As the seventh of 10 children in his family, Doug Kling needed some way to stand out among his four brothers and five sisters.
So in seventh grade, Kling decided to start running track. Within a year, he was his middle school team's star in the middle distance events, and although two of his brothers were also runners, Doug was by far the fastest in his family.
Kling continued to run the mile and the 800 meters throughout high school, and for the past few years, the fifth-year senior has been one of the most consistent members of the Duke men's track team. Throughout Kling's career at Duke, the Blue Devils have been able to count on him to come through with solid performances whether in the 800 meters, the mile or as a member of a relay team, in virtually every meet.
"Consistency has been his biggest strength," senior captain Pat Neville said.
In Duke's two most recent meets, the Atlantic Coast Conference championships on Feb. 23-24 in Greensboro and the Intercollegiate Association of Amateur Athletes of America (IC4A) championships last weekend in Cambridge, Mass., Kling was the Blue Devils' biggest star. At the ACC meet, he placed third in the conference in the 800 meters, earning six points for the team. Then, he led Duke to a fourth place showing in the distance medley relay with his two fast splits in the qualifying round (3:01.3) and finals (3:00.3) of the 1,200 meters at the IC4A meet. The teams time of 9:56.96 was the fastest time run by an ACC team this season.
"Doug is definitely coming off his three best races ever," assistant coach Norm Ogilvie said. "He always seems to produce in the big meets. It seems like he always runs his best times at either the ACCs, the Penn Relays or the IC4As."
Kling first demonstrated his propensity for excelling in important races at the ACC outdoor track championships last spring. At that meet in Winston-Salem, Kling blew through a fast field to place fourth in 1:51.66, his fastest time in an open race. Kling's performance added five points to Duke's score, helping the Blue Devils accomplish their best showing in the conference in 17 years.
Although the ACC boasts some of the nation's top 800 runners, Kling has now firmly established himself as one of the conference's top middle-distance competitors.
"He's certainly getting some respect," Ogilvie said.
While most of the conference's top 800 meter runners are long sprinters who also run the 400 meters, Kling does not possess the speed to be competitive in shorter races. Instead, he has used his strength to fight through races against faster runners. Even though he has never been one of Duke's top cross country runners, he has participated in the fall sport to get into better shape for track season in the winter and fall.
"Of all the ACC 800-meter runners, I train with the most mileage," Kling said. "I have to do that in order to do well since I don't have much speed."
Kling's competitiveness has been helped by the fact that he has been able to practice with fellow senior Miles Hall, the defending ACC champion in the 1,500 meters, every day for the past four years. Despite having very different styles, Kling and Hall have established themselves as Duke's middle distance leaders the past two seasons because of their strong showings in meets and their work ethic in practice.
"We have totally different personalities," Kling said. "Miles is more of a guy who leads by example. I'm more vocal. I tell people what I think.
"It definitely helps [having Hall in practice]. Everyday I'm chasing Miles."
Hall and Kling have also teamed up with some of Duke's other middle distance runners on relay teams. At last spring's IC4A outdoor meet, they teamed with Pat Kelly, Trinity '95, and sophomore Mike Park to break the long-held school record in the 4x800 meter relay with their 7:31.66 finish. Duke teams had been close to breaking the mark for two years, and the squad at the IC4A meet shattered the record by two and a half seconds.
"After we had done it, we felt like we had made an accomplishment," Kling said. "It kept being shoved in our faces, and we finally just went out there and crushed it. It was just a matter of getting it all together on the same day."
As his final outdoor season approaches, Kling hopes to continue to improve on what he has already accomplished. With a tough field projected for the ACC meet, Kling knows that he may need to run faster than he did last year just to repeat his fourth-place finish. His performances the past three weeks indicate that he is probably capable of improving his outdoor times from last year.
"He's in the best shape of his life right now," Ogilvie said. "I really think that someone who can run the 1,200 in three minutes can break 1:50 in the 800. I'd like to see Doug become the No. 3 all-time 800 runner at Duke, and if he can run 1:50, he would do that."
Kling is focused on improving upon his own times rather than worrying about his possible competitors at the ACC Championships or any other meet. After all, in finishing third in the ACC indoor meet last month, Kling did not run a particularly fast time, but he demonstrated the understanding of the strategy of racing which he has developed over the years by running a brilliant tactical race.
Kling, who is a biology major, is uncertain about his post-graduation plans. But he is certain that he has no interest in continuing to race competitively after his final meet at Duke, the IC4A championships in College Park, Md.
"After May 19, I'll probably never run another race," Kling said.
Even if Kling is no longer running races after this spring, one thing seems clear, his name will remain in the Duke track record books for many years to come.
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