Trying to make the cut

Barry Britt is a 24-year-old runner with a dream to day wear Canada’s colours on the national team.

Barry is the oldest of three children. He grew up with his 2 two sisters, Chelsea and Zoe, and his parents in Hampton, N.B., in what he describes as a very active, sports-orientated family. After graduating from the University of Idaho two years ago, he is now working part time in Guelph, Ont., and training with the Speed River Track and Field Club.

Barry moved to Guelph this past fall to train with the Speed River team under coach Dave Scott-Thomas. The city is a hub of Canadian distance running talent. Barry hopes to get himself in shape for a shot at qualifying for major international teams. He’s is on the right track, having made the 2014 senior national team for cross-country and winning the 2014 Canadian 10,000m championships.

Barry’s Bests
1,500m – 3:47.79
3,000m – 8:07.02
5,000m – 14:01.38
10,000m – 30:10

What pushes you to see if you have what it takes to compete internationally?

The improvements that I made in my 2011 track season are what drive me to push myself. I had a personal breakthrough season, running 8:07 and 14:08 [over 3,000m and 5,000m], making a senior cross-team, winning a conference title in university, and making NCAA regionals. The things I was doing in practice in 2011 compared to now are not even close. The type of mileage, tempos, track intervals, etc., I am doing now, I couldn’t have dreamed of doing in 2011. Basically, I believe from what I have seen in practices I can make huge improvements from the last breakthrough I had and then, after that, I still have not maxed myself out in training and can continue to improve.

Do you have a plan B if running does not go as planned or are you only thinking running right now?

When I’m done running I want to be a firefighter like my father. Being around him and his job my whole life, it really seems like a rewarding career and something I want to do. I remember when I was five, he drove his fire truck to our street for me and friends to see. I thought it was the coolest thing and I just wanted to drive one like my dad when I got older. My dad loves his job. He gets to help people and has close relationships with his fellow firefighters. Its like a brotherhood or a team and that’s something I want to keep in my life since I really enjoyed being on a college track and field team and I enjoy being on a post-collegiate team now.

My firefighter plans are on hold until I am satisfied with my running. Right now, I am trying to focus all my energy on achieving my running goals. I personally believe if you want to make it to the next level you need to be all in and can’t be spreading yourself thin in a variety of different things. Whether I’m done in 2016 or 2020, I will still have plenty of time to explore a career in firefighting.

What are your main goals or races for 2015?

My goals for the year are to do well at early season invitational meets […] then perform well at The Canadian Championships.

In my mind the invitational meets are more important than nationals. I still want to represent myself well at nationals but right now I need to start chopping off some chunks of time from my personal bests if I even want to think about representing Canada on a senior team in the future.

Good luck and run on Barry!

See you on the roads or in the blogosphere.

Do you have a running story to tell?

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You can also catch me on Twitter @NoelPaine and on my personal blog.