Where There's a Will There's a Way!

For a runner, Bart Yasso has the greatest job in the world.  He's the Chief Running Officer for Runner's World magazine.  In that role, he gets to travel to different marathons and races just about every week.  He estimates he travels about 200 days a year.  It's a great gig.

At one time, he was also pretty fast.  His marathon p.r. is sub 2:30.  Unfortunately, he's been slowed over the years by the effects of Lyme disease, and father time.  He's 54 years old.  But just because he's slower, doesn't mean he's any less enthusiastic.

I was fortunate enough to have him as a teammate a couple years ago for our MC200 relay.  We all tried to pick his brain as much as we could during that 200 mile run from Madison to Chicago.  He estimates he runs about three marathons a month these days.  But his training is unorthodox, to say the least.  The races are his training.  He says he doesn't really run at all during the week, and gets his miles in during the races on the weekends.  That's impressive, but he cautions others not to try it.  It's really a function of his schedule.

I've been following his latest video series on the Runner's World website as he prepares for the last great racing challenge he wants to tackle.  It's the Comrades marathon in South Africa.  The name says marathon, but it's actually more than twice the 26.2 distance.  It's 56 miles, and you have to finish within 12 hours for it to be official. Here's a link to the videos: http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-239-522--13495-0,00.html

Most of us probably don't aspire to run ultramarathons like this one.  It sounds incredible, but I will probably have no major regrets if I ever hang up the running shoes without having run this race.  But it is a great goal for some people, and I'm sure they have an amazing experience.  For Bart, who has run nearly every major race on the planet, it will complete his resume. 

But what I have been thinking about for the last few days is a comment he made in the last video.  He was talking after finishing one of his regular weekend marathons, and said it was a tough day, that he wasn't feeling very well.  His goal was 4:30 for the race.  And despite how he felt, he crossed the line in exactly 4:30. 

He said he willed himself accross the finish line, and to run the splits he needed.  That's right.  He willed himself to do it.  My ears perked up when I heard that, because it reinforces something I've long believed, that running success (like much in life) is more dependent on what's going on between your ears than below the waist.

Yasso says he hopes to will himself to finish Comrades in the appointed time in much the same way as he did the 4:30 marathon.  Personally, I have trouble willing myself to push it for anything much longer than a 10k.  And in a marathon, the first 10k is just the warm-up!

Seriously though, I believe we can all take something away from the concept of willing ourselves to accomplish our goals in training and races.  I am done rehashing my most recent marathon failure a couple weeks ago, but I will share a story that ties into Bart's theme.

During our long run over the weekend, I was going over the race, and what went wrong with my long-time running partner and former coach, Rich Staback.  After recounting the litany of physical ills and weather conditions that affected my race, I mentioned that some of it was probably mental.  Now, Rick has known me for 30 some years, so he felt pretty confident in correcting me.  He said, "No, it sounds like it was 100% mental." 

I'm sure he is right.  I have willed my body to run fast under difficult conditions in the past.  I've also had days when I mentally threw in the towel at the first sign of adversity.  The Wisconsin marathon experience was the latter.  Physically, I was probably better prepared than I've ever been for a marathon.  Mentally, however, when it felt like I was having trouble, I surrendered. 

It was a tough lesson, but realizing how much of the race is in your head helps you to focus on getting your mindset in the right place to help you accomplish your goals.  When the going gets tough in a race, you can dig down a little deeper to find what you need to get you through on pace to the next mile marker, or the runner ahead of you, or the finish line.

Of course you have to be physically prepared as well.  You can't very easily skip training and will yourself to run an incredible marathon.  As for Bart though, I'm rooting for him to get his finisher's medal at Comrades.  And knowing how strong his will is, there is little doubt he will.

See you on the roads.....

 

Comments

[Mike Gilmartin]

Thanks for the link to Bart's videos, John. It's very cool to watch his journey to his last great race.