Quote of the Week...from Jack McTavish

Nonsense, go out harder and finish harder.             Jack McTavish, Dean Karnazes' high school track coach

Dean Karnazes is a famous long-distance runner who wrote the popular book a few years ago titled Ultramarathon Man...I've read it a number of times and it was a big inspiration to me when I returned to the sport in my early fifties.  In an early chapter he described his first high school track coach, Jack McTavish, who made a big impression on Karnazes.  McTavish's advice on running races was simple: always run hard...forget about pacing yourself.  The above quote was his response to Karnazes telling him that he needed some left-over energy for the race's final kick.  Although I'm not totally in the Coach's corner about this one issue, I do think something can be said for me going out harder at the start of the races I've been running.  One thing I've noticed in a race's early stage is that the simple presence of the other runners surrounding me produces an inhibitory hindrance to my speed...I have to intentionally run harder just to get through the crowd.  I've also had numerous experiences over the years with negative racing splits, that is, running the second half faster than the first...an indicator that I was erring on the side of caution earlier on.  I think having someone like McTavish at a formative time in a kid's life can have a great influence on them.  Unfortunately, I can't recall this happening for me.  But you know, that doesn't mean I can't derive some inspiration from someone else's experience.  Thanks, Dean...and Coach McTavish...