Be a Run Mentor

One of the things I love most about running is its inclusive nature. Running truly is one of the very few sports that accepts all ability levels, all ages, male and female. I realized this back in 1984 while attending my very first 10K. Actually it was my very first race period. I was a freshman in college. I had been doing a little running and saw an ad for the Great Raleigh Road Race. I was a student at NC State at the time and thought, hmmm,  I'll give this a try.

Not knowing what to expect at all, I showed up. I think I ran that 10K in 1:06:00. I really didn't know if that was good or bad. I really didn't care. I ran hard and had a great time. I remember sitting there in the downtown square afterward watching the age group awards being given out. I looked at all the runners in the square and I realized, these people are just like me. I must be a runner. It was the first time I really realized that I run, therefore, I am a runner. It opened an entirely new world up to me.

Never having been a team sports kind of kid, I never was very athletic growing up. I played a year or two of little league baseball and football, but it just wasn't for me. That day in 1984, I discovered running was for me. Been at it ever since....over 30 years.

As a running coach, one of the things I love the most is helping new runners. Whether its brand new runners, just leaning the basics or a new race trainer. I love the excitement they bring. They are usually hesitant and a bit fearful of failing or not being as good as the other runners or even worse not being accepted by the other runners. This usually comes with lack of confidence in their abilities. But soon they realize that running isn't about keeping up with others, it's about challenging yourself.

Occasionally, when away at a race or some other running event and I'll hear an "experienced" runner talk about newer, slower, or less experienced runners in a negative manner. I really don't understand these runners. I reason it as possibly a lack of confidence in their own running, so they bash the slower runner. Truly sad, but like I said it's a rare occasion. I guess in every bushel you'll have a bad apple.

I asked my running friend, Bart Yasso of Runner's World his take on the inclusiveness of running and he told me,

"Thad, as runners, we each have a duty to accept the role as mentor to a new runner or someone who doesn't think he or she can walk around the block, let alone finish a 5K. We are runners! So let's spread the message. The acceptance of all abilities is what differentiates running from every other sport."

I totally agree, Bart! I've seen so many lives enriched even turned completely around for the better by simply taking that leap of faith into running. When I hear someone talk about a slower or less experienced runner in a negative light, I usually reply back with, "You're talking to the wrong person. I ran my first mile (40lbs overweight) in 18 minutes wearing long plaid pants and a pair of wallabees." 😊 (True story.)

We all start somewhere. Whether we want to be really fast or just enjoy the journey is entirely up to the runner, but in either case we're still all runners.

RunnerDude Chats With Bart Yasso, Sarah Reinertsen, and Brian Boyle

Back in the spring, I had the awesome opportunity to interview Bart Yasso, Chief Running Officer at Runner's World, about his new book, My Life on the Run as well as his quest for Comrades. During that interview, he mentioned two athletes that were inspirations of his own—Sarah Reinertsen, and Brian Boyle. In addition to Bart, both Sarah and Brian were inspirations in my own life as well. I had followed their personal and professional stories over the past few years.

Sarah was born with a congenital birth defect and at the age of 7, her leg was amputated. This didn't stop Sarah though. As a teenager, she began to break all kinds of records and set firsts for female above-the-knee amputees including being the first female leg amputee to complete the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii. Sarah tells her story in her autobiography, In a Single Bound: Losing My Leg, Finding Myself, and Training for Life. My daughter and I fell in love with Sarah and her story while watching the reality show The Amazing Race back in 2006 in which she was a contestant.

About a year before Sarah's conquering of the Hawaii Ironman, 18-year-old Brain Boyle was the victim of a horrific car crash in which a dump truck crushed him and his car. Brain was in a medically induced comma for 2 months. He lost 60% of his blood. His heart suffered horrific trauma, and his internal organs and pelvis also received devastating damage. During his recovery period, he lost 100lbs. Even though doctors thought he'd never walk again, Brian fought back with superhuman and unbelievable determination. Not only did he recover, he became an Ironman when he completed the 2007 Hawaii Ironman in Kona. You can read about the accident and Brian's comeback in his autobiography Iron Heart: The True Story of How I Came Back From the Dead.

After the interview with Bart, I got to thinking how great it would be to do an interview with Sarah and one with Brian for blog. So, I emailed Bart to see if he had any contact information for Sarah and Brian. Bart immediately said, "Yes!" But, Bart had an even better idea. Bart said, "I'd love to talk with Sarah and Brian too. What do you think about all four of us talking at the same time?" Excited to no end, I said, "Great idea!" Bart checked it out with Sarah and Brian and before I knew it, I was contacting everyone setting up the conference call.

Thanks, Bart for such a great idea! And thanks to Sarah, Brian, and Bart for taking the time to talk with RunnerDude and share their stories with the blog readers. You guys rock!

In the introduction to Bart's book, he says, "Running may be the connective tissue, but the true experience of the sport is a passage to a bigger world. So open the door and run through. Just don't be surprised if you arrive in a place you only dreamed existed." That's how I felt talking with Bart, Sarah, and Brian during the interview. Below is our conversation.

Bart: Okay Thad, you’re in charge buddy. Where do you what to go from here?

RD: Well, I do have some questions that I want to be sure and ask each of you, but with the four of us on the call, it would be great to just have a rich conversation and a good dialogue. If you guys have questions for each other or want to interject a comment at any time, please feel free to do so.

I wanted to start off by saying that I’ve read all three of your books, Bart’s My Life on the Run: Wit, Wisdom, and Insights of a Road Racing Icon, Sarah’s In a Single Bound: Losing My Leg, Finding Myself, and Training for Life, and Brian’s Iron Heart: The True Story of How I Came Back From the Dead. All of them were amazing books to read and so inspirational. I was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis about 10 years ago and had a related surgery about 7 years ago and I used running to help me recover and get back into life. So, on some levels, I could relate to parts of your stories of overcoming struggles that life presents you. It meant a lot to read about how each of you dealt with your own unique struggles with life, health, and running and how you each overcame your life adversities to go on to accomplish such great things. Bart, your running over 1000 races and just recently running Comrades in Africa. Sarah, your setting all kinds of firsts and records for female amputees. Brian, I mean you literally came back from the dead to run your first Ironman and then go on to be competitive in so many more endurance events. So, thank each of you for sharing your stories.

It seems like each of you has this innate determination or lack of a better word “gumption” to live life to the fullest. I’d like each of you to speak to this. Where did it come from? Were you born with it? Did you get it from your parents or family? Was it cultivated over time?

BART: Who wants to go first? I always say, “Ladies first.” So Sarah, go for it.

SARAH: Yes, I’ll start, I know my family was a big part of it for sure in me finding my own independence and really encouraging me to find my own strength. They supported me to push myself beyond the limits. So for sure my parents played a big part. My mom was quoted in the Ironman interview and shared the story other times about when I’d fall down at the playground. She’d make me get up on my own. The other mothers thought that was cruel for her to make her one-legged daughter get up on her own, but she was helping me learn to be self-sufficient and independent. That was an important lesson for me to learn for sure.

RD: How about you, Brian?

BRIAN: I would say just like Sarah said, "Family first." I mean my parents were there all my life supporting me all the way through athletics and academics. I grew up with a very positive attitude and was very outgoing and very determined, so when the accident happened, it just went into overdrive. I was still kind of the same person; just more driven. Kind of driven to get back into life again. To walk. To jog. To swim. To ride again. Just to do everything I used to do. Having the support of my parents was a Godsend. And then to come back the way I did and then do all the races was just a wonderful thing to cross the finish line. It was like a big thank you to my parents and everyone who helped in my recovery. It’s a constant show of appreciation to everyone who has helped me in my journey.

RD: I think you mention on your website how all the nurses, technicians, medical staff and others at all the various hospitals and rehabilitation centers you stayed in were like family and played an important part in your recovery too.

BRIAN: Definitely. Everyone from the hospital to the rehab center to the outpatient rehab center gave so much support. The Ironman was a way of saying, “This is what you’ve done for me. Thank you.” That was a big day for me back in 2007.

RD: How about you Bart?

BART: Yeah, you know my mother and my brother George where truly the guiding lights in my life. My older brother was more of a father figure than a brother to me. He was a great teacher even though he wasn’t a teacher by profession. He was a financial analyst, but he was a great teacher. He knew what to give me. He gave me enough to get me going then made me do the work. I think of my mom as always there for me. My guiding light. You know my mom and brother aren’t with us any longer, so I rely on people like Sarah and Brian as my sources of inspiration and as mentors. I talk about them all the time in my shows. If you have this gift, this passion and then you have this story, you have to go out and share your story with others with great enthusiasm to motivate and inspire others no matter their situations.

RD: Sarah, I just wanted to let you know that one of your biggest fans is my 15-year-old daughter. We’re both big fans of the reality show The Amazing Race and she first became familiar with you and your story when you were a contestant in the race. She loves it when girls are just as gutsy and competitive as the guys and you were that and then some in that race. She thought you were awesome and it actually helped inspire her to eventually take up running. She just recently finished one of my beginning running programs. That provided us with a really unique bonding experience.

SARAH: Thanks, that’s one of my big missions as an athlete and role model is to mentor. Bart’s actually one of my mentors and inspirations and like he mentioned earlier, it’s important to help inspire others to get active and get into the sport, so I’m really tickled that your daughter was moved by The Amazing Race to get into running. Thanks for sharing that with me.

RD: Brian, are there any mentors you’ve look to for inspiration over the years?

BRIAN: I would definitely say going back before the Ironman, just growing up and watching the Ironman as a kid and watching the athletes compete and then seeing Sarah’s journey two years in a row and seeing the determination it took to get to the bike course to finish that race. As an inspiring Ironman, that was my determination just to be there and feel that Ironman spirit. And to do that and then be accepted into the marathon community and meet people like Bart has been awesome. Just doing each race is a journey in itself. You meet so many inspirational people like Sarah and getting to talk to Bart Yasso over the past year has been tremendous.

RD: I thought it was cool that both you and Sarah did the Hawaii Ironman in Kona. Did Sarah’s journey inspire you to run the same Ironman?

BRIAN: Growing up I just wanted to do an Ironman. It could have been any of the Ironman races, but to go in and run Hawaii is like completing the Ironman of Ironmans.

RD: It’s funny how life sometimes provides moments, events, encounters that can end up having such a profound impact on our lives. Sarah, I know in your book you talk about meeting a lady, Paddy Rossbach, who first planted the seed that you could run marathons. I think you were pretty young, maybe around 6th grade.

SARAH: Yeah, Paddy is a runner who runs on a prosthetic leg. Backing up, my dad was a runner. He was a Runner’s World subscriber. He'd often take me to races. This was the first race, however, where I saw someone running on a prosthetic leg in the same race as my dad. Seeing Paddy run opened up a whole new reality that if she could do it on a prosthetic leg then I could do it to. You know that really completely changed my life. I started meeting with physical therapists who taught me how to run. And like my dad, I clipped out articles from Runner’s World magazine and eventually started using their 5K and 10K training plans and you know got myself in all these races. It started this whole new passion in my life that's lasted over 20 years now. So, I owe a lot to Paddy Rossbach for sure.

RD: Brian and Bart, did either of you have some type of event like Sarah’s that sort of got the ball rolling for your interest in running?

BART: Yeah, there was a guy who was a few years older than me that went to the same school I was going to. I used to see him running every morning. And at one point I was jealous of seeing this guy running every morning. And when I got into running 33 years ago he was the gentleman that inspired me. I thought I had to get out there every morning at 5:30AM and run like this dude. He really inspired me.

RD: That’s cool Bart. So, if this older student hadn’t been a runner, no telling what you’d be doing now. Hey Brain, what about you?

BRIAN: Early on in my athletic career in High School I started swimming competitively on the high school swim team. Before this my background had been basketball, shot put, discus, track, but no distance. When I switched over to swimming my sophomore year in high school, I really didn’t know the competitive strokes. I swam in some summer programs but that was more for fun. One of the upper classmen, Ethan Ratliff, (he was a senior and I was a sophomore) took me under his wing and showed me the ropes, kept me in the loop, and helped me perfect my swimming performance and racing abilities. The fact that I had an older guy believe in me (I was new to the team and he was “the King” of the swim team and state champion in Maryland) to be in that limelight with him was pretty overwhelming for me in such a positive manner. A few months went by and I was able to train and get better and get really, really good at the sport. I think in the first year near the end of the year, there was a state championship and he picked me to be on his relay team and we got a state championship medal which was tremendous for me in my athletic career so as an athlete that was a big thing for me.

RD: Sarah, in your book you talk about the gift of being different and you talk about how hard it was to fit in as a youngster in different situations. I wondered if you could speak to kids today who find themselves in similar situations by sharing what helped you persevere and get through those tough times.

SARAH: I have to give a lot of credit to sports for really making me feel comfortable in my skin and whole in my body when I did feel so different. I think a lot of teenagers, even if they’re not disabled, all go through some experience of feeling different. I was just lucky to find the outlet of sports and go to the track and sweat it out and turn those bad days into good days and kind of leave all the teasing and tormenting aside. Sports really helped me find that. I think you’ve got to rock what you’ve got. I truly do believe that what makes us unique is what makes us beautiful. Part of the human experience is that we all bring this unique point of view and I’m glad I have that, but that’s hard for teenagers to see.

RD: Yeah, I just read a report that said that one out of every six kids are bullied in some way, so I think it’s great for kids to hear your message that we should celebrate out differences and find our unique outlets whether it's sports, or the arts, or whatever.

RD: A lot of people, especially non-runners think of running just as a means of exercise and staying fit, but for me it’s so much more. It’s part of what keeps me sane. Can any of you imagine life without running? What would it be like without it?

BART: Wow, I’ve never been asked that question. But you know, I can barely run these days. I run literally like 1/100 what I used to run, but I feel very lucky that I still work in the sport and through Runner’s World I can still stay connected to people through running. I don’t know…there are so many things to gravitate to in life. I just think that if I can’t run that I’ll gravitate to something that's going to make me just as happy and still keep me connected to people. I just think you have this type of personality that you have and you go wherever it’s going to lead you.

SARAH: Well, Bart’s modest about saying he doesn’t run much, but I know he manages to squeeze in miles here and there and he pushes himself even though he has Lyme disease which is hard on his joints and makes it not the easiest thing to run these days. He still bikes and I know he gets out there and hammers and he does find some activity to get his heart pumping. I think we all have that common thread of knowing that sports helps us feel alive and if we find we can’t run some day, we’ll bike. And if we can’t bike, we’ll swim. And if I can’t swim, well I don’t know, maybe I’ll take up watercolor painting, just something (laughing) that keeps me active and makes me feel passionate and keeps me as an observer in the world.

BART: I totally agree with what Sarah’s said.

RD: How about you Brian?

BRIAN: Definitely agree with what Sarah’s said. That’s the perfect answer there (laughing).

RD: I’ve had the privilege to work with all ages and abilities of runners, but one of my groups that I find the most inspirational are the beginning running groups. Not always, but often the group ends up being comprised of individuals coming to the sport for the first time as older adults in their 40s, 50s, and 60s. Most of them are very concerned about how they’re going to stack up to the others in the group. Will they be the least fit? The slowest? The oldest? The funny thing is that they have no idea that every one of them is thinking the exact same thing. What’s so cool is to see these very hesitant runners progress over time. Seeing them gain physical strength and muscular and aerobic endurance is awesome. Even more awesome is seeing them become more confident. More than physical constraints, lack of confidence is what often holds individuals back from becoming more active, especially as older adults. How do you guys feel about the importance of staying active throughout your life to maintain a good quality of life and how do you share that with others? Sarah and Brian you guys are both still youngsters, but Bart….? (Chuckling)

BART: Yep, I’m just about ready to turn 55 in a couple of weeks…yeah; I meet people of all ages getting into running and triathlons. I’m just happy people got to the sport. The great thing about running is that we do include everyone. We don’t turn anyone away. If people would just get to a race, they’d understand that they’d fit in. The hard part is getting them to take those first couple of steps to run and then enter an event, because it is intimidating. Everyone does think that all the runners run as fast as Ryan Hall and Carl Lewis and that’s just not the case when you go to a local 5K. But that’s someone’s perception and when they go out and run they know they’re not that fast so they just suppress their feelings that they should be out there. But, once they get out there, someone can convince them into trying and taking those first steps, then they are hooked. Then they feel a part of something. That’s what I love. I want to keep doing this for another ….I don’t know how long I’ll be at Runner’s World, but you know, I hope to work here a few more years and then I hope to keep this passion going that I have of connecting with people through running for a long time.

RD: There’s a lot of research I’ve read recently that says this is the first generation of kids whose life expectancy is shorter than that of their parents. There are so many contributing factors to this like kids living more sedentary lives, schools reducing or taking out physical education and/or recess, kids being engrossed in television and/or computer games, non-stop texting, families no longer eating together and/or eating more fast-food or prepackaged meals. All of this is causing the childhood obesity rate to skyrocket. What do you think is a solution? I see running playing a part in the solution, but what are your thoughts?

BART: Go ahead Brian; you’re still a kid in my eyes. (Brain chuckling) I mean you’re still in school.

BRIAN: I’d say it’s a pretty tough call. For many people my age and in high school, video games are a big factor. When you’re not in class, a lot of your time is spent playing these games. I think it’s an escape for some stress-free time, which is good, but if you’re not careful it can consume more time than you realize and that’s an unfortunate thing. Not all kids get caught up in that cycle. I was one of the rare few and I still am. You know I just preferred to go and be outdoors not ever indoors. I had enough of that being in the hospital. I’d much rather be walking, jogging, hiking, running…anything. There’s so much more to that. The endorphins are going. You go out in an Ironman, marathon or any kind of race or event and there's so much more. It’s a social gathering. It’s a way of being in an environment where everyone is supporting each other. It’s like another family in a way. I think if young people in high school or college get out there and experience that feeling of being active and belonging, they’ll want that more and more.

RD: Yep, I couldn’t agree more. For the younger kids, it’s providing those opportunities for kids to experience being active especially being active in group situations. Last year I had the privilege of being on the board of a non-profit called GO FAR which stands for Go Out For A Run. This organization provides a 10-week program that trains 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th graders to run their first 5K. It also includes learning about good nutrition and character building. The kids culminate the program by running a 5K set up especially for them, their coaches, and families. I attended the spring GO FAR 5K and there were close to 1000 kids running. It was an amazing sight to see.

RD: On a different topic, what do you guys think about the Boston controversy with the registration filling up so quickly? Some think the qualification requirements need to be changed for everyone. Others think the women’s qualifying times need to be reconfigured. What is your take on the issue?

SARAH: Well, I don’t know that much about it, but you know running and racing in general is getting more and more popular and races are seeing the effects of this. As more people get active and run, then just naturally more people are going to qualify. The city has to put a cap on it. I’m certainly not going to tell Boston how they should do things.

BART: I can certainly touch on it. I communicate quite a bit with Dave McGillivray, the race director of the Boston Marathon and um it did sell out in what, something like 9hours and I thought it would because of this backlog of people that didn’t get in. I do feel sorry for some of the people who tried to get on in the morning and there were some server issues or computer problems. But, you know, this has been going on in Ironman races for years (Sarah and Brian in unison, “Exactly!”). They physically go to the races and sign up at the race because it’s the only way to get in. A lot of times there’s only a three-hour window where you can get in online. It’s just a part of the deal. If you’re that passionate about doing it, then you got to do it.

SARAH: I guess that’s why, when I heard “9 hours!” it seemed pretty….

BART: Seem pretty lenient, huh?

SARAH: Yeah! (laughing)

RD: So you’re wondering why they’re whining.

BART: Well, it’s news about the marathon so I understand and people got caught off guard. But, I’ve been telling people for months how fast Boston was going to sell out. If you’re passionate about doing it, you have to commit and do it. That’s all there is to it. You can’t waiver. You enter and that’s it. There’s no sitting on the fence. You know the Boston Marathon people are obligated to the seven municipalities that the race runs through that they’ll only have 25,000 runners. It’s up to the marathon if they want to toughen the standards. When I ran Boston back in the day when I was a young guy, you had to run a 2:50:00 and that was the standard. We knew that and we worked for that. Honestly, I do hope they toughen the standards, but I don’t know about making it tougher for women than men. I don’t agree with that. I think they should leave the older age group times alone because there’s not a lot of people in those age groups, but toughen up the open standard because those people are young and fit and they can run these faster times. They’ll just have to do the work. If Boston sets the bar higher, they’ll just have to for it. I think it would help runners in the US, if they toughen the standards, specifically on the open men’s side and women’s side.

RD: Brain, what are your thoughts?

BRIAN: I’m just hoping to get to Boston, first…. (RunnerDude: “Me too.” [laughing]) One question I do have is, do the marathons after the registration period qualify you for the 2012 Boston? How does that work

BART: Yeah, so if you do Marine Corps or Philly and made your times, then you'd qualify for 2012.

BRIAN: Oh man, then I should have done Baltimore. I’m not even close, but I was curious how that whole process works.

RD: Yeah, I think there were a lot of runners qualified that didn’t make it before the registration closed. Those were the ones who were speaking out the loudest, but that's just the nature of the beast. Good or bad.

BART: And honest Thad, I think for a couple of people it will change their mindset that they thought they always had to do Boston every year because they qualified. They’ll pick another race like London or Big Sur and they may find that they like these smaller marathons or ones more exotic locations. For some people it will be a blessing in disguise, but they’re going to have to find their way and see how they feel about it.

RD: Earlier today, I spoke with Matt Fitzgerald; he’s the senior editor at Triathlete magazine and the author of Run: The Mind-Body Method of Running by Feel. The book talks about how the brain really is what’s in charge of your training not a plan. It details the importance of knowing your own body and its limitations, but also what’s possible beyond the boundaries, how hard to push yourself, and when to rest. I was wondering how that or if that played a part in your training. Do you have a plan you follow? How much to rely on feel

SARAH: I’ll just say briefly, I haven’t read Matt’s book, but when you were just describing it, my immediate thoughts were that I’m definitely a plan person and I like to look at a training schedule and if it says to run that much I’ll do it. I like to have that to follow; however, I have medical considerations that I have to think about. So, definitely sometimes when I’m out there and my prosthetic leg is rubbing and it’s going to put a sore on my stump, I’m like, “you know I’m not going to push it” because then I’ll have a worse sore on my stump and then I have to recover and then I can’t run as much. So, I definitely know my own mind-body connection and I know what I can and cannot push it to and I think that’s just something that you learn over time. Anyone who has a medical consideration kind of finds those parameters.

RD: And they probably find those parameters sooner than runners without medical conditions. Sometimes I think the average runner finds themselves in trouble because they do stick so rigidly to the plan and don’t realize they have some input in their training. Sometimes the body needs to rest while other times it might be ready to go beyond what’s slated for the day. Matt mentioned that many of African runners he’s spoken with think American’s tend to over-think running. Instead of running more by feel, we tend to have to run a certain distance at a certain pace on a certain day. The book is enlightening in that it frees up the runner, not to toss the plan, but to just be liberated to not feel guilty if he alters the plan based on where he’s at mentally or physically each day.

SARAH: Yeah, sometimes I love to run a race without a watch. I think that’s a great way to tap into that whole running by feel. Don’t worry about the time, just run based on how you feel that day.

RD: Yep, in fact a good friend of mine Dena Harris just did that very same thing in a local half marathon and ended up with an awesome time.

SARAH: Well, and especially since you have the chip timing. You’re paying for that service and you’re going to get a split, so it’s like free yourself from that labor of checking the watch.

RD: How about you Brian?

BRIAN: I try to get an overall plan set up for the season and I do my best to try to stick to it, but with my accident, I lost a lot of organs and the organs that were affected still cause a lot of medical problems now. So, if I know I have a hard week, I try my best to stick to the plan, but if I get sick or get bronchitis then I’ll have to adjust the schedule to work around it. Like Sarah said, you know the part of the race that’s the best for me is the experience of it. A lot of races I just run to be in the experience and be with the other runners and enjoy the sights. You just feel it…physically…emotionally…psychologically...every way possible. To me that’s so much better than crossing the finish line and setting a personal best. When you race a lot, you can’t always get a personal best so you’ve got to go out there and just enjoy it too.

RD: I know, Bart, you said that even though you’re running a lot slower than you did years ago that you still get that thrill of crossing the finish line each time.

BART: Yeah, you know prior to Comrades, I did 10 marathons in like a 21-week period and a lot of times my time was 2 hours slower than what I used to do, but the thrill was still there. And it wasn’t that I just was running 2 hours slower. I was physically running what my body would allow me to run. What I discovered and what made me happy was that I was surrounded by a lot more runners than I was used to, and these runners liked to communicate and encourage you and I could do the same to them. I didn’t have that in my other running life, so it was eye-opening in many ways and absolutely a wonderful experience.

RD: A lot of the runners I work with are in their 40s, 50s, and 60s and many of them will come to me saying, “You know I’m not running like I used to. I’m fatiguing sooner.” They often think it’s just related to getting older, but I’ve found that it has more to do with having a weak core and upper-body. As we age, we tend to be involved less in activities that would naturally strengthen the core and upper body. So, if a person is just running to keep fit, they’re getting a great leg workout and aerobic workout, but the upper-body is being neglected. The Core is the power source for a runner and a strong upper-body helps maintain good running form. It’s kind of a domino effect. If the good running form goes, then more stress is put on the core that in turn puts more stress on the lower-body and then before you know it, you’re fatigued and slowing down. I’m a big advocate of full-body strength, especially focusing on the core and upper-body shooting for muscular endurance to help maintain good running form, but also to help increase stability, balance and flexibility for everyday life. Do you guys incorporate that into your training

BART: Brian was a body builder at one point, right Brian? (Brian laughing) My wife was in love with Brian. He’s got long hair. I have no hair. (Everyone laughing) He’s got muscles. I have no muscle. He’s young and good looking and well, I’m neither. So my wife always loves to be around Brian. I believe (and you can speak to this, Brian) the reason why Brian survived his accident was that he had body mass. When you lost over 100lbs you were still strong enough to survive.

BRIAN: Yes sir. Yes sir. Back during the accident recovery, I remember hearing the doctors saying that if I hadn't had all that muscle mass and been in such good physical health, that I wouldn’t have survived. My heart would have stopped beating and everything would have just shut down. I wouldn’t have been able to have pushed through those two months of being comatose. A lot of my program now involves cross-training--swim, bike, run--weights, core work (abs, planks). Planks are really tough and frustrating, but they have a really great benefit to them (Bart agreeing in the background). A lot of medicine ball work. Having the background with power lifting and body building helps, but it also has its affects because I was built like a linebacker. You know I don’t have the best running form, but I’m out there just doing what I got to do. Trying my best.

RD: That’s great. I think a lot of runners have a fear of doing resistance training and lifting weights because they’re picturing a bodybuilder physique and they’re hesitant thinking if they lift weights they’ll add bulk which will slow them down. Unfortunately many don’t see and miss out on all the benefits of working the core and full body conditioning geared more for muscular endurance rather than strength. Great hearing you and Bart talk about using other methods in your training in addition to the aerobic workouts.

BART: Core strength is really vital, when you mentioned being in your 50s, because you have to keep a good posture during running and that really comes from your core. As you get older, people tend to slouch more not only in the shoulders, but they'll lean more from the waist and that’s not good in running. I work on core strength all the time. In the Comrades piece in the current Runner’s World, I had to bring in all these old running photos of me. They wanted kind of a history of me running from college till now. So, I brought this tub of photos and gave it to the photo editors and they kept saying, “Oh my god, you had these ripped abs" and all this stuff. I don’t have those abs any more, they’re covered up with 15-20lbs I put on when I cut back on my running, but I still have core strength. I just don’t have the 6-pack Men’s Health ab thing, but I still feel like I have good core strength and I work on that at our gym. We are very fortunate here at Rodale to have our own fitness center and it’s convenient. I go there at least 2-3 times a week.

RD: That’s great. Sarah, how about you? How do you incorporate other types of training into your plan?

SARAH: You know, I was going to say as well that weight training is important, especially for women for prevention of osteoporosis. I do hit the gym. Sometimes I’m not as consistent about it. I don’t really like being indoors that much, but I do workout. I've also practiced a lot of yoga the past 13 years, not that yoga is necessarily the same exact thing, but I do think it helps work on my core and it’s helped me to stretch as well as other things that have helped me as an athlete.

BART: Sarah’s totally ripped! She’s got legs and arms like I wish I had. She works it. And, plus Sarah, I would assume that your non-prosthetic leg does so much work, that you just use it nonstop.

SARAH: Yeah, I’m actually doing exercises to strengthen other parts of my body to help prevent getting injuries because I know that I’m going to be demanding so much of that leg for the rest of my life…just to live, not just to run a race.

RD: This has been great. I wish we had the time to talk for the rest of the day. I’ve learned so much more about each of you as athletes and individuals. So thank you for sharing yourselves with the readers of RunnerDude’s Blog. I wanted to end by asking what’s next on the horizon for each of you.

BART: Go Sarah. You start us off.

SARAH: Yeah, let’s save Bart for last, because he probably has the busiest schedule ahead. I’m going to be at Rocket City Marathon in December. I’m also doing the half-marathon at Rock-n-Roll Vegas and Muddy Buddy in a couple of weeks and that’s about it for the rest of this season of 2010.

RD: Hey Brian, what about you?

BRIAN: I’m actually packing today (10/27) to do Ironman Florida next week (11/5). Then the following week I have my first 50K. Then the next week is the JFK 50-Miler. Then maybe 2 or 3 weeks after that is the Charlotte Marathon and that will be the end of 2010.

RD: Man, both of you have busy schedules ahead. The Charlotte Marathon, huh? Cool. That’s just a little less than 2 hours SW of me here in NC. I’m in Greensboro, more in the middle of the state.

BRIAN: Yeah, Thunder Road!

RD: Bart, your turn man.

BART: Yeah, I’ve got a few more events ahead this year. Nothing I’m going to run, but some I’m going to attend—NYC Marathon, Richmond Marathon, the Running Event in Austin Texas, the Barbados Marathon. And then I get into all these warm places in the month of December, January, and February because my wife is a California girl and doesn’t like winter in Pennsylvania and since we don’t have kids, we can travel, you know, through the winter. That’s what we do. We go to warm places and I find races in all the warm areas. But it never ends. I get speaking engagements during the week. I just feel so lucky I get to stay so connected to the sport through the speaking engagements and going to the events.

RD: Busy man. Busy man. I just wanted to thank each of you for taking the time to speak with me today and give us a little peak into your lives. I can’t thank you enough for sharing more about your stories and your sport and I know the readers of RunnerDude’s Blog will enjoy immensely getting to know more about each of you. Each of you in so many different ways has contributed so much to the sport as well as being such a source of inspiration to me and countless others across the country and the world. Keep doing what you’re doing.

BART: Thank you. Thank you for doing this and what you’re doing for the running community.

SARAH: Thanks!

BRIAN: Thanks very much.

BART: I say this all the time, that Brian and Sarah are the two greatest athletes I’ve ever encountered because to be a great athlete, not only do you have to be a great athlete in the athletic sense, but whatever you accomplish you have to share with everyone and have that passion to do that and these two do that better than anyone I’ve ever encountered.

RD: Thanks again and happy running!

Congrats Bart!

A couple of weeks ago I had the privilege of interviewing Bart Yasso for the blog. In the interview he shared about the one run that had eluded him—Comrades—one of the world's top ultradistance races between Durban and Pietermaritzburg in South Africa.

I had heard of Comrades, but really didn’t know a lot about the race until I read Bart's book My Life on the Run. It’s a 56-mile point-to-point marathon in South Africa. Actually it’s approximately 56 miles. One of the unique things about the race is that the actual distance can vary from year to year. It’s truly a point to point race, but where the actual finish is located can vary and as a result so can the total mileage. It’s a grueling course that reverses direction each year. So, one year it’s more of an up-hill race and the next it’s more of a down-hill. But, even on the down-hill year, there are some pretty major hills to climb. The race takes place between the cities of Pietermaritzburg and Durban and the race has a very strict 12-hour cut-off. They actually shut the gate at 12 hours and no one is allowed to cross the finish line after that time.

During the interview, Bart said that he had run over 1,000 races in his career, and he didn't want to end his running career without adding Comrades to his list. The race originally had an 11-hour cut off. Today it has a 12-hour cut off. Bart shared that he wanted to try and make the 11 hour time. He wasn't sure if it was possible. If not he was shooting for coming in under 12. And if that didn't happen, he said that at least he'd have the satisfaction of knowing he had tried.

Well, this past Sunday, Bart completed Comrades in a time of 11 hours, 33 minutes, and 37 seconds. He placed 11,428th out of 20,000 runners overall, and 9,071st among male finishers. Congrats Bart!! You're amazing!

To learn more about Bart and his quest for Comrades check out the Bart vs. Comrades video series at the Runner's World website.

RunnerDude Chats with Bart Yasso

Recently, I had the honor and privilege of interviewing Bart Yasso, Chief Running Officer of Runner’s World. Bart has been such a prominent figure in running over the past 30 years and has run so many races that he’s known to many as the “Mayor of Running.” You may also know Bart as the creator of the Yasso 800s, an innovative marathon training technique. I was nervous going into the interview with Bart, but once the conversation began, it was like talking to an old friend. Bart is one of the most positive, optimistic people I think I’ve ever met. Read on to learn more about Bart.

RD: Where is Runner’s World Located?
Bart: Emmaus, PA is the Runner’s World headquarters.

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RD: What part of PA is that in?
Bart: It’s about 60 miles north of Philly, close to Allentown Bethlehem.

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RD: How did it end up in Emmaus?
Bart: Runner’s World is owned by a company called Rodale which is located in Emmaus. It used to be located in the Bay area but moved to Emmaus back in 1985.

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RD: So, your title at Runner’s World is CRO—Chief Running Officer.
Bart: Yep, greatest job in the world!

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RD: What makes it the greatest job in the world for you?
Bart: Awe, what runner wouldn’t want to get paid to go around the world and do races? The thing I love about my job the most is the people I get to meet every weekend. I’m at weekend events 48 weekends out of the year. There’s about four weekends I stay at home—Christmas, Thanksgiving, and two other weekends for family functions or something else going on. Every other weekend, I’m at a race somewhere. And I just get to meet the most inspiring people that have overcome so much just to get to the starting line of the race and then the finish line is the culmination of their journey. I’m usually at the longer events like half marathons and marathons and of those, they're usually the bigger races. I do get to some smaller ones once in a while.

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RD: I’ve had similar experiences with the Runner of the Week feature I do on the blog, although I rarely get to meet these runners in person. Some of the stories they share about the obstacles they’ve overcome through running are truly amazing and inspiring.
Bart: It’s mindboggling to me and it’s very humbling to me in my position. A lot of people will look at me and know my story and they think I’m inspirational or a hero, but I tell them all the time that I meet people that will blow you away…it’s just incredible.

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RD: Why do you think so many people end up using running as a means to deal with and/or overcome hardships and life obstacles?
Bart: You mean running kind of being the tool to success?

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RD: Yeah, you did that in your own life by using running to help you overcome a problem with alcohol as a young man.
Bart: I certainly did and you know if I had to use one word to sum it up, I think it would be inclusion. I think running is very open to include everyone and runners go out of their way to accept people into the sport. And you only go somewhere you feel wanted and accepted and feel like you’re a part of something. I think running has done a great job of that. An example would be wheelchair racing, blind athletes, and other physically challenged athletes. I mean when you go to the really big races, there are a lot of people in these categories. You know wheelchair racing is really like bike racing. It’s a wheel machine that they power, but bicycle racing doesn’t want these athletes, but we do. We accept them, we love including all athletes. We thrive off of the inclusion of everyone. If you ever go to the larger races the crowds just go crazy when the wheelchair racers begin their early start. They love it. And the runners are just so inspired by the determination and athleticism of the physically challenged participants. For us, inclusion is just mainstream, but in other sports, it just doesn’t go on.

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RD: Your book My Life on the Run, I really enjoyed reading it. The humor, frankness, and honesty with sharing your life story and then all the various runs that you’ve done…it was just great. It’s funny how we put well known sports celebrities on pedestals and never really contemplate how they got there. In your book, you share a lot about issues you had with your dad which lead to your use of drugs and alcohol at an early age as a means of coping with the situation. I think it’s so important for today’s youth to know and understand that even people of celebrity status just didn’t have things fall in their laps. For many, they too had hardships and struggles to overcome before eventually reaching their current status.

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Being "Bart Yasso", I just assumed that you must have been born a runner. But by reading your book, I was quite surprised and humored that a girlfriend’s dog is actually responsible for your running career! Walking and chasing after this dog each day made you realize that you actually enjoyed running and you started running regularly on your own. Have you ever wondered what your life would be like now, if your then girlfriend didn’t have a dog?
Bart: Oh yeah, I think about that quite often. Actually I was asked this question recently at a big gathering and my answer was “I don’t know, but I’d almost be scared to think about it.” You know obviously I would not be in the place I am now. I wouldn't be as well off as I am now, physically, mentally, the job I have. So yeah, I don’t know.

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RD: You’re such an optimist, that it probably doesn’t even to occur to you to think of what-ifs or to dwell too much in the past.
Bart: Yeah, you know I was obviously the same good person back then, I was just going down the wrong path. Thank God, I changed when I did and ever since that day, things have gone to the better. I tell runners all the time, my tagline is “Never limit where running can take you” and I truly mean that physically, mentally, spiritually, and emotionally. Thirty-some years ago, I just went out to run with Brandy the dog and it’s changed my life forever. Literally running has taken me all over the world and I have the greatest job and if it can happen for me then it can happen to anyone. There aren’t a thousand jobs out there for Chief Running Officer, but there are a lot of opportunities in running today, a lot more than there were when I started 33 years ago.
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RD: Tell me about the process involved in writing your book?

Bart: Well, when I committed to writing the book, I was very adamant about putting my faults up front in the book. I wanted to get it all out there. I didn’t want to start with all my running accomplishments and then have the life history be an afterthought. It was important for me to show how I got where I am today and to truly do that, I needed to be an open book and share it all. I think people think you’re much more approachable if you come out with all the things you’ve done wrong first and then let that play out to all the things you’ve accomplished. You’ve got to tell the whole story. You can’t leave pieces out. People that have known me for years, said, “Hey, you put it all in print?!” And my response was, “That was the point.”

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RD: In reading your book, it seemed like your optimism popped up again in 1997 when you discovered you had Lyme disease. I know you must have had your down moments, but it seems like you’ve dealt with the situation pretty well. How has it limited your running, if any?
Bart:Yeah, you know, I am a total optimist. I always feel there are so many people worse off than me, so I just feel very lucky for what I have. I never complain about the disease. In fact it’s surprising how many who’ve known me for a long time didn't know I had the disease until the book came out. I never really talked about it publically until the book came out. People I work with here at Runner’s World have seen my struggles physically, trying to walk. Even to walk around our building or to just walk to the copier back in 1997 was a huge struggle, so my colleagues were aware of that, but for me it was never something to put out in the public. It was something I had to deal with. You know, no one can really know what it’s like to be in someone else’s shoes until you’re there yourself. I talk to cancer survivors all the time and I just can’t imagine what that’s like to get that diagnosis and to hear that you’ve got cancer and then to have to fight for your life. I was never a world-class runner, but I was a good age-group runner (a 32:00 10K guy, a 2:40 marathon runner and a 1:12 half-marathon PR). To go from being a 32:00 10K runner to a 52:00 10K runner with my illness was an adjustment, but I was able to fight back. The meds my doctors put me on helped and I crossed trained like crazy and did everything I could to stay fit. I still had that drive. I still wanted to be a good runner.

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RD: And there it was again….running helped you through yet another life obstacle.
Bart: Yeah, and I think when it (running) was taken away from me, it’s what really gave me the drive to get back into it. And it completely changed my perspective on how I would look at races from then on. I no longer cared about my finish times. From now on it’s all about the honor of crossing the finish line and the honor to be a part of this great sport and to embrace every person that I meet along the way. Before I got ill, it was certainly more of a competitive sport for me and this change was a blessing. You know I’ve actually run a couple of good races since being diagnosed. When I was 46, I ran a 2:42 marathon and that was pretty good for me at that age, but time really isn't my focus any more.

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RD: That would be awesome for me at any age! Is Lyme disease intermittent or do you deal with it on an ongoing basis?
Bart: It’s caused a lot of damage to the right side of my body in my ankle, knee, and hip joints, and I have paralysis in my face on the right side. As a result, I just don’t have a smooth stride anymore and I’m in pain. My right leg is always in pain. It's kind of like if I get out there and get in a groove, I forget about the pain and enjoy hanging out with the runners. It’s pretty painful, though. But, I still thrive on it. Some of these races I was almost 2 hours slower than my personal best, but when I got to the finish line, it was the same feeling as when I was first racing. I really got excited and felt honored and privileged to do this.

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RD: Just recently didn’t you do a marathon kind of on a whim and do pretty well?
Bart: Yeah, and that’s where this whole Comrades Marathon idea sprouted from. I wrote in my book that the Comrades ultra marathon in South Africe was my only regret and I never really knew if I’d get there. Just didn’t know if it was a smart thing to do with my leg.

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I got a cortisone shot in my leg, which helped by giving me some increased range of motion. It didn’t really alleviate the pain, but I could move a little better. So, feeling pretty good (shortly after) on Thanksgiving Day, I ran a traditional 5-miler with some buddies. When I got to the 5-mile marker I was hurting but oddly enough, I felt really good too, like I could go a little more. I decided not to push it, but that made me think about my next trip. I was going to Huntsville to be the guest speaker at their pasta dinner and the host for the weekend and that’s when I got this idea that I could actually run Huntsville. So I did. I got to the starting line not really knowing what to expect or if I’d even make it. I decided to start out slowly and take it easy, enjoy it and see what happens. I actually finished the thing in 4:32.

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RD: That’s amazing. You hadn’t even really trained for it.
Bart: Yeah, I try to stay as fit as possible with cross-training, but yeah, I hadn’t specifically trained to run a marathon. But that Huntsville thing kind of opened my eyes that I enjoyed that race. I felt good. So given that awesome experience, I decided I’ve got to do this (run Comrades). Since Huntsville, I’ve done 9 other marathons. That’s really all the training I’ve done. It’s kind of funny when you average it out. I’ve run about 400 miles since then and it averages out to about 11-miles per week, but many of those miles are the races so, I’m hoping that’s enough to get me through Comrades. Comrades just has this allure and to me it’s the greatest footrace in the world.

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RD: I had heard of Comrades, but really didn’t know a lot about it until I read your book. It’s a 56-mile point-to-point marathon in South Africa. Actually it’s approximately 56 miles. One of the unique things about the race is that the actual distance can vary from year to year. It’s truly a point to point race, but where the actual finish is located can vary and as a result so can the total mileage. It’s a grueling course that reverses direction each year. So, one year it’s more of an up-hill race and the next it’s more of a down-hill. But, even on the down-hill year, there are some pretty major hills to climb. The race takes place between the cities of Pietermaritzburg and Durban and the race has a very strict 12-hour cut-off. They actually shut the gate at 12 hours and no one is allowed to cross the finish line after that time.
Bart: Exactly. It is a crazy race. I’ve run over 1,000 races in my career, so how can I end my running career without adding it to my list? The race originally had an 11-hour cut off and I’m going to shoot for that. I’m not sure if it’s possible. If not, I’ll shoot for under 12. And, if I don’t make the 12, I’ll be happy with knowing that I tried.

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RD: Runner’s World is chronicling your quest for Comrades with a series of webisodes. Currently, I think there are 3 of the video clips posted. They are awesome. The first one does a great job of explaining, just how alluring the race is with its changing course and strict time.
Bart: The real allure to the race is that fact that they do actually shut the gate to the finish and the race just shuts down at 12 hours. I mean can you image if Boston, just closed the finish at 4 hours and runners were turned away? Comrades is just a completely different way of thinking about racing. The other thing is that it’s huge. About 24,000 runners will run at Comrades. Even more applicants were turned away. The largest ultra in the US is JFK and it has about 1,000 runners.

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RD: How do they determine who gets in the race?
Bart: They have a category where if you’ve run the race before, then you’re automatically allowed to run it again. Then they open it up to the newbies and that’s first-come-first-serve. The newbie allotments filled up in something crazy like 10hours. It’s a tough race to get an entry into. I had to act quickly once the newbie registration opened. They also do something that no other race does and I think other races should do this. After you finish 10 Comrades, you get your race number for the rest of your life. No one else can use that number and if you decide not to run again, the number is retired. Our big races that have great histories could easily do this. What a unique and cool draw and appeal that would add to a race. I think it’s a brilliant thing to do.

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RD: How do you think Comrades will compare to Badwater that you ran many years ago?
Bart: When I ran Badwater over 20 years ago, I was in pretty good shape. I wasn’t running 100-mile weeks yet, but I was logging probably 70. So, even though I had never run past the marathon distance, I was pretty confident I could make it to the finish line. I don’t have that same kind of confidence with Comrades. I’m literally sitting at my desk with 20-some days left to go to the race and I’m absolutely scared to death. Not scared to try it. I’m anxious and excited to try it, but I just think it’s really going to be a grueling experience and brutal and don’t know if I can make it under that cut off. But, as I’ve told my wife, I’m either going to get to that finish line or they’re literally going to have to carry me off that course. There’s no middle ground.

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RD: I have no doubt that you’ll make if, but if you don’t, at least you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing you attempted it.
Bart: That’s so well put, the way you said that. I’ve done over 1000 races in my life and with each of those, I always had a vision of a time that I was shooting for. This is the first time ever in 33 years of running that all I want to do is get to the starting line and then whatever plays out will play out.

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RD: You’ve done so many different races in your career. I couldn’t help but chuckle when I read in your book about the Bare Buns Fun Run you ran at a nudist camp. We used to have a similar race called the Pride in Your Hide 5K that took place at a nudist camp in a neighboring county. The guys in my running group used to tease each year about running it, but no one ever would. That is until one year, I decided to shock them all and run it. I was scared to death, not knowing what to expect. When I arrived, I kept my shorts on while registering and getting my race bib number (for all you wondering, you tie it around your waist with a piece of string.) Then I realized I was much more conspicuous with my shorts on. So, when in Rome…. I had a blast. It was actually a challenging trail course. There were runners for which nudism was a way of life, but there were many others there just for the run. I was surprised to see several of the area’s elite runners at the race. Interestingly enough, it was one of the oddest, funniest, scariest, and most liberating things I’ve ever done. What was your experience like?
Bart: I’d have to say, very similar. Most people think it’s this big nude fest, but in reality it was like most any race. You had the people in attendance, like you said, for whom it was their lifestyle, but for the runners, it was just another race. Although a race that they’d be able to tell stories about. “Liberating” is a good word for it. It’s funny, when I talk about that race in my presentations, I don’t get any questions about it during the Q & A section, but the minute I’m done and leave the room, I get a ton of questions about the Bare Buns Run. They never want to ask about it in a big group, but once in a smaller forum, they hit me up with questions about it. I get a lot of email from runners who say they thought they’d never do that kind of run, but then decided to do it for their 40th or 50th birthday because they read about it in my book and wanted to do something crazy and it was a liberating thing for them too.

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RD: Well, of all the many races you’ve done, which one or ones over the years have stuck with you as being memorable?
Bart: My wife and I did the Rome Marathon two days after we got married in a small village in Italy. My mom was there for the wedding and that trip was a life altering experience for her. She finally got to go out of the country and visit places like the Vatican and she's a very religious person, so it meant so much to her. Most of the people in the wedding party were marathoners and also ran the race with us, so it was a pretty cool race. The course itself is absolutely beautiful. The other memorable race would have to be Big Sur. I’ve been quoted as saying, “If it could only be one marathon in my life, Big Sur would be it.” And I stand by that quote. I’m more of a natural beauty kind of guy more than a big city guy and seeing the waves crash in on that rocky coast along that course is just a beautiful site. So, Big Sur domestically and Rome internationally.

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RD: I mentioned earlier how I meet a lot of runners through the blog that have such inspirational stories. Who are some runners you’ve met whose stories have really stuck with you?
Bart: Two people come to mind right away. There’s a guy by the name of Brian Boyle who has a book out called Iron Heart. Brian was in such a horrific car accident. His heart was removed from his body and they kind of assembled him together and got him to the hospital and kept him alive. He was in a coma for 2 months and in that time he was pronounced dead 8 times. So horrific, you can’t imagine. And now, last fall he did 5 marathons in 5 weeks—minus a kidney, minus a spleen, and still numerous other health issues. When I met him he said to me, “Mr. Yasso, you’re my hero. I want to do Badwater. I want to ride my bike across the U.S. I want to do all the stuff you do.” I was like, kid you don’t understand. You’re the hero. You’re everyone’s hero. He’s a pretty inspiring kid. The other person would have to be Sarah Reinertsen who has a book out now called, In a Single Bound. Sarah’s been a buddy of mine for a while now. She was the first above-the-knee amputee to do the Hawaiian Ironman. She was on the cover of Runner’s World and one of our first Heroes of Running. I feed off of Sarah and Brian a lot. Those are people I cling to when I’m struggling. They really show that you can beat all odds and overcome a lot. You just have to really want to do it and persevere.

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RD: Currently, I’m working with a great bunch of beginning runners. None previously were runners, so they were really nervous when they started. Now that they’re in their 5th week, they’re seeing that they can really do this and they’re gaining confidence as they begin to run further and further. I’ve been running for 25 years, and you kind of forget how hard it is and intimidating it is to start. Watching them has truly been inspiring. What advice would you give a new runner or someone maybe whose just contemplating the idea of beginning to run?

Bart: First off, just commit to and go for it. Don’t be afraid. Everyone is scared at first. Second, you’re in control. Run within yourself. Be your own person. Don’t let the big picture get in your way. Someone’s always last and someone’s always going to beat you no matter your level. It’s going to happen. Just enjoy it. When I stood at the start of Badwater and the race director said, “1 minute until the start!” I suddenly realized I had never run past 26.2 miles ever. This race is 146 miles! At first I thought, “Whoa! This is pretty scary!” But then I chilled and told myself, “You can do this. Just keep it fun. If you enjoy it, it will come to you. Pace yourself and enjoy every step.” And, that’s what I did. It’s hard to image that running 146 miles, every step can be enjoyable, but it really was, and I think it was because that’s the attitude I started the race with. The mental side of our sport it a huge part of it. When you’re able to control the mental side, you can do great things. One thing about running is that there are no short cuts. It’s an arduous sport. You’ve got to be happy with little gains along the way and just keep working at it. If you can do that, you’ll be around a long time.

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RD: Do you have a follow-up book to My Life on the Run in the works?
Bart: Yes, I do have a sequel planned, but I don’t have a title yet. My wife did gather some pictures of me with various hair cuts over the years and had a mock cover made titled My Hair on the Run. She surprised me with it and it gave me a good chuckle. You can actually see it on the website. Pretty funny. The new book will start off with Comrades and then I also want to include a lot more of the people I’ve had contact with throughout the years in this great sport and more of their stories and just how inclusive this great sport is so we can inspire more people to get involved.

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RD: I look forward to reading it when it comes out. When do you think we can expect it?
Bart: Probably in the spring of next year. That will be the perfect plan if it all works out.

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RD: What can we expect with the upcoming webisodes chronicling your training for Comrades?

Bart: We’re going to give more information about the race and interview more Comrades runners. You know I don’t’ want it to be all about me. I really want the viewers to get a good sense of what Comrades is all about and hope some put it on their life-list to do. And I also hope that others with Lyme disease or other chronic illnesses can look at this and say, I can do this. I can beat this thing. I just need to get out there and make it happen.

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RD: I appreciate you taking this time to talk with me and share more of your story.
Bart: Hey, no problem. Keep up the good work man and I love what you’re doing.

To learn more about Bart, be sure to check out his website and blog. Below is the first in the series of webisodes chronicling Bart's quest for Comrades. To see the second and third webisodes[click here]. Comrades will take place on May 30th. Be sure to send good vibes Bart’s way on that monumental day.

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Thanks again Bart, for taking the time to share your story with RunnerDude’s Blog!

Pure Fit Radio...Check It Out!

A month or so ago I posted about a new site for endurance athletes called PURE FIT RADIO. PURE FIT RADIO is based on 51 Reporters from each state and the District of Columbia that report weekly on events. These reporters are called ESR's (Endurance State Reporters). ESR's are athletes, so they are able to give you suggestions and ideas on your next big event because they might have competed in it themselves. RunnerDude was given the privilege to be the ESR for North Carolina. To listen to your state's weekly ESR report [click here].
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A weekly update about the endurance events for your state is pretty cool, but PURE FIT RADIO has even more to offer! The site is growing fast and will continue to add new features over the next few months. Currently you can search events or add your events to PURE FITS's events listing. Free! You can also listen to weekly podcasts with participants such as Bart Yasso (creator of Yasso 800s) and sports nutritionist Pip Taylor. The podcasts are also being broadcast on about 300 radio stations and that's just in 10 states.

So, if you haven't had a chance to check out PURE FIT RADIO, click on one of the links and give it a try!