The race doesn't go to the swiftest or fastest man. Most often, the race is won by the man who thinks he can. - Theodore Roosevelt

Walter McConnell, M.D., Bucknell Rider

Walt graduated from Bucknell in 1953 as a pre-med biology major. He was a four-year member of the track team and Captain his senior year, a varsity cheerleader for 2 years and a member of Phi Lambda Theta Fraternity. He was president of Alpha Phi Omega, a service honorary and a freshman counselor. After graduation he served 2 years in the United States Navy as a Lt. J.G. aboard destroyers and saw duty in Korea.

In 1955 he entered Thomas Jefferson Medical College, receiving his medical degree in 1959. He spent the next 41 years in medicine, the first 14 as a family physician in his home area in New Jersey and the remainder in Emergency Medicine at Dover General Hospital in Dover, New Jersey where he was director of the department for 12 years. He was the school physician and team doctor for Roxbury HS from which he graduated in 1949. After his first retirement in 1996 he worked as a physician for Holland America and American Hawaiian Cruise Lines until 2001.

In addition to biking thousands of miles, Walt has been a competitive runner in 25 marathons and over 700 other races throughout the world including 4 world Masters Championships, consistently winning or medaling in state, regional and national events. Walt coached runners in his high school and in 1973-1978 coached the County College of Morris Cross Country team to become the dominant community college team in New Jersey.

Walt recently celebrated 54 years of marriage to Isabel Lorraine Beers whom he met their first week at Bucknell. They have four children: Barbara 52, Walter 51, Jeffery 48 {Bucknell ‘81 and Jefferson Med ‘85}, and Wendy 46, all happily married and the parents of our 7 grandchildren.

Walt is currently serving his second year as a Bucknell Alumni Board member He and Isabel have served as reunion chairs for the class of ‘53’s 5TH and 50TH reunions.

Walt has traveled extensively to 110 countries, served as a volunteer physician in Nepal three times, been to 27,000 feet on Mt. Everest and is an avid skier and photographer. He is currently involved in producing a documentary about the good and bad of America's health care system with Alex Gibney the producer of the oscar nominated ENRON documentary in 2005.