Week seven report: Thank-you Coach Long
Weight: 140 (up 2 pounds)
Miles ran this week: 30
Miles ran so far in my training: 168
Some of you have already read my blog for today. I went to make a correction and I somehow deleted all of it. More of my running history.
Our family moved again, this time to Knob Noster Missouri during the summer of 1978. I was no longer picked on, just sort of ignored. It was a lonely first semester at KNHS. I tried out for the track team and made varsity. Our coach was Cecil Long. He taught PE at the Elementary School and I would sometimes see him at Mass. He was a kind and considerate man. It was him that convinced me to run not only the 220, but the 440 yard dash. With his coaching I did those events and was also on the 880 yard and mile relays. Our mile relay was good enough to go to the 1979 Missouri State track meet.
I once again lettered in track and begged my parents to get me a Letterman's jacket. I was also a school record holder in the mile relay. I was so proud of that jacket I actually wore it in May. In Missouri it was the custom to put the medals you had earned on your actual letter. Coach Long told me to run during the summer and convinced me that running Cross Country in the fall would make me a better sprinter. I ran all summer and in the fall I tried out for the cross country team. Longer distances did not come as easy for me. I needed good running shoes and knew that the Yellow Nike's with the Turquoise swoosh at $35.00 were a financial stretch for my parents. I loved those shoes.
I made the team and weekly I had to fight to keep my #5 position. The top 5 girls ran varsity. Often we would race boys JV because some of the towns did not have cross country. My sister was on the team two and she was the #2 runner. I was always a little bit jealous of her.
Our team was good enough to attend the 1979 Missouri State Cross Country meet. I don't remember what place we took. What I do remember was that while my sister Michelle and I were at the state CC meet, our parents were in Belle Plaine Kansas buying our new home. Yes, once again the Ruge family was moving. On my last day of school at KNHS I asked the three girls that were on the mile relay team with me to pose for a picture underneath our record.
One of the girls (who I will not name) was being mean to me about it saying "Coach Long had to make a mistake because Ruge, you are not that good." Coach Long actually trained me after cross country season until our family moved. He assured me that I HAD earned that school record. Coach Long is the reason at age 51 I am still a runner. I think about him often. I thought about him on Saturday as I ran my longest distance to date, 15 miles. I loved that he ran with us when we worked out. I hope he knows the impact that he had on my life
Here are my workouts for the week
Monday: 4 mile run,
Tuesday: 4-7 mile run in Boulder Colorado (we are attending a family funeral) where I might be running with Corinne Baur who is the author of the book Running by The Book
Wednesday: REST/travel
Thursday: 4 mile run probably on a hotel treadmill and travel
Friday: REST
Saturday: 13 mile run.
Sunday: REST
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