This is about running. This is not about running.
and JBS's 40th Anniversary, LA All-Crew Shakeout Run, New Podcast episodes
This is about running. This is not about running.
Yes, I say it a lot. But I do talk or write about running a lot. So it makes sense that I would say that this is about running and this is not about running a lot. I also say a lot a lot. I also get asked where the phrase came from a lot. Where did I start saying it? When did I start writing about it? Why am I always going on about it? Well, I was asked again yesterday about it and whether or not I had something that kinda sorta encapsulated it all. I came across a little note written on my phone years ago. (I attached the note to the end of this post.)
And that got me thinking that it makes more sense to just write about it here than it does to write this hundreds of different ways each time someone asks about it. Grab a liquid and settle in. Because what I’m about to write about is about running and you know it… it’s going to not be about running too.
I started coaching by coaching teenagers. (I’m just going to say that if you are interested in coaching make sure you start with kids. Because if you can coach kids then there is a great chance you can coach anyone. But just because you can coach adults… that doesn’t mean you can coach anyone. Someday I’ll write more about that. But today is not that day and I’m already off course.) Those are some tough years that you’re expected to get through as a kid. 14,15,16,17,18. Relentless years. You know the Beatles went from wanting to hold your hand to helter skelter in less years than that!
High school. You go from being just young to being a young adults. You’ve got so much going on. You’re growing emotionally, mindfully, physically, and socially at supersonic speeds. Relationships between friends and family are constantly shifting. You are being told to be responsible and yet are often given no responsibilities and then you find yourself being held responsible.
You suddenly see the future as maybe not so sunny and easy. You’re told you’re a kid and you’re told you’re no longer a kid and you’re told to sit down and stand up and shut up and speak up. It’s confusing and confounding and exciting and boring and stressful and awesome and miserable. You go to sleep one night and think nothing changes and you can wake up the next morning and everything has changed. Welcome to being a teenager.
And I had these 14-18 year old kids for a few hours every day for practice. Easy runs and long runs and intervals and tempo runs and be sure to warm up and cool down and do that lunge and then do this drill and don’t drop the baton and remember your jersey and it’s time to check in and please make sure you ice that. I was a coach. I was their coach.
But I told myself that if these badass young people went home every day after spending time with me and they were only faster or physically stronger then I had failed at doing my real job. My responsibility to them first and foremost was to make sure they left as better human beings… stronger, kinder, wiser.
And I knew that I could achieve that through running if I made the running we did about more than running. And if I could do that then the running we did could make us all better at more than running. They could leave a long run knowing that they have built up enough endurance to go 90 minutes but also know that they have endured through a tough season or year of their life. And they could take that with them into the rest of their life for the rest of their lives.
How could I make the running we did only about the running? A run was not just this many minutes over this many miles at this pace. It could be and should be and was about more... so much more. Because I knew they were not just runners. They were siblings and students and teammates and classmates and friends and competitors. And I knew they could have great runs on bad days. They could be laughing out loud and crying silently. They could have the worst race of their life and never be happier for their team.
I knew these athletes, these runners, these kids, these young adults were complicated and brilliant and naive and jaded and optimistic and hurting and free and lost and more powerful than I could ever imagine. I knew that they left nothing behind at the starting line and that when practice ended the rest of their day began again.
And I knew I had a few hours with them. So much time. So little time. Enough time to help. Enough time to give them a space that was safe to take on a task that was challenging. Enough time to do a run and make it matter. This was about running. This was not about running.
And this is how I coach anyone and everyone I work with. Live and in person. Guided runs. Clinics. Newsletters. Podcasts. Conversations. The little time I get to coach you… well, I plan on coaching you to end our time together better as a runner and a person.
Last thing I want to say because some people will say that you will sacrifice performance when you are not willing to sacrifice a little of your humanity as a coach. That’s straight bullshit. How do I know that? Because any coaches that believed that got beat by us. Beat by a lot. But those coaches lost a whole lot more than those meets and competitions. They lost their chance to make their runners better at more than running. But those kids didn’t leave those practice failures. No kid (or former kid) that shows up and tries to get better leaves practice a failure.
But a coach that thinks they are only there to make someone a better runner sure does.
Cheers,
Coach Bennett
Here is that note I found about “this is about running… and this is not about running”.
This is about running. The minutes, the meters, the miles. The speed run, the long run, recovery runs, fartlek, tempo runs and hills. This is about running. Getting fitter, faster, going further. 5K’s. 10K’s. Half marathons and full marathons and even ultras for the craziest among us. Trails, roads, tracks, boardwalks and beaches. Cross country and Track & Field. It’s the greatest sport in the world. And crossing one of the infinite finish lines it offers us is always an extraordinary achievement. Endurance. Speed. Turnover. Power. Pace. This is about running.
This is not about running. The story that makes up those minutes, meters and miles. The courage to start something with no guarantees. The strength to commit to a goal and the perseverance to recommit to that commitment. The joy of a being on a good run and the rejoicing of getting a crap run over with. The hope you find on the starting line. That hope you hold onto during the middle of a run. This is not about running. The life that is restored to you out there on a run you started exhausted by life. The invitation to run you can give someone that needs a starting line in their life. Out there trying to be your own best coach, teammate, fan, friend. Learning that struggling does not mean failure but really means successfully not giving up. And the reminder that every run you do is proof that you can start, start over, start again. This is not about running.
CELEBRATING JOANIE ALMOST 40 YEARS LATER
Last week I was lucky enough to attend a special gathering in the LA Coliseum celebrating Joan Benoit Samuelson and her epic 1984 Olympic Women’s Marathon. That was the first Olympic marathon for women too! Yes, 1984. Not 1884. Why did it take so long? You know the answer. Some men are just really, really dumb and some other men are really, really misogynistic and when they get together with men that have power and are both dumb and misogynistic these things happen.
Anyway, did you know that Joanie’s winning time of 2:24:52 in the hot and hazy LA weather would have won 13 of the previous 20 men’s olympic marathons. You want to know something else crazy? 1984 was the first year there was a running event for women over 1500 meters. And the 1500 wasn’t even offered for the women until 1972. Don’t even get me started on the 800m! It wasn’t an event for the women from 1928-1960 because some of those dudes I was writing about earlier thought 800 meters was too long for women to race on the track.
I digress.
It was a pretty special night in the Coliseum. That marathon Joanie won in 1984 was the first memory I have of watching a race. Pretty badass first race to remember don’t you think?
Here’s a video I made 15 years ago about Joanie and her Olympic win. Yes, 15 years ago. So pump the brakes if you’re going to be critical of the font I use or the quality of the picture!
I hope you don’t scroll by this video. You need to watch it. And play it loud. And invite your family and friends around to watch it with you. Celebrate the greatness that is Joan Benoit Samuelson.
NEW COACH BENNETT’S PODCASTS
You didn’t think there would be a new Coach Bennett’s Newsletter without new Coach Bennett’s Podcasts to joining the party did you? Come on! Every single Thursday you know you can expect a new episode. You can find both episodes #40 and #41 below. I hope you listen to and enjoy them. And if you could subscribe to the show on the platform you listen to podcasts I’d appreciate it.
JUST SOMETHING TO RUN WITH IN THAT GREAT HEAD OF YOURS
Well, that’s that. Thank you for reading. Thank you for being cool and kind. How do I know you’re both? You can’t be cool unless you’re kind and if you’re kind… you’re cool. That’s how. Cheers to you and one more thanks to everyone that’s a paid supporter of this newsletter or thinking about becoming a paid supporter. I truly appreciate it.
Take care of yourself and take care of each other.
Until that next starting line…
Coach Bennett
That video 💖💖💖💖
Your newsletters are so inspiring. Thank you, Coach Bennett!