Mary Cain Is Taking a Break from the Nike Oregon Project

A good piece by Ken. In yesterday's piece on Rupp, he hinted at this as someone in the comment sections asked about Cain and he replied, "She is slumping, and is taking a timeout."

Wow, that was quick. Hope she received a huge upfront signing bonus. Maybe she should join Gags group.

You mods / admins should merge the two threads about Cain taking a break.

EyeHateNike wrote:

Wow, that was quick. Hope she received a huge upfront signing bonus. Maybe she should join Gags group.

I think you may be overreacting to this. Goe says she's still communicating with Salazar.

The fact of the matter is as a pro unless you are in sub 4:05 shape there is nothing for you to do in Europe. If you aren't in sub 4:10 shape, tehre is nothing for you to really do in the US.

Her recent results clearly showed she wasn't in that shape. So if this is simply performance related, the logical thing for a coach to do at a minimum would be to shut it down for a few weeks and see if the magic comes back. Just jog around, maybe do a tempo run or two. Why not do that at home?

Does anyone remember last year? After USA indoors, Hasay went home for a few weeks and did just this.

There is no reason to go to Park City and be miserable while you watch the rest of the group get ready for USAs.

I'm in favor of breaks - it's looking bad, but she has 10+ years to figure this out

If anyone's "slumping" it's Salazar. I would say that NOP is just about over.

damn, i had expected this post to be fake

i wish her good luck figuring it out

First year of college. First year away from home. Taking a break is not unusual.

Maybe she'll take the rest of the track season off, and reboot. Hopefully, she continues with her chemistry major in collegeeven if she takes break from hard training.

Yeah but I think the problem is she's going to sit at home and be miserable instead.

Clearly she has had a disappointing season. It's also important to remember that she just finished her freshman year in college 3,000 miles from home. I know she is a professional athlete, but if part of her struggles are related to adjustments to college life and being away from home, this is a perfect time for a break. She's doing the same thing as most of her fellow freshman classmates at UP. Hopefully she can recharge the batteries some at home. We'll see.

fadsfasdf wrote:

Yeah but I think the problem is she's going to sit at home and be miserable instead.

Nah, I think it'll be a good opportunity to forget about the sport for a while and get her mind back in the right place. I always do the same thing whenever I get in a slump. After a week off, I'm usually itching to get back out there and start training. Sometimes you just have to blow it up and start from scratch.

fadsfasdf wrote:

Yeah but I think the problem is she's going to sit at home and be miserable instead.

she was doing great from home before, maybe she is homesick. thing is, NOP is pretty dang intense. she may not be mentally ready for it on a full time basis. she's intense in competition, but maybe more relaxed in daily life that the typical NOP clan is, which is understandable since they are all a lot older and more mature. we can't underestimate how much being unhappy can affect your energy and your running. hopefully she can recharge and make it work.

she doesn't seem a good fit for NOP - she is goofy and fun - there's no edge to her. The other NOP athletes are all knifelike - totally purposeful and pointed.

It's too late, but NB probably would have been a better fit for her - with coburn and simpson in Colorado? They seem more like cain than rowbury and moser.

alanson wrote:

I would say that NOP is just about over.

Talk about over reaction!

Rojo,

I thought you were smarter than that.

Getting out of NOP and hanging on to your Nike contract requires a very delicate balance. The " in communication with" is the same thing that Ritz said when trying to exit the cult. Dathan currently has zero contact with Alberto and no longer wears the team singlet.

Maybe she could get things kick started by refocusing on a meet that she can win - Pan Am Jnrs in Canada (first weekend in August). She is still eligible, and assuming that Cranny (or even Ephraimson) doesn't do it, she must be able to earn a spot on the team. Having won World Jnrs last year over 3000m, stepping back down to 1500m at this level might regain her confidence. It's not like she can go back to the College route (since she is a pro).

I always felt that pushing her to World Seniors two years ago was a mistake - too much too soon. Just because you can do something, doesn't mean it's a good idea. She has been under pressure to return to that level ever since. She should have gone to World Youth instead that summer and won there. This is the path that Ajee Wilson followed - and she has transitioned quite well.

I heard she's going to Panama City Beach to party like it's 1999

Goes' articles need direct quotes from Mary Cain. Is she injured? Is she working out on her own in Bronxville? Does she plan to return to college in Portland?

So what if he gets access to NOP at Park City. So far, the stories feel one-sided. The real story is from Mary Cain herself.

agip wrote:

she doesn't seem a good fit for NOP - she is goofy and fun - there's no edge to her. The other NOP athletes are all knifelike - totally purposeful and pointed.

It's too late, but NB probably would have been a better fit for her - with coburn and simpson in Colorado? They seem more like cain than rowbury and moser.

Agreed, I'm not really a fan of the personalities in that camp except for Cain.