Bredin on Running & Training

86 RUNNING AND TRAINING. the fresher will the athlete be on turning out for his evening's practice, and consequently the more likely is he to derive benefit from the exercise. Those who imagine that, because a mfl,n under ordinary amateur methods of training, and in his best condition, can run a mile in, say, 4 min. 30 sec., he would necessarily be able to reduce this time to 4 min. 25 sec. if professionally coached and trained, are labouring under a delusion. If he had in the first instance exercised proper care, and led an ordinary healthy life in a part of the country that suited him, the cleverest trainer would not be certain to create any very perceptible improvement. I mention a mile for my example, but any other event would serve equally well except that of a sprint, as I believe in short-distance running most amateurs have yet a lot to learn, and also improvement in this respect comes by slow degrees, and the limit of speed is only reached after a long and systematic course of practice. In '92 I was travelling in the same carriage with a few of the fastest amateurs at that time, who had shortly before competed for the Manningham cup, given by the Bradford A. C. at their sports for a level roo yards, when the second man in that race asked a trainer, an old Sheffield handicap winner, who was seated opposite him, and had also attended the sports, " Do you think if I were to turn professional I should get to do evens ? " " Yes," came the reply, " I could make you do evens, but I should want to have you away practising for about two years." There is frequently a marked difference between the amateur's and professional's method of running a race; •