University of Vermont Athletic Hall of Fame
John S. Dimick 1971 - Cross Country, Skiing, Track and Field
Though he was a stalwart cross country runner as an undergraduate, John Dimick's finest athletic moments have been post-UVM, and he continues to register notable achievements as a world-class marathoner. At UVM, Dimick, a 1984 Athletic Hall of Fame inductee, earned three varsity letters in cross country and two each in indoor and outdoor track.
He co-captained cross-country in 1970 (with Perry Bland, currently women's ski and cross country coach at UVM), when he was also a member of UVM's cross country ski team. As a junior, he was the state champion at 880-yards, and he won the now-classic Archie Post five-mile race his senior year, 40 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher. In his sophomore year, Dimick bypassed the indoor and outdoor track seasons to prepare for the B.A.A. (Boston) Marathon, planting the seeds for what would prove to be an illustrious long-distance running career. He placed 92nd in that, his first marathon, at a time when marathon running was thought to be a sport for half-crazed adventurists.
Since then, as his sport continues to grow in popularity, Dimick has qualified for the Olympic trials in 1976, 1980, and 1984, although an injury kept him out of this year's trials. He continues to run Boston, obviously, and finished 13th in 1978 and 26th in 1983, with a time of 2:15:23. In 1979, he qualified for the Olympic trials with a 2:16:31 clocking at the Nike-Oregon Track Club Marathon. His best time ever, however, came in 1979 at the Mardi Gras Marathon in New Orleans, where he ran a blazing 2:11:53, at the time the ninth-fastest time ever in the United States and the 18th best in the world. He has excelled internationally as well, placing second in the Copenhagen Marathon n 1981, and fourth at the Berlin Marathon that same year. In 1979, Dimick was named Vermont Athlete of the Year by the Vermont Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.
Dimick is a teacher at Brattleboro Union High School, in the Diversified Occupations Program, a vocational program for mentally handicapped students. He is also the head coach of women's track and field at BUHS. He and his wife, Lynne (UVM '71), and their children, Elizabeth and Michael, live in Guilford, Vt. Michael went on to become a student-athlete at UVM also in track and field.
