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This page was last edited on Wednesday, 25 May 2005
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From Siberia with Love and Icicles: Peter Wrigley and Howard Harman on surviving minus 42C By Grant McLean
Peter Wrigley is one of the club’s most accomplished and prolific distance runners. Peter has won the Scottish marathon trophy on many occasions, run 2:25 for the marathon distance, and run a 31-minute 10k. Peter has also long been known as someone who likes to do things out of the ordinary. On one occasion running the London marathon and flying back to run Rotorua the following weekend, and of course he has run more marathons than John Walker ran sub-four minute miles. This penchant for unusual challenges made him well suited to accompany Howard Harman on a Siberian adventure. Howard, of course is an old hand, having run the Siberian Summer marathon twice. Taking on the winter half-marathon, however, was something they would find most locals didn’t have the stomach for. Brass monkeys few and far between So in early January Peter and Howard found themselves on the start line of the Siberian Winter Marathon (actually the half), in Omsk, the capital of Siberia, with a handful of hardy athletes all wrapped up like the Michelin men. Originally a field of 200 plus for the half marathon and the six-kilometre race, a large number of local competitors actually didn’t turn up when they realised how cold it was going to be. The race started with news that the temperature was at a record-breaking minus 42 degrees centigrade. Adding to the interest were three foreign runners including an American journalist and German Television reporter. The already extreme conditions for the race seemed even more so for Peter and Howard because they had come from a warm Wellington summer. Peter says that even with all the numerous layers of clothing they could still feel the cold during the race. The course was a three-lap affair with marshals posted every few hundred metres to keep an eye on competitors. Peter and Howard actually won the event running it in a very creditable one hour thirty-seven minutes, but they were not credited with the win after being misdirected into the 6km race finishing chute with a lap to go. Realising this they went around the final lap well clear of the next competitors. Because of the extremely cold winter, the race was covered in the national news, Peter said. The Russian news media, politicians and locals they met along the way were very interested in these two runners all the way from New Zealand who wanted to take on the race. Peter and Howard applied typical Kiwi ingenuity to preparing their running garments for the race. Peter noted with amusement that here were these two Kiwis all wrapped up in whatever makeshift clothing they could find (including their improvised hats to shield their faces from the cold) and "the American journalist who was sponsored with all manner of clothing, camera and airfares wasn’t able to even finish the race". In fact, only 13 of the 143 starters actually finished. Significantly four out of the five foreigners did. Peter commented that it really was quite scary at times during the race "when you realised that your breath froze immediately on breathing out. We had to keep breaking the ice away from our woolly hats which came right down over our mouths." It was times like this that Peter and Howard knew they were doing something pretty daring. They were both pleased they made it through the race when the majority did not. Reflecting on the experience Peter is very glad he decided to go along with Howard. Russia is an amazing place. "It was great seeing how the Russians and particularly the Siberians carry on their daily lives in such extreme conditions. Taxis still run, planes still fly, people go off to work like normal. It is just a matter of what you are used to." People have asked whether it is depressing running in the cold but Peter and Howard commented that, on the contrary, "it was like fairyland" with the gleaming sun casting a surreal light as it glistened through the frozen trees and onto the icy ground all frozen snowy white. Country of extremes Both Peter and Howard found it fascinating to travel across Russia from Siberia to Moscow and St Petersburg, and experiencing how the Russian people are living post-communism. Much like the weather, it sounds like a world of extremes, as Peter recalled the poverty, with young men begging in the underground in the shadow of the opulence of grandiose pre-Communist era buildings and magnificent churches dotted throughout these famous cities. Howard, in particular, though, found it amazing to think that Russia had ever been a great superpower when he saw the conditions many Russian people are living under. Although it is difficult for foreigners to understand the attraction of living in a place like Siberia, Peter commented that it didn’t seem to affect the spirit of the local people who amazed him "they were always so very warm and friendly in contrast to the harsh climate." So what is next for our intrepid extreme runners? "Well, next time I think I would go for a hot race. I think there is one in Death Valley in the United States which would be a challenge," said Peter. So it looks like the next extreme event will be the opposite end of the spectrum, from 40 below to 40 above!! We will watch with interest the continuing adventures of Peter and Howard in the future. For more recollections of their Siberian adventure, check out the March Scottish newsletter for Howard’s reflections on the experience. Don Dalgliesh: The long payback---three decades of coaching By Paul Rodway
"I also get a lot of pleasure in seeing people I coached as juniors come back into running after 10 or 15 years out of the sport." Now 56, Don traces his association with Scottish back to the fifth form. Showing some flair on Wellington College’s notorious "Gutbuster" cross-country course, he was tapped on the shoulder by a club member who suggested he join Scottish Harriers. It was 1961. In his late teens, Don was coached by Garnet Nelson. "Garnet kept his fitness up by running with the boys. He modelled everybody after himself. In modern terms, he was a hard-work coach. This suited me, but many of his athletes suffered from stress fractures." So indirectly from Garnet, he learned the importance of adapting coaching to suit the athlete’s needs. As for his own running achievements, Don "sneaked" into the four-man counting team for the Scottish colts (under 17) in the centre cross country champs and did the same in the following year. They were the only two medals he ever won for cross country. In the college cross country, Don came second three years in a row. End of competitive running When he was 21, in 1967, Don’s running suffered a serious setback. A nerve became trapped under his kneecap. "At the time, you had two choices: take time off or suffer arthritis by the time you’re 25. I took a break, but really that was the finish of my competitive running." He remained actively participating in club running until the last couple of years. So in 1971, aged 25, he turned to coaching. "I used what I’d learnt for myself and from Garnet. I modified it as I went along, experimented with what worked and what didn’t." His coaching started off on a high note. One of his first athletes was Alan Clements. "He was our top junior for three years, a natural talent. In his last year as a junior, he was fourth in the national cross. He was so far ahead of others in his age group in Wellington. He was the fastest junior in the Shaw Baton, faster than the seniors." In 1978, Don summarised his coaching methods in a pamphlet which he still largely follows. His training methods use ideas gleaned from Arthur Lydiard and Ron Clarke and modified from experience. About the only change over the past two decades is that the weekly training distances are now lower. He formalised his coaching, by taking the level 2 course in middle distance running (skipping level 1) in the 1980s and the level 3 course in Adelaide in 1998. In 2000, he completed a BBS degree from Massey, majoring in coaching and sports management. He was interested to see if he was doing the right things. "I learnt a few new ideas,' he says, "but mainly the courses taught me why the things we did, worked. I now know why I do things at different times, and the anatomical reasons behind coaching techiques. While the majority of his athletes have been junior males, Don has coached/advised senior men and a few junior women. Where do the promising juniors go? "I lose a lot when they leave town to go to varsity, or overseas on scholarships to the States. Some drift out of the sport. A few, very few, really, have retired with injuries. Some try other coaches." Coaches all-comers Unlike some other coaches, Don takes on athletes no matter what club or school they come from. "I think coaching and club membership are two different animals. I ask them to convince me that switching from their club to mine is good for them. Often it’s not. If they don’t belong to a club, I naturally ask them to try Scottish." The recent clutch of "Don’s runners" has included juniors from Scottish, Valleys United, Wellington Harriers, Olympic, and several out-of-town seniors. He’s had the situation when two of his athletes have competed in the same race, each not knowing they shared the same coach. "They were training separately. What I say to a particular athlete stays between him or her and me." He tries not to play favourites with his runners. "I try to give them all the same level of attention. That can be very hard to do. My philosophy is that after three years with me, they should know enough of the basic principles to coach themselves. They should know what they should do at each stage of training, and why, and what suits them best. My job then becomes that of an advisor. I don’t believe I should have exclusive rights to them. I tell them, if they get a chance to listen to other coaches, do it. Be open to new ideas." He points to some of the national and regional successes his "stable" has enjoyed: a brace of New Zealand records, first placings in national cross and roads. "I still haven’t produced a runner who has gone on to win a national senior title. Wayne Atkins is the closest with a third in the roads." So on Don goes into his fourth decade as a coach: advising the older runners, prescribing speed session intervals for the younger ones, swapping stories and laughs, and encouraging everyone. It’s a hobby where the rewards are in the record books, the photos, and the enduring friendships.
Michael Browne: Running as an art form By Paul Rodway
He was a "little squirt," and wasn't good at football, or boxing, preferring to run, but without huge success. He recalls a primary school cross country race where he came 47th out of 48. The family moved to Eastbourne in 1941 and Michael went on to secondary school at Wanganui Collegiate. Gives harriers a try After school, heading into a career in graphic art, Michael signed up with a new athletics club in Eastbourne, where he was coached by NZ marathon legend Clarrie Gibbons. In the club he met Neil Dobbie, who ran for Scottish Harriers in the winter. So Michael signed up with Scottish in 1948, joining the likes of Fred Silver, Jimmy Riddington, Alf Stevens and his son Alan, and Bruce Jenkins. He has a photo of the "active members" of the club around 1950: 37 males wearing running singlets with a great variety of home-made diagonal sashes. Even in those days, Scottish was the top harrier club in Wellington, winning the Shaw Baton, Vosseler Shield, Dorne Cup, Wellington-Masterton Relay and the centre championships. In the late 1940s, Michael won the Junior Vosseler, followed by high placings in several other events.
Michael Browne, the clear winner of the Junior Vosseler, when it wound around Lyall Bay At the ripe age of 24, he "retired" from cross country and athletics, and took off to London, armed with a scholarship to attend the Royal College of Art. Over the next couple of decades, spent in England, the commitments of marriage and children, work as an art teacher, together with the "terrible English winters," meant his attempts at getting back into running were sporadic and short-lived. Going for the long haul At the age of 47, he decided to have a go at the London Marathon. "I ran fairly abysmally," he says, but he kept at it over the next decade, knocking off five Londons and lots of halfs. Then in 1981, he came down with polyneuritis (Guillaume-Barre Syndrome), a disease of the central nervous system. "This gave me an idea of how it would feel to be 70," he says with a laugh. "The disease receded, partly because I was very fit. It gave me the determination to work hard at staying fit." His best marathon time was 3:07 in London in 1986: "I’m quite proud of that achievement. I had hoped to get under three hours, but never did. Training at that level took too much time."
Grant McLean: Making up for lost time--Wellington’s Half Marathon Champion By Paul Rodway
Training His best half marathon time is just under 70 minutes. What is the secret to crunching your time down from 90 to 70 minutes? "I was invited to lunchtime runs with (club captain) Todd and the guys. I found these were hard runs. It was a real struggle to hang on to the pack, but I was very determined. Gradually, my times improved." Besides the continuing weekday pack runs, his programme is built around "good quality Sunday runs, for example, on one occasion getting around the Makara loop in under 2 hours 10 (although this sort of effort is not recommended on a regular basis!). As well, we do track sessions with, for example, 5k of 400m intervals, each run in 70 seconds, with a 45-second recovery." Over the last year or so, Grant has found, a little to his surprise, that he’s starting to enjoy racing on the track. "I used to worry about the intensity, after being left way behind at school sports events, but track is quite exhilarating." Of the runners who inspired him when he was growing up, he cites John Walker and Alberto Salazar, three-time winner of the New York City Marathon. Like many international marathon stars, Salazar came to the longer distance after a successful track career. Grant seems to be doing the reverse. Career highlight He lists the highlight of his running career, so far, as the National Road Relay Championships in Cambridge in 1999, when the Scottish men’s team won the title. "I was proud to be part of that team. The result was a brilliant team effort, achieved after many years of Todd's vision and leadership." By day a policy analyst in the Ministry of Health, he loves to get out and compete. "I enjoy racing. And I think it’s important to support the smaller, local events. Other runners are more picky about what they race in. "In my opinion, if we want our sport to regain a decent profile, then strong and elite runners need to get out and compete more often in local championships and club races, to regenerate the prestige of these titles and races and thereby inspire the younger runners, others who are thinking about competing and the supporters. "Perhaps because I started late, I feel I have to take all the opportunities I can. So far, I’ve avoided injury." How does he respond to the criticism that he runs far too many half marathons (11 in 1:11) and that if he ran fewer, he'd run faster? "Well, at least I'm consistent! The thing is, I seem to run 1:11 no matter what the course and conditions, so laying off may not change anything." This changed on May 2001 when Grant laid this bogey to rest with a 1:09 half in Nelson and again in February 2002 in the Buller. Some of his best races were not where he ran his PBs. "My best 10k race was when I came 12th over a hilly course. It wasn’t my fastest time." Same for the marathon: his second fastest time (2:29) was set in the New Plymouth Marathon, but the Hamilton Millennium Marathon run in late January (2:31) he feels has been his best. Favourite food? What answer could a kiwi boy give other than "fish and chips." The answer to the musical faves question takes more time. "I have a range of tastes," he says, and then settles with a twinkle in the blue eyes, on Smashing Pumpkins and Jane's Addiction. Out there on the roads, safe from Jane and her addiction, he still has lots of goals. "I’d like to run a 68-minute half, 2:25 for the marathon and I’d like to get my 10k time down."
Ben Ruthe: One goal in mind By Grant McLean
Day job Currently working in Auckland. What do you consider to be the major highlights of your career to date? Fourth at the World Mountain Running Championships, the Oceania Games 1500m record, the New Zealand 800 and 1000 metres records and just off the mile record all in one week. Beating Matt Dravitzki (another legendary Scottish runner-watch out for a profile in the future) in the Vosseler. What are you major goals? The gold medal in the Olympic 1500 metres. What are your goals for the next year? I am going to concentrate on my speed and technique for just one more year before going all out for the 1500 metres. I have the Oceania Games in August [where I am aiming] for the 1500 metres title, and [then] the New Zealand Road Relay title. Do you have a role model or someone you admire in sport? I would have to say that Tim Prendergast (see separate Profile) has got to be one of the most inspirational people I have ever met, and to be able to train with someone like him really gives me the inspiration to push through the barriers and not let other people's limits hold me back. Some people naturally have the factor that makes them succeed. Tim doesn’t, but through the work he puts in and his ‘no excuses’ approach he has achieved to a point where others would say he couldn’t and, believe me, this is just the start. What is your favourite food? I eat pressure for breakfast, otherwise anything after a good training session. What is your favourite music? Anything that gets me psyched-up, like Chariots of Fire, or We are the Champions. What else would you like to tell us? I believe…. (sounds like the start to a famous speech, doesn’t it?)… that athletic success is 10% physical, 10% luck, and 100% in the mind. Just look at Tim Prendergast. Visualisation is a very important part of my training programme because of this. Goal-setting and technique work are also under-utilised in many training programmes, as is speed-work. I believe limits are only in the minds of those that set them and excuses are just reasons for not achieving. Well, if Ben’s comments haven’t got you putting on your trainers and out pounding the streets on a frosty morning, then I am not sure what will. Ben’s achievement earlier this year of breaking two and narrowly missing a third New Zealand record was outstanding. I particularly enjoyed the way he ran the 800 metres where he made a huge sprint down the last 100 metres to crack the record. That is the sort of guts and commitment of true champions. Of course, Ben must also at times temper his great enthusiasm, as he has been known to race when he has been recovering from the flu on more than one occasion! Melissa Moon: In transition from cross-country to marathon By Grant McLean
Melissa turned her attention to the marathon, but has decided to put that aside for now. She got a feel for the discipline by running the biggies, having run London and more recently Boston. She says that running in these big races is a real buzz as the atmosphere is awesome with the crowd giving you a real lift, although Melissa reckons she can’t remember too much of the crowd in the last few kilometres of the Boston marathon. Melissa has also been consistent so far running both races in 2:42, but she knows that to make the Commonwealth and Olympic standard her times need to come down. Who do you admire in athletics? Athletes I truly admire are those who give it 100% when they race. Paula Radcliffe of Great Britain is one such athlete who stands out for me. I admire her sheer determination and her ability to always guts it out at the end of a race. I suppose all athletes who show determination and guts no matter where the finish are worthy of admiration for me. Can you tell us what is your favourite food? Ummm, a good old kiwi roast or roast chicken and probably anything that involves tomato sauce. What kind of music do you like? My music is Abba, Fleetwood Mac, Neil Diamond and well any of the good 70s boogie numbers and that can include the Bee Gees as well.
Tim Prendergast: Putting Paralympians on par with Olympians By Grant McLean
What are your major goals? First and foremost, a win in Sydney over the 800 and 1500m and to run good times. Disabled sport isn’t really regarded as a true sport by many and it is my intention to put it on the sporting map. I want to succeed in able-body athletics as well. My major goal, I guess, is to be a double-Olympian in 2004, to be the first male runner to compete in the Athens Olympics and then the Paralympics. I hope I can become some sort of example for disabled people in New Zealand, making them realise that despite adversity it is still possible to achieve. What are your goals for the 2001? In June, I am taking half a year off study to concentrate on Sydney. I will hopefully be going to San Diego in September for a warm-up meet and spend some time in relative heat training. This summer I want to make amends for 2000’s non-existent season due to a stress fracture in my foot and run some pretty good times: sub-1.50 [for 800m] and in the 3.40s [for 1500m]. In terms of what I will do next year outside of running, I am weighing up my options. I am looking very seriously at going to study a Communications Degree for three years. I definitely think I will stay studying as I want to see how far I can get with my running before being tied down by the old 9-to-5 job. The Sports Foundation have been very good to me and are making the choice a very easy one. Do you have a role model or someone you admire in sport? Although I can’t go past many of our sporting heroes of the past—Walker, Snell, etc.—I needn’t go past my own backyard and Ben Ruthe. Ben is an extremely talented athlete and I am privileged to have him on my side as a training partner. It is Ben who helps me through those reps when my body is crying out in pain. It is Ben’s achievements that inspire me to strive in my career. What is your favourite food? I shouldn’t really admit to it, but I do have a fetish for fast food and my efforts in the P team trials cheese burger competition is testimony to this. What is your favourite music? Rock, Electronica, and Alternative. My favourite bands would be Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Pink Floyd and the Smiths. I am staunchly against commercialised b******t that some stations feed to the masses on a daily basis. I believe that people should listen to the music that they really enjoy rather than being fed something over and over again and then going out and buying it.
John Henwood: Olympian By Grant McLean and Todd Stevens
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