Last week, LVC cross country head coach James O'Brien '07 had the opportunity to travel to Washington state to participate in the Brooks ID Camp, a clinic for distance runners. Here, James shares his experience of the final day at this incredible camp.


This was our last full day in Washington. This morning my roommate and I explored a beautiful trail that eventually brought us about 6,000 feet above sea level. In general you’re supposed to significantly feel the altitude affect your aerobic capacity when you run at altitude, but I’ve honestly not noticed much since we’ve come up here. We hit about nine miles this morning and the trail we ran on was absolutely gorgeous. We came across some snow during the later stages of our run which is always interesting to see in June no matter where you are. The trail was very soft and had a few mountainside streams running down it which kept it interesting.  

The majority of the focus today was spent on focus groups that revolved around Brooks footwear for the next few seasons. It was incredible to see their 2009, 2010 lineup before they’re officially released to the public. One of Brooks' goals over the next few years is to make more competitive track spikes as they’ve primarily been geared towards making road racing shoes for the most part.  About 10 of us, the ones who have more of a connection with the sport of track and field, were selected to meet with their lead designer to give him some input. Their lead designer used to work for Nike and has designed some of Nike’s most famous spikes, including the Kennedys, Eldorats and Motumbas.

Around 3 p.m. I joined a few of the younger guys and we went out for another 54 minutes, totaling only about seven miles due to the steep hill that made up the second half of the run. My quads are a little sore as I’m not used to running on this type of an incline and my Achilles is a little tight, as well, but I hit 89 miles for the week which felt great on the whole.

In the evening we went up the adjacent ski lift to the top of the mountain to eat at the restaurant up there.  It was only 29 degrees on the ride up there and I certainly wasn’t dressed for it to say the least. There wasn’t much else scheduled for the evening so my roommate and a few other guys took that as an opportunity to do some research on the internet to see which camp members where lying about their times. In general, when you go to a new place people have a tendency to embellish things about themselves and maybe I’m just crazy but I enjoy being able to know who is truthful and who isn’t.

That pretty much wraps up my experience out in Washington.  I don’t think anyone particularly cares about my plane ride as it was rather uneventful aside from the rude lady that sat next to me who kept draping her jacket across my lap and taking up my space, but that’s another story. Thanks for reading and be sure to look out for LVC XC in the fall!            
 

Last week, LVC cross country head coach James O'Brien '07 had the opportunity to travel to Washington state to participate in the Brooks ID Camp, a clinic for distance runners. Here, James shares his experience of the second day at this incredible camp. Check back on Tuesday for the conclusion!

Day two began bright and early with a run at 7 a.m. Now, where we are located is roughly 4,500 feet above sea level, so the effects of training at altitude begin to become prevalent, although they are much stronger in the 5,000- to 6,000-foot range. Either way I’m grateful that I’m in moderately good fitness coming into this weekend as our run this morning was quite challenging. After a two-mile descent down the mountainside, we made an abrupt right turn onto a narrow path that was as steep as you could imagine, with hairpin turns every hundred couple of feet. We proceeded to run up this trail for roughly three miles, and a separate trail back to the main lodge. Totaled roughly 9.5 miles in the 67 minutes we spent out there.

Today was spent mostly on product forecasting and we were given a preview of Brooks upcoming product lines for the 2009, 2010, and 2011 seasons. Many of the products were still in there trial runs but I believe that they’re really going to turn some heads when they come out as the stuff was simply amazing.  Sorry I cannot really delve into too much detail as I wouldn’t want the info to leak onto the internet and into the wrong hands, but I’m personally excited for when these products hit the market. They were seeking a lot of our feedback on some of the items.  One of the better innovations, in my opinion, is how they use a silver ionic compound which helps to distribute heat evenly throughout a particular piece of clothing. So if you were out running on a very hot day and the sun was hitting you straight on, this shirt would take the absorbed heat and spread it out evenly throughout the entirety of the shirt, thus leaving you much cooler and balanced on the whole.

Later, we headed out for our second and shorter run of the day, where I only hit about 4.5 miles. I ran with just a small group of four and one of the athletes was the sixth-fastest American at the Boston marathon only two years back, so I was with semi-elite company. We’ve had some cold rain and fog roll in which isn’t too much fun, especially when you’ve packed for the supposed 60 to 70 degree nice weather that was anticipated.  The pace was friendly which was welcomed after the massive amount of hills that we ran earlier in the day. Shortly after they had massage therapists on hand to give us deep tissue massages. Assuming most of you have not had a deep tissue massage, if they really work you it can be one of the most painful things you can experience. I’d take a two hour long run any day! However, these can be extremely beneficial in the injury prevention process and my lower back (which I’ve had some problems with) feels like a million bucks at the moment.  

We finished the night off with some group activities and a “Nightlife” party, named after their gear of nighttime running product. Keith Hanson, who coached Brian Sell to a spot on our Olympic marathon squad, was on hand for that and it is nice to see so many elite coaches and athletes who are also very down to earth and approachable human beings as well.

Last week, LVC cross country head coach James O'Brien '07 had the opportunity to travel to Washington state to participate in the Brooks ID Camp, a clinic for distance runners. Here, James shares his experience at this incredible camp. Check back next week for the conclusion!
 

As a preface to the blog entries that I’ll be posting over the next few days about my time at the Brooks Inspire Daily camp in Mt. Rainier, Washington, I should probably begin with a little background about myself.  I am the head cross country coach at LVC and I also serve as an assistant coach for the track & field program, working primarily with the distance runners.  I am also an avid distance runner hoping to reignite my competitive career this fall as I run my first half-marathon on September 20th in Philadelphia. 

When, a few months ago, I was invited out to this camp, my dilemma became quite clear. Should I travel to the other side of the country, meet some Olympic-level coaches and athletes, explore the beautiful terrain of Mt. Rainier on foot and be lavished with tons of free food, gear, and athletic massages at the cost of nothing, or should I remain in good old Annville to the tedium of an empty gym that comes along with the summer and the lack of student presence on campus?  I think my choice was quite clear.

 

The Brooks ID Program is made up of over 1,200 members who are active in their running communities and share a passion for the Brooks brand.  The ID program is a grassroots movement that utilizes its members to inspire people to run and be active.  The majority of the members are athletes that love the sport, some of the members are coaches, and I happen to be both.  I firmly believe in the lessons that my sport can teach to its respective participants and as such am proud to be a member of such a program.  

Day 1 started at the ripe hour of 2:30 AM with a trip to Newark International Airport.  I arrived at the Seattle-Tacoma Airport at 11 AM Pacific Time and from there we were shuttled to Brooks Headquarters, which is about 10 miles north of Seattle.  The age range of the people range from my age (23) all the way up to 50’s and includes some stud athletes, including some women who recently competed in the Olympic Trials.  Over 30 states are represented, which makes for a pretty eclectic group. One of the best things about going to a camp hosted by a running company for runners, is that the running is built into the schedule and you do not have to make time, which is often the case on normal trips or vacations, to squeeze your run in.  It’s nice to be amongst other crazy people like myself.  Today was a simple out and back run where we went out for 30 minutes at roughly 6:30 per mile pace, and came back in 26:30, so we were running sub 6 minutes miles for a good chunk on the way back.  I didn’t mind the quicker pace as I knew it would be the only run for the day.

Next on tap was the tour of the headquarters, which was amazing for a few different reasons.  The first reason was that the place was geeked out with running apparel, shoes, huge posters, etc.  Secondly, it was a lot smaller than I had expected it to be which makes the prominence of their product that much more impressive in that they must have a core of very hard working and dedicated individuals in order to accomplish what they accomplish.  Of particular note was being able to see the wear testing machines, where they simulate hundreds of miles worth of wear on shoes to see how they will hold up without actually using people for their first wave of product testing.

After the tour, we traveled an hour north to Mt. Rainier where our actual camp was to be held.  We checked into our rooms and I was paired with another individual who ran D-III cross country and track & field and competed at nationals in the steeplechase, boasting a personal best of 9:06.  In our rooms was a welcome bag which included a whole bunch of free Brooks gear, and free stuff is never a bad thing!  The actual hotel we are staying at is a ski resort in the winter time, so it’s not nearly as busy this time of the year.  We’re up fairly high at 4,500 feet above sea level, and the entire place is surrounded by massive evergreen trees which offers a breathtaking view.

The night ended with a lecture from Scott Jurek, a Brooks sponsored athlete who is one of the best Ultra-runners in the world.  Ultra-running is defined as any race that is longer than 50 kilometers (roughly 31 miles).  Scott has won the Western States Endurance Run 7 times, which is a 100 mile race in the Sierra Nevada.  I, personally, have mixed feelings on the whole concept of ultra-running, but the distances that these individuals run in one go is something to be respected in the very least.