India Bridgette is hard to miss on the track. If she’s not running like the wind and setting records, she’s turning heads with her blazing orange hair and her lime green, neon orange and florescent pink outfits.
“I want to be seen,” said Bridgette, 61, of Marietta.
Credit: Phil Skinner
Credit: Phil Skinner
Bridgette, who has been running since she was a child in York, Pennsylvania, is at the top of her game at an age when most folks are hanging up their running shoes.
Last year was a banner year for Bridgette. She set national records in the 60-meter indoor and 100-meter outdoor sprints for women ages 60 to 64. She also was named 2022 Athlete of the Year in her age division by USA Track & Field’s Masters Track & Field Committee.
“My kids think it’s great, though they do ask me: ‘How much longer are you going to run?’” Bridgette said. “I say as long as I can. There’s a lady (Julia ‘Hurricane’ Hawkins) who is 105 and still running, so I tell them I have records to beat.”
The mother of three and grandmother of three remembers running in her neighborhood as a child and being able to beat both the boys and girls. She ran track in junior high and high school and parlayed her skills into a sweet gig in the Marines. During track season, her job was to outrun the competition as a member of the All-Marine Corps’ track and field team. In the off-season, she worked in the Judge Advocate General’s Office as a legal services specialist or paralegal.
After six years in the Marines, she worked in corporate America, private industry and the federal government. She moved to metro Atlanta in 2017 and threw herself into senior- and masters-level track and field. An all-female 4x100 meter relay team she was on broke a national record in 2019. COVID-19 hit soon after and derailed some of her plans.
Then, last year, she ran in the USATF Masters National Indoor Track meet in New York City at the world-famous Armory. She broke a record that had stood since 2007 in the 60 meter in the age 60-64 women’s category and won the 200 meter. Two months later, she left her competitors in the dust at the National Senior Games in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, winning the 50 and 100 meter races in her category. Her time in the 100 meter broke an American record from 1994.
“I celebrated after I ran to the finish line, and the gentleman said: ‘That’s a new American record.’” Bridgette said. “I jumped in the air, and I broke my right foot.”
Dantwan Spreads, her coach, said the “most inspiring and exciting” thing is she came back from her injury in six months and remains No. 1 in the U.S. in her age group.
“She’s very, very goal-driven and positive, and she always gets positive results,” Spreads said. “I do make her work hard, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. She’s been a force since Day 1.”
Credit: Phil Skinner
Credit: Phil Skinner
Bridgette trains five days a week with help from her track coach, stretch coach, gym coach, chiropractor and others. Mornings, she’s working out at the gym. In the afternoon, she’s at the track.
“My dedication and discipline come from my upbringing, as well as from my Marine Corps. training,” she said. “My mother, who was a single parent, held a very firm, stern rod when it came to discipline and getting things done.”
Bridgette’s mother, son and daughter all ran track, too. One of her granddaughters plays basketball, and Bridgette hopes to persuade her to run track.
“I told her: ‘It’s in your DNA,” she said.
Credit: Phil Skinner
Credit: Phil Skinner
HOW TO HELP
A GoFundMe has been set up to help India Bridgette be able to race in Torun, Poland, from March 25 to April 1. She’ll be competing in the 2023 World Masters Athletics Indoor Championships. She is a USATF Masters Athlete, Senior Olympian and two-time American record holder. Masters athletes are not eligible for the lucrative sponsorships given to pro and Olympic athletes. She is responsible for all costs, including training, registrations, travel, room and board, and medical expenses, if needed. To learn more about the fundraiser, go to: Fundraiser by MzIndia Bzz : Help India on her road to Poland and beyond! (gofundme.com).
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