The journey to get to New York City was difficult, and almost never occurred. At the time, my high school didn’t even have an indoor track team on which I could compete, so I had to create one myself. As the first and only member of my school’s indoor track team, practice was far from exciting. Each day I laced up my sneakers and headed out the door to run mile after mile by myself, with an additional three runs a week before school at 4:30am. The dedication to run fast was there, but the coaching was not. I knew early on if I was to run quick I must find someone who could guide me in the right direction. After less than a week of searching I had found a match. His name was Bruce Geltman.
Coach Geltman had run for Duke University many years before, where he excelled on the track at the very same distance I had planned to compete in. Holding the 5000 meter record for his school at the time, he ran an impressive 13:50. News about Bruce came up in conversation at a high school swim meet with a parent of a boy on the swim team I had previously swam for. The parent had no idea how valuable this news was to me. He claimed Bruce lived nearby, as he frequently attended the local YMCA where he would swim and workout in the gym on a regular basis. Too impatient to wait around for Mr. Williams to contact Bruce himself, I went home later that night and “googled” Bruce myself.
Easy to find, the story of Bruce Geltman was indeed no lie. A man of business, Bruce worked as an account director for the St. Jude Medical Center. If he was so willing to lend a hand, his knowledge and experience as part of track and field would be of tremendous help. A number to reach Bruce was found later that night; as I immediately picked up the phone to least of all leave a message. I was weary of how he might react. After all, here was a boy who was going to randomly call someone whom he had never met, to ask for nearly three months of coaching guidance and expertise.
I first called Bruce around 10pm later that night. I was surprised to hear his response on the other end of the line. I told him of my plans for competing at nationals in three months and of how I hoped to break sixteen minutes in the 5000 meter race. Bruce listened, and was quick to jump on board with helping me achieve my goal. As the phone call continued, Bruce said he would like to meet with me and establish training plans for how to accomplish my goal. I was to meet with him later that same week.
Several days passed before the two of us met. Bruce showed up at Lenoir-Rhyne University’s track, where I was at the time in the middle of a workout he had created. As I pressed on through the workout, nearly ten miles in total length, I was exhausted as the majority of my mile splits were coming in at under 5:30 mile pace. Snow began to fall midway though, making practice that much more unbearable. I constantly looked around the track at those who were coming in and out, hoping he would soon arrive. Bruce approached me as I had finished the workout, just before my warm-down mile. With the conversation lasting no more than a few minutes, Bruce was a man whom I could tell was about wasting no time with small talk. After the conversation had ended I quickly began to run my last mile easy, as he returned to his car and left. From then on our discussions would happen only through email and over the phone, as I never met with him in person again. He observed my practice solely to determine if I was serious enough to handle his workouts. It would not occur to me then how hard my training would soon become thereafter.
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