Vikes on the Mic

They say it’s never too late to try new things, and this spirit of growth is championed by our latest guest on the show, current Vikes assistant coach, Marilyn Arsenault. After a long career in voice performance, Marilyn started running in her mid-30s and would go on to claim Canadian Masters records from the 3k all the way up to the marathon. At the age of 40, she represented the Vikes while completing her Masters in Music Performance at UVic, placing 6th at 2008 CIS cross-country nationals and 3rd in the 3km at 2009 CIS track nationals. Eager to share the principles of technique and mindfulness that support her continued success in music and running, Marilyn founded Mindful Strides, a company through which she teaches running form and provides coaching to runners of all levels. In this episode of “Vikes on the Mic”, Marilyn reflects on her journey in music, running, and coaching, and offers valuable insights into the fundamentals of performance in any discipline.

They say it’s never too late to try new things, and this spirit of growth is championed by our latest guest on the show, current Vikes assistant coach, Marilyn Arsenault. After a long career in voice performance, Marilyn started running in her mid-30s and would go on to claim Canadian Masters records from the 3k all the way up to the marathon. At the age of 40, she represented the Vikes while completing her Masters in Music Performance at UVic, placing 6th at 2008 CIS cross-country nationals and 3rd in the 3km at 2009 CIS track nationals. Eager to share the principles of technique and mindfulness that support her continued success in music and running, Marilyn founded Mindful Strides, a company through which she teaches running form and provides coaching to runners of all levels. In this episode of “Vikes on the Mic”, Marilyn reflects on her journey in music, running, and coaching, and offers valuable insights into the fundamentals of performance in any discipline.

In episodes 5-7, we follow the epic journey of former Vike, Shoayb Bascal. Shoayb was an Economics major and distance specialist who thrived on the XC and road racing scene as a Vike. In addition to PBs of 14:30 (5k) and 30:36 (10k), he contributed a critical 11th place finish to help the Vikes men secure the 2015 CIS national XC team title. Beyond running, he is the ultimate people person, a talented storyteller, and a fearless adventurer.

In this 3-part series, he takes us back to Ohio, where he got his first tastes of failure and success as a high school and college runner (Part 1), then to Victoria, where he joined the Vikes on quests for doughnuts and XC gold in 2015 (Part 2). The saga concludes with his senior year as a Vike and his post-graduate life, including Olympic dreams and plantar fasciitis nightmares (Part 3). Enjoy Shoayb's captivating personality and storytelling!

Music: Between the Mayo and the Mustard - Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In episodes 5-7, we follow the epic journey of former Vike, Shoayb Bascal. Shoayb was an Economics major and distance specialist who thrived on the XC and road racing scene as a Vike. In addition to PBs of 14:30 (5k) and 30:36 (10k), he contributed a critical 11th place finish to help the Vikes men secure the 2015 CIS national XC team title. Beyond running, he is the ultimate people person, a talented storyteller, and a fearless adventurer.

In this 3-part series, he takes us back to Ohio, where he got his first tastes of failure and success as a high school and college runner (Part 1), then to Victoria, where he joined the Vikes on quests for doughnuts and XC gold in 2015 (Part 2). The saga concludes with his senior year as a Vike and his post-graduate life, including Olympic dreams and plantar fasciitis nightmares (Part 3). Enjoy Shoayb's captivating personality and storytelling!

Music: Between the Mayo and the Mustard - Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)