Ok here we go I’ll try to answer the best I can. Thanks for the questions.  I think I got all of them.

Q:

Jim
October 20th, 2009 on 12:07 am edit
What’s the address of your house for sale in Eugene?

A:Here is the MLS listing for our house 9052283.  You can check it out at rmls.com. Or go to www.ryanvonklein.com

Q:

Rob Jackson
October 20th, 2009 on 7:28 am edit
You asked for questions, Dathan, so here’s mine. What is your competitive schedule for the next six months?

A: My schedule seems to change daily with Alberto and there will always be little races I think but the next major races will be US XC Championships, World XC Championships, hopefully a shot at sub 27 in the 10k and sub 12:56 in the 5k in early summer and then break after the US Championships and get ready for a fall marathon.

Q:

Samuel Weber
October 20th, 2009 on 8:45 am edit
Dathan,
Don’t feel bad, my wife feels the same way about me!
Here is my question:
Assuming you make the USA XC team, what would be the best tactic for you to deploy in order to have a solid race; i.e., top 10 maybe or better?
Also, I am from South Louisiana originally and I remember watching your 5000 at NCAA’s in Baton Rouge. Do you remember that? I felt sorry for all of you guys up north because our humidity can be bad.

A: For the World XC Championships I want to medal and even be in contention to win.  The World XC Champs is the most competitive race on the planet.  You have nine men from each of the east african countries that have dominated that event for years.  It is really the place that few non-africans have gone since the domination began by those countries.  I think that would be the ultimate stamp of being one of the best runners in the world and cross country is something that I am very good at to begin with.  I now have the confidence to go with them and battle it out.

Q:

Joe M.
October 20th, 2009 on 9:42 am edit
I would like to hear about your goals for 2010 and what your plans are for training for them. Thanks for the great blog and congrats on an amazing 2009!

A:

For 2010, I have few big goals.  I want to really be competitive at World Cross Country.  That is the goal that is the closest.  I think it will be huge for me and I want to make an attempt before it goes to every two years after this year.  After that I want to run faster in the 5000m and try to break 27:00 in the 10k.  It is a strange year with no Olympics or World Championships, but it is also good because my last goal is to come out with a huge “redebut” in the Marathon in the fall.  I think I have become a knew athlete and I am very excited to bring that to the Mararthon again.  It will be a big shot for me to establish myself for the Olympics in 2012.  The half marathon championships helped with that, but I want another shot at the full distance.

Q:

Blake

October 20th, 2009 on 10:49 am edit
Okay, here’s a question: You have quite a competitive range from 5,000 to the marathon. At this point in your career, which distance do you feel is your strongest? I remember thinking last year before the Olympics that it’s a shame that the Half Marathon isn’t an event, because I think it might be the best distance at this point for both you AND Ryan, actually. How do you feel?

A:

I think at this point I am the most accomplished over half marathon but ultimately the marathon will still be my best event.  I think my 12:56 was great, and I can run very fast, but at this point I think I would still have some problems with a tactical 5000m at a major championships.  I think I could do well with a flat out fast race, or with a long hard push from a mile out maybe, but usually it does not happen like that in the big races and they come down to 52 last laps.  As for the 10k, I think it is the most difficult event to medal in.  The depth is so strong and with Bekele and Tadesse, there is really only one tactic and it is fast and hard.  I think I am getting better at that, and I believe I will be able to medal in that event, but I think I can win the World Championships or Olympics marathon and there is a huge difference between first and second or third in those events.

Q:

afni
October 20th, 2009 on 10:50 am edit
house listing? looking to move to eugene.

A:

Here is the MLS listing for our house 9052283.  You can check it out at rmls.com. Or go to www.ryanvonklein.com, it would be cool to to buy from the American Record Holder right!

Q:

Terry

October 20th, 2009 on 12:51 pm edit
Dathan,
First off, congrats on all your success. I’m a huge fan and actually met you before the NYC 1/2 marathon last summer.
In your blog post the other day you said you could run faster than 60 minutes on a better course with pacers. Now I view that as you saying “I would have broken Ryan Halls AR record had I run on a better course w/pacers”. I know that’s not how you meant it, but I liked that. I hope you break his AR someday.
That leads me to my question. Next fall, Chicago Marathon, you vs. Ryan Hall? Is there a possibility there? As a fan, that’s a Jordan/Bird showdown. Plus it’d be a fast course and you both could PR. How are you going to choose your next marathon?

A: I did not mean it to come off that way, because it would be easy to say I could have run faster than 59:43 but until you do it then you still haven’t.  I do think I was capable of running around 59:10, but I will have to put it all together to do that and at this point with don’t have any specific plans to shoot for that specific time.  As for my next marathon I will have to sit down with Alberto and a few other people and see what is the best plan to prepare me for the Olympic Games.  Chicago would be great as it is fast, but NYC is also more strategic.  So we will have to make the decision on many factors, and $ is one of them as well.  It would be great to see a Ritz/Hall showdown, but how cool would it be if we each one one as well.  Can you believe we could actually have Americans win the two biggest marathons in the fall in the same year?

Q:

Caleb
October 20th, 2009 on 3:24 pm edit
hey dathan, I know how you feel. Rest days are usually tougher than the toughest workouts. here are a few questions, you can answer whatever ones you feel like.
cross country, track, or marathon?
first time you knew you had a future in the sport?
your favourite runner as a kid?
your favourite fast-food restaurant?
thanks man, you’re great.

A:

I love them all.  I use to not like track as much, but I really had fun racing this summer on the track and being very fast.  XC is always going to be a passion and the Marathon is my biggest goal still.  I really did not know much about professional track until high school and that is when I got really good too, but no particular moment stands out to me.  My favorite runners as a kid were Greg Myers, Brian Deimer, and Bob Kennedy.  Deimer and Myers were from the same city as me and they were local heros, and Kennedy was the man when I first started running. As for fast food, I don’t eat it.  The only place I use the drive-thru is Starbucks.  If I get something quick it is usually like Chipolte or Quiznos.

Q:

al
October 20th, 2009 on 5:22 pm edit
Ritz I know its a personal one for runners but whats your weekly running routine like? Is it 2 or 3 sessions and what sort of sessions did salazar use with you for the 5/10k’s that you didnt use before?
Hope these are questions you are willing to answer
thanks

A:

A normal week for me is 100-110 miles a week, maybe 90 if it is close to a race.  We don’t use the same schedule each week.  I would say we do three workouts and a long run for every 10 days.  But sometimes we may run one easy day between workouts if the workouts are not very long, or up to three easy days between workouts if they are really hard.  We did some longer fast repeats in the track season that I had not done before.  800’s and 600’s in 2:00 at 1:26, 400’s in 56-57.

Q:

JBoogidy
October 20th, 2009 on 6:51 pm edit
Dathan, what do you think the best workout you’ve ever done was?

A:

When I was in high school I ran 32×400m on the track in 66 with 2 min rec.  It was kind of crazy but not just super long.  My 10 mile tempo in 45:03 before the world half was probably my most impressive though.

Q:

Brett Schmitt
October 20th, 2009 on 7:38 pm edit
Dathan,
I have been a fan for a while now, and congrats on all of your success the last season. I’m glad to hear that you’re taking a little time off. Are you cross training in the meantime? Bike, swim..?

A:

I took two weeks off completely.  That was the first time I have ever done that without some kind of injury.  Alberto told me he would not coach me if I didn’t.  He really wanted me to rest my Endocrine system and let my body recover so that I can train even harder. It was difficult because I wanted to train but it was for the best.  I have started back running at of yesterday and I am now back lifting and drills.  I will still just train easy for two weeks though before getting back into workouts.

Q:

Bill
October 20th, 2009 on 8:31 pm edit
Dathan: Congrats on the AR and the Bronze!!
Are you ever going to try the mile distance when you may be doing some speed work? I am sure you could break 4 minutes but does that hold any value for you?
PS, my daughter went from a toddler to a teenager in American 5K record speed!!! Enjoy every moment with your beautiful family!!

A:

I really would love to have the sub 4 mile under my belt.  My 1500m PR is from when I was 19 years old, wow that was over seven years ago.  I haven’t run a 1500m since 2004.  I think I could run 3:55-56 maybe if I was doing some good speed work.  I will have to talk Alberto into letting me do one this year, but I don’t think that will take much convincing; he really wants me to improve my speed.

Q:

Keith Forlenza
October 20th, 2009 on 8:55 pm edit
I was wondering how important you thought weight training and core were? Are these things you fit into your schedule often?
Also, I was wondering how often you hit the track for hard intervals. Are alot of your workouts more strength based (Tempos ect..) or since you have been with Alberto have you focused more on track workouts?
I appreciate you taking questions, thats awesome.

A:

Core and weights are very important to us.  I would say that we do non-running strengthening up to five days a week.  Either core, weights, general strength, or drills and plyo’s, they are all very important and I spend much more time with them now since coming to Alberto’s group.  I definitely do a larger variety of workouts now, but I still do plenty of “strength” workouts.

Q:

Jason
October 20th, 2009 on 9:54 pm edit
Hey Dathan, congrats again on the AR. I was wondering if you do cross training and if so, what do you recommend. I am taking a break for a few months of running bc of an injury and I am trying to find things to do to maintain my racing shape over the lay off. Thanks!

A:

I don’t do regular cross training unless I am injuried.  I do use an Alter-G regularly.  I always felt that fast high intensity spinning on a bike was the best way to stay fit for long periods of no running. Of course lifting will help as well and you will be less like to get hurt when you come back.

Q:

Klein Wong
October 21st, 2009 on 1:21 am edit
Dathan, I’ve got a few questions that even if you don’t get back to me on or address in your next post, you can at least turn over in your head.
Who was your biggest influence to start running?
Did you have a hero who ran when you were a kid?
Why do you run?
And what do you think of Pre’s style of front running?
Also, would you ever consider giving me a call to say hello?
-Klein Wong

A:

My Dad was my biggest influence because he got me into running by taking me to the local running club and following him to local races. Bob Kennedy, Greg Myers, and Brian Deimer were my childhood heros.  I run because I love it and I love the competition.  I love to train as well, and there is no use training for nothing, I mean real hard training.  Intervals and things like that should have a purpose other than just to keep in shape. I think running from the front can be good but usually only if you are better than everyone else, otherwise you might end up as a rabbit.  I like to mix it up though and keep people guessing about what I will do. I wont be calling you, I’m pretty busy, but say high if you see me at a race.

Q:

Man
October 21st, 2009 on 11:21 am edit
Dathan, you are generally an inspiration! Also i want to ask you a question… How much milage was you doing when you was 16 and how many times a week was you training?
Thanks

A:

When I was 16 I was running 70-80 miles a week. I usually ran 3 -4 miles in the morning before school and then I did my big training after school everyday.

Q:

Amy
October 21st, 2009 on 2:03 pm edit
Hi Dathan,
A few weeks ago my team ran at Portage, MI. I just want to let you know that your course record there still stands! =)
What is the best advice a coach has ever given you? Any tips for a first-year coach from an amazing athlete’s viewpoint…
Thanks! Good luck in Portland.

A:

I have been luck to have some great coaches.  I have been given a lot of advice but just having fun and relaxing but being focused and well prepared are the best.  For a first year coach in high school I would use what my high school coach said, “the best way to get in to shape is to never get out of it”.  They have to have some time off and down time, but running is a lifestyle and if they enjoy it and you make it fun, they will want to be out there training and competing.  High school kids recover so fast that they can train hard.

Q:

German
October 21st, 2009 on 7:04 pm edit
Which shoes do you use for trainig and racing? You wear in the marathon the Lunaracer, right? But in the WC did you run in the Streak or in the Katana?
Thanks Ritz, we love you