An interview with Rick Riddle
Editor’s note: Coach Rick Riddle is currently “perfecting the art of running” the 400 meters. Back in 2011, he covered this topic for the Houston Elite Track & Field Club’s newsletter. Today I’m using a rather snarky Q&A format to revisit his ideas. Leah Rewolinski The Villages TLC blog editor You seem awfully happy to be a 400-meter runner. How come? Yes, I am happy. I discovered that the key is to think simply. This might seem unflattering; few of us want to be called “simple.” However, I’ve earned my right to this opinion, since I have been working on my 400 race for several years. I have also discovered that the 400-meter race can be painful when executed with courage. “Can be painful”? I just Googled “400-meter race,” and the first 10,000 results include the keyword “pain.” Ah, pain – I knew you’d bring that up. Actually, you started it. Hmmm, so I did. Well, pain is the elephant in the room, and I’ll get back to it once I finish explaining what the 400 has taught me. I learned that attempting to finish the 400 at the pace we began is a trick best left to my good friend and teammate “One Speed Charlie,” a.k.a. Charles Allie. [Click here to watch an interview with Charles.] The secret of Charlie’s achievement is as elusive as a winning lottery ticket. Let’s assume none of us win the lottery. What’s the next best thing for a successful 400? Appreciate its simplicity. Unlike the rest of our lives, the 400 meters is constant and unchanging. It remains one loop, uncomplicated by positioning as in the 800 and other, longer races. I hold the 400 in reverence. If it were a more complicated race, its magic would be diminished. I can measure progress in simple terms, as in: Did I finish sooner than I did the last time I tried? Of course, all track races are like that, but the 400 allows more people into the club. If you’re not as fast as Charles Allie, you may still train for strength and exceptional fitness – and be successful. If you are as fast as Charles, the equation is unchanged. You still train for strength and exceptional fitness. Many runners fear the 400. Why don’t you? I did at one time, like everyone else who attempts to master the 400 race. It’s filled with pain. Pain is an old friend at this point. I learned it exists, but I don’t have to fear it. After all, the pain is less than 60 seconds… …ahem – Mr. Humblebrag: for some of us the 400 lasts somewhere around 60 minutes. Cut me some slack, woman! I’m still reminiscing about races I ran more than 10 years ago. Now, where was I? Oh, yes: the race itself is short, but the soreness and fatigue are only – oh, wait a minute, those last a good while longer, but never mind. It’s still a simple concept: it hurts to do it well, and that will always go unchanged. Perhaps a keener mind would say this is stupid, not just simple. I prefer to think I can face the recurring challenge day after day. The rules never change. Yes, pain and all, because I learned I can master the pain and I can master the fatigue. I can train until I no longer fear the effort. Oddly enough, that makes me happy. Can you relate to someone running their first-ever 400? Of course. I remember the first time I raced 400 meters, collapsing in a pitiful heap on the infield. I was sure that oxygen had taken a holiday from Earth at my dying expense. I swore “never again,” just as everyone does. Then I did it again, like a man who sticks his hand in the flame a second time to confirm the pain is real. Well… Yes, go ahead. Say it. Say it! Well, duh! Right, it does sound stupid to say it out loud, especially if someone is listening. These days I stick my hand into the flame again and again, understanding that pain can’t own me if I don’t fear it. I won’t pretend I’m intelligent for falling in love with the 400 meters. But that single loop of accomplishment can make my life feel real. Our digital world changes in a blink and promotes virtual reality as preferable to reality itself. But the 400 brings my focus back to simple concepts like conquering gravity without space boots, accompanied by a feeling that quickly becomes very real, for a single demanding and satisfying loop. That’s remarkably poetic. Maybe your brain is getting enough oxygen after all. Thanks – I think. Here’s another way to view this topic. A young friend once asked the British philosopher Bertrand Russell why he was looking so thoughtful. “I’ve made an odd discovery,” replied Russell. “Every time I talk to a savant I feel quite sure that happiness is no longer a possibility. Yet when I talk to my gardener, I’m convinced of the opposite.” Run one loop as fast as you can? For reasons of simplicity, it makes me happy. Call me simple if you will. I consider it a compliment. Adapted from newsletter Copyright © 2011 Houston Elite Track & Field Club. Reprinted with permission. Editor’s note: Here’s an overview of Rick’s remarkable 400-meter accomplishments. 2009 OUTDOOR PERFORMANCES age 55 - 59 400-meter USA ranking #10 USATF National Championships, Oshkosh, Wisconsin 400 meters, 58.57 – Bronze Medal World Masters Games, Sydney, Australia 4x400 Relay, 3:54.88 Team USA – Gold Medal National Senior Games, San Francisco, California 400 meters, 59.39 – Silver Medal 2010 OUTDOOR PERFORMANCES age 55 - 59 400-meter USA ranking #5 USATF National Championships, Sacramento, California 400 meters, 56.93 – Bronze Medal 2010 INDOOR PERFORMANCES age 55 - 59 400-meter USA ranking #7 USATF Masters National Championships, Boston, Massachusetts 400 meters, 58.31 – Bronze Medal 2011 OUTDOOR PERFORMANCES age 55 - 59 400-meter USA ranking #9 USATF Masters National Championships, Berea, Ohio 400 meters, 57.96 – Gold Medal National Senior Games, Houston, Texas 400 meters, 59.59 – Silver Medal 2012 INDOOR PERFORMANCES age 60 - 64 400-meter USA ranking #4 USATF Masters National Championships, Indianapolis, Indiana 400 meters, 59.39 – Bronze Medal 2013 INDOOR PERFORMANCES age 60 - 64 Milrose Games, New York City, New York 4x400 Relay, 3:59.09, Team Houston Elite – Gold Medalist WORLD RECORD 2014 INDOOR PERFORMANCES age 60 - 64 400-meter USA ranking #5 USATF Masters National Championships, Boston, Massachusetts 400 meters, 61.17 – 4th 4x400 Relay, 3:58.03, Team Houston Elite – Gold Medalist WORLD RECORD World Masters Athletics Championships, Budapest, Hungary 400 meters, 62.03 – 4th A final note: part 3 of Stan Druckrey's series will appear soon.
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One morning in March 1972, as I was teaching Physical Education, a phone call came for me in the principal’s office. The national Amateur Athletic Union wanted to know if I could travel with a small U.S. track squad to compete in several meets in Australia over the next few days. I loved the idea of being part of the team, and our principal was very supportive. The school superintendent gave permission for me to take (unpaid) time off.
Immediately I called the AAU back and asked whether my wife could travel with the team. They said yes, but I would have to pay her expenses. I called Nancy at the hospital where she worked as a nurse. She got the okay to go. If the hospital had said no, she would have quit. In the next few days, we went to the Australian consulate in Chicago to get some paperwork done, visited a federal office to get passports, and got the required shots in downtown Milwaukee. We were to meet the rest of the U.S. team in San Francisco; this would be our first flight on a 747. The long and winding road to Sydney At this point our luck ran out. The plane was delayed for 4 hours. By the time we got to San Francisco, we had missed the flight with the U.S. team. To get to Sydney, Australia, and meet up with the team, we flew overnight to Honolulu. When we arrived the next morning we learned that our next flight wouldn’t take off until that evening, so we had the whole day to see the sights. Fortunately, we had just received a credit card that I had applied for while in Toronto. We rented a car and started our sightseeing tour. At Waikiki Beach, we rolled up our pants and went into the water. We were able to visit all the important sights before heading back to the hotel. That evening as our plane to Sydney taxied down the runway, the pilot took us to a remote spot on the airport property. Everyone had to get off the plane. Workers removed all the luggage and asked everyone to claim theirs. One piece of luggage wasn’t claimed. Nancy pointed this out to an airport worker. They left that bag on the tarmac, everyone got back on the plane, and we left for Sydney. We all thought that the delay was due to a bomb threat. Racing to the meet Our plane made a stop in Fiji, and we finally arrived in Sydney around noon. Of course no one was there to greet us. There was supposed to be a track meet that day, so we checked a local newspaper to learn the location. We took a cab there and found the coach of the U.S. team. He said the meet would start in about an hour, and if I wanted to run the 110 meter high hurdles, he would get me into the race. Of course I said yes. I finished second in the race – on a grass track. It was an interesting experience. Afterward, we met the rest of the U.S. team. I remember Wayne Collett, who won a silver medal in the 400 meters at the ’72 Olympics. There was also a woman who ran the 100 and 200 meters during this tour. I can’t recall her name, but she was tall (about my height), and I saw her again later in the year at the Penn Relays. We finally learned what else would happen on this trip. To our surprise, the team was going to fly to three other cities: Melbourne, Adelaide, and Perth. That meant we had to pay for Nancy’s plane fare. Thank goodness we got that credit card. I would fly in first class while Nancy flew in coach, because there were no remaining seats in first class. We flew to Melbourne for the next meet on the track from the 1956 Summer Olympics. Our head coach (I don't remember his name) was from Western Washington State University. He was a very good coach who offered advice on our workouts. He also had designed his own starting blocks to use for a three-point start. The footpads were twice as long as usual. I worked with them several times while in Australia, and the coach sent me a set when we got home. I do remember one workout I did with Wayne Collett. I still use it today. You sprint 8 x 100 meters on the track: 4 into the turn and 4 out of the turn. You jog 100m between each sprint. Our last meet was the Australian National Championships. I finished second in the 110 meter high hurdles. After that meet we flew back to Sydney, then to LA; and Nancy and I spent several days visiting my brother in Palm Springs. What a trip! Stan Druckrey Next up, Part 3: The Olympic Trials |
your choiceIf you don't run, you rust. Leah rewolinskiThe Villages TLC Word Nerd & webmaster Archives
January 2025
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