Scoggins: Mohammed Bati doesn’t rest ... He runs and he wins

Mohammed Bati is chasing something.

A goal, a dream, a belief.

It’s always there, a desire he feels deep inside his soul that pushes him through a daily routine that sounds incomprehensible.

He works at an assisted living facility five days a week, 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. He then drives directly to the Augsburg campus, changes into workout clothes inside his car and runs 10 miles. Then he goes to classes as a full-time student. Then another 10 miles in the evening, dinner and back to work for the overnight shift.

He calls his routine a “circle.”

He doesn’t sleep. He naps. When he should rest, he runs.

The Augsburg senior made history last week as a competitor, becoming the first men’s athlete in MIAC history to win four conference titles in cross-country.

He ran 20 miles at a 6-minute, 22-second pace the day before as a warmup. He celebrated his historic achievement by running 10 miles later that evening. And then woke up and ran 17 miles the next morning.

“I’ve learned to accept the reality of pain,” he said during a break in his schedule. “It’s about having that ambition. I’m fighting for that dream and desire. You have to pay something to get somewhere. Nothing comes free. I just have a reason to fight every day.”

His life is a testament to dedication and discipline.

Bati spoke no English when he moved from Ethiopia to the Twin Cities in 2018 to join his mother in search of a better opportunity. He had no formal training as a runner, either.

A physical education teacher alerted Highland Park cross-country coach Brad Moening that he had a student who refused to participate in a bench-press circuit in class because he feared lifting weights would make him slower.

“I have been coaching for 25 years, and he has the prettiest running technique of anybody I’ve ever seen,” Moening said. “It’s graceful, it’s fluid. He’s so efficient.”

At his first indoor track meet, Bati blasted like a rocket at the start and kept running after completing his final lap.

Once, Moening signed him up for a half-marathon trail race. He was concerned that Bati would not understand the course markings, so he told him to follow a certain runner. Three miles in, someone stepped on Bati’s foot, causing his shoe to come off. Worried that he would lose track of his guide, Bati picked up his shoe and carried it the final 10 miles.

“He comes in with his foot just covered in blood blisters and ripped-off toenails,” Moening said.

Bati chuckles at the memory.

He has become a popular figure in the running community, known as much for his humility and work ethic as his talent. Numerous clubs throughout the Twin Cities have invited Bati on runs.

“He’s everybody’s friend,” said Danny Docherty, program director at Run Minnesota. “He loves you no matter who you are.”

When money got tight this summer and Bati needed help paying tuition, Moening organized a GoFundMe and enlisted the help of prominent voices, including Minnesota running legend Carrie Tollefson. The initiative raised $10,000 in one day.

“It is so cool to see a kid who is so passionate,” Tollefson said. “I don’t know if I could have done what he’s doing. He’s pushing the envelope for everything in life.”

Bati works the overnight shift because he logs 150 miles running per week with the goal of becoming an Olympic marathoner. He would not have time in his day to train otherwise. He dreams of competing for the United States after earning his citizenship through naturalization two years ago.

His voice is soft when he speaks but powerful in the depth of his words. He talks about running with soulful reverence.

He chose a nursing major because he wants to help people, especially elderly people. He works as a nursing aide at night, using his breaks to take catnaps.

He said winning his historic fourth conference title was less about personal ambition than being able to shine a spotlight on Augsburg’s program and school.

“You have to desire something to chase,” he said. “When you do that, it doesn’t matter if you run 150 miles, or you work night shift. Nobody cares. You have to chase it. That’s what makes me strong.”

He has a stack of accolades to prove it.

Augsburg cross-country coach Nick Larson gives Bati freedom to follow his own training schedule because it is so unique. One MIAC coach told Larson he uses Bati as an example when motivating his own athletes.

“He is doing stuff that nobody else is doing, both on the course and off the course,” Larson said. “It’s not normal.”

Running 20 miles at a 6:20 pace the day before an important race seems counterintuitive, but that is missing the point and not understanding the reason Bati is who he is.

A few years ago, he made a tactical error in the Brian Kraft Memorial 5K race by going out too fast and running out of steam at the end.

Upset with himself, he went to Hidden Falls Regional Park and ran up and down a steep hill for 14 miles. Over and over. Up and down that hill.