Friday Spotlight: BrianOgilvie
It's finally here. It's been long week for a lot of us so let's blow off some steam and read about today's highlighted runner. I've seen his name come and go but I've not gotten to know him well so I'm excited to bring to the line up a runner who I'm curious about too. Before beginning, I want to make a special note. Today's Spotlight runner is the very first runner to ever respond to my questions in full format. This means I had to do zero editing of his work and formatting to make this post. He's now made my life easier and is my forever favorite for doing so. So without further adieu... u/BrianOgilvie!
Let's roll!
The Runner:
First Name?
Brian
Age?
48
Where are you from?
Born and raised in Kalamazoo, Michigan, USA (more precisely, in the suburbs Parchment and Portage). Educated in Chicago and Cambridge (UK). Since 1997 I've lived in western Massachusetts.
Occupation?
Historian and college professor
Running Q&A's:
What are your PR’s?
I don't race very often. In fact, I've raced twice in my life. My first PR was at the 1995 Old Kent River Run 25K in Grand Rapids, Michigan: 2:03:06. My second PR was two decades later, at the 2015 UMass Dining Services 5K Dash and Dine: 21:44. In neither case had I done any speed training to speak of.
What is your distance PR?
Race: 25K. That's approximately my longest training run, too: I did a 15-16 mile training run in spring 1995. The distance is inexact because I was measuring it against a map; we didn't have GPS back then. My longest run in my GPS days is 11.3 miles.
What’s your highest recorded weekly mileage?
25.2 miles recently. I think I may have had some 30-mile weeks back in the '90s.
What’s your comfy pace?
7:45-8:00/mile is my easy pace on flat roads and paths. On trails it's more like 9:00-10:00 depending on topography.
How long have you been running?
I started running in 1993. I ran regularly until 1997, in Chicago and Berlin, when a combination of minor injuries and a new job led me to get out of it. I tried to get into it a few times over the next decade, but pushed too hard, injured myself, and stopped again. I started again in 2012 with Couch to 5K, but had to stop after injuring my leg in a bike crash (on my way to run, ironically). I finally got back into it starting in January 2014 and I've been running ever since, aside from a couple breaks to recover from injury.
Tell us why you began running?
In 1991 I tried to jog with a friend and discovered that, though I walked everywhere, I couldn't run for more than a short Chicago block. I started swimming, because I was overweight and thought that running wouldn't be great for my knees. In 1993, my workout partner (now wife) developed an allergic reaction to the chemicals in the pool where we used to swim. We started to go to the gym instead, and I decided to try running on the track.
In 2012, and then again in 2014, I got back into running as cross-training for cycling, and to have exercise that I could do when traveling. But running has taken on more importance for me since then.
Most memorable running moment?
That's tough, but probably it was being buzzed by nesting Arctic Terns while running near a waterfall in Grundarfjördur, Iceland, in summer 2015. The terns nest on the ground, so they can get aggressive toward anything that gets too close. They didn't actually hit me, but they skimmed inches above my head. I was glad to be wearing a cap with a long solid brim.
Do you have a running mantra?
I often have cheesy 1970s and 1980s songs running through my head. If not, it's often just 1-2-3, 1-2-3, as I breathe in and out. I'd like to be able to think through problems while running, and sometimes I do, but mostly I get into a zone and don't think about much of anything.
What time of day do you prefer to run?
From spring through fall, I like to go out in the morning, before it's too hot, but after coffee and the crossword. In the winter, I like to run late afternoon when my schedule permits, but I'll dress up and run in the morning if I'm busy later. My job gives me a flexible schedule; when I don't have a class or meeting scheduled, I can run in the afternoon as long as I'm willing to make up the work in the evening or on the weekend.
Any big races coming up?
I'll do the Dash and Dine 5K again next spring and aim for a PR. It's for a great cause, and it's small enough (about 750 runners and walkers) to be manageable. Plus it's fun to be a guy in his late 40s passing lots of college-aged runners!
What are your short-term running goals?
Keep running regularly, no matter how nasty the New England winter proves to be. I might substitute XC skiing from time to time if the snow is right, though!
What are your long-term running goals?
I'm considering training for a half marathon in late 2017 or early 2018. And I might do a marathon at some point, just for the challenge, especially if I could qualify for Boston. (My Garmin thinks I can, but I'm not sure I want to put in the training it would require.) Mostly, though, it's to keep running without getting injured or slowing down too much.
What’s one piece of running advice you’d give to the younger version of yourself?
I'd like to answer this question with advice to three younger versions:
To my 18-year-old self: walking is fine, but more intense exercise is better.
To my 22-year-old self: do more easy running; don't push too hard.
To my 29-year-old self: your new job is not an excuse to stop running. You won't find time, so make time.
What is something you need to work on to become a better runner?
If I want to become faster, I need to do more systematic speed training. Right now I will push up hills, and some of my trail runs involve fairly serious hills, but aside from occasional strides and fartlek, and a tempo run every couple of months, I don't do speed work. That's partly because my old bike crash injury gets sensitive when I do a lot of hard running. Otherwise I'm pretty content with my running.
What is your current shoe choice?
I'm a big proponent of rotating shoes. I'm currently going through four pairs: Brooks Ghost 8, Mizuno Wave Rider 17, Altra Olympus, and Altra Instinct 3.0. That seems excessive as I write it! I try to alternate zero-drop with traditional-drop shoes. Aside from an old bike injury and a mild neuropathy from rolling my ankle (ask me why I know where the sural nerve is and what it does), I haven't had the kinds of minor injuries that I used to suffer from in the 1990s.
Trail? Road? Track? Or Treadmill?
Road, but starting to get into trails on the 2-mile loop just down the road from where I live. I ran on the track in the '90s; that was enough. I have never run on a treadmill, and I'd like to keep it that way.
What is your ideal running weather?
Morning or evening sun, 50°F, light breeze.
Do you have any social media accounts you’d like to share? [Facebook, Strava, Twitter]
Just For Fun:
What’s your spirit animal?
I aspire to be an otter, because they're smart, curious, energetic, and they have lots of fun.
What hobbies and interests do you have besides running?
I love long-distance cycling. Most of my rides are short, 15-30 miles, but I try to do several longer rides each year, including an August event, the Deerfield Dirt Road Randonnee (D2R2), that involves riding 100K or more on hilly, mostly gravel roads in western Massachusetts and southern Vermont. My hill climbing has gotten a lot stronger since I took up running again. I've done some 7-10 day bike tours with my wife, too. I also enjoy hiking, cross-country skiing, and cooking. I do the New York Times crossword every morning and try to watch Jeopardy! when I'm at home on weekday evenings. I like learning languages, too, but that takes a lot of time and it's been a while since the last one.
Do you have any hidden talents?
I'm good at learning languages, at least Indo-European ones.
Biggest pet peeve?
Running (and cycling--and driving, too): When I pass someone and then they speed up and pass me again, and then slow down.
Otherwise: when my students call any book a "novel." Wuthering Heights is a novel. Immanuel Kant's Critique of Pure Reason is not a novel. Also when my students miss a class and ask "Did I miss anything?" (see poem, below!).
Dream job! What would it be?
I already have a dream job: I get paid to talk about interesting ideas and to read and write about them. If I could get rid of the paperwork, grading, and committee meetings, I'd be blissful. So I guess a professorship at the Institute for Advanced Study.
Favorite Quote or Poem?
Quote: The ancient Roman epitaph "non fui, fui, non sum, non curo," sometimes abbreviated NFFFNSNC: "I didn't exist, I used to exist, I don't exist any more, I don't care."
Poem: It's hard to pick, but when a student asks whether they missed anything when they were absent, I like to quote Tom Wayman's marvelous poem, "Did I miss anything?"
What is your favorite movie?
I'm more of a book person than a movie person. I have a weakness for The Princess Bride, but I wish Buttercup weren't such a wimpy character. Jim Jarmusch's Night on Earth sticks in my mind too.
What is your biggest character flaw?
I'm a master procrastinator.
What songs have you been listening to recently?
Last spring I heard John Hiatt performing live, and ever since then his song "Through Your Hands" has been stuck in my head. It's about doing things, not just thinking big thoughts.
What are some of your favorite non-running subreddits?
r/explainlikeimfive can be fun. Otherwise, I usually prefer to waste my time elsewhere on the Web, like Ask Metafilter and Facebook.
One Last Question:
What is the origin of your username?
It's my first and last name. I'm not to be confused with the retired pro hockey player, jazz saxophonist, or NYC actor. :)
I think it's great that we're finally digging into the community a bit deeper and learning about some of the other frequenters who aren't as well known. I'm always amazed doing these threads when I get to discover who a person is outside of running. Today's runner strikes me as the kind of person I could probably listen to for hours as they talk about something completely boring because Brian lets of this vibe that he has passion for his interests no matter how mundane they may be to others. The world needs more passion and I feel like Ogilvie owns it. Let's all show today's athlete some love and get him the questions you've been wanting to ask. Let's hope he's not a master procrastinator today.
####Thanks for reading everyone!!!
#As usual please tag u/BrianOgilvie's username when asking him a question in this thread!
If you don't the running Gods will give you incurable shin splints for the rest of your life and you'll die a sad lonely wanna-be hobbyjogger.
Previously Featured Spotlight Runners:
| Palindrome27 | A-german-muffin | xfkirsten | PepperoniFire | rennuR_liarT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Claus | Brwalkernc | Pinkpiggie | Fobo911 | Kinsibit |
| Jaime_manger | Craigster38 | Despoena | Philpips | Brunchweasel |
| Chickensedan | Skragen | Incster | Freedomweasel | Jennifer1911 |
| RedKryptonite | Zebano | Kevin402can | Punkrock_runner | ProudPatriot07 |
| Once_a_hobby_jogger | Loratliff | 57001 | Borichu | Denovosibi |
| Causticwonder | Dirtybritch | TheRedInTheSky | Aewillia | Judyblumereference |
| Flocculus | El_day2 | YourShoesUntied | Jeade-en | Kyle-Kranz |
| ItsReallyReallyTrue | Jangle_Bo_Jingles | RichieClare | sloworfast | RobotPettingZoo |
| Runwichi | Smruttkay | Sacamato | Kibitzor | Edge767 |
| BrianOgilvie | ???????????? | ???????????? | ???????????? | ???????????? |
| ???????????? | ???????????? | ???????????? | ???????????? | ???????????? |
| ???????????? | ???????????? | ???????????? | ???????????? | ???????????? |
Posted Nov 11, 2016, 1:10 PM UTC · edited