In trying to capture the running spirit of days past, I've been especially interested in reading about some of the historic greats. Ah who am I kidding? I'm always interested in learning about running history, but allow me to indulge myself a bit.
My interest in doing this particular one was piqued after reading a thread on the r/running subreddit (yes, I'm a redditor) that was about New Balance shoes. New Balance recently launched a new line of shoes named "Vazee," and the poster mentioned he had no idea where that name came from. Turns out the name is in reference to a French slang term, "vas-y," which essentially means "Go!" or "Go for it!" Having worked at a running store, I'd heard this spiel before, but I had to learn more.
Not only is the name a fancy French word, but it is also a reference to a popular cheer for former mile world record-holder Michel Jazy (the rhyme really is catchy, it's easy to see why it became iconic). Jazy represented France in three Olympics (1956, '60, and '64), winning a silver medal in the 1500 in 1960 (behind Aussie Herb Elliot, who set a world record en route) and finishing 4th in the 5,000 in 1964.
However, Jazy is most well-known for his astonishing month of June, 1965, in which he set four (4!) world records -- the rarely-contested 4 x 1500 relay, the two mile (8:22.6), 3000m (7:49), and the mile (3:53.6). Good thing he didn't retire after the 1964 Olympics, which is what he had planned!
Before I dive too deep into Jazy's records and resume, I want to take a detour to focus on what this series is all about: the lessons that we can learn from the past. In so doing, I want to share this fantastic quote, which gives us look into Jazy's approach to running and racing.
In so many ways, track was a sport on the move.
What makes Jazy so interesting is that during his career, he had direct competition and experience with all those different approaches. He raced against Keino and also the Lydiard-coached athletes, even stealing his mile world record from the Kiwi great Peter Snell. Early in his career, Jazy trained with Gerschler, where a standard workout might have been a leg- (and mind-) numbing 30-40 x 200.
Jazy soon settled on training using Swedish coach Gosta Olander's "natural method," which can best be summed up as just run, baby. A typical day for Jazy may have looked like this: up at 6 am, 15 kilometer run in the woods by home, work from about 11-6:30, run another 15k around a local golf course (barefoot!), then relax with the family. Jazy often describes his runs (and his races, too) as charming and fun, even mentioning that "there's no reason a runner must live like a monk."
And there it is, that's the lesson: running and racing should be fun. Whatever your approach is -- mileage, intervals, any combination thereof -- you should strive to foster a sense of enjoyment in what you do. Learn to be in touch with you body, regulate your effort -- when you feel good, run fast; when you feel bad, run slow. But just run, baby.
Frenchman Jazy proves that the Swedish really did get it right with their fartlek: have a good time out there. Why train hard, consistently, twice a day? Because it's fun to run fast.
In the words of Jazy, "if an athlete doesn't know how to take care of himself, he'd better quit the competition." Stop being run by the Garmin, by the training plan, by the schedule and the calendar and the diet and the clock. Condition yourself to run by feel, because the feeling is the reason for running in the first place.
Source: "Vas-y, Ja-zy! And He Went." Sports Illustrated, 30 Aug. 1965
http://www.si.com/vault/1965/08/30/605974/vasy-jazy-and-he-went
________________________________________________________________________
6/20 - 6/26
Not quite as much as I wanted, but starting to get that consistency back. While not totally discomfort-free, my Achilles felt the best it had in about three months.
Monday: 5 miles
Tuesday: 6 miles
Wednesday: AM - 4 miles (27:23) / PM - 4 miles (27:06) -- Double!
Thursday: 7 miles (47:09)
Friday: 5 miles
Saturday: 3 miles
Sunday: Off
Total: 34 miles in 6 days
My interest in doing this particular one was piqued after reading a thread on the r/running subreddit (yes, I'm a redditor) that was about New Balance shoes. New Balance recently launched a new line of shoes named "Vazee," and the poster mentioned he had no idea where that name came from. Turns out the name is in reference to a French slang term, "vas-y," which essentially means "Go!" or "Go for it!" Having worked at a running store, I'd heard this spiel before, but I had to learn more.
Not only is the name a fancy French word, but it is also a reference to a popular cheer for former mile world record-holder Michel Jazy (the rhyme really is catchy, it's easy to see why it became iconic). Jazy represented France in three Olympics (1956, '60, and '64), winning a silver medal in the 1500 in 1960 (behind Aussie Herb Elliot, who set a world record en route) and finishing 4th in the 5,000 in 1964.
However, Jazy is most well-known for his astonishing month of June, 1965, in which he set four (4!) world records -- the rarely-contested 4 x 1500 relay, the two mile (8:22.6), 3000m (7:49), and the mile (3:53.6). Good thing he didn't retire after the 1964 Olympics, which is what he had planned!
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| When track athletes were stars... |
"The fact is I am at my best running against competition. I love human contact. If I ran against the clock, I would train against the clock. But my maxim is to run, run and keep running until I am satisfied. I look at my watch and I say O.K., I'm going to run for two hours. I don't check off each kilometer against elapsed time. At a race what I do depends on the circumstances, on the track and my competitors."Just like it was for popular culture, the 1960s were a time of immense change for the sport of racing. Down under, Arthur Lydiard was fine-tuning his "marathon miles for middle distance runners" approach to training. In Germany, Woldemar Gerschler was directing a seemingly opposite approach: interval training. In Scandinavia, there lived the ever-popular fartlek, or speed-play. Thanks to the efforts of Kip Keino, Abebe Bikila, and Mamo Wolde, East African distance running began to roar. At the same time, cinder tracks were beginning to give way to a new rubberized synthetic material. And thanks to the efforts of Lydiard and his American co-conspirator Bill Bowerman, a new fad was in its infancy: jogging for the masses.
In so many ways, track was a sport on the move.
What makes Jazy so interesting is that during his career, he had direct competition and experience with all those different approaches. He raced against Keino and also the Lydiard-coached athletes, even stealing his mile world record from the Kiwi great Peter Snell. Early in his career, Jazy trained with Gerschler, where a standard workout might have been a leg- (and mind-) numbing 30-40 x 200.
Jazy soon settled on training using Swedish coach Gosta Olander's "natural method," which can best be summed up as just run, baby. A typical day for Jazy may have looked like this: up at 6 am, 15 kilometer run in the woods by home, work from about 11-6:30, run another 15k around a local golf course (barefoot!), then relax with the family. Jazy often describes his runs (and his races, too) as charming and fun, even mentioning that "there's no reason a runner must live like a monk."
And there it is, that's the lesson: running and racing should be fun. Whatever your approach is -- mileage, intervals, any combination thereof -- you should strive to foster a sense of enjoyment in what you do. Learn to be in touch with you body, regulate your effort -- when you feel good, run fast; when you feel bad, run slow. But just run, baby.
Frenchman Jazy proves that the Swedish really did get it right with their fartlek: have a good time out there. Why train hard, consistently, twice a day? Because it's fun to run fast.
In the words of Jazy, "if an athlete doesn't know how to take care of himself, he'd better quit the competition." Stop being run by the Garmin, by the training plan, by the schedule and the calendar and the diet and the clock. Condition yourself to run by feel, because the feeling is the reason for running in the first place.
Source: "Vas-y, Ja-zy! And He Went." Sports Illustrated, 30 Aug. 1965
http://www.si.com/vault/1965/08/30/605974/vasy-jazy-and-he-went
________________________________________________________________________
6/20 - 6/26
Not quite as much as I wanted, but starting to get that consistency back. While not totally discomfort-free, my Achilles felt the best it had in about three months.
Monday: 5 miles
Tuesday: 6 miles
Wednesday: AM - 4 miles (27:23) / PM - 4 miles (27:06) -- Double!
Thursday: 7 miles (47:09)
Friday: 5 miles
Saturday: 3 miles
Sunday: Off
Total: 34 miles in 6 days
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