John Bunce was a founding member of the KU noon running group, later called "Mad Dogs and Englishmen," when the group began in the early 1970s. He was one of several members of the math department who were instrumental in getting the group going in those early days.

John didn't race frequently -- or if he did, the records are lost or moldering in someone's closet or attic-- but he ran the old Macy's Marathon in Kansas City in 3:13 and 3:22. He was also an integral part of the KU team for three years in the national Faculty Clearinghouse competition, where his times included 66:10 for 10 miles, 31:18 for five miles, and 17:47 for three miles. John also ran the anchor leg (1 mile) on one of our faculty distance-medley relay teams in the 1976 KU Relays.

Imagine this: John also ran 5:27 for the mile as part of a Math Department 10 x 1-mile relay team. The math department team averaged 5:42!

More details, and photos, are available at the 1970s and 1980s tabs under the Races link.

I welcome anything you can add about John to provide a fuller picture of him.--Dick Lipsey.