Wholistic Fitness

Flagstaff Running Warrior Ryan Shay leads a pack on his way to a 7th-place finish in the 10,000m at the 2002 USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
(Photo: Alison Wade/New York Road Runners)

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Words for one of our own, who hit the Bardo in perhaps the Most Noble Way any of us who refuse to give up on our Dreams ever could; with fierceness of mind, body, and breath.

Please Practice sincerely today; and do so in honor of our Fallen Brother of Sweat and Spirit.

Since WF made Her first ripple from me 25+ years ago, i have Taught personal fitness and sport performance not from a standpoint of standing on top of podiums or to lose bodyfat or any other quality that is merely a by-product of what matters most: to use our Personal Fitness as a most powerful Vehicle of Enlightenment. Because, well, you just never know.

You just never know…only Brahman knows.

On behalf of my worldwide Tribe of Sweat-Based Fitness Warriors,
i bow to the Atman of Ryan Shay; May He Hear The Mantra In The Bardo and Run Easily Next To His Spirit Horse Through All The Realms And Be Reborn In Dewachen.

On behalf of my worldwide Tribe of Sweat-Based Fitness Warriors,
i bow to the duhkha of Most Noble Warrior Ryan’s family, friends, and – like me – his fans.

Om Mani Padme Hung.

from the tiny temple beneath the massive peak,
mountain runner; coach ilg

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By RACHEL COHEN
AP Sports Writer
Sunday, November 04, 2007

NEW YORK — Ryan Shay and Ryan Hall hoped to celebrate together with their wives after the U.S. men’s marathon Olympic trials.

Now Hall, the trials champ, faces a future of all he dreamed about and what he never imagined: the glory of the Olympics, the heartbreak of a funeral.

Shay, one of America’s top distance runners, collapsed and died not even six miles into Saturday’s race. Minutes after Hall crossed the finish line in record time, his arms raised in triumph, he heard the unthinkable news.

Shay was 28. An enlarged heart may have contributed to his death. He was one of Hall’s former training partners, and his wife was Hall’s college teammate at Stanford.

“That just cut me straight to the heart,” Hall said. “It makes you forget what you just did.”

Shay trained in Flagstaff with his wife, Alicia, through the Center for High Altitude Training at Northern Arizona University. Director Natalie Harlan called Shay a leader among the local running community and a “fine and gracious human being.”

Added Harlan: “There were many Flagstaff-based runners in New York City today either competing in, or watching the trials, and those of us who are here in Arizona will be ready to support them upon their return to Flagstaff.”

Abdi Abdirahman, who dropped out of the marathon because of injury, trained with Shay for the past 3Ãn months in Flagstaff.

“I’m speechless. I still don’t believe it,” he said. “I probably was the last person to talk to him. We ate breakfast together, we ate lunch together, went to bed at the same time.”

Shay’s coach, Joe Vigil, said he wasn’t aware of any health problems. “He was the epitome of athleticism,” Vigil said. “I don’t know what caused it.”

On Friday, Hall and his wife, Sara, and Shay and his wife, Alicia, went for a run in Central Park. Shay seemed fine, Sara Hall said.

The Halls and Alicia were teammates at Stanford. Sara Hall considers Alicia one of her closest friends; she was a bridesmaid at the Shays’ wedding in July.

It was in New York two years ago while watching the NYC marathon that Shay met his future wife. Alicia, who’s hoping to make it to Beijing in the women’s 10,000, was a two-time NCAA champion and the collegiate 10,000-meter record-holder while running as Alicia Craig at Stanford.

At the 2004 Olympic men’s marathon trials, Shay was a favorite going in but was hampered by a hamstring strain and finished 23rd.

On Wednesday, Shay reflected on that time.

“I’ve had a few downs — since 2004, I’ve had injuries here and there, but I’ve come back and I’ve been able to get in the training that I feel I need,” he said at a news conference. “This is the best U.S. marathon field we’ve had in a long time, but I guess that’s why you run the race — to see who has it in the end.”

RECEIVED CPR

On Saturday, Shay went down near the Central Park boathouse, a popular Manhattan tourist spot. New York Road Runners president Mary Wittenberg, whose organization hosted the event, said Shay received immediate medical attention but would not elaborate on what steps were taken. A statement from USA Track & Field said Shay immediately received CPR.

“He crossed right in front of me and stepped off the course,” said runner Marc Jeuland of Chapel Hill, N.C., who did not see Shay collapse. “He nearly tripped me. He would not have been taxed at that point.”

Shay was born May 4, 1979, in Ann Arbor, Mich., the fifth of eight children in a running family. His parents are the cross country and track coaches at Michigan’s Central Lake High School.

His father, Joe, said he was first diagnosed with a larger- than-normal heart at age 14.

Joe Shay told The Associated Press his son was cleared for running this spring by doctors but was told he might have need a pacemaker when he is older.

And years ago, after a car accident as a 16-year-old, Shay said doctors re-evaluated Ryan’s heart and determined it had gotten even larger. Each time, he said, they believed it was because Ryan was a runner.

“But he never complained about it,” Shay said.