That’s what we throw ourselves to. After every prescribed break in training we jump right into the snarling fangs of Killer Coach’s workouts. And there better be no questions asked, right Coach?
I resumed the program last week, after nearly 5 months of nursing the plantars issue. Was close to sick running the advanced fartlek workout on Tuesday, it hurt that much.. Hopped into the quarter mile repeats on Wednesday, legs feeling not sluggish, but petrified. Something weird was happening though. After I reviewed my splits, they were honest-to-buddha a full :15 seconds faster than I had imagined as I was grinding them out. How was it possible that I was generating any semblance of speed when feeling like hammered dog doo-doo?
It’s because Glen van der Westhuizen knows what he is doing. I’ve accrued a fitness level this year that didn’t evaporate like a penny stock. I’ve invested my faith and effort into the larger picture and now the yield is trickling in, a year end bonus if you will. Can’t pay the rent with it but the dividends have certainly bolstered my recently sagging spirits.
A key component, and one many of the mates will attest to is racing while in the midst of the training. Almost every Saturday if you can. Throwing yourself into competitive situations even though it is the last thing you might think will do any good. It does, again, no questions asked!
That is another hallmark of our Good Mates. We feel the need, the need for speed. The fire of competition, the test, the brutal honesty that can only be answered at the starters pistol. I know a lot of athletes that train for one or two races a year, wouldn’t dare show on a start line unless there were some chance of a peak performance (and most of these are out of the Omaha Metro coincidentally). Why? Beause nobody likes to get beat,especially in front of the home crowd. Well, almost nobody. There’s a difference in accepting defeat with the dignity and grace of knowing that you gave it your absolute best, that ameliorates the sting considerably. Knowing that only by the annealing fire of Real Racing can you measure yourself against not only your competitors, but that little voice inside your head, the harshest of critics and judges. Just not palatable to most runners. I’m glad Team Nebraska was built differently and our mates get my philosophy. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Stacy Shaw, Carolyn Meyer, Linda, and Alex Cassar are cut from a rare fabric, one that can be loomed into a beautiful quilt of fierce competitive spirit. Now that warms my heart!
Photo courtesy of Lou Anderson.
About Author
