David McNeill Blogs for RT

The Patching-Up Of My Sinking Ship 

By David McNeill

G’Day Everyone!

It’s been a while since the last blog, and as far as my performances go, not much changed over my Australian track season.  Last time I blogged, I closed out my US college career in far-from-ideal fashion (a stitch-hampered final cross country race), and followed it up with a below-par track season in Australia.  The transition from the US college running scene to the more independent “professional” running scene didn’t go as I had hoped, and so mistakes were made, and performances suffered.  But that is not what I will blog about today.  I’d rather fill you all in on the positive progress I have made since my last poor performance at the Melbourne 5k, and praise the handful of people who have stepped in and rescued me from the sinking ship that was my running career back in March.  The people who will be getting a well-deserved plug include Jason Antonelli, Craig Mottram, my new Coach, James Li, and my new training partner and friend (I still get goosebumps when I refer to him as that), Bernard Lagat.  I hope this early name-dropping will entice you all into a tantalizing read…well, I can’t promise the read will be as enticing and tantalizing as the above mentioned names…But anyway, here goes; the patching up of my sinking ship:

Jason Antonelli was probably the first person to stand in and get the ball rolling for me again. Jason and I both run for the Old Xaverians AC in Melbourne, and for 2 weeks in February, we trained entirely together down in Queenscliff (along the Victorian coast).  Over many a latté at Kelp Café, and over perhaps a few too many Tim Tams, Jase and I developed not only a great friendship, but a sense of common ground, when it came to our love for running, and our gratitude towards the people that make running possible.  Jason would make any Jesuit proud.  For those of you who don’t know who the Jesuits are, lets just say Jase is a very selfless and compassionate person.  He made me realize how important it is to have someone to share the ride with.  I’d taken for granted how hard it was to fly solo, and how when we fly solo, it is so easy to stress and get caught up and distracted by the little things we can’t control.  Had I not had Jase to train with, I probably would have spent an extra 30secs saying goodbye to the Olympic Park track during that 5k race at the start of March, and I would not have realized that what I needed most for my running to start improving again was a training partner/group, and a plan!

Craig Mottram helped me instigate the first part of my plan after that Melbourne race.  That plan was to start relaxing, and block out the extraneous issues I couldn’t control.  I was fortunate enough to room with Craig at the World Cross Country Champs in Spain.  Craig has clearly experienced the highest of highs, and the lowest of lows, and had a wealth of experience to share.  He had been humbled by a debilitating Achilles injury for a good two years, and had showed the world that he wasn’t afraid to start from the bottom, and work his way back to the top at his own pace and in his own way.  Most of the time, Craig was just good entertainment.  Between his unique morning alarm clock that got us out of bed each morning, to his animated mealtime discussions with one of the junior runners on the team, Joshua Johnson, Craig was relaxed and enjoying the team experience.  This was a leaf I definitely needed to take out of his book.  And so I did.  Don’t get the wrong idea when I say this, but my week on the Spanish coast leading up to the World Cross race was the holiday I needed!  My experience rooming and chatting with Craig taught me to relax, and allowed me to extract a better performance from myself than I had been able to all summer.  Craig was encouraging, and a good friend in Spain.  I managed a 42^nd place, which was my best result at World Cross, and allowed me to be the second Aussie across the line on the day.  I loved being amongst a team that week, and shooting the shit with Benny Saint, Liam, Clint, and Collis, and all the other guys and gals!  Running is a fun sport, if only we open the doors to that possibility.

I returned to the US after world cross with a better attitude and a better idea of what I needed to do to get myself back on track, and start running some PBs again.  I was fortunate enough to be contacted by Coach James Li of the University of Arizona over my time at home in Australia, with the offer of a helping hand if I needed it.  I hadn’t thought much of a new coach or a new training location, as I had figured Coach Heins and Flagstaff would continue to provide what I needed.  But if I had learnt anything from Jase and from Craig, I knew I couldn’t extract my best on my own.  I knew I would be somewhat on my own and left to my own devices in Flagstaff.  And with Coach Heins’ head coaching commitments, and his demanding travel schedule, it would have been unfair to expect as much from Coach Heins as I had when I was on the team.  I am incredibly grateful for where he had taken me, and even more grateful for the support he provided in my transition over to Coach Li.  Coach Heins was a selfless and supportive coach, and shared the excitement of new beginnings for me! I couldn’t ask for a better mentor or friend than that.  And so I started working with Coach Li, and haven’t looked back.  Coach Li has coached some of the best athletes in the world, and continues to coach the ageless champion, Bernard Lagat.  When Coach Li contacted me, my performances were dropping, and there was no prospect of a shoe contract or any money to be made.  The experience of being believed in by another human being – especially one who you have only just met - is such a humbling experience, and says a lot of my new Coach.  Coach Li is a quietly passionate coach, and one of the humblest I have met.  With his help, I have learnt to put a little more belief in myself, and have reaped the rewards of his expertise and guidance.  I am yet to race yet under his guidance, but when I finally do get that opportunity to race, I plan on making the most of it, and showing all my friends and family what he has guided me to.  I do hope my performance will match the appreciation of have for his coaching and support.

Last, but definitely not the least defining piece of the puzzle (that has been the patching up of my sinking ship) has been a guy by the name of Bernard Lagat.  Back in 2001, at the IAAF Grand Prix final in Melbourne, as a 14 year old, I staggered through the crowds to get this man’s autograph after he finished second behind Hicham El Guerrouj in the 1500m.  Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined 10 years later, I’d be his training partner and friend.  However, it is not the novelty of training with one of the greatest middle distance runners of all time that has affected me the most.  It is the man’s character and integrity, which most definitely exceeds his incredible athletic accomplishments.  Certainly, there aren’t many people I have met in my life with this man’s credentials, but there are also very few I have met with as big a heart, and as helpful a hand as his.  When we did 5 weeks of training up in Flagstaff, Bernard picked me up and drove me to training everyday, got me some new running shoes and clothes, got me into the 5k race at the New York Diamond League (which is this coming weekend), and provided me the stimulus and company as a training partner that I needed.  From Bernard, I have learnt new athletic limits – or a lack there of – within myself.  I have learnt what it means to train hard and to train smart.  In the lead up to my first race of the season, Bernard and his wife, Gladys have had me stay at their home for nearly three weeks, making me feel at home, and making me feel a part of their family.  In preparing to race while I make the transition from life in Flagstaff to life in Tucson, Bernard has helped give me the best chance to get the most out of the opportunity I have.  The man is a true champion, and has an amazing family.  My gratitude towards him exceeds my admiration for him as an athlete, which says a lot.  My only regret now is that it would be just plain awkward for me to ask him for his autograph! Oh well, I’ll take him as a training partner instead!

I’ll leave this blog here for now, and hope to give you a bit of a look at my training in the next installment.  Oh, one more plug: to my Mum and Dad – my coolest and favorite supporters!  Oh, and sorry for the American spelling of a few words in this blog.  I bought my computer in the US, and the auto correct is set to US English, and I couldn’t be bothered changing it all.