I hope not to have to do this too often -
In the article Thursday on Rick Riley, I made an error in transcription that I caught today. Where Rick is discussing Bill Bowerman, his statement was that "a lot of good men liked him." I had it as "disliked."
I should have recognized my error much sooner as Rick is far too gracious to make such a comment. The error is fully and completely mine.
I'm sorry.
Rick Riley, legendary Spokane runner and former National Record Holder, sat down with Paul Duffau and talked about running as a profession - how much money runners make, what it was like to be Pre's roommate, and Rick Riley's view of the current methods of training.
Take a training class, learn a few things, piss off the instructor.
Education, my way.
In this case, the class was on developing character voice. Since I had already completed Finishing Kick and was well into Trail of Second Chances, it might seem odd to take the class after the fact. Wrong. I had a mountain that needed an attitude. My characters already had gobs of 'tude.
The class presented two different means for developing characters that were authentic: first, ask yourself what you would do if you were them, how would you feel?; and, have all the characters be facets of your own personality.
Remember, I'd already written one book and the main character was a teenage girl. A little hard to have that necessarily be a part of my own persona. And asking myself what I would do would have led to many more fistfights in the storyline. Instead, I tried something different.
I worked at getting so deep inside my characters heads (even the secondary characters) that if you pinched one of them, I'd say "ow!"
How does a writer do that? The same way a little kid becomes the hero of whatever drama they're acting out. In the case of one granddaughter, a princess. Who sings. A lot.
The grandson is a swashbuckling hero, saving the day, despite not having a clue on how to swash a buckle. He's also a champion race car driver and general daredevil.
Typical kid stuff - except for them, it's darn near as real as life. Imagination is a wonderfully powerful tool and children make full use of it. Adults, on the other hand, learned not to daydream, stay focused, get to work.
Bah!
I've managed, at least since my late twenties, to find or create jobs that offered plenty of daydream time. It doesn't mean that it wasn't work - sometimes, it was darned hard work and none of it was in the creative sphere.
I spent a lot of years letting my imagination roam around, poking into nooks and crannies of my head. At the same time, I'm an inveterate people watcher. Do I want to go shopping at the mall with my wife? Not particularly, no - but I'll go to watch the people. See the expressions, the gestures, how they talk to each other and themselves.
People watching gives me the raw material. Imagination creates the golem, the inanimate human shape awaiting life. It takes one last ingredient to successfully climb all the way into a character's head, to bring him or her to life.
Empathy.
Thinking like a character only gets you to the start line. Until you feel what the character feels - pain, anger, mortification, joy - you're just putting your words in their mouths. Every story involves emotion whether it's a horror novel by Stephen King, sci-fi by Heinlein, or anything that Nora Roberts ever wrote.
It's the writer's job to articulate how the character feels at a deep and visceral level. Writers owe that to readers, to feel for the characters and with them.
My eldest daughter, who was one of my early readers, commented early on that I did a great job of channeling my 'inner girl'. One of the moms of my beta readers made a similar comment, saying that the dialogue sounded like her girls.
It wasn't by accident.
In 1966, Rick Riley set the high school boy’s 2-mile outdoor record with a stunning 8:48 with Gerry Lindgren on the side of the track cheering him on. In the next few years, he would race—and beat—some of the greatest runners of the era, including his future roommate, Steve Prefontaine.
Over the next week or so, I will get the entire Rick Riley interview up on the blog. The first part, called Rick Riley, High School Running, Then and Now, will be available tomorrow morning.
The questions I sent to Rick jumped started our conversation and that's the way I'll present it - a conversation between the two of us, and an invitation for you to eavesdrop. If you want to add your own points, you can do that by email or in the comments section.
Below are the questions.
.1 Compared to kids today, you started running comparatively late – 9th grade, I think. Did you play other sports as a youth or was running your first foray into athletics?
2. You were a high school phenom in the 60’s, chasing Gerry Lindgren, another Spokane great, when the area was producing some of the finest distance runners in the country. How is the region different now than then?
3. You were running at the end of the amateur era when athletes who needed to make a living on their running had to take money under the table to maintain their amateur status or work to survive. We now live in an era of professional runners but a huge number of them still can’t make a living at the sport and still set training around jobs. First, what it like in that late 60’s/early 70’s period for you as an athlete?
4. And second, what kinds of changes would you like to see to allow more athletes treat running – in all the events, not just the sexy ones like the marathon – as a true profession?
5. You returned to coaching five or six years ago after more than twenty years away. The world changed a lot in that time. How has that affected the way that you coach?
6. You ran against – and beat! – Steve Prefontaine. Since his death, no one has stepped onto the American running scene and generated as much enthusiasm as Pre. What was it about Pre that made him special to the fans, caused them to chant his name? Was it a product of the time, the first great American Running Boom?
7. Do you see anyone on the horizon that can pick up the mantle from Pre?
8. Every runner has those special moments that become favorite memories, whether from a race, a training run, or an interaction with another runner. Do you have one that you feel comfortable sharing? (Rick, this one is pretty personal – if you don’t want to answer it, I’ll drop it from the article.)
9. If you had a magic wand and could change a few rules for xc and track, how would you rearrange things?
10. Lastly, you’re at an age where people begin to consider their legacy. I’ve watched as you have shared your knowledge with athletes generations removed from your years as a competitor. From your perspective as someone who reached the pinnacles of running, what one thing above all else would you like to impart to the young athletes?
Over the next week or so, I will get the entire Rick Riley interview up on the blog. The first part, called Rick Riley, High School Running, Then and Now, will be available tomorrow morning.
The questions I sent to Rick jumped started our conversation and that's the way I'll present it - a conversation between the two of us, and an invitation for you to eavesdrop. If you want to add your own points, you can do that by email or in the comments section.
Below are the questions.
.1 Compared to kids today, you started running comparatively late – 9th grade, I think. Did you play other sports as a youth or was running your first foray into athletics?
2. You were a high school phenom in the 60’s, chasing Gerry Lindgren, another Spokane great, when the area was producing some of the finest distance runners in the country. How is the region different now than then?
3. You were running at the end of the amateur era when athletes who needed to make a living on their running had to take money under the table to maintain their amateur status or work to survive. We now live in an era of professional runners but a huge number of them still can’t make a living at the sport and still set training around jobs. First, what it like in that late 60’s/early 70’s period for you as an athlete?
4. And second, what kinds of changes would you like to see to allow more athletes treat running – in all the events, not just the sexy ones like the marathon – as a true profession?
5. You returned to coaching five or six years ago after more than twenty years away. The world changed a lot in that time. How has that affected the way that you coach?
6. You ran against – and beat! – Steve Prefontaine. Since his death, no one has stepped onto the American running scene and generated as much enthusiasm as Pre. What was it about Pre that made him special to the fans, caused them to chant his name? Was it a product of the time, the first great American Running Boom?
7. Do you see anyone on the horizon that can pick up the mantle from Pre?
8. Every runner has those special moments that become favorite memories, whether from a race, a training run, or an interaction with another runner. Do you have one that you feel comfortable sharing? (Rick, this one is pretty personal – if you don’t want to answer it, I’ll drop it from the article.)
9. If you had a magic wand and could change a few rules for xc and track, how would you rearrange things?
10. Lastly, you’re at an age where people begin to consider their legacy. I’ve watched as you have shared your knowledge with athletes generations removed from your years as a competitor. From your perspective as someone who reached the pinnacles of running, what one thing above all else would you like to impart to the young athletes?
Blogging might be a little light over the next couple of weeks. We have two grandbabies due in four days. That's pretty much a priority.
I do plan on having an interview up that I did with Rick Riley. Don't recall the name? You should - how many high schoolers set national records? A WSU grad, Rick coaches now at St. George's Academy. Hoping to have that up on Tuesday.
For those that caught the article on Emma Kraft, a blogging update - that's now the most popular article ever on the site. Glad you liked it and thanks for stopping by!
Thinking of using a different picture for the header . . .
Maybe one of these (click the picture to see the next one)?
Did know what to write about this morning. My sweetie suggested "reforming my snarkiness." Yeah, woke up in a good mood.
Anyway, opted against that idea as I wanted a project that was a wee bit more . . .manageable.
It's raining here, which is nice. As I posted to Facebook (if you're not following my author page, the little button is up there on the right - I promise it won't hurt a bit!), it's good weather for putting out fires, doing home inspections, running, writing, and reading.
Perfect after a bunch of hundred degree days. I'm switching from a boring run on pavement to playing in mud this afternoon. Much more fun.
And to the firefighters here in the Northwest - I sure hope the rain is reaching you and helping. Get home soon - and safe.
Not a running related post this morning - more whine, to be truthful.
Amazon and Hachette are in business negotiations over pricing for ebooks. They been at this since May or June. It still dominates the writing blogs I read and I have to admit being bored to tears by it.
Does the outcome affect me? Eh, maybe a bit. It has the potential to change my earnings from writing, both up and down. Can I do anything about it?
Heck, no. And neither can most of the people engaged in the back-and-forth-broadsides from the 1 percenter writers who are getting shriller each week because the horrid Amazon will not allow pre-orders on the their books.
Not much sympathy here, mate. Indies don't get them either.
They complain that Amazon has delayed their shipments to the readers. No, Amazon is not deliberately sabotaging your sales. That's your publisher not understanding a just-in-time supply chain. Holler at them.
The indies are just as vociferous, though they're on the side of the readers. Not writers, readers. They want people be able to afford books because they, like me, want to share their stories. It doesn't hurt to make a little money from it, mind you.
Anyhow, the talks will go on for a lot longer and the feelings will grow increasingly acrimonious and . . .I don't have time for the distractions. I got a book to write. And a job to do. And grandbabies due any time. And I always could use another run.
Alice Springs, Australia seems an unlikely place to produce a representative to the Aussie World Mountain Running Championship squad, but Emma Kraft earned her way onto the team again this year, despite the lack of a major mountain nearby.
The first female Australian finisher at last year’s World Mountain Running Championship, Emma doesn’t apparently believe in limits.
“As you know running can take you to the most amazing places in the world!! There are no limits and it's up to your imagination of where you want to go and race and/or train!!!!” Emma wrote in a blog post for The Runners Tribe. Emma Kraft proceeded to prove that this year, making a trip to Colorado to meet up with other mountain runners such as Joseph Gray, some fellow Australians training in the region, and test her legs against Pike Peak.
First though, she stopped by the Mt. Sac Relays to record a PR in the 10,000m on the track there. Obviously thrilled with a 27 second improvement in her time, the race also qualified her for the Zatopek 10,000m, the Australian Nationals race in December.
The track was easier than Pikes Peak. As Emma described it, “I ended up climbing/running/walking/crawling up Pikes Peak Ascent (Manitou Springs) which is about a 40% gradient, so basically I was moving for 1.4km but gained about 610m up which took me about 35mins, and there were over 3000 steps!”
I was in the area about the same time. My friend Adric talked about climbing that trail but we were heading to Pagosa Springs in a couple of days for a marathon, so we skipped it. Given that Emma is a much better runner than I am and how the trail treated her, probably a wise decision on my part.
She also had a chance to tour Manitou Springs, a neat little village that is both eclectic and picturesque. "I had a lovely little time in all the little cool shops! Was def one of my favourite places!" Emma also visited the Garden of the Gods to do some rock-hopping.
Unlike some athletes that specialize in a single type of event, she has been actively trying new races. In July, she added her first marathon to her list of accomplishments, racing at the Gold Coast Marathon.
Emma was less than 100 percent for the 2014 Mountain Running race on Mt. Tennent in Canberra, so had to pull out. A disappointing time to take ill but she applied for the World team on the strength of her win in February at the La Sportiva Vertical K race. I’m sure that the strong race at Mt. Sac helped as it provided additional evidence of her rapid improvement.
This year, she heads to Cassette Di Massa, Italy, along with teammates Kate Seibold, Harriet Smith, Gemma Kenessy. Emma is the only representative of the Northern Territory on the men’s or women’s team.
Like most runners, the Australians have to self-fund their trip. Sponsors have stepped forward to help Emma. One was her running club which is how I found out about Emma and began learning her story.
I posted a while ago about making contact with someone, a man named Jim, who had known my father when we lived in Australia in the 70’s. In a roundabout way, Jim introduced me to the Alice Springs Running and Walking Club. I found their site and asked to get on their mailing list – which lead to a query from the current president, John Bermingham, the gist of which was ’you’re not from around here, are you? A longish explanation on how I found them followed as we conversed by email and I asked to be on the newsletter list for the club.
Several weeks ago, the ASRWC put out a note that the entry fees for the upcoming half-marathon would be donated to Emma to help defray the expense of the trip. I thought it a neat idea and emailed him to offer to enter – but that I’d be unlikely to show up to race, given only a few days to trek 13,500km. We got all the details straightened out except one – I forgot to check the actual fee and it seems I have an entry to the ABC Half-marathon good for the next decade or so.
Motivation to train, right? Easier in some respects for me than Emma . . .
Photography by Scotte Woods
Unlike paid professionals, amateurs have to balance life responsibilities with training. Squeezing in all the activities makes for a very busy life. A full-time employee of the Central Australian Aboriginal Congress, Level 2 Intermediate Club Coach, and a Level 1 Sports Trainer, Emma’s days are full – before she heads out to train. Still, she finds time to volunteer, not just with the running club, but in outreach events for indigenous people and health programs.
After exchanging emails, I asked Emma if I could write a bit on her story and she graciously agreed. I still had a few questions for her, so sent them along and asked her for her replies. That conversation is below.
Paul: You’ve tackled nearly all types of running, from trails, to mountains, the track, and roads. Do you have a favorite? And, if you could be the greatest in one event, what would it be?
Emma: That is a very tricky question! I love the freedom and the vastness of the Mountains and the trails, but I think after watching the Aussies in the Commonwealth Games Marathon and completing my debut Marathon at the Gold Coast, I would perhaps pick the Marathon! But then take me back to Poland 2013 and I would choose Mountain Running!
Paul: You are an Alice native but went to Melbourne, the big city, for university, and then came back to the Northern Territory. Do you have any desire to move back to a large city?
Emma: I would never say never, but definitely not at the moment. I sometimes question myself about moving to a bigger city and would this give me better chance of ‘making it’ as a runner. There would definitely be some massive benefits such as training with a group and racing a lot more but there are definitely some major disadvantages. In Alice, everything is only a 5 minute drive away, there are no trams, trains or peak hour traffic. I can fit a lot in to my day, especially training (twice a day), Pilates, my day job and perhaps a Physio or massage appointment in my Lunch break. Training out here is beautiful and the weather is perfect pretty much 10months out of the year. (In Summer it gets to about 40 degrees Celsius or 104 degrees Fahrenheit, which is just too hot to enjoy running!). Also the support from Local Business in Alice Springs has been overwhelming! I am very fortunate to be the only fish in a small pond here in Alice Springs and the Northern Territory, but hopefully this is also inspiring others to pursue their Dreams!
Paul: The Gold Coast Marathon was your first at that distance. Are you interested in pursuing that event? The qualifying standard for the Commonwealth Games isn’t that far away . . .
Photography by Scotte Woods
Emma: Yes definitely! Especially after watching the Aussies in the Commonwealth Games Marathon bring home a Gold in the Men’s (Michael Shelley) and a Bronze in the Women’s (Jessica Trengove)! I have a lot of respect for Marathons and Marathoners and really want to give it another crack. The Australian women’s Qualifier is around 2:38 and I ran 3:04 on debut, so only another 26mins I need to shave off, lol. I believe ‘anything is possible’ and I have definitely learnt a lot from my race (marathon), the lead up and my training. I can’t wait to give the Marathon another crack now that I’m wiser and older. This would definitely be a dream come true and, over the next 4 years, I really want to pursue this!
Paul: You’ve been to Poland to race. You’ve run and raced in the States. You’re headed to Italy next. Where is Emma’s dream destination, not just for running?
Emma: Last year on my Poland trip, I also went to Switzerland and fell in love with the place and, of course, the Mountains. A 30 minute jog turned into 2 hours of exploring, I definitely want to go back there. I also really want to go to Africa, not sure where particularly, but definitely South Africa and Kenya. I think the culture and the running over there would be amazing.
So that’s a bit of story on Emma Kraft. On September 14th, she’ll be racing the best mountain runners from around the globe, representing Alice Springs and Australia. If you want to follow her progress on Facebook, you can like her Athlete page.
To Emma, my great thanks for working with me on this writing project – it’s been a joy.
Paul Duffau is a writer of running fiction with two books currently published and a third in the early stages of being written. He also journals the local high school runners and local races. His ebooks Finishing Kick and Trail of Second Chances are available at Amazon. Paul has discounted the ebooks for the Australian audience.
He's scratching his head to figure out how to get print copies done up for Australia. Anyone with advice should feel free to contact him - just use the contact page to send him an email. He answers all his emails personally.
Years ago, when we lived in San Diego, telemarketers would call and pester us incessantly. One evening, after dinner for a change, my wife ended up on the end of a sales call from somebody at 24 Fitness.
She listened to the spiel, tried to interrupt to say she wasn't interested. The guy on the other end kept rambling. My sweetie gave him another minute and finally, when the telemarketer stopped to gather breath and energy for another assault, told him this:
"I am the President of the Couch Potato Hall of Fame and want you to know that I could lose that just by talking to you on the phone."
The marketer laughed and hung up.
Mind you, my sweetie is more slender than I am and the doc keeps giving her good news on the checkups on all the usual issues, blood pressure, cholesterol, and what not.
She lost her Presidency yesterday in an act of voluntary resignation.
She entered the Benefit run, pinned on the race tag, and walked the course with one of my daughters and a granddaughter. My daughter is 8.5 months pregnant and pulled my granddaughters in the little red wagon around the course.
If talking on the phone put her at risk, pinning on a race tag puts her over the edge.
She's now the former President of the Couch Potato Hall of Fame.
Many thanks to all the wonderful people that showed up to walk or run the Seaport Striders Benefit 5K. It was a nice turnout. Mike Halverson, the President of the Striders, was there to help out and seemed quite happy to match funds for the race. He acted as starter for us and we actually got underway on time.
No one pushed especially hard so the fun run was actually . . . fun, though the last hundred yards got competitive a couple of times, especially as one young lady raced her dad to the finish . Apparently they had a bet - she won.
The weather, as promised, was nicer than it has been, dropping into the high 70's by the end of the race. With a 7PM start and the help of the nearby cliff, the runners were able to stay comfortable in shade the whole race.
A special thanks to all the volunteers. You folks, as always, were just awesome. The pictures are courtesy of Suzy Cowdrey, who volunteers at nearly all our races, usually handling the rush of people at registration.
To John Potter's son - I owe you a dozen cookies. We had prize giveaways after the race and I donated a copy of each of my books. John, the Lewiston xc coach, won his choice of cookies or a book. His son was pleading, "Not the book, Dad, not the book." John picked up a copy of Finishing Kick anyway - thank you for that and I hope you enjoy it. I'll get a dozen snickerdoodle cookies together for the son.
Have a great weekend!
Getting my run done this morning. This evening is a 5K in Asotin. The Seaport Striders have pledged to match the entry fees for Asotin, Clarkston, and Lewiston as a contribution to the Cross Country Programs.
I will not be racing. I am the timer with a talented right thumb that will deliver accurate results for your race. My wife and daughter will not be racing. My wife does not run and my daughter is 8.5 months pregnant-they'll be walking. So will a granddaughter who was learning B Skips Tuesday night. Kinda, since she's only two but she thought it was fun to play with Poppa, especially when he's being a goof. Poppa has no problem being a goof for, and with, any of the grandkids.
It's a low-key fun race. Bring a towel - the beach is right there so you can take a dip to cool off afterward. And bring the whole family - running isn't solely for the fleetest. They only get the medals and stuff. Wait, no medals tonight - we have giveaways instead.
.Everybody gets a fair shot - see you there.
Paul
