I'd never heard the expression "Standing on the shoulders" of another person before a morning Zoom call last Friday. From the context, I had narrowed the expression down to learning from others, and blending that wisdom into your current practice.
Following this past Saturday’s meet in at Rex Putnam High School in Oregon, I received a text from Amy, the mother of Eva, who captured on video a moment of her daughters 1500m race, where I can be seen encouraging the girls to sustain pace through the emotional rigor of the moment. Running is hard, but when trained well, a good race should feel right. Difficult, but right. Difficult, but slightly easier when supported by those who are equally invested in the athletes potential. This is what I learned from Coach Larry Beatty, the head coach at Spokane CC, who I coached under for six years before taking on the head coaching responsibilities at Mt. Hood CC in Gresham, Oregon in 2022.
Larry had a perfect blend of coaching. His heartfelt passion touched the lives of so many, and still does to this day. He was a wizard at creating the perfect workouts, balancing the physical with the mental, leading to the perfect racing crescendo as the season would come to a close. The way he could speak to everyone in the room, his motivational tactics were unparalleled, or as one of his former athletes said on a November 4, 2022 Instagram reply post, “When you talk about influencers, he is on the top.” I’ll add, it’s not even close.
Larry, now retired from coaching, had a way of encourging his athetles throughout their race. You’d see it occassionally in practice, but at races, especially big races, his passion for extracting the best from a runner was apparent. He knew splits, he knew his athletes potential, more impressive he even knew the competitions potential, and he knew how to press the right buttons at just the right time.
Before Larry, I’d never observed a manner of coaching such as this in the sport of running, but to be fair, when I first met Larry, I likely wasn’t mature enough to observe what I have come to know as the only way to coach. Rather than remain idly by, I have a need to feel as much a part of the action as my runners. To talk them through another lap at an uncomfortable pace, to read their body language and facial expressions, to get a front row seat at assessing their gate and posture, only to provide the perfect feedback for the moment - all of which Larry was masterful.
As the season gets underway, I am thrilled to lead our small group of committed Whisper runners into the unknown. I am grateful for the handful of runners who trust the process, see a vision for themselves, and fearfully go into the emotionally dark places that running brings. I do this from the shoulders of coaches of the past, most notably Larry, who I am fortunate to remain in contact to this day.