GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (AP) - Even if they didn’t know each other before, people become friendly while walking each morning at Conestoga Mall in Grand Island.
At the very least, they say “Good morning” as they encounter the same faces day after day.
But sometimes, people become real friends through the daily exercise experience.
Betty Graves, for instance, walks with up to five people during her regular visits to the mall. She didn’t know any of them before she started walking.
Graves, 72, believes it’s good for people to converse while they’re walking. “Because the faster we talk, the faster we walk,” she told The Grand Island Independent.
Not everyone, though, makes fast friends. One man, walking by himself Thursday, was moving at a brisk clip. In an hour, he takes 12 laps.
A full lap of the mall is 2/3 of a mile. People who stick to the center cover 1/3 of a mile.
Some of the mall walkers are longtime pals. Bill Taylor, Larry Furstenau and Bob Munoz walk together five days a week.
What do they talk about while they walk? “We have to solve the world’s problems,” said Taylor, 72. “Somebody has to.”
The three gentlemen cover 3 miles in an hour. Furstenau is 74 and Munoz is 78.
Also getting exercise Thursday were two brothers, Jim and John Ruzicka. They do five laps in an hour.
Why are they regular mall walkers?
“It’s good for your body,” said John Ruzicka, 70. The walking “keeps your weight down” and is good for your heart.
Jim Ruzicka is 74. They have another brother, Richard, who walks at the mall at a different time.
Carol Swanson and her friend, Deb Barth, walk together twice a week.
They do it “because we’re at the age where we need to have our bones strong,” Barth said.
They also do it for fellowship, Swanson said. They got to know each other going to the same church.
Many of the walkers get their exercise outside in the summer. They head to local parks, cemeteries and bike and walking trails.
But several people say they prefer the consistently flat surface of the mall.
Inside, “We don’t have to watch out for traffic,” Swanson said.
They also don’t have to worry about curbs and uneven sidewalks.
Orv Qualsett, 80, is a dedicated mall walker, going 40 minutes a day seven days a week.
It’s good to keep his legs active, he said.
Qualsett, who worked at Home Federal 37 years, is still an early riser. He always gets up before 6 a.m. When he walks, he listens to radio preacher David Jeremiah.
Larry Kuta, 68, says it’s important for people to keep exercising after they retire. But he thinks it’s important to also walk outside. When you get to higher elevations, you really find out how fit you are.
Jim and Aline Kitten were also walking Thursday. They walk five or six days a week. Jim said they are trying to stay in shape “and look younger than we are.”
Amanda Carusone leads a group from Integrated Life Choices two or three times a week. They walk for an hour and a half. Exercise isn’t the only benefit.
“With it being in the morning, it wakes us up,” Carusone said. One member of the group, Becky, has an eye on the clothing she sees in the mall stores.
Myra Licon was pushing her 1-year-old son in a stroller Thursday morning, accompanied by her friend, Aly Varela. They just started walking in the mall on Monday.
Why did they try mall walking? “Just to get energized,” Licon said.
Thursday was their second mall exercise experience. When it gets warm, they will head outside.
Once a month, mall walkers can have their blood pressure checked. Lisa Asche, who works at Primrose Retirement Communities, provides the service on the last Thursday of each month.
People can start walking at the mall at 8 a.m. Mondays through Saturdays. Most of the stores open at 10.
On Sundays, walking begins at 10 a.m. Sunday mall hours are noon to 6 p.m.
Graves’ husband, Larry, also walks at Conestoga. But he goes in the afternoon.
“We don’t walk together,” she said. “He’s 6-foot-1. I’m 5 feet.”
Larry, 74, worked for the city for 46 years. He now works as a bus driver for Primrose.
“He retired on a Thursday,” his wife said. “I had him a job by Monday.”
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