Deena Kastor and Jim Ryun answer your questions about their career right here on LRC

Rick Sanchez wrote:

Deena and Jim,

What advice would you give to a big fan of track and field who is disillusioned with the current state of disqualifications and suspensions of athletes for medically enhanced performances? It feels difficult to cheer for anyone after a great performance when 6 months or a year later they get popped. What keeps you motivated to remain a fan?

I would also add that my first emotion when I hear that someone has tested positive or is banned, is sad. I am so sad. Sad for fans. Sad for sponsors and race directors. Sad for the competitors. But mostly sad that they didn't believe they could do it any other way.

old guy II wrote:

Deena,

No question, I just wanted to say thanks for being so accessible and supportive of all the college athletes who came up to Mammoth after you started training there. I came up with one of the UC teams several times in the early 2000s and you and Meb and Coach Vigil and Coach Larsen were always willing to make some time to talk with the athletes about training and competition.

For the first time since 2001 we won't be hosting "Talks in the Park" due to social distancing guidelines in California. It is something Andrew, the Mammoth Track Club team, and I love doing. Resent years, we added a fun run, given away swag, and fed everyone pizza. Thanks for being part of a great tradition. I hope we can host the thousands that come next year.

1955 wrote:

First, congrats to both -- for their amazing careers and for this latest acknowledge of their greatness.

For Jim: you put in a lot of mileage for a miler. Do you think you could have extended your career by moving up to the 5k, had post-collegiate careers been more feasible back then? Was it something you ever seriously considered?

For Deena: modest as you are, I wonder who YOU would have picked as the women's GOAT?

Joan Samuelson FULL STOP.

Question for Jim: Lydiard once said that with his training you might have run a little faster. Obviously your training worked really well but what are your thoughts on this?

Deena,

You mentioned you've been with Asics for 20 years, congratulations. I still remember when you were running for Reebok. What led to the switch? Was it simply a financial decision or as a world-class athlete, are there other major factors in play when deciding to change shoe companies?

Thank you for your time.

Fraction wrote:

Deena,

You mentioned you've been with Asics for 20 years, congratulations. I still remember when you were running for Reebok. What led to the switch? Was it simply a financial decision or as a world-class athlete, are there other major factors in play when deciding to change shoe companies?

Thank you for your time.

Oh my gosh! I love this story! I was running in Ohio in December, and told Andrew, my boyfriend (now husband), "My shoes are slipping all over the place. If I'm going to train here for 10 days, I need shoes that I can run on the ice." We went to a run-specialty store and I tried on a few brands, but fell ABSOLUTELY IN LOVE with the ASICS DS Trainer. I bought them, and called my agent Ray to tell him how much I liked this shoe. Then, I researched the company. ASICS is a latin acronym for Anima Sana In Corpore Sano, or a sound mind in a sound body. I was swept! I called Ray back and said, "I don't care if I get a salary cut, this is the company I want to run for." So he got to work negotiating. It was not just a flashy marketing ideal that Mr. Onitsuka created, but a creed to help lift Japan out of depression after the war. Onitsuka-san believed that movement was good for the body and the mind. The current CEO, the senior VPs, and the entire staff at ASICS live and work by Onitsuka's founding creed.

Deena,

Thanks so much for doing this, it is such a treat. I love your positivity and zest for life.

Over the years, it has been revealed (one way or the other) that a number of professional runners have been taking thyroid medication at various times in their career. While this is not a violation of the current rules, have you ever suspected that in some cases that was done in an effort to gain a performance boost rather than to fulfill a legitimate medical need?

Jim, thank you for speaking to me and my high school teammates back in 1986(?) at a high school in the Bay Area, California. We were so excited after your talk we walked down to the track and ran a 4x400 relay. We didn't bring our running shoes, so we all ran in our bare feet. We were all just so excited to get to meet you.

When I think of you running in high school on some remote road in Kansas with a transistor radio in one hand, I always feel a strong sense of nostalgia and sadness for what our country used to be and what has been lost. It was a simpler time in America before smart phones and ipods. In almost every way it was a much better era if you ask me.

I have a few questions for you:

1) When you ran your 1500 meter WR, wasn't it hot? How much faster do you think you could have run in a rabbited race on a cool day on a modern state-of-the-art track?

2) What was/is your relationship with Billy Mills like and how much did you interact with him in the 1960s? Did you see him win in Tokyo and did that race have an impact on you?

I'd like to thank both Deena and Jim for agreeing to do this! Very good idea.

For both - what is the biggest hurdle you've had to overcome in your running career (if you don't mind sharing), and how did you manage to overcome that hurdle?

Hey guys, Jim has sent us some responses, we'll be posting them from this account. Without further ado...

ParityCuber wrote:

For Jim: What do you think led you to have such a great amount of success at an early age compared to many US runners nowadays? The top US high school runners now are rarely competitive on a world stage, and never to the degree you were. Do you think it was something you did different early in your career, or that something changed, like the outlook of US highschool running or something in the world stage that is different?

Jim's response: ParityCuber, I think one of the reasons I had so much success as a high school runner is that I was successful in failing at every other sport that i tried as a young boy growing up in Wichita, Kansas. I was motivated to make something of myself.

AXC wrote:

For Ryun: Does he regret letting Kip Keino build an insurmountable gap in the 1968 Olympics? Or with the altitude does he think it would have been suicidal to go with Keino on the 2nd and 3rd lap?

Jim's response: I thought your question was really relevant with regard to the Mexico City, Olympics and my race in the finals with Keino of Kenya. I knew the altitude favored athletes who had been born and raised at altitude. I was willing to give away a lead early on hoping that in the end I might be able to catch Keino. I consider that race one of my best races ever and am honored to have won the silver metal if you were to eliminate the altitude, it would have been an interesting race with Bodo Tummler, Keino and I being contenders for the gold.

SlowFatMaster wrote:

Hi Jim: I almost met you at your Santa Barbara camp in 1973. I was 18 but I caught the chicken pox and had to cancel and the next year I was too old. My question is, were you an altitude non-responder? Thanks and still hope to meet you some day!

Jim's response: Sorry I missed meeting you in 1973. I want you to know it’s never too late to attend the Jim Ryun Running Camp. This year due to the coronavirus we will be hosting the first ever Jim Ryun virtual running camp. Go to our website

and register. I think you will be very pleased with the lectures we will offer and the goody bag we will deliver to you at the completion of the camp! You’ll be happy to know there is absolutely no age limit. Though I did a little training at altitude prior to the 1968 Olympics, it did not compare at all to those who had been born in altitude.

SDSU Aztec wrote:

Please ask Jim what the story is behind his legendary 5:38 mile. That one of the most talented milers who ever lived and ran 4:07 the next Spring, could run that slowly, doesn't make sense.

Jim's response: Your question about how I developed so quickly from a 5:38 miler to a 4:07 miler is best answered by saying - lots of prayers , high motivation and an absolutely fabulous coach, Bob Timmons. Timmie was a visionary who had the knack of encouraging all his runners to reach deep and do their best!

CGeorgeRun wrote:

To both runners -

What is that one race/performance you look back on with your most fondness? That one race you wish you could relive/rerun to get that same thrill?

Jim's response: I look back on the 1972 1500 m Olympic Trials final in Eugene, Oregon as my favorite race. 1972 had been a mountain top and valley year of running - running 4:19 for a mile in LA and running a 3:52 mile in Toronto to become the world’s best miler. That spring Anne and I had become Christians. My life was transformed. In the finals of the 1500 m, I celebrated at the finish line throwing my hands in the air, something I had never done before. The photo I have of my doing so became a Sports Illustrated cover.

That's all from Jim tonight, but he has agreed to come on the LetsRun podcast tomorrow, so we'll try to get to some of your other questions on there. Hope you guys enjoyed this!

for both of them: without looking it up, what is the capital of Uzbekistan?

HI, Deena! I'm a huge fan of yours. I'm a freshman in high school and am super passionate about this sport. What is the best way I might get in contact with you?

Deena,

When I was training for my first marathon in 2004, I didn't really know what I was in for and I had never run so much with only myself to push me. I often struggled with the mental aspects of preparing for a marathon and there were numerous times when I just didn't feel like doing whatever my workout schedule had for me that day and I'd go back and forth with justifying either going or not going. One day I reminded myself of watching you cross the finish line at the Olympics earlier than year and asked "Would 'I don't feel like it' be a good enough reason for Deena to not run today?" and from them on, that would get me out on the roads or track and get my workout in. In the 15+ years since, I still use that motivator to get through tough marathon cycles sometimes. After reading your book, I wrote down four words to keep in mind when I'm training and in front of my treadmill I have them posted on the wall to focus on when it starts to get rough: discipline, attention, resilience, and toughness.

My question: On days when you're not feeling it, do you ever argue with yourself about it? Is there a person you admire, or a particular phrase, or some other token that never fails to get you going without having to resort to the internal back and forth? Thanks for your insight (and motivation you unknowingly provided me over the years)!

track dude wrote:

Deena,

Thanks so much for doing this, it is such a treat. I love your positivity and zest for life.

Over the years, it has been revealed (one way or the other) that a number of professional runners have been taking thyroid medication at various times in their career. While this is not a violation of the current rules, have you ever suspected that in some cases that was done in an effort to gain a performance boost rather than to fulfill a legitimate medical need?

Of course its for enhancing performance! Its manipulative on every level, most importantly HEALTH! We should not be messing with our body chemistry with drugs because its forcing us into unnatural territory. That is why the drug and performance enhancing debate is so maddening. Everyone has their own line to draw, and just because it doesn't appear on the banned-substance list, doesn't mean its okay to do. I would argue that therapeutic use exemptions (TUE) are bogus most of the time. My first diamond league race in Europe was the 5000m in Stockholm Sweden's Olympic stadium. It was electric- When I was tying up my racing shoes, I could see the hair on my arms standing straight in the air. I glanced up at the other racers and within 4 min of our start time EVERY SINGLE WOMAN (with the exception of the two other Americans in the race) puffed on an inhaler. "Really?" I thought. "Are the best distance runners in the world all asthmatic?" I'm sure it wasn't the only boundary they were pushing. But then again, I don't know their motivation. At the Olympic Games athletes are given a brief questionnaire. The results support the Goldman's Dilemma, showing that more than 50% of all the athletes from around the world would choose to take a pill if it would ensure a GOLD medal. However, the athletes would die in 5 years time. This is a serious delusion among athletes, or maybe GOLD is worth it for someone who can feed and care for an entire village. Martyrdom at its best. It may all be for the greater good, but I'd still call it cheating.