running nerd

I am a running nerd or as flotrack likes to say "run junkie". I follow the sport like it's my job...oh wait?! It kind of is my job now that I'm a G.A. coach! 

I enjoy following the sport, analyzing the pros, and keeping up with the news of what's going on. Any time there is a race or track meet on TV, I'm watching it. I'll even watch races and track meets live online or even just race videos online (bet you didn't know that stuff existed). Heck, Josh and I once paid to see the NYC Marathon live online instead of waiting to see the highlights on TV. Josh and I even make predictions about who will win and stuff, and we're pretty darn good at it. In fact, he did it as part of a contest once and he did so good that he won a USATF fleece pull-over and hat. USATF = USA track & field.

There was some crazy stuff going on in the running world last week. When I was in class last week, Josh texted me to tell me that Lukas Verzbicas was rumored to have left Oregon (It has since been confirmed that he did leave). I was so excited and perplexed about the news, but I had nobody to talk to about it. I did tell some people in my class and they were like, "what? who?" I bet you're thinking the same thing right now.

This past weekend was D1 xc regionals, and oregon's men's team did not make the cut to go to nationals. Why is this big news? Because Oregon is like the most well-known running school, duh. I like to think that everyone knows about Oregon's track team, Coach Bill Bowerman, and Steve Prefontaine but I know that's probably not true.

Everyone knows who Steve Prefontaine is, right? Well, if you don't know who he is then you probably know his famous quote, "To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift." How about Bill Bowerman?! No?! He's the co-founder of Nike Inc. and he's probably most famous for using his wife's waffle iron to create a new sole for some shoes.

Well, even if you don't know these dudes, everyone knows Usain Bolt. But there are SOOOOO many more runners and track athletes out there than just Usain Bolt. How about Yohan Blake? Ryan Hall? Geoffrey Mutai? Trey Hardee? Shalane Flanagan? Queen Harrison? Paula Radcliffe? Do you know anybody other than Usain Bolt?!

I'll take track and cross country over football, basketball, and any other sport any day of the week. Did you know that track and field has their own "Heisman Trophy" so to speak? Yeah! It's called the Bowerman award after Bill Bowerman. I bet you've never heard of it.

Now, I have plenty of friends who are runners, but I can't even talk to them about stuff like this because they would have no idea what I was talking about. In fact, I think I scare some of my friends when it comes to running stuff....I don't mean to, it just happens. Luckily, I have Josh to share my running nerdiness with.

The 2 biggest websites for running nerds like myself are letsrun.com and flotrack.org. I know I mentioned flotrack earlier...I'm not even that big of a run junkie as compared to some people....

4 days until my marathon & D2 xc nationals....and 6 days until D1 xc nationals!! WOOO!