Retired BAC Member On the Run, He's Second to None

Local 8 WI member Al Treichel on his morning run.

Retired Local 8 Wisconsin member, Al Treichel, had lived a pretty normal life – athletically speaking – prior to his 48th birthday. He played baseball and football in high school, and attended Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. on a football scholarship. After college, he stayed active by playing softball and touch football well into his forties. But it is his accomplishments since then that have set him apart from the crowd.

In an effort to maintain his cardiovascular fitness, Treichel started running at the age of 48. Now at age 76, he’s still on the run, and running strong. During the last 30 years, he has completed over 40 marathons and countless 5K, 10K and 15K races, ranking nationally in all of these categories. He was named a Jimmy Carnes Amateur Athlete of the Year for his performance at the 2000 Florida Senior Games State Championships. At 74, he set the national single-age men’s record at the Twin Cities Marathon in Minneapolis, with a time of 3 hours, 32 minutes. That is an average pace of just over eight minutes per mile for a total of 26.2 miles. He has competed in triathlons, which involve a swim/bike/run format, and duathlons, a run/bike/run format, in Mexico, the U.S., and Italy, where he took second place in his age group in the World Duathlon Federation’s championship.

But even when competition isn’t involved, Treichel just loves to run. “It’s been great meeting nice people, going to interesting places, and just training and staying in good shape,” he says. “It’s nice to win some races once in a while, but all I really want to do is just keep running.”

Treichel’s athletic endurance mirrors the industry and the Union, he worked in for many years. This year, Treichel celebrates 50 years of service with Local 8 Wisconsin. He joined the Union in the mid-1950s as a bricklayer and spent most of his career working for Dahlman Construction. He also was a construction manager for MRI buildings, which allowed Al and his wife Maureen to travel and live in 17 states before he retired in 1985.

One aspect of the craft that Treichel has always marveled at is its resiliency. “I’m always so amazed,” he says. “All around me I see homes deteriorate, but the great thing about brick buildings is that years later, they are still standing.”

Treichel continues to travel across the country and compete in races, where he is considered an “elite runner,” and also stays active by cross-training on the bike and in the pool. He also enjoys spending his free time golfing, playing tennis, helping out his neighbors, and visiting his children and grandchildren.

He is thankful to be as active as he is at 76, and humbly credits the genes of his mother and father. But Treichel has a pragmatic attitude about what his body can and cannot accomplish at this stage in his life. He says, “I have a friend who I have to remind all the time that he can’t look back at what he was able to run 20, 10, or even 5 years ago. I tell him, ‘You’re older now. Be happy you’re competitive in your age group and do what you can do.’”