Chance to be a pro

[MattMc]

"If any change is to be made, the best course of action would likely be to promote the sport at the grassroots level (elementary school, middle school, and even to an extent, highschool). You get kids excited about track there, you get their parents excited (in some cases). This is a hard task, however, when you look at the environment of many schools lately. I know in Ontario there has been much "job action" which has really killed track and cross country seasons at the highschool level many times. With increasing cuts to education it is unlikely that this trend will reverse, and those provinces which haven't had these problems (are there any??) will likely develop them (ahh.. good old Sociology ). "

This is a great point. I have always thought that money $1 spent on youth/ development programs is worth $10 spent on the elites. I also think the public will be more responsive to this type of sport funding as childhood obesity IS a national epidemic. Investment in youth activity/ sport programs can be framed as investments which will save health care $$ down the road. Alberta recently made a positive step by mandating 30 minutes of phys ed per day for kids.

[SI]

davidson said:

You're right. Both environments are very stressful....

There is more flexibility however, (i.e. you have to mark, plan lessons, etc - but you can choose when to do that).

I find that the older people get, the more they realize just how good they had it in school. I don't necessarily agree but my point was really your second one. You can achieve the same flexibility in a self-employed job too. Even if you have to grind out the hours, if you are in a position to travel, take extended lunches, etc. a job doesn't actually have to be a hindrance depending on what it is. Now I also realize that finding such a job isn't the easiest thing either.

[EL Presidente]

I think we need to re-define the word pro. If what I do is Pro then I quit.

[Bomba]

..Martin,

I say this on a regular basis..'if i knew then what i know now". But that's something that experience brings. How many young guys do u see out trying to find some shortcuts....there ain't any. I remeber thinking I trained hard when i was 20 or 21......(and I'm sure mnany young guys think the same)...well as i found out..I WASN'T....but I am kinda dumb and a a slow learner so it took me many yrs to figure these things out...

[LloydBraun]

Don't worry OtherWalter you're at least 2 steps below pro! No need to hang 'em up just yet

[ahutch]

I think there are really two separate discussions here: the philosophical one (should society pay runners? do you have to run full-time to run fast?), and the practical one (given that nobody's going to pay you, how do you organize your life to train as hard as possible without starving?).

All that "Steve Jones worked and ran fast, so you don't need to run full-time" is a bit tiresome. Peter Maher was an overweight smoker into his mid-twenties, but that doesn't prove that smoking doesn't hurt your marathon running. Individual performances are impossible to predict, but if you gave me a choice between a team of 100 randomly selected runners running full-time and a similar team working full-time, my money would be on the full-timers to produce the faster times on average.

But that debate is purely academic, because the option of running full-time simply doesn't exist for most. So what do you do? Well, the question is really: how much are you willing to do? Because if you want to do it, you can get a flexible part-time job, make enough to live (as Bomba says) like a poor man, and train as much as your heart desires. It's easy to sit at our keyboards and say "Yeah, I want it! I'll do anything -- move out to the woods like Quentin Cassidy, and train like a beast." But when push comes to shove, people find a lot of reasons not to do it.

I tried to go "full-time" for a year. I was lucky enough to be able to live with my parents, and did some tutoring and research contracts on the side to make some cash. In some senses, it was great -- but you'll notice that I'm not doing it anymore. My race results that year were kind of disappointing, and suddenly you look back at the year and think "what have I done in the last 12 months?". And all your friends (who now have good jobs) not only think you're nuts, but are also getting tired of the fact that you always suggest Ramen noodles and renting a video for a "night out" because you don't have money to go out and do things...

Anyway, not to prolong my sob story -- my point is just that there's a lot of pressure from different sources. In hindsight, I think what people have been saying about living with other runners who are making the same committment would make a huge difference. If I was doing it again, I think I would go to Victoria or Guelph (much as I hate to say it!). But even so, the pressure of wanting results -- instantly! -- is tough to avoid. We're all willing to make any sacrifice to run 3:35 -- but what if you're not getting faster? Do you have the patience to ride out a year or two of consolidation? Even Sully had to deal with some years of stagnation leading up to the big breakthrough in 2000.

[kurt]

Bomba said:

..Martin,

But that's something that experience brings. How many young guys do u see out trying to find some shortcuts....there ain't any. I remeber thinking I trained hard when i was 20 or 21......(and I'm sure mnany young guys think the same)...well as i found out..I WASN'T....but I am kinda dumb and a a slow learner so it took me many yrs to figure these things out...

Bomba, i hope that things are going well with you. You make a very good point. I think that kids, myslef included, are always looking for a "secret" to success. When the best secret that they can get is to talk to the older athletes that have been through it all before. I know that I learned a lot last year from talking but more or less listening to the older more experienced athletes, such as yourself, sean kaley, and sully among others. Each have been through different experiences and have a differing opinion on things. Obviously every young and up and coming athlete thinks that they are going to be able to train like sully does full time, but the reality of it is that most are not. The best thing that a young athlete can do is to learn about their options so that they can be most successful if they are willing to purse running after university.

The fact of the matter s that right now running is not going to make you wealthy in Canada regardless and with the groups that have been set up with in the past 2-3 years in Guelph and Victoria, athletes have plenty of oppertunities to give their dreams a realistic shot.

[Robo]

For all the runners who want to train full time but are worried about money; why not work part time(just enough to support yourself), live cheaply and train your ass off? Working 25 hours a week shouldn't take away your ability to get in all the necessary training, rest, etc. This way it doesn't have to be so short term if breakthroughs don't happen immediately. On a side note what do you think are the best jobs that enable runners to train and travel to races?

On another note, one of my roommates is a sub-elite cyclist, but there seems to be no shortage of teams for him to join that would sponsor him. They have racing and training gear that is completely covered with sponsors logo's and they get free bikes, tons of other gear, and they get their trips paid for a lot of the time.

How is cycling any different than running? They both get the same publicity(aside from the tour de france which no canadians compete in anyway). Why can't running get similar sponsorship deals?

[EL Presidente]

Careful Llyod!! I may get back on that ferry and go home and then who will you play golf with?

[Bubba]

AHutch, you make some great points. You summed things up great and put it in perspective. Have you ever thought about being a journalist?