bordin
1998 olympic marathon gold medalist and 1990 boston marathon champion gelindo bordin visited austin this evening at our local running store, and i had the opportunity to swing by, hear him speak and meet the man. a crowd of about 50 people settled in for the 2 hour evening.
pre-talk observation: HELLO, AUSTIN. this is your "you think you're a running town, so show it" wake up call. bordin dominated the marathon world for a stretch of a few years in the 80s/90s. c'mon, peeps! i realize that a lot of the runners here in town are working professionals, parents, etc., and don't have time to attend gatherings like this. heck, in a town like austin, there were some folks probably running during his talk, which i applaud. now that i think about it, i retract the complaint. to be at such a quaint gathering like this with a legend like bordin would be like seeing u2 play down at stubb's. no complaints.
bordin opened by talking about prepping for the marathon, about "de shoogars" and "de fatts," in his italian accent, and how those two fuels are what you need to balance in a race. he likened running a marathon to driving a car, never flooring the gas; always saving some extra push for the end. i was highly amused that who else but the italian chose automobiles as his metaphor. ha!
he very much liked the boston course, described it as the perfect man-vs-man race, for you can't really pace yourself, and the course is challenging. thought #1 that i've always believed myself, and bordin seems in agreement this evening.
people asked boring questions about training and eating. bordin emphasizes varying pace during training, and doesn't believe in track work. observation #2: all apologies, it kills me when people start asking the stars about training strategies. i see it in the same light as all of the diets that are "out on the market" these days: (a) not every style is for everyone, and (b) was there anything you haven't heard in the information presented that you haven't heard in one form or another already? do long runs slow, mix in some faster work, hard-easy periodic patterns. if you're a first-timer, hey, don't let me stand in your way--gobble this type of info up. but the majority of the folks that i saw there i recognized as being experienced.
i butt in with a question, and i was pleased to be followed by steve s. with a question of his own, and we get to, IMHO, good questions in for gelindo. the first question was about failure: what were some memorable failures, and what did he learn from them. he spoke of how his first two marathons were a snap, linearly moving closer to the WR with each one. his third marathon he really believed was going to be automatic, but he ate his first serving of humble pie in that race, and several more to come. he learned that he lost respect for the distance, and without that respect, he would never be able to train and compete at his full potential (thought #2 that i've always believed myself, and have grappled with in the past 1-2 years). he also mentioned that as he was learning to re-respect the distance, he was holding back in a race where he cut loose at mile 13 to catch the leaders, in which he suceeded, but couldn't hold on for the win for he went too early. he learned about patience and using every mile in a race to rope someone in (thought #3 that i've always been in agreement with). gelindo told the stories with a wistful banter that was enjoyable to listen to.
steve's question was about mental preparation, and GB emphasized positive attitude. he told us that his sports psychologist emphasized that on race day, "you can't change what happens that day," so relax, enjoy it, think positive, and realize your potential. he was keen on the positivity thing, and i enjoyed that vibe.
i thought about that statement for a while: you can't change what happens on raceday. it's a thought that eludes to concepts such as predetermination and fate, which i don't subscribe to. the fact that this thought was in the context of running irked me even more, for one of the reasons i would describe a relationship with running as being ideal is that you get out of it exactly what you put into it. you're in control; you reap what you sow. no fate BS in the running world by my measure, and here's a boston marathon champ standing in front of me telling me that there's nothing that can be done on raceday. bah!
but then you look past the superficial definition of the statement, and it looks different. you still are in complete control, it's just that the control you had came in the months before you have to take your hands off of the project on raceday and just let it happen. i liken it to the director of a play: you bust tail getting the show right, but come opening day, the curtain is going to rise, the show is going to go on, and there's nothing that you can do about it at that point but watch the story unfold and hope that the your labors of months past are rewarded.
the difference between the director and the runner? the runner is the director, AND the actor, AND the supporting crew of the performance. it just that on race morning, you put your megaphone down, get up from your folding chair, and make your way to the powder room for makeup and dress for a 7am curtain. the stage of running is a topic that could be babbled on about for a long while, so i'll stop this here to keep things on track.
after chewing on it, i agree with gelindo... there's nothing "you" can do on raceday. your body is the actor putting on the performance, your mind is the director with a front row seat to all of the action.
GB concluded the talk with some thoughts about the upcoming boston, which he plans to run (i.e. the BAA probably had something to do with it) in honor of his 15-year anniversary of his BAA victory.
gelindo was very approchable, pleased to talk with folks, and a great ambassador to the sport. our small running town is graced once again with a figure from our sport's colorful history.
pre-talk observation: HELLO, AUSTIN. this is your "you think you're a running town, so show it" wake up call. bordin dominated the marathon world for a stretch of a few years in the 80s/90s. c'mon, peeps! i realize that a lot of the runners here in town are working professionals, parents, etc., and don't have time to attend gatherings like this. heck, in a town like austin, there were some folks probably running during his talk, which i applaud. now that i think about it, i retract the complaint. to be at such a quaint gathering like this with a legend like bordin would be like seeing u2 play down at stubb's. no complaints.
bordin opened by talking about prepping for the marathon, about "de shoogars" and "de fatts," in his italian accent, and how those two fuels are what you need to balance in a race. he likened running a marathon to driving a car, never flooring the gas; always saving some extra push for the end. i was highly amused that who else but the italian chose automobiles as his metaphor. ha!
he very much liked the boston course, described it as the perfect man-vs-man race, for you can't really pace yourself, and the course is challenging. thought #1 that i've always believed myself, and bordin seems in agreement this evening.
people asked boring questions about training and eating. bordin emphasizes varying pace during training, and doesn't believe in track work. observation #2: all apologies, it kills me when people start asking the stars about training strategies. i see it in the same light as all of the diets that are "out on the market" these days: (a) not every style is for everyone, and (b) was there anything you haven't heard in the information presented that you haven't heard in one form or another already? do long runs slow, mix in some faster work, hard-easy periodic patterns. if you're a first-timer, hey, don't let me stand in your way--gobble this type of info up. but the majority of the folks that i saw there i recognized as being experienced.
i butt in with a question, and i was pleased to be followed by steve s. with a question of his own, and we get to, IMHO, good questions in for gelindo. the first question was about failure: what were some memorable failures, and what did he learn from them. he spoke of how his first two marathons were a snap, linearly moving closer to the WR with each one. his third marathon he really believed was going to be automatic, but he ate his first serving of humble pie in that race, and several more to come. he learned that he lost respect for the distance, and without that respect, he would never be able to train and compete at his full potential (thought #2 that i've always believed myself, and have grappled with in the past 1-2 years). he also mentioned that as he was learning to re-respect the distance, he was holding back in a race where he cut loose at mile 13 to catch the leaders, in which he suceeded, but couldn't hold on for the win for he went too early. he learned about patience and using every mile in a race to rope someone in (thought #3 that i've always been in agreement with). gelindo told the stories with a wistful banter that was enjoyable to listen to.
steve's question was about mental preparation, and GB emphasized positive attitude. he told us that his sports psychologist emphasized that on race day, "you can't change what happens that day," so relax, enjoy it, think positive, and realize your potential. he was keen on the positivity thing, and i enjoyed that vibe.
i thought about that statement for a while: you can't change what happens on raceday. it's a thought that eludes to concepts such as predetermination and fate, which i don't subscribe to. the fact that this thought was in the context of running irked me even more, for one of the reasons i would describe a relationship with running as being ideal is that you get out of it exactly what you put into it. you're in control; you reap what you sow. no fate BS in the running world by my measure, and here's a boston marathon champ standing in front of me telling me that there's nothing that can be done on raceday. bah!
but then you look past the superficial definition of the statement, and it looks different. you still are in complete control, it's just that the control you had came in the months before you have to take your hands off of the project on raceday and just let it happen. i liken it to the director of a play: you bust tail getting the show right, but come opening day, the curtain is going to rise, the show is going to go on, and there's nothing that you can do about it at that point but watch the story unfold and hope that the your labors of months past are rewarded.
the difference between the director and the runner? the runner is the director, AND the actor, AND the supporting crew of the performance. it just that on race morning, you put your megaphone down, get up from your folding chair, and make your way to the powder room for makeup and dress for a 7am curtain. the stage of running is a topic that could be babbled on about for a long while, so i'll stop this here to keep things on track.
after chewing on it, i agree with gelindo... there's nothing "you" can do on raceday. your body is the actor putting on the performance, your mind is the director with a front row seat to all of the action.
GB concluded the talk with some thoughts about the upcoming boston, which he plans to run (i.e. the BAA probably had something to do with it) in honor of his 15-year anniversary of his BAA victory.
gelindo was very approchable, pleased to talk with folks, and a great ambassador to the sport. our small running town is graced once again with a figure from our sport's colorful history.
No track workouts, or just not workouts on a track? What does he do for speed?
-Lars
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