Tale of the Times: A Runner’s Story

For more than 50 years, from 1929 into the 1980s, Jock Semple was the heart and soul of the Boston Marathon. He was a top runner (nine times he finished in the top ten in 30s and 40s,) a trainer of marathon champions, including John J. Kelley, Bill Rodgers, Patti Catalano, and co-director of the race. "Just Call Me Jock" captures the color and passion of Jock's love for the Boston Marathon, including his side of the Kathrine Switzer "Great Chase," when in 1967 Jock sought to retrieve the official Boston Marathon number he had assigned Kathrine "by mistake," in an era when women were not permitted by the rules to compete. Jock pursued Kathrine down the road, as the legion of press photographers clicked away, and in turn he made himself "infamous," while making Kathrine "famous." The book tells how Jock made up with Kathrine and became a avid supporter of women's running. Published again for a new generation of runners and readers on the 50th anniversary of the "Great Chase," the book is designed to support the Barb's Beer Foundation (a 501c3) dedicated to finding a cure for lung cancer in the name of Barb Murphy, a Boston Marathon runner and late wife of the book's co-author, Tom Murphy. See more about the book and the lung cancer campaign at barbsbeer.org.