Tale of Two Cities.
The Oklahoma City Marathon is coming up on April 28th. Walter Key has been busting his ass for 14 weeks under my Killer Coach/McLatchie hybrid marathon training program. And as you would expect he is in the shape of his life. But sadly, and not for the first time, injury strikes just when fitness is at its peak. He developed a stress fracture last week and will now miss this opportunity. Walt is not taking it lying down though and has set up a donation effort for the National Memorial Foundation. Please visit Walt’s facebook page for the link to donate and help maintain this important piece of American history. Oh, and Walt will be back…..
Another athlete I’m coaching, Nate Stack, is going to Chicago for this weekend’s Shamrock Shuffle Elite Team Challenge (and USA Club National Champs for 8K Road Race). Nate has resided in another crucible for the last couple of months. I’m calling that one the McLatchie/Killer Coach hybrid program, it focuses more on speed development through this weekend and then goes right back to his Boston Marathon prep. Nate too has been just nailing his workouts and I’m anxious for him to show his good stuff on the streets of the Windy City.
Yes. I’ve come full circle. It started in 1991 when I coached a precocious teenager from Plainfield, IL to a 7th place finish in the state 2 Mile, that race yielding a nearly :20 improvement on Jenny Lisy’s personal best. That got me hooked.
Over the last 20 + years course design and measurement, race directing, club administration, national USATF responsibilities, etc. took up the lion’s share of my time. And those were worthy efforts to be sure. I’ve said many times I’ve done more than most ever will, have traveled the world, made hundreds of friends, earned my chops as the Run Guru. But I’m back in the saddle that I find most comfortable, coaching.
Our Tuesday and Wednesday Night Track Work program only further accentuates my love for helping others reach higher than they’ve ever thought possible. I issued a stern warning to the group last night that I was there to “bust their asses”. And I did. And they did. You could not have found a happier group of runners anywhere when 7:00 rolled around and they realized what they had just accomplished. Or a happier coach. Coaches I should say, John Tully, I couldn’t do it without you!
And I’m going to finish today’s column by thanking Jim McLatchie and Glen van der Westhuizen. There was a reason I put myself through the hell that is their individual training programs. I’m a student, and when it comes to training, an A+ one at that. To be able to pass along their combined knowledge is such an amazing privilege. And maybe someday, somewhere, someone might just use the Lindgren program to help others reach for the stars.
“Nobody annoys Percy more than a coach who, unlike himself, doesn’t practice what he preaches. I had a demonstration of this in 1958 when Percy and I attended an instructional clinic at UCLA. All America’s leading coaches were assembled and while athletes went through their paces on the track or in the field events the coaches took turns to lecture on style. The coaches stood around looking very important as they glibly ordered the athletes to perform various tasks. Puffing their cigars, they allowed each other fifteen minutes on the public address system. Finally, it was Percy’s turn and was told he had two minutes. The arena was electrified as Percy called all the coaches a pack of pompous clowns who had no right teaching students in that fashion. When he’d finished, the coaches were bristling with anger and embarrassment, but they had heard the truth. I know that if I approached a bloated, cigar-puffing coach after exhausting myself and he told me to run another lap in 60 seconds I’d lose all confidence in him.”
–THE HERB ELLIOTT STORY, Herb Elliott, 1961
Both Glen and Jim learned things from Percy Cerutty. And Lydiard too. Coaching isn’t about re-inventing, its refining. And modeling hard, hard, hard work.
Cerutty made fitness a life long pursuit. He is also author to several of my favorite books including “Be Fit Or Be Damned!”, “Why Die?”, and “How To Become A Champion”.
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