Great coaching has helped me carry myself by that same power through grief and disbelief at the shape the world has taken around me. In the months since, good coaching has helped me carry my body almost 500 miles by my own power. In that first run, I was coached through 5 miles of meaningful movement. Through most of my adult life, that sharp angle only dulled slightly, until recently. As they made my life miserable, I came to resent sports, viewing them as a route for brutish people to gain notoriety and acclaim, rather than a means for thoughtful seekers to grow strong in kind and quiet confidence. To make matters worse, many of my most memorable teammates were the cruel ones. I better appreciate my parents’ reasoning now, but at the time, I never learned to shift my anxieties about competition into excitement that might have inspired a real love of my time in jerseys, cleats, and goggles. Growing up, every season I was expected to participate in some sport. In the time I’ve spent on roads, sidewalks, trails, tracks, and treadmills with Coach Bennett, I’ve completely reframed my view of athletics. This, like his occasional indulgence in bad jokes, is an essential marker of his warm and generous nature, and these charming moments earn trust and endear him to the runner. This is also not about running.”Īs someone who speaks often about the importance of reading during our runs, I suspect he recognizes the literary faux pas in making the metaphor so explicit, but Coach Bennett wouldn’t risk letting an athlete end the run with any less than everything he’s offering.

I had no idea at the time, but in early 2020, “reserve some resilience for the long road ahead” was exceptionally great coaching.Ĭoach Bennett often marks moments of great coaching with words that bring a smile to my face: “This is about running. I’ve come to appreciate that generic coaching entails relevant instruction at a moment in training, while good coaching advances the arc of a runner’s journey as an athlete, and great coaching speaks to the athlete’s journey as a person.

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