Tough training makes tough racers

“Snowfall warning in effect:” That’s how Saturday, April 25, in Saskatoon started. By the time it was all over, power outages had plagued the city, a race had been cancelled and residents were waking the next morning to a scene that could have easily been mistaken for a stormy Christmas Day.

Though this type of nasty weather hitting this late in the spring here is rare, there’s nothing unusual about training through tough conditions in Saskatchewan.

I don’t have to look far to find very accomplished runners who have battled tough training conditions.

Last week’s Boston Marathon is a prime example. Two Michigan runners led a good portion of the race — Des Linden, who lives and trains there, and Dathan Ritzenhein, a Michigan native. Not only was it remarkable to see two Americans leading their respective packs — it was that much more impressive they are both from Michigan.

Linden, the top American finisher on the women’s side, controlled the pace for nearly the entire race, ending up in fourth with a time of 2:27:37. Her consistent splits show a smart, focused and determinedly-run race. Perhaps a bit of that focus and determination is the result of training at Stony Creek Metro Park just outside of Detroit, where conditions can get pretty ugly.

Although some of Linden’s training for Boston took her to Kenya and Florida, she has said her favorite place to prepare is in Michigan. Having grown up in California, she now considers Detroit to be her home. It’s where she has been training with Coach Keith Hanson and Hansons Brooks Distance Project for her entire professional career.

She likes her time away in the warmer climates, but has told media in the past “there’s no place like home.” Linden pushes through the sub-zero temperatures, winds, snow, etc. and makes it work in less-than-ideal conditions.

Something Jason Warick understands oh so well. He is another fine example of an elite runner staying close to home, despite difficult training conditions. He’s also my coach.

While preparing to qualify for the Beijing Olympics in 2007, Warick chose to stay home for the majority of his training. He could have moved to San Diego or Victoria, but instead stayed in Saskatoon, close to his young family and coach, John Fitzgerald. Warick told local media at the time that training in extreme conditions gave him a lot of confidence and that it’s a powerful tool to know he can, in -40 C, push himself through the pain while others aren’t.

“In the marathon, you can be the most talented runner, but if you don’t have a high pain tolerance, you’re not going to win,” he told the Saskatoon Star Phoenix in 2007. “That’s the equalizer, in a way. It’s who can put up with the most pain for the longest amount of time…it can be incredibly painful. But you have to tell yourself you’re almost done and to keep going and to push through it. If you’re not tough like that, you’re toast…That might be one benefit of training here in the winter.”

So, as this odd showing of winter moves along, I’m reminded to embrace the warm weather when it returns this week and look forward to pushing through the winter that lies ahead.