{"id":47299,"date":"2017-04-26T09:15:36","date_gmt":"2017-04-26T16:15:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/?p=47299"},"modified":"2017-11-03T15:59:08","modified_gmt":"2017-11-03T22:59:08","slug":"thomas-puzey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/thomas-puzey\/","title":{"rendered":"Be it the Boston Marathon or graduation stage, NAU grad student Rivers Puzey runs through it"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Heidi Toth<\/strong>
\nNAU Communications<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Thomas Puzey <\/strong>became a professional athlete because he needed a stable career.<\/p>\n

\"Puzey-Rock<\/a>
Rivers Puzey runs the Rock n’ Roll Arizona Marathon, which he won.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Sure, it sounds crazy. Who looks around for stability and lands on a career that could be over in the amount of time it takes to sprain an ankle or snap a tendon?<\/p>\n

The simple answer is: An ultramarathoner who had been working as an anthropologist in Latin America with drug lords, cartels and corrupt governments and was married to a conflict resolutionist who was pregnant with their first child.<\/p>\n

It turns out running fast enough to finish in the top three is way less stressful than running across borders late at night to evade bad guys with guns, all with a child in tow.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a wild life,\u201d said Puzey, who goes by his middle name, Rivers. \u201cThere\u2019s bad stuff that happens when your peers are drug lords. It\u2019s an exciting life, but it\u2019s not a life that\u2019s incredibly conducive to raising children.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eight years later he\u2019s a professional runner, speaker and running coach who in April finished \u201c27th <\/sup>grade\u201d and in May will graduate from Northern Arizona University with a doctorate of physical therapy. On April 17 he crossed the finish line of the Boston Marathon in 16th<\/sup> place, logging the fastest time of his life (so far) and having a marvelous time doing it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Boston Marathon, it\u2019s like a parade and you\u2019re the float,\u201d Puzey said.<\/p>\n

Coming to NAU<\/strong><\/p>\n

They didn\u2019t actually have to flee any countries, said Stephanie Catudal, Puzey\u2019s wife. But things got dicey enough during several months in Brazil that they decided to return to the United States, settling in Flagstaff to become part of the elite running community that lives and trains here. With a Boston Marathon qualifying time in his sights, the Olympic qualifying events just beyond that and bills to pay, Puzey pushed forward with racing, ignoring a nagging pain in one leg. His medical team hadn\u2019t given him cause to worry.<\/p>\n

Then the undiagnosed stress fracture cracked mid-race.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen it happened I knew I just broke my leg,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"Puzey<\/a>
Rivers Puzey and Stephanie Catudal<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Unable to run for months, Puzey found himself bereft of his coping mechanism for the first time in his life and without steady income. Stephanie was pregnant with baby No. 2. With bills coming in, both took restaurant jobs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had five academic degrees between the two of us and we were waiting tables,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Puzey also realized he wouldn\u2019t be running forever and he needed a way to support his family. He enrolled in NAU\u2019s physical therapy program<\/a>, figuring he was already here and the field would mix well with his experience as an athlete. Not until classes had started did he learn the\u00a0program was among the best in the country.<\/p>\n

Before long he found himself going to school full-time, working full-time and running full-time, with two young children at home. He started combining tasks, foregoing the interstate from his home south of Flagstaff to the NAU campus with an easy, 24-mile round trip daily run, carting books and a laptop in his backpack.<\/p>\n

This was the first time Catudal got a glimpse of what Puzey\u2019s career choice meant for their family. When they met he was a collegiate runner but injured, logging only 20 miles or so a week. During the early months in Flagstaff Puzey was running four to five hours a day but not making enough money for them to live.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember him telling me that it\u2019s all going to be worth it one day and I really did trust him,\u201d she said. \u201cThat was three years ago. It\u2019s so awesome to see him pursue his dreams.\u201d<\/p>\n

It also wasn\u2019t easy for Puzey\u2019s professors, who worked with him to ensure he could get the necessary clinic hours and classes even as he traveled to races and events. As if all of that wasn\u2019t enough to fill his day, he\u2019s also in a massage therapy program, aiming to become a medical provider who understands the big picture biomechanics of the human body with the pressure techniques and know-how to respond to each patient differently.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy approach in terms of my career goals has been directed by what I would like to receive as an athlete if I were to walk into a clinic, the skill set I would want a practitioner to have,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

His sometimes non-traditional approach had opportunities to shine throughout his program. Karen Mueller<\/strong>, a professor of physical therapy and Puzey\u2019s adviser, said he brought his life experiences into a clinic working with an 85-year-old woman with Parkinson\u2019s disease who wanted to ride a bike but wasn\u2019t steady enough to do so on her own.<\/p>\n

Puzey and a classmate came back with a tandem bike from a local shop, then rode with the patient to help build her confidence and balance.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter several sessions, this patient was able to ride a regular adult bicycle without assistance,\u201d Mueller said. \u201cRivers filmed her riding the bike, and the patient\u2019s joy was a delight to see.\u201d<\/p>\n

Becoming Boston Strong<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Puzey-Boston<\/a>
Rivers Puzey approaches the finish line of the Boston Marathon, April 17, 2017.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Puzey has qualified for the Boston Marathon a number of times\u2014so many, in fact, that he wasn\u2019t sure which of his recent top finishes was actually the time that got him the coveted Boston race bib. It could have been the Rock \u2018n\u2019 Roll Marathon in Phoenix in January (he came in first, with a time of 2:19:57) or the Mesa-Phoenix Marathon in February (second place, with a time of 2:18:25).<\/p>\n

It was, however, the first time he\u2019d run the marathon. Not coincidentally, he has two children with mid-April birthdays.<\/p>\n

This year he made it to the starting line and, just two hours, 18 minutes and 20 seconds later, the finish line.<\/p>\n

\u201cHonestly it was just fun,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s impossible to not run fast if you run smart in Boston. There\u2019s just an incredible energy that exists; the crowd and community is so amazing, you can\u2019t not run fast there.\u201d<\/p>\n

He spent the days leading up to the race cruising around Flagstaff, up and down hills, pushing his legs close to the point of exhaustion. He arrived in Boston a few days early to acclimate to the lower elevation and higher humidity, taking in runs along the Charles River and around Harvard.<\/p>\n

It was more of a fun run than he frequently does. Puzey wasn\u2019t running for prize money, just the joy of running Boston and the opportunity to provide publicity for some of his sponsors.<\/p>\n

Other races, like an upcoming marathon in Calgary, Canada, he does plan to be in the running for the winner\u2019s pot. Knowing paying his bills is at least somewhat dependent on how fast he runs pushes him to achieve personal bests, but it\u2019s not quite as fun.<\/p>\n

Still, Puzey said, everyone has something they don\u2019t like about their jobs. On the whole, he\u2019s quite happy with his.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d way prefer that to a 9-5 desk job,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s feast or famine. You can\u2019t complain about stuff that you choose.\u201d<\/p>\n

Life lessons<\/strong><\/p>\n

Puzey plans to be a professional runner as long as his body holds out. However, his future and that of his family will be\u00a0changing. He and Catudal agreed when one was in school the other would do the lion\u2019s share of the household tasks, which he took on while<\/p>\n

\"Puzey<\/a>
Rivers Puzey celebrates with his three daughters after winning the Rock n Roll Arizona Marathon in January.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Catudal was earning her master\u2019s degree in Costa Rica and she took on while he was in his doctoral program. Soon all he\u2019ll have left in terms of school is two hours of massage therapy classes a day, so he\u2019ll pick up more work around the house and she\u2019ll look for more professional opportunities in writing and conflict mediation.<\/p>\n

That means more father-daughter time with their three girls, who love cheering for, running and playing with their father. Catudal said she hopes their daughters emulate the ambition with which both of their parents went after their goals.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s already looking promising.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe other day my 2-year-old was running on the trail, and she said, \u2018Mom, I\u2019m going to run 100 miles,\u2019\u201d Catudal said. \u201cIt\u2019s just funny that in their minds that\u2019s a completely normal thing to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Puzey, while he cares about results, tends to be more process-focused in his advice than his daughter.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s all about slow, gradual, consistent progression,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople think going out and punishing yourself in a single isolated session is going to provide gains, but your body doesn\u2019t work that way. All that does is break you down and make you tired and makes you not want to do that anymore.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe way the body improves is by making positive anatomical and physiological adaptations in response to specific stressors you put on it. Stop thinking in terms of days and change your concept of timing in terms of weeks or months or years.\u201d<\/p>\n

His Instagram account is also full of words of advice. The piece that pops up the most, accompanying pictures of him in running gear in beautiful vistas throughout the world, is simple: Run all the miles and eat all the food.<\/p>\n

Read more about the Puzey-Catudal family on Catudal’s\u00a0blog, Chronicles of an Endurance Athlete\u2019s Wife<\/a>, or follow Puzey on Twitter<\/a> or Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n