Contributor

Over the past fifteen years, Bob has become known as the guy who sings our national anthem at a number of the local races each year. Bob not only sings, he makes the words come alive, and for many his voice has become as much a part of the ORRRC Turkey Trot and other races as the starting gun, time clock, or t-shirt. He has come to represent a vital connection between our local running community and out great nation by the way he helps to set the mood with his singing for those racing and cheering.

 

In a similar spirit as Hall of Famers Don (Punky) Mills, Thomas Quigley, and others, Bob has truly become an intricate part of the Dayton running community history.

 

Bob still lives and runs in Dayton. He has been the bartender-manager at Jay's Seafood Restaurant for the past 30 years.