`RUNNING MAN' NEVER SLOWS DOWN.

Byline: JUDY O'ROURKE Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA -- Some people discover their muse in midlife, blossoming into full flower well into the sixth decade.

Rawlins Jordan ran his first marathon at 52, but never the slacker, he has racked up 24 in the 11 years since then. The 63-year-old trains others to do it, too.

``I'm 40 years old, and that man is always in front of me,'' said runner and triathlete Nina Miller, who showed up one day to run with Jordan and never stopped. ``If he can make it, I can make it.''

Miller has completed 20 marathons since she began running five years ago. For variety, she began entering triathlons and recently completed a half-ironman in Northern California: a 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike ride and 13.1-mile run.

``My motivation was, Rawlins had done that race previously,'' Miller said. The sales representative and her boyfriend, also a triathlete, spend their vacations at races.

Jordan discovered the joy of running while helping out with his kids' track teams. He eventually became a Warriors track coach, and when a friend asked whether he ever considered running marathons, a new door opened.

Every Sunday for the past eight years, he has prepared aspiring marathoners in the Santa Clarita Runners club during a 28-week training program.

One marathon down, 35-year-old Nikki Mock, a school psychologist in the Los Angeles Unified School District, plans to run a half-marathon in Santa Clarita and the Las Vegas marathon two weeks later.

``He inspires you,'' Mock said. ``He's a little bit of everything, very motivating, so experienced and so knowledgable.'' She loves the way running meshes the gears of mind and body.

Beyond tips on diet and attacking hills, Jordan offers guidance on working through ``the wall,'' when the body screams ``Stop.'' He hit the wall a couple of times after he became dehydrated and his kidneys quit working.

``About two years ago, the temperature was, like, 94 degrees and I knew right away at 10 miles this became a survival deal,'' he said. Jordan told himself, slow down, drink your fluids. ``I finished.''

His day job is no walk in the park either. Jordan works in heavy construction for the Metropolitan Water District, building vaults underground. On occasion, Jordan has driven a 35-ton crane.

Power resides in his 5-foot, 10-inch frame. He weighs about 166 pounds, with only about 7 percent body fat.

Soft-spoken triathlete Guy Moore, 50, began training with Jordan before the two kindled a friendship about eight years ago. They finished three triathlons together.

``Completing my first marathon was a top-five life experience,'' said Moore, a sales manager for a small aerospace company who calls his friend a caring, nurturing person. ``It doesn't matter how fast or slow a runner (you are), he's there for you (with) his friendship, his example.''

Moore has competed in triathlons over 15 years, completing some 90 of them. He is trying to qualify for the Boston Marathon, where entrants' prior finishing times must meet the criteria for their age category.

``The real race starts at mile 20,'' Moore said. ``That's when your body says `This is enough.' You have to muster the strength and determination.'' Moore, who has hit the wall as early as mile 6 and as late as mile 23, attributes his success to good training.

To prepare for the Sunday runners club outings, Jordan rises at 5:15 a.m., positions water bottles along a predetermined course, meets the runners at 6:30 a.m. and sets off with them over scenic hills and valleys. He is usually the last to start.

A core group of 35 usually shows up, but lately the number has swelled to 80. At one time, his flock grew to 103. Jordan starts them off at three miles and gradually adds distance to prepare them for long events where the feet can pound ground for up to five hours.

Jordan's wife, Lois, 60, a teachers' aide in Canyon High School's special-education program, does not run. She often accompanies her husband to races -- sometimes handing off nourishment at water stations -- and to climbing expeditions at Mount Whitney and Half Dome in Yosemite, where she hiked. The couple's two children are grown.

Lois marvels at her husband's 50-mile run at Leona Divide in April, where the starting temperature was 35 degrees and the elevation rose to 9,000 feet, then dropped 9,000. He finished in 12 hours, 19 minutes.

``I thought somebody had to be crazy to do that,'' she said. ``He's amazing.''

The two have been married for 38 years, water-skiing together for 20 of them. Lois carried Rawlins' parachute when he jumped, decades ago. She marvels at the way he fits in with his younger adventure seekers and says he never complains about getting up at the crack of dawn on the weekend.

Her husband's quests are not done. He plans to retire at year's end, and has his eye on a distant shore.

``In Africa, they have a marathon at the base of (Mount) Kilimanjaro, a package deal,'' he said. ``You run the marathon in Tanzania, rest up, and climb the mountain, a 19,000-footer.''

His answer to the obvious question -- why does he do it all -- is simple.

``I like being in shape,'' he said.

The Santa Clarita Marathon will be held Nov. 5. For information, visit www.scmarathon.org.

judy.orourke(at)dailynews.com

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CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) Rawlins Jordan, 63, has run in 24 marathons and plans to compete again Nov. 5 in the Santa Clarita Marathon.

(2) Longtime runner Rawlins Jordan will compete in November's Santa Clarita Marathon.

Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer