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

Jim: What would you change training wise if you could go back?

Deena: Best and worst coaching advice you ever got? Doesn’t have to be from a coach you had. Maybe it was from some strange dude in the coffee line at starbucks lol

For both:

1. There's 200 meters to go in a close, hard race. Describe for us what's going on in your mind.

2. Looking bak, what would you do differently in your training?

3. Did you have a favorite book as a child (age 8-13)?

4. What race is stands out as your hardest race?

5. If someone were writing your biography, how should he/she complete the first sentence: "Once upon a time, there was a boy/girl who ..."?

6. What advice would you give to your 18-year-old self?

7. Do you have a guilty pleasure (food, silly TV show/series, etc.)?

8. If I were in the area, could I buy you dinner? :)

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?

Were there any permanent, physical costs of competing at the high level that you did? Aches, pains, injuries that didn't heal?

MeHereYouWhere?! wrote:

Do you ever recall any "scary" moments while running? Like either points where you knew you were in serious trouble if you continued OR any scary encounters while running? Bears? Mountain lions?

I love seeing bears on my runs. It's not scary at all because they are black bears in Mammoth, not grizzlies. I saw one yesterday, walking across the street while I was inside having morning coffee.

The scariest was running alone while traveling. A van pulled up next to me, but I was aware enough to cross the street immediately. The driver made a u-turn and came down the other direction, so I crossed a busy park and stayed closer to people. It may have been benign, but its worth paying close attention to your surroundings.

Raysism wrote:

To Jim: How far can you punt a football?

To Deena: Same question.

Well, THAT was ugly. I didn't have an answer, so just went outside and tried. It only went 20 feet. I think I should have deflated the ball a little.

agc5k wrote:

To both Jim and Deena:

Looking back on your running career, what would you tell your younger self?

I would quote Obama in his inaugural speech:

"There is nothing more satisfying to the spirit, and more defining of our character than giving our all to a difficult task."

I think of this quote often when I'm struggling, believing that in the end, I will be satisfied, proud and would have defined myself resilient, a quality I value greatly.

Juice Springsteen wrote:

For Deena and Jim: what was the hardest workout you ever completed?

Its a toss up between 4 x 2mile at 9000 feet altitude or a 5.5 mile uphill tempo that ends at 9,200 feet elevation. Both have made me dry heave, which I consider a good thing.

I want to say, "Thank you."

It's very fun for us, who have followed your careers for years, to "hear" from you. :)

WalterMelon wrote:

Hi Deena - What are some non-running activities that you do that have helped in your running?

I would say dynamic flexibility exercises, weights, sleep, high quality foods, and a relentless belief in my capability.

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.

citius5000 wrote:

Jim: What would you change training wise if you could go back?

Deena: Best and worst coaching advice you ever got? Doesn’t have to be from a coach you had. Maybe it was from some strange dude in the coffee line at starbucks lol

Best: Coach Vigil "glad" I was disappointed after a devastating performance in my first US XC National race. I went from confident at the start line, to crushed within 30 seconds of racing. He showed me that disappointment didn't mean I was a failure, but rather that I cared and wanted more out of myself. It was a BIG maturity lesson that has stuck with me ever since (1996).

Worst: After I got 2nd to Paula Radcliff at World XC in 2002, I was at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, CA because the Carlsbad 5000 was the following weekend. One of the staff there had a machine that you simply hook electrodes to your chest and it shows your VO2 Max and whether you are recovered enough to workout again. Well my VO 2 Max was quite accurate to the traditonal treadmill testing, but the other figure blew his mind. He said I needed a break. I was on the verge of breaking down, throwing myself into a downward spiral. If I cared about the longevity of my career, I should take at LEAST a month off. Then Coach Vigil said, "Bull *hit. How do you feel?" Truthfully, I felt amazing after world cross and anxious to race Carlsbad. We chose not to listen to the new technology, and I went out that weekend and broke the World Record in the 5K. It was Paula's record which felt a bit like a vindication from losing to her the week prior. Whatever motivations keep us going....

Deena wrote:

Raysism wrote:

To Jim: How far can you punt a football?

To Deena: Same question.

Well, THAT was ugly. I didn't have an answer, so just went outside and tried. It only went 20 feet. I think I should have deflated the ball a little.

This made me smile. THIS is commitment people. Punting a football to make sure you get the unvarnished truth!

This question is for either one of you- obviously there have been tremendous improvements in technology since you both retired- in the material of tracks, shoes, more widely available information on training, etc. What are your thoughts on world records being broken under more favorable conditions and how they compare to previous records?

Arete wrote:

For both:

1. There's 200 meters to go in a close, hard race. Describe for us what's going on in your mind.

2. Looking bak, what would you do differently in your training?

3. Did you have a favorite book as a child (age 8-13)?

4. What race is stands out as your hardest race?

5. If someone were writing your biography, how should he/she complete the first sentence: "Once upon a time, there was a boy/girl who ..."?

6. What advice would you give to your 18-year-old self?

7. Do you have a guilty pleasure (food, silly TV show/series, etc.)?

8. If I were in the area, could I buy you dinner? :)

1. Well, Jim will have a different answer. I never had a great kick, so had to go hard from the gun every time. So, in a close race I'd think "Oh boy, just give what ever these crazy legs will offer!"

2. Not sure I'd do anything different.

3. Charlotte's Web (and my daughter is reading it right now)

4. Hardest race- 2005 Chicago Marathon (my first marathon win)

5. When she was a kid, running was play.

6. Talent has nothing to do with it.

7. No guilt in pleasure. But many pleasures.

8. Absolutely!

Dear Ms. Kastor:

It is great to see that you are as personable as you seemed even in competition. Your work ethic is amazing.

My two questions are these:

1. As the Co-LR Top distance runner of all-time, how do you suggest other runners treat each other? I ask this because of the camaraderie that you seemed to have with so many runners at the elite level. It was pleasant to watch. It doesn't always seem that way at large. What is your expert advice?

2. What is your favorite encounter ever with a non-elite?

Thanks,

Mike

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?

That's a great question. It's so disappointing to be awed by a performance only to feel duped when he/she tests positive, and we feel stupid for believing it was possible. Its not for us to understand why people choose fame and money over morals and ethics.

One thing is certain, NOT EVERYONE CHEATS. Those who think that are the ones who justify doing it themselves.

And they are not just cheaters, but crooks and liars...for life. It is challenging for races, sponsors and competitors who move up in rankings to ever get back what they lost because of cheaters, but the one thing our sport can do, is wipe out their names from every result and record that ever dawned their name. Coach Vigil calls this the "Death Sentence, " as if the cheater never lived in the sport....and I agree with it. As a sport, we are too easy on athletes who make excuses or justifications. To serve a couple year ban is peanuts. I've lost to cheaters, heard every justification when samples test positive or drug passports are compromised, and I cast serious judgment not just on those who get caught, but on those who push the envelope on supplementation. Cheaters are quick to justify taking something "natural" to create similar responses to PEDs. If you are not going to tell your grandma, tweet about it, or tell Lewis Johnson when the NBC microphone is broadcasting your post-race interview...YOU ARE SHADY!

OK, now that I'm all worked up....

After graduating college, and joining Coach Vigil in Colorado, I wanted to see how far I could take my running career. I'm so grateful he (and others) believed I had it within me to run with the best in the world...and then beat the best in the world. We are capable of great things, and so I'd like to assume great things are still and always possible.

AnthonyD4 wrote:

This question is for either one of you- obviously there have been tremendous improvements in technology since you both retired- in the material of tracks, shoes, more widely available information on training, etc. What are your thoughts on world records being broken under more favorable conditions and how they compare to previous records?

Progress is good. It should be progress for the sport, and not performance enhancing for an individual. Tracks are faster, training is smarter, and GPS watches hold us more accountable.

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?