90-Year Old Rips up Roads in Long Island

This weekend I'm in Nassau Eisenhower Park to shoot the Long Island Marathon, Half Marathon, 10K and 5k. I got the call late last night and because a large swath of roads get blocked off as early as 7a for the events I jumped in my own race mobile at 3a and got here by 6a. Whew! A draining ride but smooth sailing with zero traffic at that ungodly hour.

One of my favorite runners of the 5K this morning included a spry youthful 90 year old by the name of Emmanuel Cappello or "Poppy" as his kids call him. Donning bright red sweats and a custom blue tshirt that said "Poppy, 90 years Young", the former furniture store owner jogged lightly alongside his children and grandchildren for 3.1 miles. His oldest granddaughter, a runner herself, convinced him he could do it and she was right. Amid a cloudy chilly morning, I caught sight of him at the start line when police detail informed me that he was the oldest gent in the pack, nearly a Centenarian.

Sure enough - there was Poppy - gathered with his energetic family alongside his grandson holding a video camera to document for posterity and Poppy's wife, who, unfortunately, couldn't attend. Before the gun went off he sucked in as much air as physically possible and launched himself forward within a crowd of 400 runners. Soon after that I lost sight of him. Security and police presence laughed that he'd probably need an oxygen mask before the race was over but Poppy triumphed leaving dozens of others trailing behind him.

As he neared the finish line just under 51 minutes I jumped at the chance to jog with him the last 500 yards while my shoulder camera rolled on his smiling mug and bright red sweatpants. Surprisingly, he didn't look winded or exhausted or drained whatsoever.

After receiving a medal for his impressive participation I asked, "Poppy, what's the secret to your longevity?"
Poppy looked to the sky for a moment and then down at his sweatpants... "it's all in the genes, it's all in the genes."

Because this is Poppy's first but not last 5K something tells me it's much more than just genes.