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College: Shippensburg University,
class of 1985
Hometown: Elizabethtown, PA
Current residence: Shippensburg,
PA
PRs: 5k: Road 13:41, Track 13:56
(college), 10k: Road 27:51, Track 28:26, Half-Marathon: 1:02:09,
Marathon: 2:12:17
In
the aftermath of the U.S. team's disappointing performance in the
marathon at the World Championships, it seemed apropos to catch
up with a U.S. distance running legend who excelled on that stage.
Steve Spence, now 39, ran 2:12:43 to win the 1992 U.S. Men's Olympic
Trials Marathon. This victory came on the heels of his dramatic
bronze medal winning performance in the 1991 World Championships
Marathon. We caught up with the Shippensburg University grad (and
XC coach) as he prepares to compete with our nation's best at the
Parkersburg Half Marathon one decade after his stunning World's
performance. Here's what the wily veteran and father of three had
to say…
Chris
Lear: The US men had a poor showing at the World Championships in
Edmonton. What's your take on the current crop of US marathoners?
Steve
Spence: I think we have a lot of people getting excited about
it again. We just have to be patient; we're not going to have US
born citizens at the top overnight. It's going to take some time.
As far as our naturalized citizens go, they did extremely well before
that race. It's a matter of being patient; it's not going to be
too long before someone makes a major breakthrough here.
You
suffered through tough conditions in the 1991 World Championships
and won the bronze. Tell us about that race.
I
was prepared for the conditions and knew what I could run there,
which was the important thing. I was a minute behind the leaders
halfway and started gaining quickly after that. The real racing
started when I caught the lead pack… then hell broke loose,
(eventual winner) Tanaguchi took off and ran 14:40-something for
the last 5k. Unlike Edmonton, it was a morning race, so it was in
the low 80s at the start and high 80s or low 90s at the end of the
race. I felt like 2:15 was going to be the winning time and I tried
to run that.
And
what did you end up running?
I ran almost exactly even splits. I ran 2:15:36.
Did
you do anything special to prepare for the heat? Is there anything
this year's U.S. Team could have done to prepare better for the
circumstances?
Yeah,
I made sure that I could take a lot of fluids on the run. When I
did long runs, at some points I would do a 30-minute loop and grab
a water bottle on each loop. I practiced grabbing 'em and drinking
on the run, and throwing the bottle down. I also did 2 x 20 minute
tempo runs on the track and put a table out so I could practice
grabbing my bottle from off the table at 4:50-5 minute mile pace.
I would practice running 100 meters than shoot it down. I got to
where I could shoot 10 ounces down with one squeeze.
In
the (World Championship) Marathon there were fluids out every 5k.
It was helpful being on my own (behind the lead pack), so I could
easily get my bottle. If you miss one bottle and go 10k without
fluids, that can make a huge, huge difference.
Were
you drinking water?
No
I drank a sports drink. I also used glycerol. I loaded with glycerol
and had some in the drinks as well. That helped me retain fluids
even more than I normally would… but I'm not sure what their
preparation was. Realistically, other than Khannouchi… Morris
has run 2:09 but compared to the field, I mean, how many 2:06 to
2:08 guys were there? To expect our guys to be competitive with
them is unrealistic. They just aren't in that class. It's like a
29-minute 10k guy competing with Gebrselassie, it's just not gonna
happen. And that's not to say that a 29-minute 10k guy isn't a good
runner.
You're
now 39, the coach of the Shippensburg University cross country and
track teams, and a father to three children. And it looks like now
you're running great as you approach masters status. How do you
fit it all in?
It's
tough. It is something that I am just starting to figure out how
to do. With coaching, in the summer I'm not that busy.
The
fall with XC is busy but still manageable because everyone is basically
doing the same thing. They're all training similarly so it doesn't
take a whole lot of energy. In the winter and spring it gets tough.I
coach the men and the women, and this past year at that point I
was happy to go for a run 3 -4 times a week. I did 30 - 40 minutes
at lunch hard - like 5:20 pace. I started to be able to do more
volume in mid-May. I did my first hour run then and it about killed
me! It just wiped me out for a whole day or two. I gradually built
up again. Last week I got 90 to 100 and the week before I did the
same. Most of those are single workouts. Come
XC season I will be limited with the amount of volume I can do.
At
this point my wife and my children are older. The twins are now
7 they do some running on their own with a youth track club. My
oldest daughter is now 11 (and also a runner). They understand now
when I need to go out on a run to get ready for a race. Before it
was like, Why's Papa leaving? And my wife needed more support
when they were younger as well. Now that they're more self-sufficient
it's a lot easier for all of us.
Any
special memories of Art Gulden, the Bucknell University cross country
coach who recently passed away?
Art treated being at Shippensburg and competing against them very
seriously. He treated us very well and always invited us up to their
cross country meet. We also had quite a rivalry because of a duel
meet we had with them up until 2000. Art was a fierce competitor,
and we went at it in those meets. He brought out the best in us
and we brought out the best in them as well. We're definitely gonna
miss him. He is someone I had a great amount of respect for. He
took mediocre runners and made them darn good runners and he gave
them confidence as individuals they're going to carry through the
rest of their life. He will be missed.
Rumor
has it you just popped a fast 8k recently? True?
It
was decent. I ran 23:41. It was exactly what I expected to run,
which is nice. I knew level of training I had done to that point
and was able to predict what I could do. Since then, I've been doing
more volume, getting ready for Parkersburg Saturday. I don't want
to make any predictions, but I should feel fresher than I did there
three weeks ago (when he ran the 23:41). I'm at the point where
I take it one race at a time. I am really enjoying what I am doing
with my running. I haven't trained seriously since '96 and I enjoy
doing it not as a job but because I enjoy what I am doing. I get
a sense of great joy when I am out there pushing myself. It is a
pleasure and I want to keep it like that. I struggled enough at
the end of my career when it was a job and it wasn't fun.
You've
been known as an extremely high-mileage guy. As a rule, do your
college kids run much volume?
It
depends. I tailor the workouts to the individuals. Some of them
do high-mileage, some focus more on speed. For me the high volume
was very important. The more you can do the faster you can run.
What's
your perspective on the rash of hot times in high school athletics
these days? Do you agree with the popular assessment that we are
in the midst of an athletics revival?
Let's
wait and see. The last few years we've had quite a few good runners
that have done well in college as well, but now with Webb and Ritzenhein
last year, that was pretty amazing. We'll see if that can carry
over next year. We'll see who develops. But it is exciting to watch
and I hope it continues.
You
made your living on the roads. Many of our top distance runners
are focusing their efforts on the track. What's your take on that?
Are they missing out?
I
just did what I enjoyed doing. I seemed to do well on the roads
and that's where the opportunity lied for me. I did do some track
racing but I found my niche on the roads and that's what I stayed
with.
The
roads now are a lot harder than it was back then. At that point
there were few foreign athletes over here. Those who were here,
I knew who they were, we raced often, and we were friends. Three
weeks ago the 8k had 400 bucks for the win and like 25 bucks for
eighth. Eight Kenyans, a couple Russians, showed up. It was crazy.
I was 8th in 23:41. I thought I could be competitive for the win
in a 400 dollar race.
It
is really competitive and difficult to make money on the roads.
When I came into the sport, it wasn't easy but it was very feasible
to do. Now, outside of the US championship races, you are really
limited in what you can make. It's tough. I don't envy guys out
there now trying to do it for sure.
Steve,
thanks for taking time out to chat with us. Best of luck with your
Shippensburg squad and at Parkersburg this weekend!
(August
16, 2001)
Chris
Lear is the author of Running
With the Buffaloes. He lives in Boulder, Colorado.
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