1. Around the Bay
2. That Sudbury Sports Guy: Ups and downs lead Beland to a good place
3. Why You Should Almost Always Avoid a DNF
4. Does the 10% rule make sense for every runner?
5. Photos This Week
6. Upcoming Events:  May 15-16 Apex Sprint, May 30 SudburyRocks!!! Virtual Marathon
7. Running Room Run Club Update: 
8. Track North
   

The Historic “Bay Race”
Hamilton’s Around the Bay Road Race is the oldest on the continent, first run in 1894, three years before the Boston Marathon. Rich in tradition, it has been won by the best from around the world, including Boston Marathon winners and Olympic gold medallists.

Vince Perdue 2021 Around the Bay 30k - #24 in a row (4:42:25)

  All 2021 Results

Caleb Beland has never run faster than he has this spring.

Given all of the ups and downs he has encountered over the course of his time competing for the Bishop Carter Gators and, Laurentian Voyageurs, as well as Track North, maybe it’s more surprising that he is still running at all.

“There was never really a point where I seriously considered retiring,” said Beland, now 23 years old and nearing the completion of his first year of studies at the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College in Toronto. “Over the course of my career, I’ve had far more bad race days than good, but the good days are so good.

“They are so good that even if it comes after 30 bad races, the good days make it all worth it.”

That might not have been the manner in which Beland described future success when he first eased his way into the sport as a Grade 9 student at BAC. The Hanmer-based Catholic secondary school was exactly where this voyage began, thanks in large part to a mentor with whom he remains in contact to this day.

“Julie (Denomme) was a fantastic coach, very supportive,” said Beland. “My body was rejecting the training; I was actually wearing knee braces, because my knees were so sore from all of the running. But Julie was all about the little victories, reminding me that they would all add up.”

Nine months later, Beland was immersed, transitioning quickly from a sport of interest to a complete change of lifestyle. “I qualified for NOSSA in the 3,000 metres in Grade 9, and that was one of the biggest deciding factors in keeping it going,” he said. “I was committed, at that point, just from seeing the gains I had made in year one.

“If I wouldn’t have made NOSSA, I likely would not have reached out to Track North.”

For the next three years, Beland formed part of a similar-aged middle-distance quartet under the leadership of coach Darren Jermyn, a group that included Brendan Costello, Liam Passi and Tie Pylatuk.

“I got consistently better over the three years, but the biggest gains, for sure, were that first year with Track North,” stated Beland.

A 19th-place finish in the senior boys division of his Grade 10 NOSSA championship provided both a solid motivational base, but also a set of expectations which the future kinesiology graduate from Laurentian University struggled at times to meet.

“Both of my senior years were tough, mentally and physically,” he recalled. “I would psyche myself out a lot.”

With his parents on hand for his Grade 11 NOSSA meet, Beland fell short of his goal of qualifying for provincials — a crushing setback. There was a reprieve, of sorts, come the outdoor track season in the spring.

“I did qualify for OFSAA, but I was running on a broken foot (stress fracture, to be precise),” he said.

Racing misfortunes would weigh heavy upon the teen. And for as much as his running mates were his very best friends, their competitive natures could make workouts challenging, at times. “I obsessed over other people’s performance way too much,” said Beland. “I had so many bad memories from before, so I had a lot of anxiety going into my final cross-country season.”

Then, ever so briefly, the light shone through.

A first-ever SDSSAA gold medal came courtesy of the steeplechase in Grade 12. An unexpected first-place finish in the NOSSA 3,000 metres would follow that same spring.

There was a perspective that could be maintained.

“I may not have hit the times I wanted to hit, but I was very happy with my years at Bishop Carter.”

Off to Laurentian he went, with a whole new set of goals in mind. Maintain an A average, just as he had in high school: Check. Qualify for the OUA indoor track championships: Check. Qualify, as a team, for the national cross-country championships: Check.

Still, there was the ebb and flow.

“I really underperformed in my first year,” said Beland. “I really underestimated the workload involved. Mentally, it was much tougher in a university setting. I had expectations of myself and didn’t come close to achieving them, so I was pretty down on myself.”

Perseverance, however, is a wonderful thing. Combined with a strong support system both on campus and off, Beland clung to the nuggets of improvement.

“I actually made some really big gains between both first and second year, and between second and third year,” he said.

And for as much as his fourth and final year at LU was memorable in many a good way, it was certainly not linear, nothing in the form of success built upon success.

“None of my cross-country races that fall were great, but thankfully I ended my career with a really good performance at nationals,” he noted.

The indoor season, as he termed it, almost became a victory lap, an added bonus given his results at U Sports cross-country.

“I PB’d my 1,500 early in the season, but then had some really rough races.”

His worst ever “blowout,” as he referenced it, came at an indoor meet in Boston. Still, as his local studies came to an end, Beland was not about to hang up his cleats.

“I wanted to continue to train, even after Laurentian,” he said. “Many of the greatest moments of my life are attributable to this sport. It’s such a huge part of my identity. I plan to keep going until I can’t.”

There was little doubt that the concept of road racing clearly appealed to the longtime runner.

But one could understand if, at some point in time, the emotional roller-coaster simply becomes too much to handle. As we speak, Caleb Beland is almost exactly one year post his graduation from LU — but what a year it has been, even as he balances his training with the demands of chiropractic college.

“It’s been a year now where I’ve been at a completely different level than I have ever been,” he acknowledged. Minutes are being shed like nobody’s business. A time of 31:15 in the 10 kilometres last June; a fall 5K run in 14:34; an 8K time trial, coming off tempo and hills workouts, with a clocking of 24:40.

Sure, these are all unofficial, but more than a little encouraging.

“It’s kind of bizarre, because I can’t remember a distinct point where it changed.”

Beland would be the first to suggest that there is no coach in his midst, no supportive friend, teammate or family member who has ever placed undue pressure upon him — which is not to say that he can avoid putting the pressure on himself.

“I’ve always felt an obligation to perform and give my best,” he said. “I feel that I’ve always tried my best, but it wasn’t always my best performance.”

Maybe therein lies the secret to this latest chapter, running free from the ties of being part of a team. Beland is the first to admit that he does not hold all of the answers. This current stretch is what it is (cue fingernails screeching across a blackboard!).

“I’m so much more relaxed now,” he said.

That being the case, as many a coach might suggest, just go with it, young man — and see where the process might lead you.

Randy Pascal’s That Sudbury Sports Guy column runs regularly in The Sudbury Star.

If you think about it, racing is a strange thing to do for fun. Hang by the infield trash cans at a youth track meet, find a spot deep into a hilly cross-country course, or stand near the finish chute of a marathon, and the disconnect will be hard to miss. What other avocation regularly causes its enthusiasts to redline, collapse, vomit, or worse?

For many of us, the suffering is part of the appeal. We spend so much of our lives chasing comfort and convenience that doing something contrary to that is uniquely satisfying and sometimes addicting.

How to Deal with Prerace Anxiety
It’s hard to blame those who don’t want in. As much as I love it, my guess is that many people see racing like I see winter camping: peculiar, respectable even, but ultimately more miserable than it’s worth. I also can’t fault runners who choose not to race. Competing isn’t for everyone, and when the pressure of a race sucks the joy from the pursuit—as I saw it do for my older sister in middle school—it’s probably best not to force it. Harder for me to reconcile are the runners who commit to races and start them, knowing exactly what they’re signing up for, yet bow out before the finish line.

Stages of Quitting
Here’s how it often plays out: A runner prepares well for a race, maybe hyping their fitness levels and race goals on social media, and approaches the starting line with big ambitions (such as running a personal record, winning their age group, or qualifying for the Boston Marathon or Olympic Trials). The gun fires, the runner goes out hard, and, inevitably, things start to get tough.

Maybe the splits are slowing and the goal is slipping away, or a move is made and missed, or a competitor who’s slower on paper is ahead, or it’s just an inexplicable bad day at the office. Or maybe the race is actually going well, but the runner thinks too far down the road, lets doubt creep in, and feels crushed by the toil still ahead. Whatever the cause, it suddenly becomes too much to bear, and the runner steps off the track or course, netting a DNF (“did not finish”) in the results.

Allie Kieffer, a 2:28 marathoner and coach based in Austin, Texas, offers a candid perspective on that process. While she’s turned in some world-class performances in the last several years, including two top-10 finishes at the New York City Marathon, she’s also been open about several DNFs on her résumé. “Originally I started dropping out because I had an ego,” Kieffer says. “In 2019, I dropped out of a race because someone passed me who I thought I was better than,” and she wasn’t prepared to handle it. Soon, that mentality trickled into workouts. When Kieffer stopped hitting the times she wanted or that her coach had assigned, she stopped early, deeming the day a failure. It happened in more races, too. The thoughts that hijacked her mind would go from, “Oh, this is hard. This shouldn’t be hard.” to “If this is hard and I’m running X pace, I’ll never run my goal time.” to “This is just a waste. I’m not even good enough to hit the goal I’m thinking of.” to “I should just stop.” And even though quitting can feel like the only good option in the moment, whenever she surrenders to those negative thoughts, it usually strikes her later as a big mistake. Stopping early, in short, is a slippery slope. Do it once, Kieffer warns, and “it makes it easier to drop out again… It’s just in the back of your mind.” The more you do it, the less you’ll trust yourself to stick it out—a phenomenon I’ve seen play out countless times.

I remember American half marathon record holder Ryan Hall sharing that sentiment when his DNS (did not start) and DNF tally started to grow toward the end of his career. In fact, I saw him peel off a course for the final time in the 2015 Los Angeles Marathon (in which women were given a head start). That moment, and the events that precipitated it, left an indelible impression on me and the way I think about finish lines.

The Urge to Quit
The temptation to quit is one that I—like any runner who’s being honest—know well. Rarely does a race come and go without the thought of dropping out crossing my mind at least once. It’s comforting to know that even the great Meb Keflezighi thought about quitting during every marathon he ran, including the three he won. So did Des Linden, in the early stages of the 2018 Boston Marathon, which she ultimately won in epic fashion.

Although I can list plenty of races in which I would have avoided significant pain and shame by stopping early—most of all, the 2016 Olympic Marathon Trials, where I went in seeded 11th but crawled home in 85th—so far, I’ve not reached that point. It’s not that I’m tougher or wired differently than anyone else out there; deep down, I’m afraid that if I quit once, I won’t be strong enough to not do it again.

Don’t get me wrong—there are situations in which dropping out is probably a good idea. We all draw our own lines, but here’s how I see it: If continuing on will exacerbate a suspected injury or health issue, or legitimately diminish a runner’s shot at, say, making an Olympic team, quitting can be justifiable. (Some athletes have even higher thresholds. Need I remind you of the Abbey (D’Agostino) Cooper/Nikki Hamblin collision in the 2016 Olympic 5,000 meters?)

“FAILURE IS A REAL AND NECESSARY PART OF SPORT AND NOT SOMETHING TO OPT OUT OF SIMPLY BECAUSE IT’S PAINFUL.”

It’s important to note that a DNF next to a runner’s name never tells the full story. It’s easy to jump to conclusions, but unless you’re privy to the backdrop, best to give others the benefit of the doubt. I also try to withhold judgement from runners, often from developing nations, whose livelihoods ride on their performances. When a race turns south, the decision to save themselves for a better day (and payday) may have less to do with pride than the need to keep their family afloat.

But if the catalyst for throwing in the towel is a missed goal, bruised ego, poor outcome, or something of that nature, my take is that any result is better than no result. Failure is a real and necessary part of sport and not something to opt out of simply because it’s painful.

Quitting is also a dangerous message to send to fans, fellow racers, and young, impressionable athletes, who I fear will internalize the idea that a race is only worth finishing when it’s a slam dunk. Lastly, stopping early is one of the surest ways to sell yourself short. Just ask Meb, Des, and every other athlete who’s managed to make magic out of a near-DNF.

How to Make Finishing Your Default
Here’s advice from Kieffer and other elites on making finishing a habit:

-Avoid an all-or-nothing mentality by setting multiple goals and considering all outcomes. Kieffer says, “When I only think about the best possible scenario happening, my expectations get in the way of finishing the race.”
-Run for reasons other than yourself. Thoughts of his family and supporters keep Olympic marathoner Jared Ward going when rough patches challenge his will to continue. Many runners draw extra motivation by running for a cause.
-See a sports psychologist, who can help you overcome mental blocks and replace ill-serving habits.
-Have a sense of humor about the inevitable bad days, as pro marathoner Lindsay Flanagan demonstrated just a few weeks before finishing second at the U.S. 15K Championships.
-Train with runners who challenge you and expose you to difficult scenarios you may encounter in future races. Referring to her training partners in Flagstaff, Kieffer says, “We’re a little bit competing every day.”
-Take a note from Jordan Hasay’s perspective on her 2020 Olympic Marathon Trials heartbreak, when she entered with the fastest PR in the field but finished 26th: “Finished will always be better than did not finish, which always triumphs did not start.”
-Recognize when you’re putting too much emphasis on results, and go back to why you started running in the first place.
-Think of the strength you gain every time you persevere through something hard, as Deena Kastor did after the 2019 Tokyo Marathon, her “most difficult marathon to date” and the one she’s proudest to have finished.

BECKY WADE Contributing Writer
BECKY WADE IS A THREE-TIME OLYMPIC TRIALS COMPETITOR WITH A 2:30 MARATHON BEST.

Regardless of where you’re at in your running journey, you’ve likely heard of the 10 per cent rule, which states that, when adding volume to their training program, runners should not increase their mileage by more than 10 per cent per week. The reason behind the rule is, of course, to prevent them from getting injured by doing too much too soon. But does this rule work for everyone? According to three studies, following the 10 per cent rule may not be necessary.

The first study, published in 2007, asks the question “is a graded training program for novice runners effective in preventing running-related injuries?” To answer this question, the researchers split 532 participants into two groups and put them on a training plan for a four-mile race. The first group followed an eight-week program that had them increasing their mileage by about 50 per cent each week, while the second group followed a 13-week program that abided by the 10 per cent rule. By the end of the study, the eight-week group had a 20.3 per cent injury rate, while the 50 per cent group had an injury rate of 20.8 per cent.

The second study, published in 2013, used GPS technology to track 60 runners over the course of 10 weeks to see how an increase in volume correlated with injury rates. By the end of the study, 13 of the 60 runners had sustained an injury. According to the GPS data, the injured runners did increase their weekly mileage at a much faster rate than the 10 per cent rule dictates (on average about 30 per cent), but the 47 non-injured runners also didn’t follow the 10 per cent rule – they increased their weekly running volume by an average of 22.1 per cent.

The third study is from 2014, and followed 874 novice runners who started a self-structured running program. The researchers categorized them into one of three groups based on the progression of their weekly running distance: less than 10 per cent, 10 to 30 per cent, and more than 30 per cent. The researchers found there was no statistical difference in injury rates across the three groups, however those who progressed their volume by more than 30 per cent did have a slightly higher risk for certain injuries, like runner’s knee, IT band syndrome and shin splints, among others.

So what does this mean for runners? How much you increase your volume from week to week depends on multiple factors, and can’t be pinned down to just one arbitrary number. Your body’s ability to handle volume will likely differ from that of other runners based on your age, your running or athletic history, the amount of mileage you’re already running and your injury history. Additionally, none of these studies looked at injury rates over the long-term, and it is possible that your risk of injury could go up the longer you try to maintain larger weekly increases in mileage. For this reason, many runners may be better off erring on the side of caution and following the 10 per cent rule.

While controlling volume is a factor in injury prevention, your body mechanics, nutrition and ability to properly recover will likely have more influence on whether you stay healthy. Here are the main takeaways from these studies:

-Following the 10 per cent rule likely won’t increase your risk for injuries, but it may not offer as much protection as we give it credit for.
-It is possible to increase your weekly mileage by more than 10 per cent per week without increasing your risk for injury.
-While you may be able to add more than 10 per cent volume from week to week, adding more than 30 per cent does seem to increase your risk slightly for certain injuries.

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