Covering long distances is no object for Steve Pelletier.

By the time the Auburn native completes his round trip, he will have spent four days on the road between his home in Kennebunkport and Lisle, Illinois.

He did it for all for one javelin throw: 133 feet, 2 inches.

Pelletier, 61, will tell anyone who will listen that the long hours and motel beds were well worth it.

The heave came in the National Masters meet at Benedictine University.

“It’s a meet where I won two national championships in the 1980s, but one that I hadn’t competed in for 25-plus years,” Pelletier said. “It feels great to get back out there.”

His distance was more than four feet past the All-American qualifying standard, a hurdle Pelletier had already cleared in a previous meet.

Pelletier finished fourth in the 60-to-64 age section.

“The top two throwers in the country were in my group,” Pelletier said. “It was nice of them to tell me that. We spent a lot of time talking and sharing training tips.”

Recent accomplishments have breathed new life into a career that was one of Maine’s best.

He was a star at Edward Little High School and the University of Maine and is a member of the Auburn-Lewiston Sports Hall of Fame.

Pelletier won 11 championships at the college and AAU levels, ranking first in State Masters from 1978 to 1984 in two age groups.

He also was the National Masters Champion in 1983 and 1984, during which time he was in the midst of successful coaching ventures.

After giving up the sport for 15 years, Pelletier resumed throwing two years ago.

Pelletier expects to arrive home Monday night.

“Then it will be back to a normal training regimen Tuesday,” he said.

Next up are the Granite State Games in New Hampshire, but Pelletier’s long-term aspirations are focused upon familiar territory.

The 2013 National Masters meet will be held in Orono.

“You know I’m looking forward to that one,” said Pelletier.

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