Oct
11
One of the cadre of predawn runners I have seen post consistent improvement in performance throughout the past summer is Brian Vinson (aka Reverend Run Vinson on Dailymile). Brian often provides vivid descriptions of the Central Ohio trails on which he runs, and truly brings you along for some breathtaking scenery. As you might have guessed from his handle, Brian is a pastor, and his blog, My Brother, The Thief, mixes spirituality and running in a unique way.
Brian Vinson with his son Jonathan, a budding runner in his own right
Predawn Runner: How did you come to be a runner?
Reverend Run: I always wanted to run, as long as I could remember. I remember as an elementary school student riding by the cinder track at the middle school, wishing my parents would let me out of the car to run around it. As a middle school student, I got my wish; I put in many, many laps there! On the first day of sixth grade, I saw a sign advertising a call-out for the cross-country team, and my friend David and I joined. After high school I kind of quit running, focusing on soccer. I continued running the occasional 5K and generally gaining weight, but in 2005 one of my close friend ran a marathon. I thought, if Rob can run one, so can I. Then I was hooked.
PR: What have been your most satisfying running accomplishments to date?
RR: In 2009, I set a goal of breaking the twenty-minute barrier in the 5K. I was running around 21 minutes, and I asked a lot of questions about dropping time. The resounding response came down to speedwork. So I added in intervals on Wednesdays, doing 200s, 400s, 800s, and 1600s in the cemetery behind my house. It all paid off in August 2009, when I ran 19:35.
PR: What can you tell us about balance and finding the time to run with not just your career as a pastor, but your family commitments?
RR: After my second marathon (April 2007), I decided I was done with marathons for two reasons. One was the bad experience I had (due to dehydration) at the marathon. The second was the time commitment required. I didn’t think I had the time to train adequately and to give my family the time they deserved – all along with serving the church. But I have found that I need to run – it helps me be a better person – I feel better and I treat others better. And it feeds into something else I need for the day; I need solitude and quiet, time to reflect and pray – without a to-do list, a phone, e-mail, or anything else to distract me. I use my running time for this. I frequently listen to praise music or sermons or the Bible while I run. This is also where “predawn” runs come in; I usually return from my run in time to eat breakfast with my family before heading off for work. Honestly if I wait to run later, I won’t have the energy or the time to run.
PR: Do you find an overlap between your passions for running and for God?
RR: I joke that we run together. My best devotional time has been when I’m running. There have been times when I’ve had spiritual breakthroughs as I’ve been running. God has shown me how strong I can be as I run. I’ve found a lot of similarities between the Christian walk and long distance running – both require discipline, and not just in one area of life. I’ve often thought: if I can be disciplined enough to train for a marathon, I can be disciplined in other areas of life. And since I’m always “surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses, I can run with perseverance the race set out before me, fixing my eyes on Jesus” (Hebrews 12:1).
PR: What is your favorite place and time to run, and why?
RR: I love trail running. My favorite trail so far is the Hocking Hills Indian Run course; it’s a 20K loop with some intense hills. One particular hill, Steel Hill, is a nasty energy-sucking monster, and the last time I ran there, I was finally able to conquer it. I was so excited to have run all the way up that I jogged back down and went back up again! I also like to run the trail at Blacklick Woods metropark in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, because I run fast when I run there.
My favorite time to run is first thing in the morning. I love to start my day with a run. In the summer, it’s cooler then, but more importantly, it’s quieter in the early morning. I love seeing the sunrise – that never gets old. Whether it’s rising over Buckeye Lake (where I live now) or over the cornfields, it always inspires awe. What I really like is starting a long run with the stars shining brightly and then gradually giving over to the dawn.
PR: You mentioned that you enjoy the quiet of the predawn – do you typically listen to music when you run, or do you just enjoy the peace of nature?
RR: My answer is yes. Part of the quiet that I enjoy is in contrast to the chaos in other areas of my life right now. My wife and I are foster parents, and right now we have 4 children age 6 and under (one biological, one adopted, and two foster). So getting away from it and the stress of work is “quiet” for me. I prefer running with someone, but that’s not usually an option, so I run with my iPod (which doubles as a flashlight). I listen to sermons (from Francis Chan, Andy Stanley, and Matt Chandler usually, but also from my good friend David Williams) – I’m too A.D.D. to just sit and listen, but I’ll listen to one or two on a run. Sometimes I listen to music – either praise and worship/gospel music (usually Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir) or heavy metal/punk music. It depends on my mood and on how fast I’m planning to run. I just listed my top 25 tracks from my iPod on my blog so you can see what I usually listen to. Sometimes I just need that added “kick” that music gives me. Other times it helps put me in the right frame of mind to have a great day.
But sometimes, especially on a quiet, lonely trail run, I just prefer to hear my feet hitting the ground.
PR: You sound a bit like my pastor when I was growing up; he went to a Metallica concert with his teenage sons. Your 6-year-old son Jonathan recently had his own running breakthrough – can you tell us a bit about that?
RR: My kids love running, and they have come out to cheer me on in races, but this year Jonathan wanted to run our local 5K (the Ken Keener Classic at the Millersport Sweet Corn Festival). I usually go out hard in this race, especially since it’s my hometown race, but this year I ran with Jonathan. We went out and “trained” a little, including going over the course a couple times on bikes. We talked strategy (don’t go out too fast; since it’s a race, we can’t stop and sit down), and we prepared. And on race day, we raced! Jonathan ran the entire first mile without walking, and he kept going for the whole race. Before the race, I went to the course and ran it as fast as I could, breaking my 5K PR (and running a time which would have been good enough for age group honors). But better than getting the hardware was the chance to run the race with my son.
PR: What are your goals, both short and long term, as a runner?
RR: My short-term goal, a stretch goal, is to run the Columbus Marathon in 3:34. My marathon PR is 4:17:59, so this is quite a goal. But my training has been strong, and if I run a smart race, it’s within reach. For the long term, I’d love to stay in running shape long enough to run races with my sons – to the point where I’m chasing them.
PR: What approach are you taking to your marathon training – is there a specific program you are following? Whatever it is, the results have certainly shown already in RR: your progression during the training cycle.
Before, I used Hal Higdon’s beginner and intermediate training, but this time I used Runner’s World’s Smart Coach. The two major differences in this training cycle are pace and speed. When I used Higdon’s plan, I just went out and ran; I didn’t aim for any particular pace per mile. And I never ran any speed work. With the Runner’s World plan, it dictated the pace I ran. I actually pushed the pace for the entire training – if it told me to run 6 miles at 7:56, I’d run 8 miles at 7:26. I already had the base mileage under my feet, so pushing the pace wasn’t a huge issue. And I’ve watched my times drop dramatically. When I prepared for the first two marathons, my pace was generally in the 9:30/mile pace, no matter if I was running 3 miles or 10 (ok, so maybe it was faster if I was only running 3). My “new” comfortable pace is around 8:12, which is my planned pace for the marathon.
PR: Good luck at Columbus, can we check back in after the race?
RR: I would love that.
