Suzy Hess, 61, has thrown herself into the ownership of NMN with the same bold seriousness that helped her win national masters titles in the weights and weight pentathlon.

A masters publisher is born:
An interview with Suzy Hess 

In May 2002, along with the news of Everett Hosack setting five world records at the Boston indoor nationals as a 100-year-old, National Masters News belatedly reported that Rodale Press, the publisher of Runner’s World, had given up control of NMN and that Suzy Hess was the new publisher, replacing Al Sheahen. It was a momentous changing of the guard – a milestone in the masters movement. Hess, who had started as NMN office manager, had risen to owner as well. But while 6,000-plus loyal readers know her as the working heart of NMN, and USATF/WMA policy wonks know her as a hard-working official, little else is widely known about this force of nature in masters track. Not anymore.   

Having found the courage to take over a shaky business, Hess also is beginning to share her private life and thoughts. In her first Publisher’s Report, appearing in the January 2003 NMN, she recalls her financial innocence as a young married and new mother. But of late, she admits to having battled the concerns of a new entrepreneur. “If I suffered from Bag-Lady Syndrome over the past year,” she writes, “I can now heave a sigh of relief that we are healthy, whole and looking forward to a prosperous new year.” And new scrutiny as well.

Born in Steubenville, Ohio, a month before Pearl Harbor, Hess grew up mostly in Palo Alto, California, (south of San Francisco) and attended Palo Alto High School and the University of Oregon. Before going to work for NMN, she was a tourism official for Lane County, Oregon. Earlier she worked as a lab technician in an orthodontist’s office and had her own lab, was a radiological technician, medical/surgical assistant for a dermatologist, and was manager for Europcar International. Single again, Hess has two children in their mid-30s – an accountant son, Richard, and a research ecologist daughter, Rebecca, who is working on her doctorate.  No grandchildren yet. But one online interview:

By Ken Stone

Masterstrack.com: According to Len Olson’s book on masters track, you get the credit for NMN moving from a Los Angeles suburb to Eugene following the 1994 Northridge earthquake. (The quake forced the closure of the building NMN had offices in, and later the paper’s office manager quit). You said you’d take the office job if the newspaper moved to Oregon. What have been your most important contributions to NMN?  

Suzy Hess: Jerry Wojcik was in Eugene already and recruited me to run the office.  I suppose getting our Web site going is my most important contribution.  But having a home base where the athletes can get answers to their many questions has been important too.  

Back in 1996, I called NMN a “mom and pop” operation – with you being the “mom.”  You didn’t like that depiction and told me so. But truth be told, that’s what NMN has become -- with you as owner/publisher and Jerry Wojcik as editor. Now that you’re the boss, what changes can we expect to see in NMN?  

I really no longer mind the term “mom and pop” since the athletes seem to like us just the way we are, and rarely do we get told to go into a slick glossy format.  We probably won’t see too many changes.  The same people basically put the product together the same way.  

You’ve said that when Rodale Press bought National Masters News from Al Sheahen in 1995, “contributions to our Sustainers program essentially dried up. We interpreted that as an objection by frequently generous sustainers to giving funds to a large corporation rather than our small, almost ‘family-owned’ business.”  Sustainers are basically charity donors, but charity can’t sustain a commercial enterprise. What steps are you taking to get NMN on solid financial footing? 

We continue to upgrade our Web site.  The next step is to add Visa charges for subscribing.  We already have our Publications Order Form online and charging on that, but I think we will pick up more foreign subscribers if they can use a Visa online for their subscriptions and eliminate the transfer of foreign funds.  Also, we will continue to work on a balance between copy and advertising sales.  

Your friend Wojcik, a fellow hammer thrower, is in his early 70s. He’s given up the national rankings job, but appears to be going strong as NMN editor. Still, have you given thought to his successor? Has he indicated an eventual retirement date?  

None of us is indispensable.  NMN has been around for more than thirty years and we will fill in where the need arises.  Jerry has been talking about retiring the last 20 years.  I think he has a few more good years left in him.

In 1997, USATF ceased subsidizing NMN. In 2002, WMA cut off its own small stipend to NMN. Yet you still prominently display under your Page One nameplate the tagline: “The official world and U.S. publication for masters track & field, long distance running and racewalking.”  What makes NMN an official publication of USATF and WMA? 

They may have taken away the dollar support, but they never have asked us to remove that statement.  If they do ask, I will just substitute the word “only” for “official.”  

In 1998, you launched NMN’s first Web site. Later you registered the site’s current domain name. Are you still the site’s webmaster? You recently added sections for photos and profiles of masters athletes. What new features can we expect to see in the future? 

I was a self-taught webmaster and wanted a site that was a lot more attractive than the one I created.  So I hired a small company that had done the work for the University of Oregon Web site.  Since I have so little time, I have employed Susannah Beck to work with our webmaster to expand and upload more of everything and also new material to the site.  This is currently being done and Susannah will also upload a lot more for the photo gallery too.  

The NMN Web site also lists bylaws of USATF Masters, minutes of USATF Masters meetings, lists of USATF Masters officers – as well as official USATF and WMA masters age-group records and All-American Standards.  Given that USATF and WMA have their own Web sites, shouldn’t these bodies be responsible for such “official” burdens? 

I don’t see any problem with putting as much as we can on the site.  I think USATF and WMA can use links to my site and I should be able to link to some of their material.  I am in favor of opening the doors, not closing them and informing the athletes as much as possible.  

One reason you have USATF minutes on your Web site is simple: You typed them up as the elected secretary of the USATF Masters Committee in the late 1990s. Now you’ve been USATF Masters vice chair for two years. But this poses a sticky situation – you’re both an officer and a publisher. A long time ago, an executive said, “What’s good for GM is good for America.” Is it the same for NMN and masters track? How do you square this potential conflict of interest? 

For years Al Sheahen held several positions.  He was USATF treasurer, WMA treasurer, and publisher/editor of  National Masters News.  No one ever objected.  I don’t look at it as a conflict of interest. 

At the 2002 Kansas City convention of USATF, you were elected as one of the two American voting delegates to the WMA General Assembly in July 2003. At the 2001 Brisbane WMA meet, you took fourth in the voting for WMA women’s representative. Do your ambitions include higher office in USATF and WMA? Would you like to succeed George Mathews as USATF Masters chair? 

My ambitions really don’t include higher office in either.  I really want to focus on the National Masters News and direct my time and energy to that.  

I’ve always wondered what the WMA Women’s Committee does (it never seems to take up women’s issues, such as Kathy Jager being banned for two years by doing what many women do -- taking hormone medicine for menopause).  What has this committee done to improve the lot of female masters? What causes should it be championing? 

It’s a tough committee.  We have women from all over the world and some with language problems.  But they have in the past taken up issues on the technical aspects of the sport.  I think the Kathy Jager issue was handled by the WMA Doping and Medical Committee and the IAAF rather than the WMA women’s committee.  

Do you support the WMA’s anti-doping rules – applied equally to Olympians and octogenarians? Why or why not? What drug rules would you like to see changed? 

I think it is a very complex situation and don’t presume to have the answer.  As a woman, I would like to be able to take certain medications that greatly improve the quality of life and health as a mature person, and not have that conflict with my athletics.  

In America, what can be done to encourage more women to compete in masters track? What role can NMN play in this effort? 

We all need to recruit women when we take part in our physical fitness programs.  We can show how much fun it can be in our daily lives.  NMN can help with this by continuously featuring women in our photos and profiles and avoiding the perception of elitism.  

Linda Wallace, formerly of Central Washington University, wrote her master’s thesis on women in masters track. She tells of how you became involved in masters in 1989, after a friend asked you to volunteer at the WAVA world meet in Eugene, your hometown. What attracted you to masters track?  

I loved the fact that men and women were continuing to stay fit, have fun and excel in sports throughout their lives.  

Wallace says you met an Italian coach at the Eugene WAVA meet who offered to train you as a spear-chucker.  Recently divorced after 30 years of marriage, you followed the coach to Italy, learned how to throw the javelin, and began competing in European meets. Who was that coach? Are you still in touch with him or her? How did you make a living in Italy?  

The Italian coach was the national champion in the decathlon for Italy and a high school coach.  In Italy I worked at Sigonella Naval Air Station for Europcar International.  

When you were a youngster, Wallace writes, you took after your mother, a professional dancer, and competed in many sports -- swimming, golf, racquetball and skiing. What were your biggest athletic accomplishments back then?  

I lettered in basketball, swimming and volleyball in high school.  I was a lifeguard and swim instructor and loved to ski -- both snow and water.  I have loved sports all my life.  My father was a superb athlete and also lettered in many sports.  It was he I took after, not my mother who was a dancer, and graduated as a math major/physics minor in college.  I still love to play golf and racquetball and cross- country ski.  

In recent years, you’ve won medals in the hammer throw – and added various injuries. You gave up the javelin after tearing a knee ligament. Recently you suffered a shoulder injury. What’s your health status at the moment? What are your athletic goals for the coming season – as a W60 thrower?  

I’ve had to put my competition on the back burner.  I can’t train the way most of  my peers do.  They have personal trainers, train every day and are for the most part retired.  My focus is on the National Masters News, but I will compete for the fun of it when I can.  

Besides being a major actor in NMN and USATF, you also officiate at major open track meets. You were a field judge at the 2000 Sacramento Olympic Trials. What other major meets have you worked? Any hazardous or funny moments to relate?  

I have worked all major events that have been held in Eugene.  All the nationals and University of Oregon meets that I could work.  I worked the throws and jumps at the Olympic Trials in 2002 and the WAVA meets in Durban, South Africa, and Gateshead, England.  The worst hazardous moment for me was when I watched an official turn his back and run from a hammer in the air that was coming toward him.  The hammer came down and just snapped his arm, but he easily could have been killed.  

You are NMN’s de facto chief photographer. Your “team shots” of national masters fields have become a staple of NMN – a tad cliché but always in sharp focus with nice composition. How many pictures have you taken for NMN? Will this vast (and valuable) archive ever find its way to the Web?  

I have no idea how many photos I have taken.  It’s a real hobby for me and one of my favorite things to do.  Each shot is a challenge.  But I can tell you that I have tons of failed shots too.  We plan to upload many more shots to our Web site.  

You seem to be married to masters track. Any chance of taking a spouse again?

Good question, and one I can’t answer.  (Smiley face)