The Terminal Mile: Recent Episodes
The Terminal Mile
A podcast for Canadian Runners featuring interviews from experts, coaches and athletes! Catch a new episode every week.
You want action? Drama? Well, you’ve got it. Pre-Olympic team selection storylines are running at a fever pitch right now, with multiple events currently boasting more qualified athletes than spots. One of my favorites right now is the men’s 5,000...and keep in mind, by the time you listen to this, everything could have changed, but right now you have 3 athletes with the qualifying time standard in Moh Ahmed and his 12:58 leading the charge of Justyn Knight and Matt Hughes. Now Hughes is likely to focus on the steeple, meaning there is still a spot open, and right now you have the next fastest runner with quota, Ben Flanagan, as well as the slightly slower, but higher ranked Keiran Lumb...now to make things extra spicy, between the two of them time wise, there the currently out of rankings Luc Bruchet, and still a bit of time before a team is announced, with fast European, domestic and American races on the table, as well as a huge points opportunity at the national championships. What we’re about to watch is strategy, guesswork and a lot of pure guts racing, and as an athletics fan, I’m here for it. In that vein, we’re joined by one of those runners in contention, Ben FLanagan, Boston Reebok TC, 2018 NCAA 10,000m CHamp joins us to chat learning the secrets of the 5k, a look to a longer future, alternate universes where he isn’t the NCAA champion, and a sneak peak at the inner workings of teammate Justyn Knights season.
Matt Hughes, you probably know the accolades by now, National Record Holder in the steeple with an 8:11, multiple time world championship finalist, Pan Am gold medalist, Olympic finalist, 2x NCAA Champion. In 2019 he made a bold move, he left the biggest track and field group in the world of his own accord. Citing the reason that he had fallen out of love with the sport, he picked up, moved to Toronto and started training with Dave Reid, and a mix of blue collar runners, like Kyle Wyatt and Paddy Birch. Things appear to be working for him, as he’s since run PBs in the 5, an indoor 13:13, and the 15. Matt’s picking up and getting ready to make a big splash at the Tokyo games this year with a run of races and a stint at altitude in Europe, and we caught him just hours before he took off.
Director Paul Kemp’s film Nike’s Big Bet: Alberto Salazar and the Fine Line of Sport premiered at this year’s Hot Docs Film Festival and has been catching the eyes of running fans. In the Film, Kemp takes a look at the good and the bad of Alberto Salzar’s work with the Nike Oregon Project, with focus on Salzar’s Doping violation suspension, Mary Cain’s New York Times piece on her time with the Project, and oddly enough, super shoes. Joined by the silver medalist at the 1997 ITU World Duathlon Championships, and a CCAA Cross Country Coach of the year who saw the Fanshawe Falcons Cross Country teams to a great amount of perennial success, John Loney, we review the film and discuss the good and the bad, as well as how it stacks up against the gold standard of running films, Without Limits.
Sergio Ráez Villanueva, or simply Sergio as he’s known by many, really came into the consciousness of the running nation when as a student at McMaster he won the 2018 10,000m Canadian Championship in an all out sprint finish, qualifying him for the NACAC games. But shortly after the Peruvian-born Canadian ran at those NACAC games, he all but disappeared, with only a few out of character races sprinkled in. Flash forward to last month though, and out of nowhere, word came that Sergio had run an unofficial 63:57 debut half marathon time trial, with next to no taper or specific training. Of course, we had to follow up, and that’s what we do on this week’s episode
So let’s say you have this dream of making it to the Olympic Games, but it's been months since you’ve raced, and with the world shut down, there's not a whole lot going on in your neighborhood. So what do you do? Well, if you’re Julie-Anne Staehli, you hop the border, relocate to New Mexico with fellow hopeful Charlotte Prouse, toe the line with an absolute legend of the sport, get a national record, a couple new PBs, and find yourself in a better place than when you left in the hunt for a ticket to Tokyo 2021. This week Julie-Anne tells us that story.
You don’t get to be a 7x All American in the 800 without a ton of consistency; years and years of injury free training and properly executed racing strategy. What happens when that consistency gets interrupted though? Robert Heppenstall found out when he tackled his first real injury as an athlete, keeping him on the sidelines for nearly 2 years. Robert is back though, soloing a 2:24 1,000m a couple weeks ago, and he’s recently moved stateside from his hometown Hamilton to join the District Track Club as an Under Armour athlete. This is a pivotal time for Robert, not only coming back from an injury but making the transition from collegiate to pro athlete, and this week, we talk about all those things.
With Eric Gillis and Jerome Drayton selected in Pt. 1, it's time to pick the second half of our Canadian Marathoner's Rushmore. For this task we brought in 10th fastest Canadian marathoner and runner up at the 2019 Olympic Trials, Emily Setlack. Who fills out Rushmore? Is it Marchant? Ruegger? Elmore?
Youtube channel link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4RfDsxVKIZA1_UsZ233Img
For years Natasha has been seen as someone who found their stride in the 10,000; making 3 World Championship teams, winning Pan Am gold in 2019 and owning the national event record since 2015. That's why it came as a bit of a surprise that when the start list for last December’s Marathon Project came out, Wodak’s name was on that list. Nevertheless, when December rolled around, Wodak showed up in Arizona and knocked nearly 9 minutes off her only other attempt at the event, running 2:26:19; good enough for 5th and the second fastest Canadian Marathon of all time,far surpassing the Olympic qualifying time. We caught up with Natasha earlier this week and it was all on the table, including growth as an athlete and a human being and what the future for Natasha might hold.
Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4RfDsxVKIZA1_UsZ233Img
Who deserves a spot on the Canadian Marathoner's Mt. Rushmore? Is it the dominant Jerome Drayton? The legendary Tom Longboat? The fastest man at the distance, Cam Levins? Or the consistent, and clutch performer, Eric Gillis? On this week's show the boys narrow a short list of 6 of the greatest of all time down to 2 men with the help of 2x Olympic Marathoner, @reidcoolsaet , in this first part of 2 episodes to determine who makes the Canadian Marathoner's Mt. Rushmore. Did the boys get it right?
13:22. The time of the 10th fastest 5,000m all-time by a Canadian, and 2nd fastest by a Quebecois. Even with 2020 being a dessert for track racing, Charles Philibert, coached by his collegiate coach Felix Lapointe and sponsored by Asics, ran an impressive 5,000m that sets him up nicely for a fast 2021, and we caught up with him on this week's show!
Last time Kinsey Middleton was on the show, she had just made one of the biggest introductions you could make in this sport. In her debut marathon, she became the 2018 Canadian Marathon Champion at the Scotia Toronto Waterfront Marathon, with a notable 2:32:09. With a monster debut like that, people noticed, and expectations were high, not just from the fans of the sport, but from Kinsey herself. Now what happened next is what happens in all of our lives: highs and lows. Kinsey returned to Toronto in 2019, and things didn’t go as well, and while she did PB earlier this year in the half marathon with a time of 71:48, she was laid up for a time, recovering from an overdue shoulder surgery. Kinsey is back now, running big miles, taking out huge workouts, and she now has her eyes on the start line of the stacked Marathon Project, running with ambitious time goals next month, December 20th, in Arizona.
Canadian 10km champ, member of the held back Canadian World Championship Half Marathon team, and now looking to make his debut in the marathon in one of the remaining races of the year at the Marathon Project this December; 2020 has been weird for us all, and Justin Kent is no exception. The Mile2Marathon coach joins us on this week's show to talk about this and a whole lot more!
Listen to other episodes here: https://sites.google.com/view/termina...
Running an Olympic qualifying marathon time and personal best in front of no live crowds, while being paced by 4 time Olympic Champion Mo Farah is not an experience many will ever have. Tristan Woodfine did just that at the 2020 London Marathon on their 2.1km loop this past weekend, running a 2:10:51 to become the second Canadian to run the men's qualifying standard for the 2021 Olympic Games. We caught up with him earlier this week, back home in the Ottawa Valley and early into his quarantine.
Listen to other episodes here: https://sites.google.com/view/terminal-mile-link-tree/home
What can’t be said about Cam Levins at this point??? Canadian marathon record holder, Olympian, NCAA Champion...even his training is a part of our sports folklore as rumours of monster mileage dominated early conversations during his time at Southern Utah. Recently Cam, a Hoka One One and Polar athlete coached by 2 time Canadian Marathon champion Jim Finlayson, has captured our attention once again, posting larger than life workouts on his Strava account, including a solo 62:12 half marathon time trial. What both we, and he didn’t know when he ran that was he would then get a spot onto the line of what is being billed as the greatest marathon of all time, the London Marathon happening October 4th with a select small field including the much talked about battle of the best, Bekele vs. Kipchoge. Yes, Cam will be able to qualify for an Olympic spot in this race, but with his training, experience and goals, that becomes a smaller sub plot, as we’ll watch to see just what Cam is truly capable of on that day.
When I started this podcast years ago, it was to talk with runners and quench a curiosity for information from the best in the country.As a running fan I had questions that weren’t being answered, and I knew I wasn’t alone. After taking an extended break this year, I found myself with questions again. Friend of the show Farah Abdulkarim absolutely killed it at the Music City Distance Carnival 5,000, setting a meet record, kicking down Ben Flanagan for a PB of 13:37, and the Ole Miss, Ottawa Lion was repping a new group on his singlet, Wesfly athletics, with some truly unique, revealing and entertaining Youtube content to boot. So, I dusted off the old microphone, and had an insightful conversation with Farah, one where he talks about the ups and downs, his future in the sport, Tokyo 2021, being a student of the sport, and who he watches and looks up to. Truthfully, this one is for everyone training hard, looking for results in this great sport. Farah’s got the cool confidence of someone who is destined to do great things, and this is just the beginning, but for now, here he is in September of 2020, just after watching the Brussels Diamond League world records .
This week we chat with the National Cross Country Men's title holders, London's Backroads Bandits.
For fans of the sport, the name Becky Pieterson has probably been on your radar for a while. Starting out as Fanshawe Falcon in the CCAA, the team was at the height of their dominance, and she was a huge reason for that, finishing top 5 at 2 CCAA cross country championships. From there she went to the Mustangs where she was a consistent cross country team member, and turned out some great performances during the indoor season as well. Since graduating you can find Becky running twilights across South Western Ontario, and you can often catch her making an appearance at nationals. While primarily known as a miler, it was a bit of a surprise to see her on the elite list for this year’s Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon, especially after setting a PB in the 800, so this week we caught up with Becky to talk marathon training, why she’s running, and balancing the shift work of being a nurse, with continuing to chase running goals.
You may know Kyle Grieve as being a member of that killer Gueloh Gryphon cross country team a couple years back...a team by my estimation that may be the greatest ever to ever run in the Canadian league, dominating podiums for years. Hendrix, Proudfoot, Nixon, Woodfine, Sikubwabu, anyways, if you followed that, then you probably also noticed that for a little while after graduation, Kyles results disappeared, he wasn’t running any races. From that point, to clawing his way back into fitness, to running a 14:10 5,000 this summer, Kyle’s story is a good one, and exemplifies the struggle of an athlete continuing to strive for greatness outside of the collegiate setting. This week, Kyle joins us to talk about that and more.
Paddy Birch is an unusual case when it comes to distance running.Not too many 4 hour plus debut marathoners go on to later run 2:25s...even fewer run that within the first year they first cross the 100km a week threshold. Paddy, with roots in football, or soccer, if you will, has had quite a bit of success in quite a short amount of time, with the latest mark coming at last weeks Rock and Roll Philly Half, where the Irish born, and Toronto residing runner laid down a new PB of 68:37 on a very humid day. As he moves toward the Scotia Toronto Waterfront Marathon in a few weeks, we chat with Paddy about taking advice from the best, getting good, fast, and a whole lot more.
This past week, the Candian contingent of athletes heading to Doha for the World Championships was announced, and among those selected, there were quite a few familiar names. One of those athletes, Maria Bernard Galea, will be representing Canada for a second time at a World Track and Field Championships, and has an Olympic appearance to her name at just age 26. Maria is a steepler, by far one of the deepest events right now in Canada, and has had a stand out year so far, putting down a big PB of 9:36 earlier in the summer, and you can bet that peak fitness in combination with big games experience make Maria an athlete to watch. The UCAC and Saucony athlete joins us this week to chat about big races, the little things and a whole lot more.
This week on Track Wrap: -Living the diamond life in Zurich; DeBues-Stafford the first Canadian woman under 4, Alysha Newman improves another one of her records and Brandon McBride pushes late for a seasons best. -ISTAF Berlin rolls a new national record for Crew, and another sub 10 for Degrasse, -The national team announced for Doha
The story of Corey Bellemore is one unlike any other. First showing his hand as a runner to watch at the University level, running as a Windsor Lancer, it was his success as a beer miler that truly vaulted him to fame, essentially debuting as the world record holder. Throughout that time, Corey, with the help of a few sharp individuals, was able to turn that notoriety into a way to advance his race opportunities, sans alcohol, including spots at a Diamond League meet and the Millrose games. The last few years have shown Corey taking full advantage of those opportunities given, and they paid off in a big way this season when he finally dipped under the 3:40 1,500m barrier in Sweden. This week we chat with Corey about that race, switching coaches, and a whole lot more.
This week on Track Wrap: -The passing of a pioneer; Sylvia Ruegger, former Canadian marathon record holder gone at 58. -We’ll always have Paris, big results for Canucks at the latest Diamond League meet and -Results from around the world
Often times on the Terminal Mile, we shine a spotlight on athletes in their young 20s to mid 30s, living their physiologically best years chasing the top of the athletic world, but every now and again, there are other areas of our sport that really catch our eyes, and our imaginations. Michael Gill is one of those people. Beginning running in his teens, running with the notable Windsor Lancers, taking 5 years off from the sport, and eventually returning, Michael, an athlete born in 1977, has found his stride this year, capturing both the Ontario Masters 5,000, 14;44 and 10,000, 30:45 records. Michael joins us this week, and we talk about those races, what he enjoys about the sport, the legacy of Gary Malloy, twizzlers and more.
THis week on Track Wrap: -Birmingham Diamond League brings it, results from our top Canadians. -Working the circuit, journeymen and women try their hand on the euro scene, and Show down in the city of champions, the Edmonton Marathon takes to the streets.
One of the great things about distance running is that its proof that persistance pays off. While nothing is ever guaranteed, it stands to show that if you put in the work, learn from your experiences, adjust accordingly and keep showing up, you’ll be in a position to improve on past results. On this week’s show, we have two guests, both some of the most persistent athletes I know. Natasha Wodak, Canadian 10,000m record holder, and pan am gold medalist is gearing up for world champs and she joins us on this week’s show, she’s up first, and then we’re joined by Lewis Kent, it was only a few years ago he was able to take his ability to run fast and drink beer and bring the beer mile to popular culture, landing him on Ellen, TMZ and a lot more; he has a book out now called A World Champion’s Guide To The Beer Mile.
This week on Track Wrap: -The Wham! Bam! of Pan Ams, Canadians take Peru by storm. -The Hammer drops in the Steel City, 2 meets in 2 weeks light it up in Hamilton, Ontario, and Going for broke in Memphis, updates from the Ed Murphey Classic
With a 4:12.68 in borrowed spikes, Mariah Kelly netted her first national medal, a bronze in a loaded 1,500, just behind Gabriella Debuess-Stafford and Jenna Westaway, 2 international caliber athletes with top flite seasons. Mariah, a member of the Vic CIty Elite, and Athletics Canada West, as well as a New Balance supported athlete is now chasing standards, trying to nab a spot on the Doha World Championships team this fall, and we caught up with her this week in Memphis.
On Monday at the Hamilton PB Twilight, the second annual New Balance Terminal Mile Cup-Distance Medley Relay and Athletics Ontario DMR Championships will be taking place at the Mona Campbell track on the grounds of MacMaster University. As of right now there is still time to sign up, and even if you’re not racing, you’ll definitely want to go for a night of fast racing at a track known for turning personal bests. Trust me, last year was a very special night, this year will be the same. To celebrate the DMR, and it’s past in Canada, this week we’re bringing you a look at the current leading mark. 9:22.05. It was 10 years ago at the legendary Penn Relays that Canada fielded the team of Matt Lincoln, Tyler Christopher, Gary Reed and Nathan Brannen, and their mark still stands as the national record. Matt Lincoln joins us to talk about that race, his time in the sport, including a francophone games bronze medal, and moving into the role of coach.
This week on Track Wrap: -Track action in Montreal, the Canadian World Championship trials descend on the City of Saints -Paradise won, the Tely ten sees a record fall -We are one week away from the Terminal Mile Cup-Distance Medley Relay Challenge.
A quick reminder that we’re just a week and a half away from the Terminal Mile Cup- Distance Medley Relay Challenge, brought to you by New Balance, and combining with Athletics Ontario for their DMR Championships. Register your team today, last year was a celebration of fast running, with everybody getting involved in the action, and I have no doubt this year will be as well. Prizes by New Balance, the top club registered teams will be eligible for the Athletics Ontario Championships, and the fastest overall men’s and women’s teams will have their names etched into the side of the terminal mile cup. Join us on August 5th, at the Mona Campbell Track in Hamilton. Register on the Hamilton PB Twilight Trackie Reg page.
Evan Dunfee is an athlete that I am proud to have made the acquaintance of. His athletic achievements are certainly notable; multiple Canadian race walk records, a 4th place in the Rio Olympic 50km race walk, medals from an assortment of international competitions, but what really rounds out the entire person is the energy that Evan has put into different causes, including Kidsport, for who he walked 25km a day for 25 day. It is fair to say that Evan has really elevated the profile of race walking in this country, sometimes wearing his heart on his sleeve, and certainly always showing his true grit. We caught up with Evan this week before he competes at the Canadian Championships in Montreal, from there he is off to Peru to chase a win at the Pan-Am games, and rounding off his season in Doha at the World Champs.
This week on Track Wrap: The long-standing women’s 1,500m national record goes down at London Diamond League meet, Debuess-Stafford continues to re-write the record book with monster season. Degrasse dips under 10 in the 100m. Newman breaks her own National Record. Big results from Belgium; John Gay, Rachel Cliff, Erica Digby, Luc Bruchet and Justin Kent light it up.
“I don’t think I would have reached the level I did in the marathon without Eric and I being so closely lined up for all those years.”
I was chatting with Reid Coolsaet, Olympian and 3rd fastest Canadian Marathoner of all time the other day, and that’s what he had to say about his long time Speed River training partner, Eric Gillis. The two of them, both rightfully the faces of the event in this country for many years trained side by side on the back roads just outside of Guelph, Ontario, building the legend that will be fodder for running junkies for years to come. While both, each multi-time Olympians, had many memorable moments racing, the pinnacle for Eric came in 2016 at the Rio Olympics when he, in his typical style, started off in the back half of the field, picking runners one by one through the race to move from 70th to 10th. From there Eric spent another year in Guelph, but opportunity called back home in Antigonish, and from there, he took on coaching duties at his Alma Mater, St. Francis Xavier University, where he has been ever since. His results have been rare ever since, with the last high profile one coming from a start in Boston in 2018. This week on the Terminal Mile, we catch up with Eric Gillis, 3 time Olympian, 10th place in the Rio Olympic Marathon and national record holder. We also hear from other important members of Eric’s career, including Trevor Hofbauer and Alex Cyr.
This week on Track Wrap: Debues-Stafford continues to re-write the record book, coming third in the Brave Like Gabe Mile and McBride scores a seasons best at the Monaco Diamond League Meet. Nailbiters in Napoli-highlights from the Universiade in Italy and, the Sunset Series sets some Canadians up for longer seasons.
This week on Track Wrap: -Dunfee smashes his own national record, race walker shows good form in record 10,000 at the B.C Champs. -The 34 year old 3000m junior record falls in London at the hands of Brogan MacDougall, a blazing race sees some super times. -Lausanne Diamond League results galore and -NACAC U23 highlights; a new relay record on the books.
Big Performances At Prefontaine, PBs and lessons for mid-d mavericks; Ahmed, Knight and Debues-Stafford. Maple leafs to Lima, the national Pan-Am team selected for the end of July, and podium finishes in Sweden, Crew and Mitton tune up for FISU with notable throws.
Branna Macdougall has been on the radar of the collective Canadian distance running consciousness for the last half decade. Showing dominance on her own at the junior level, (she still holds the Canadian junior 5,000 record, running 15:48) and then when her younger sister Brogan showed similar ability, all eyes were focused on Kingston, seeing what could possibly be next for these girls. For Branna, it’s been an OUA championship, some solid times on the track, and most recently, being named to the national Universiade team in the 10,000. For those wondering about her current shape, Branna just added another sub-34 10,000 to her name at the Canadian Championships in British Columbia, and just this past weekend, she ran a 15:49, mostly solo, in London, Ontario. This week the young Physikult and New Balance runner joins the show to talk about that, the evolving dynamic that she has, training with her sister, and why the 10,000m isn’t more popular amongst women in Canada.
Track Wrap-June 24- Degrasse Goes Sub 20, Lepage Dominates Dec, And Fast Domestic Results by The Terminal Mile
Whether you’re just trying out your first pair of track spikes, or you’re running at the world championships, for most runners inclined that way, it all traces back to the twilight meet. These “all-comer” affairs provide the venue for testing tactics, setting personal bests and pretty much everything in between. While twilights can often be a local affair, maybe featuring clubs from a few towns over, there is one such meet in London, Ontario that has grown into something a lot more. 1,500m Night put on by London Runner, as part of the Runner’s Choice London Runner Distance Series, is, as the name suggests, an evening of strictly 1,500s, with seed times ranging from 8 minutes flat to 3:40. This year’s iteration featured over 400 runners from 4 countries and 7 provinces competing in 30 different heats, but while the stats are impressive, it's the stories that come from it that are truly memorable. Whether it be the countless tales of PBs from runners that run the range of times, or when Nicole Sifuentes looked to qualify for the 2015 World Championships with pacer Melissa Bishop, and ended up bringing a young Gabriella Stafford to her first sub-4:10 1,500 (a 4:07.44), or last years meet when the entire collective of engaged spectators got on their feet, making all sorts of noise as Corey Bellemore raced his last lap, finishing with a new PB of 3:40.1. The lore is building for this meet, which is why I felt it appropriate to bring in a couple of runners who found great success at this year’s edition. Lucia Stafford, a 4:09 1,500m runner, who has spent much of the last year bouncing back from a medical procedure, and is having one of her best seasons (as well, she is the younger sister of Olympian and national record holder Gabriella), and Isaiah Frielink, UWO standout, last year’s national junior 1,500m champ, and owner of a new 3:44 PB. Both had the fastest times at 1,500m night, and both are on the show.
This week on Track Wrap: -Van City Spectacular Sees Wodak and Flanagan Take 10,000m Championships -O’Connell and Abdulkarim find their 5k legs at The Adrian Martinez Classic -Rabat results; Degrasse on top and Debues Stafford inches closer to sub 4. -Domestic road and track results
There is no one, not even the most reckless of gamblers, in the world that would’ve put money on Nate Riech to be a world record holder. Never mind the near impossible odds we face between the numbers games and nature and nurture of it all, Nate was never supposed to be able to compete again after a golf accident left half of his body paralysed at a young age. With determination and grit, paired with time, rehab and therapy, Nate got to a point where he could compete with able bodied athletes and not only hold his own, but excel. Since leaving school, Nate has gone on to declare, and compete within the T38 category, a para category for motor impairment, cerebral palsy and traumatic brain injury, and has gone on to show just how capable he is, capturing the 800m and 1500m records in that classification. Now in 2019, Nate has improved on both of those records with strong openers 3:57.84 and 1:53.87 respectively, and is showing a lot of promise as well work our way through the season. Nate joins us to chat about para awareness, training, how he went from a situation that didn’t hold much hope, to becoming a world record holder.
This week on Track Wrap: -Rome is for the runners; records fall, personal bests are tallied at the latest Diamond League stop. -Melissa Bishop makes her return to the 800 and Alysha Newman improves her own pole vault record -We run down the medal winners at NCAA Track And Field
“Experience track and field like never before,” is what the Speed River Inferno posters say, and in my opinion, that’s true. The annual meet is a rarity these days, a club putting together a top level meet, bringing in high performance athletes, national record holders and Olympians from across this country and around the world, with a variety of events spanning from the 100, to the 1,500 with Pole Vault and high jump thrown in for good measure. A meet like this is not something you will see without either a) being there, or b) travelling a great distance, so that is why I am asking you, a track and field fan to join them at Alumni Stadium, friday June 7th at 7pm to fill the stands and watch some high level competition...but I’ve also brought backup for this task as well, Genevieve Lalonde joins me in a second to explain why Alumni Stadium is the place to be, and if you’re not going to listen to the national steeplechase record holder, Olympian and Cross Country National Champion, then who will you listen to?
This week on Track Wrap: -Aaron Brown wins Diamond League Race -Gabriella Debues-Stafford sets new Canadian record in the 5,000 -Brittany Crew bests her own Canadian shotput record -Results from St. Louis and Nashville from Lindsey Butterworth, Brandon McBride, Mike Tate and more! -Brent Lakatos sets 2 WRs and a Canadian record!
Here’s to the runners that don’t necessarily have that big break out moment. The runner’s who take a little bit off each season and show true grit and persistence, trying to maximize and squeeze every little bit out of themselves. Our guest this week, Erica Digby, mostly fits into that category, if you follow her year to year progress, it's been consistent and linear. This year has been a bit different though. Starting the year with a 5,000m PB 15:53, Erica has cut that down to 15:33 in just 3 races, with promise for more this season. We talk about what's clicked this year in the training, jumping in for pacing duties at the BC Distance Carnival, running World XC in Aarhus, and the running culture of her city, Vancouver, British Columbia.
This week on track wrap: -Wodak and Wykes whir up National Championship wins -Marathon triumph and tribulation in the streets of the nations capital, -Damian Warner wins Hypo and -NCAA Regionals and Championship, we’ve got results.
Epi. 130-#JustButter-A Chat With 800m Champion, Lindsey Butterworth by The Terminal Mile
This week: Knocking down national records in Shanghai, Lalonde shakes it up in the steeple again. Bishop is back! Melissa Bishop races for the first time in nearly 2 years, running the 1,500m in the Johnny Loaring Classic and Canadians paint the USATF Distance Classic red and white.
This week on Track Wrap: -Rallying for silver at the World Relays -10,000m madness in London as the Ontario 10,000m Champs are determined -A hot track at the Oxy invite makes for fast 800s and -NCAA Conference Champs weekend.
Cliche dictates, overnight successes rarely happen overnight...and as tired as that turn may seem, there is certainly truth to be attached to that phrase...especially when it comes to distance running, where mere seconds are often only shed after years of mileage and workouts . It’s for that reason that I’m sure many across Canada and the United States were left wondering, “who is Farah Abdulkarim, and how did he run a 28:39 10,000 at the Mt. Sac Relays?” How did he go from being a 31 minute-mid guy in his only other mark, to being one of the best in the country? This week, we hope to answer that question as the Ole Miss redshirt and runner who came up with the Ottawa Lions, Farah joins the show to talk about his breakout, what specifically got him as good as he was, and the story of how he got to the line at Mt. SAC.
This week on Track Wrap: -Sexton produces at the Prague Marathon -Payton and Portland: fast times at big American meets -Track and field says good bye to University of Windsor coach, Gary Malloy
This week on The Terminal Mile, like our guests each did a couple of years ago, we’re heading west!Julia Howley, hailing from St. John’s, Newfoundland, now attending Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, has been ripping it up in the NCAA division 2, even holding the honour of having the fastest steeple time this season for a couple of weeks, she’s on the show to talk about where her goals lie, and whether steeple fail videos are still funny, But first,Matt Travaglini, originally from London, Ontario, now making his home in Calgary, is the two time CCAA cross country champion, a Canadian mountain running champion, and now a sub-30 10k road runner.
This week on Track Wrap: Hofbauer’s marathon return in Hamburg, national record for Crew, Woodfine repeats as Montreal half champion and a relay rundown+more.
The fast times and big performances are starting to roll in from California, and it appears that by all measures that the tracks are hot this year. The Mt. SAC Relays took place last weekend, and they were no exception, with a ton of early season results rushing in, 2019 is shaping up to be a fast one. That seems especially true for our two guests this week, John Gay ran an 8:36 season opener in the 3000 steeple, and his UBC teammate Kieran Lumb blazed a quick 13:40 5,000 for a new PB.
This week on Track Wrap: Thunder on the mountain; Canadian’s leave their mark on the Hilmer Lodge Stadium at the Mt. Sac Relays, sprinters rolling towards world relays at the LSU Gold Meet, BIG MOVES at the Bryan Clay Invite and the IAAF Race Walking Challenge unpacked. Today is April 23, 2019, and this is your track and field news in under 5 minutes.
There's something big going down on the west coast. On June 13, The first Pacific Distance Carnival is set to take place at Swangard Stadium in Burnaby. The Carnival will play host to a ripping round of 1,500s, a Mile 2 Marathon chase the pace 5,000m event, with options for everyone to race and the crown jewel of the event, the Canadian 10,000m Championship races...complete with a viable record attempt. This week we chat with organizer and Olympian Chris Winter, Canadian marathon, and half marathon record holder, as well as someone who may have their eye on the 10,000m record, Rachel Cliff and from Mile 2 Marathon...you know him, Rob Watson.
Breakthroughs and debuts in the “Gateway to Europe”, the running of the Rotterdam Marathon proves it’s speedy reputation to some of the Canucks who chose to cross the pond, and with the High Park Hill killed for another year, it was some familiar faces who took the titles at the Toronto Race Roster Spring Run Off. Today is April 8th, and these are your track and field headlines.
Ben Preisner, from junior success with the Speed River Track and Field club, to exploring and pushing his boundaries finding a taste for the longer distances at the University of Tulsa (he ran 29:07 for 10,000), to just this past weekend, becoming the top scoring Senior Canadian Male at the World Cross Country Championships on a gruelling course in Denmark. We chat with Ben this week about his coming up in the sport, the extreme nature of the championship course, and what’s next for this up and comer.
This week on track wrap….
Lalonde leads Canadian cross contingent at the world championships, a strong set of relay showings from our sprinters at the Florida relays, Coolsaet cools his heels on Hamburg Marathon plans, season openers at the Stanford invite , and Dylan Wykes is back baby. Today is April 2, 2019, and these are your Canadian track headlines.
It’s a frustrating, but relatable feeling...to go into something with peak preparation, possessing all the confidence that you can pull it off just days or even moments before something unexpected happens happens, and all your best laid plans go to waste. It’s what makes sport so exciting, but also what can make them so heartbreaking. That is a story that Jack Sheffar is all too familiar with when it comes to the USport Indoor Championships...an unfortunate lap counting incident and illness have kept him from being his best, despite phenomenal seasons before, pointing to almost guaranteed medals. This year was different though, after a season that saw him beat big names and run a 7:56 3,000m, the 5th year Western Mustang knew this was it, and delivered in a big way, winning both the 1,500m and 3000m titles, and securing redemption along the way as well. This week, we chat with Jack about his season, the ghosts of seasons past, and what to expect from him going forward.
Born in Scotland, but moving to Langley, British Columbia a few years ago, initially to advance her education, it’s fair to say that Sarah Inglis has been accepted as one of ours. She first came to our attention as a fantastic USport runner for Trinity Western University, and since then she has trained and raced to notoriety, including taking the Canadian road 5km soil record last weekend in 15:29 at the St. Patrick’s 5k in Vancouver. Sarah joins us to talk about the race, keeping in touch with what’s happening back home, as well as giving us the details on her team, the Langley Mustangs.
Death, taxes and Robert Heppenstall...the three things that you can count on in life, and at the NCAA indoor championships last weekend, Wake Forest University, and Hamilton’s own, proved that point yet again, taking the bronze medal in the 800. That makes it the fourth year in a row Robert has scored points at the meet, a feat that just 2 other people have accomplished. As long as he keeps training, you have to think that Robert is going to be making some noise for Canada in the years to come, and he joins us on this week’s show.
It doesn’t seem like it was all that long ago that the group of high caliber women’s marathoners in Canada was a lot smaller. Take 2014 for example, that year saw just 3 women dip under the 2:40 mark, a time that was bested a grand total of 10 times in 2018, with a couple of debuts already this year below that time, and a third promising one to come. With the field getting stronger and stronger, it’s likely to push those who have already arrived, and those who are yet to come to utilize every tool made available to them, and to innovate and try new things to try and maximize their position. Leslie Sexton, a marathon national champion, did just that this year, making her way out west to better weather and a plethora of potential training partners on the west coast, avoiding the snow and Ice of her home in London, Ontario. Leslie joins us this week to talk about that experience, what her spring is looking like, and a whole lot more.
The Hamburg Marathon, though often overshadowed by other Spring marathons, should be in consideration for anyone looking to run fast, and make a statement. It’s where marathon world record holder, Eliud Kipchoge, made his debut back in 2013, Canadian Thomas Toth qualified for the world championships on that course, and it’s often listed as one of the fastest races in the world. Just yesterday, it was announced that marathon veteran, and all time 3rd fastest Canadian, Reid Coolsaet and 2017 Canadian marathon Champion, Trevor Hofbauer would be running the event. Reid, coming of a tough couple of years that saw injuries, and results he wants to see bested, will be taking on the race coming down from an extended altitude stay with the whole family, and Trevor will be taking only his second shot at the marathon, after a very quiet 2018. We got them both on the line this week, and what you’re about to hear is some candid chat about motives, mentors and just about everything you need to know about these two runners.
Olympian, Pan-Am and NACAC bronze medalist, 3:34 1,500m and 3:54 miler...take your pick, those all sound like descriptors that we’d all like. And though he check all of those boxes, when I think of Charles Philibert-Thiboutot, those things aren’t even the first to come to mind, I think more of a gutsy racer, not afraid to take control of a race, an adventurous runner constantly pushing to be the best, not just in his home of Quebec, in Canada, but the world. Charles is not only a top tier racer, but a Canadian track and field advocate...it’s my belief that competitive running in this country is better off because of him. Whether it’s gathering together friends to build top level fields in local events, or keeping in contact and cheering on some of our most promising athletes. This week, I’m happy to say we have C.P.T back with us...we chat about everything from building a better domestic race scene, patience in recovery, strength building, altitude, everything you could possibly want to know about him….oh yeah, we also hear about a planned race debut as well!
Link to video: https://www.trackie.com/track-and-field/TrackieTV/asics-72-hours/7597/
On this week’s show, we’re casting our gaze a little bigger...not so much “running as a personal trial,” but to “running as a representative for your country”. Up first, Jess O’Connell, she just ran a new national record, a 8:46 in the indoor 3,000m at the Millrose Games, we caught her just before she heads off to represent Canada at NACAC Cross Country, and coming up a little bit later, Blake Haney, he’s the Oregon 5th year and dual citizen who recently pursued the process to switch allegiances for international competition, from the United States, for who he competed at the Pan Am Junior games for, to Canada.
Marco Arop, a man who goes to Mississippi State and calls Edmonton home, has done so much, in such little time. Last year he placed 2nd at NCAAs, won a national championship, upsetting powerhouse Brandon McBride in the process, and finally capped off a great season taking silver at the NACAC games, all in the 800m. Marco joins us this week to talk about his season so far, his big break out year last year, what recovery means to him, and what to expect from him going forward.
The Houston Marathon and Half Marathon have a lot going for them. January in Texas usually yields some pretty favorable weather, the course was plotted with speedy times in mind, and the fact that it brings in some of the best North American and worldwide talent doesn’t hurt as well. It’s no wonder that countless Canadians over the years have made the pilgrimage to the lower half of Texas to chase new personal bests and standards alike. This year was no different, with Evan Esselink and Natasha Wodak having the best races in the half of the Canadian contingent. On this week’s show though, we’re going to focus on the top Canadians doing the 42.2km race, setting the standard early for the type of year we’ll hopefully have in the event. Malindi Elmore, 2004 Olympian in the 1,500, turned mother, triathlete, coach and now marathoner joins us to talk about her debut in the event this past weekend, running 2:32:15, and later in the show, Tristan Woodfine lowered his marathon personal best to a 2:15:19, a time that will most definitely open up some opportunities for the young runner, nothing is off the table in this rare interview with him.
The title of last week’s show was Alberta’s Most Valuable Export, Rory Linkletter...well forgive us now, because we obviously skipped over another runner who could vie for that title, a runner who was the 2017 Sr. Women’s National XC Champion, a member of the team racing at the 2019 World XC Championship, and someone who is currently attending medical school in Edmonton. Claire Sumner, joins us on the show this week to talk about finding familiarity in unexpected places, making the move across the country from Queens to Edmonton, getting her coaching online as a Physi Kult member and hopefully lowering her half marathon PB in Houston this weekend.
2018 has been a bit of a banner year for us around here at the Terminal Mile. If you’ll indulge us for a second, this year saw us grow our audience by nearly 10,000 listens over the space of the year, I was there and got to participate in 3 national championships, we launched the Terminal Mile Cup, a distance medley relay event that saw some good friends of the show race for some trophies, we put our Something In The Water series, a look at the Speed River and University of Guelph teams, to air via the very exciting Citius Mag, and we celebrated episode 100. All this while covering the here and now of Canadian distance running, Cam Levins with the Canadian marathon record, Rachel Cliff with the half marathon record and an incredible debut in Berlin, Matt Hughes really returning to form in the Steeplechase, and countless other incredible accomplishments. So, here we are, at the end of 2018, wondering where we can go from here...as you’ve probably noticed, the frequency of the podcast has gone up...as for other changes, they’re likely to be coming in the following weeks as well...right now though, let’s look at this week’s episode: this week we’re taking a look back at the year that was with a little bit of help from our friends. Adam Stacey, founder of trackie,ca, Alex Cyr, author of Runner’s of The Nish, Jeff Costen, you know him as our in house run pundit and a national marathon championship bronze medalist and we’ll even here from Steve Boyd as they recount their favorite interviews from the year, which we will play parts of for you.
On this week’s episode, we chat with two distance runners who each started something new this year, and surpassed all expectations with quiet confidence. Rachel Cliff made her debut in the marathon in Berlin, and dropped one of the fastest Canadian marathon times ever, a 2:28:53...that coming off of a year that saw her PB in the 10, and set a national record in the half marathon. So, what could be next for her? Also, Ehab El-Sandali, multiple time national junior cross champion, took his first shot at the senior national XC race, and came in an impressive 4th in a stacked and loaded field. He’s up first!
Episode 108-The Mud, The Track And The Waffles With Charlotte Prouse And Evan Esselink by The Terminal Mile
Dylan Wykes, he’s a 2012 Olympian, 4th fastest Canadian Marathoner of all time from Kingston, later went to Vancouver for quite a while, training with the BC Endurance Project and moved to Ottawa earlier this year. He’s the coach and a co-founder of the Mile 2 Marathon group, a team that has rethought and changed up the idea of running as a social activity, to build in a serious performance element. He may or may not be winding down a career that has inspired many, one very highly nationally ranked marathoner comes to mind, but he still has a ton to talk about...and that’s what we do on this episode. Dylan Wykes is the guest on this week’s show and we’ll talk about returning to Kingston to run the cross country nationals, the competitive mindset, the California International Marathon, which he won 8 years ago, the freshly awarded national 10,000m championship coming to Vancouver, Mile 2 marathon, and a whole lot more.
Last Saturday, the 24th, the Fort Henry course in Kingston Ontario played host to the 2018 Canadian Cross Country Championships.The event brought in record participation numbers, as well as a large crowd of spectators, but it was the actual racing that I think people will remember the most. On this week’s show, we’ll tell the story of the senior races from the point of view of two of the runners who spent some time at the front; Genevieve Lalonde, the winner of the women’s race, Canadian steeplechase record holder and Olympian joins us later in the show, but first, Mike Tate, second place finisher this year in the men’s race after moving from Utah to his new home in Guelph, Ontario, training with the Speed River group.
Epi. 105-(XC)Championship Szn ft. USport Champs: Brogan MacDougall & Connor Black+ RD Clive Morgan by The Terminal Mile
Sometimes the time just gets away from you...you’ll see a performance that moves and inspires you, but due to scheduling and yada, yada, next thing you know it’s months later. Well, here we are in November, and I’m incredibly pleased to talk with two amazing athletes who lit it up this year, and definitely left a mark on this sport. On this week’s show, we chat with Matt Hughes, theOlympian, Bowerman Bro, two time NCAA champion and Canadian steeplechase record holder had a stand out year that saw him come within a second of his own record, and a thriller at the commonwealth games, we discuss living in the great white north, lowering some PBs, and the timing of cross country trials, but first, Lyndsay Tessier, not only the Canadian Master’s record holder in the marathon, but also the second fastest time by a Canadian this year, and one of the fastest of all time!
2:10:09. It’s a number that has seemed to get bigger with each of the 43 passing years, and every talented, hardworking runner to taking aim at it. Every year there would be renewed buzz...maybe this is the year it happens. Well, here we are, that 2:10:09 has been knocked down to 2:09:25, Fukuoka turned to Toronto Waterfront and where we used to see the name Jerome Drayton, we now see one Cameron Levins. While for many years, this just seemed like an inevitability, Cam’s story is not just made up of a British Columbian who ran big mileage and did well in college, it’s a tale of setbacks and comebacks, falling down and the persistence needed to get back up. On this week’s show, we chat with Cam Levin’s the new Canadian Marathon record holder. We also chat with Alan Brookes, the race director of the Scotia Toronto Waterfront Marathon, and he’ll offer his perspective on the day’s events.
I know it’s been said before, but it feels like this sport is moving at a break neck speed.Since last episode, the Canadian marathon record fell (congratulations Cam Levins), both Canadian marathon championship titles were taken by two debutants, plus about a thousand other notable storylines from Scotia Toronto Waterfront marathon...but also since the last time we spoke, one of the greatest Canadian mid-distance runners ever retired from the sport. On this week’s show we chat with 1,500m specialist Nicole Sifuentes, hanging up the spikes after any illustrious career that saw her medal at the world indoor champs, pan am games, continental cup, winning a couple of national championships, and garnering a national record, but first, Kinsey middleton,at just 25 years old, she ran her debut marathon at the scotiabank toronto waterfront marathon last weekend, running 2:32:09, capturing the Canadian national championship along the way. We’ll also hear from some of Nicoles’ True Blue Elite teammates, Jaimie Phelan, Jamie Morrissey and Becca Addison...don’t go anywhere…
Talking with Evan Dunfee off the record, a guest on this week’s show, we both agreed that we’re in the middle of an embarrassment of riches in the running world. So many great performances, athletes doing amazing things, we have barely enough time to cover all of the action. Of course, we’re going to try to, but all around, it’s a pretty good problem to have. On this week’s show, as previously mentioned, Evan Dunfee, the 2016 Olympic 50km 4th place race walker, walking 25km a day for 25 days for Kidsport. He talks about the cause, his value as an athlete and a lot more! Also, we’ll chat with Eric Bang, he ran a new personal best in the Chicago Marathon, a scorching 2:19:03, we’ll check in with him to talk about the Toronto running scene, self belief, and the best laid running plans.
For more information on Evan’s walk for Kidsport, go to Dunfeewalks.com.
Here we are, the 100th episode of the Terminal Mile! On this week’s show we’re joined by a couple of very special guests: Alex Cyr wrote an incredibly revealing look into the inner workings of his old team, the St. FX X-Men...it’s called Runners Of The Nish, and it highlights a complete cross country season both on and off the course, I couldn’t stop reading this book, up first though, the running pundit whose been with us since day one, Jeff Costen joins us to talk about the past 100 episodes, and what to expect in athletics going forward in the time frame of the next 100.
Visit RunnersOfTheNish.com for details on how to get the book!
I think if someone wanted to see the examples of the ups and downs that come with a pro track career, I’d point them in the direction of Luc Bruchet. Luc, has seen missed standards, injuries and the frustrations that come with the cut throat nature of high performance, he’s also seen clutch performances when they matter most, a national championship last fall at fort henry, and a trip to the Olympics in 2016. This week, we chat with Luc Bruchet about adaptation, hard work and a whole lot more.
Regan Yee has had a killer year, debuting in the 5000 with a 15:36, taking the runner up position in the National Steeplechase championship, and running a time later in the summer in that event (9:37)that’s good enough to make her the 3rd fast woman in Canada to run the steeplechase. All that coming on the heels of a mixed up time for her group this past spring, and the chaos of leaving collegiate sport. We talk about all those things on this week’s episode.
NACACs are over, The Terminal Mile Cups have been handed out, athletes are either resting up, or starting their cross country build. This is a time for reflection, and for the really good ones, a time to take stock of what they earned, and what they can carry with them. On this week’s show, we take a look back at Steph Aldea’s season that was, from making the national 1500m finals, to winning London’s 1,500m night, it’s been a standout for this University of Windsor Athletics Club runner. First, Kris Mychasiw, you may know him for helping to bring Lewis Kent, CPT and Corey Bellemore to prominence, he’s on this week’s show to talk athlete development, marketing and the state of North American meets. There’s no punches pulled, there’s a lot of knowledge dropped, and I highly suggest this as a listen for athlete’s looking to make it.
This is coming at you at an unusual time because on Monday, August 6th we’re running the inaugural Terminal Mile Cup in Hamilton, Ontario on the grounds of Mcmaster University as part of the Harbour Track Twilight. We’re taking the podcast to the track, in a winner takes all Distance Medley Relay race. We’ve got some cool trophies, New Balance Canada is playing a big part, offering prizing for the first open male and open female teams in the “New Balance Canada Open Challenge”...all in all we’re hoping for good times, fast races, and a tradition we can bring forward, and call our own. On this episode we’ll chat with two of our fastest runners signed up, Corey Bellemore and Nick Falk. Corey has had a huge year, going oh so close to going sub 3:40 in the 1,500, toeing the line in a diamond league race, medalling on the national level, and his training partner, Nick, a miler who has had a ton of success in cross country, including repping Canada on occasion in that event, that’s coming up in a second. Before we start, big thanks to Harbour Track, Trackie and New Balance Canada for their support of this event, and of course, big thanks to all of you for making this possible.
On this week’s show, we chat with two runners that have taken the road less travelled. Seth Marcaccio, marathoner, ultramarathoner, mountain runner, and maybe future 800m specialist joins us to chat about winning a 50 mile ultra that served at the USATF championship, but first Ethan Davenport has continued to train and grind out his spot in the Canadian middle distance scene, as a coach and as middle distance runner, he was also the Ontario Runners @ontariorunners on instagram runner of the week, and he joins the show first.
You know, sometimes the best things come along when you least expect them….which is funny, because maybe we should expect them. Truthfully, behind every lucky break is a lot of hours spent on the track and roads, coupled with an unbreakable persistance to cut through, and rise above past performances. That’s the story of one of our guests today, Katelyn Ayers. The Canadian 1500m bronze medalist talks with us about jumping into hot races last minute, and running away with a PB and a confidence boost, as well, we’ll chat with Paula Schnurr about what’s cooking with the Hamilton Twilight Series this year, and we’ll close out the show with a big announcement of our own.
When it comes to collegiate athletics, the NCAA stands alone. Attracting the best from around the world with the promise of top flight competition, subsidised education, and a captive, established audience. With the depth of the fields as they are right now, no one can fake their way to NCAA championships, with weeks of tough racing in the run up. Just to have made it to Eugene this year, meant you had to be the best of the best. On this week’s show, we chat with two people that stand out in that exclusive crowd, Ben Flanagan, hailing from the K-W-C is the 2018 10,000m champion, representing the block M of Michigan, we’ll chat about keeping his cool in the heat of the big race, the post race hype and a lot more, but first Charlotte Prouse, the silver medalist in the steeple from London talks about speaking out, staying healthy, and the steepler’s guide to the perfect insta pic.
With the final details being taken care of, I can tell you: we’re in for a treat this Wednesday. The Speed River Inferno and Canadian 10,000m championships, with the high performance sections kicking off at 7 o’clock at Alumni stadium, features guys like Nick Willis, Anthony Romaniw, Genevieve Lalonde, Kate Van Buskirk, Corey Bellemore and way more, including 11 Olympians. I know you’re a track fan, that’s why you’re listening, so I really can’t stress enough how important it is for us as a community to come and support meets like this. Anyway on this week’s bonus episode, we’ll catch up with two bahds of the show, Anthony Romaniw and Genevieve Lalonde. As well, if you listen close, you’ll catch the Macho Man make a cameo appearance.
The end of May to around the end of July is a pretty hectic time in the Canadian track meet schedule. This past weekend I was in Hamilton for a twilight, this weekend I’ll be in London for Trackie Mania, then there’s the Inferno, 1,500m Night, Provincials, Nationals, the list goes on. This week on the Terminal Mile, we’re paying close attention to the track and its characters, Charles Philibert-Thiboutot joins us to talk about what’s coming up in his season, literally changing the way he runs in the pursuit of victory, and overcoming setbacks, but first, Scott Macdonald joins us to preview one of Canada’s only professional track meets, the Speed River Inferno with a HUGE announcement.
When people insist on discussing the location of the running capital of Canada, the same names come up: Victoria, Vancouver, Guelph, so on, etc. but one often forgotten city that has produced a solid bunch of long distance guys is none other than Speed City, London, Ontario. Lanni Marchant, Jim Finlayson, Rob Watson all hail from the Forest City, while Leslie Sexton now calls it home. This week, we’re going to shine the spotlight on 2 runners training in London right now, Chris Balestrini ran with UWO, took some time off, and is now back, with a win under his belt last weekend at the Ontario 10,000m champs, but first, Jack Sheffar, the stand out collegiate for the Western Mustangs, he lead the team to a team cross country title a few years back, and now has his eyes on a bigger prize.
I think it’s safe to say, that even though we’re only in May, Natasha Wodak has already had a banner year. Running 15:39 in a British Columbia 5k road race, followed by an impressive 5th place Commonwealth Games 10000m finish that saw her gut it out with the medalists to the very end, and given how she’s been racing, it seems almost sure that there are more impressive accomplishments to come. This week we sit down and chat with Olympian and Canadian record holder Natasha, talking about Commonwealths, coaching changes, another possible shot at the marathon and the racing state of mind.
Track may be starting, but on this week’s show we focus on the roads and on the grass. The top University cross country runners in the world faced off last weekend in Switzerland in the FISU championship and we chatted with Sergio Raez Villanueva, a Mcmaster Marauder who made the team and was the second Canadian male across the finish line. Also last weekend saw the Race Roster Spring Run Off happen in Toronto, with some of our best runners battling it out over a hilly 8k road course, the woman’s winner, and current Canadian marathon champion, Leslie Sexton joins us to talk about battling back from a lull, training and a lot more.
Earlier this week it was announced that a Canadian middle distance legend was calling it a day on his long and fruitful track career. The numbers attached tell quite the story, 3 time Olympian, current Canadian record holder in 4 events, a Commonwealth silver, pan-am bronze, and a many time NCAA all american, but, not the whole story. Along with those great successes, this man faced injuries, bad luck, and some close calls, but also inspired a generation of athletes, and up until his retirement, remained one of the most consistent athletes in his event. This week, we salute Nathan Brannen, the tri-city miler. We’ll chat with Nate about his career spanning his time in Michigan, his Olympic experiences, his reasons for hanging it up, to a possible shot at a marathon, plus, Matt Hughes, Jessica Furlan, Ben Flanagan, and Charles Philibert-Thiboutot call in to tell stories and talk about how he influenced them.
Just like that, with USport and NCAAs done, another year of indoor track is in the books, and there were some fantastic moments for Canadians, with leads taken and records broken. But with the end of one season, comes the beginning of another. Some premier road races are just weeks away, and soon the outdoor tracks will be busy with people in search of new PBs. On this week’s episode we’ll talk with all of the above. Angus Rawling is the new USport 3000m champion, and he joins us, as well, the new fastest Canadian lady over 21.1, Rachel Cliff also stops in to chat.
Over the past few months we've covered everything about the Speed River U of G groups, from the sprinters to the marathoners, from the jumpers to the throwers. This week, we assembled a panel including head coach and founder, Dave Scott Thomas, member of the IST team, Brenda Scott-Thomas, Canadian 10,000m champion, Evan Esselink, and GM of the group, Scott Macdonald. What followed was a conversation about keeping athletes healthy, salvaging wrestling mats and shutting down multi-lane highways, and the teams chances at the USport finals next week!
What makes people want to pursue the dream of running professionally? Of picking up and moving thousands of miles away from home to chase down an end of questionable rewards. On this week’s show we chat with two guys who decided to move west and run with the AC West Hub. We’ll check in with Rob Denault and Adam Palamar, and they’ll tell us why they chose that path, and we’ll also play some terminal mile trivia. We also catch up with Speed River and Guelph Gryphons coach Dave Scott Thomas, we’ll preview this Sunday’s finale to the Something In the Water podcast series!
The marathon is a gruelling 42.2km race that catches the imaginations of nearly everyone who comes in contact with the event. The runners who choose to take it on are usually a tough breed, and true workhorses. On this week's show we take a look at the Speed River marathon group, a collection of athletes who fit the description above and have also done impressive things with the distance. We'll chat with 2x Olympian and fastest active marathoner, Reid Coolsaet about being with the club since the beginning, the camaraderie that exists within the group, and the elusive national record. Also, we meet up with Krista Duchene, also an Olympian and the second fastest female Canadian marathoner of all time. Finally, we'll hear some stories from Rob Winslow, a 2:19 marathoner who will certainly be making a name for himself in the near future!
Looking at the make-up of the collegiate track system in Canada, there’s a lot of emphasis on the middle distances: the 600m, the 4x 800, the 1000m, the 1500m...even the 3000m. I don’t think that it’s that far of a stretch to say that having a solid squad of mid-d runners can make or break your team. Over the years, Guelph has produced some solid mid-d athletes, with names like Anthony Romaniw and Genevieve Lalonde come to mind, and in those cases have made an impact internationally after leaving school, but still sticking with the Speed River team.
On this week’s show, we chat with a bunch of Speed River/U of G athletes who call the middle distances home. Hilary Stellingwerff, a two time Olympian in the 1500m, Anthony Romaniw, 800m specialist and Olympian, Tommy Land, USport champion and team captain, Charlotte Ward all talk about their time in the Royal City, and what it takes to be successful in that environment.
This week the Terminal Mile is brought to you by the number 1….as in both of our guests this week are ranked number 1 in one way or another. We sit down with the Canadian record holder in the indoor mile, Kate Vanbuskirk,who is have an amazing indoor season so far, getting named to the national team going to world indoors. We talk with Kate about injuries, marketing, Matt Hughes and representing the country. As well, Mike Tate, the NCAAer with the fastest 5k time this season joins us to talk about getting mentally prepared for big races and a whole lot more. Nothing but the hits this week!
During the cold winter months, there are few places busier than the university of Guelph fieldhouse on workout day. It’s not that it’s a small building, like most fieldhouses, it’s pretty big, it’s just full of athletes! In one corner, you have the sprinters practicing their starts, in the opposite corner there are the throwers doing their thing, beside them are the distance and mid-distance team meeting before they head out for their warmup and a little later the jumpers will arrive, long, triple and high jumpers alike. Like I said, it’s a busy place. In this series we’ve talked a lot about the distance guys, with more to come, and the sprinters, but what about the rest of the team? This week, we’re throwing and jumping as we join the “field” in “track and field” at the University of Guelph fieldhouse.
This week we chat with coaches and athletes alike and ask how they got to this place, what their training is like, how they fit into the track and field mosaic, and if they’ve found the Guelph environment helpful to their own development.
It wasn’t all that long ago that the men’s 3000m steeplechase in Canada was dominated by the Speed River Track and Field Club. There was Alex Genest, Chris Winter, Taylor Milne, and, before he took on the marathon, Rob Watson. Those guys, along with Bowerman’s Matt Hughes were the pillars for the event in this country. After the Rio games in 2016 Genest, Winter and Milne retired, leaving a pretty big hole in the event and questions of what would happen as far as international representation would go. Of course, Matt Hughes was (and is) still running, but every other steepler who achieved the men’s Olympic standard was gone. If I had to guess though, I would say that that void would likely be filled by the club who had filled it in the past. Right now in Guelph, they have one of the best female steeplers in the world in Genevieve Lalonde, an Olympic and World Championship finalist and national record holder. She has been getting better with every season, and it’s easy to see why when watching the team workout. On the men’s side, they have a couple of young guys who are ready to make their mark, and represent their country. On this week’s episode, we take a look at the steeplechase program in Guelph. We’ll chat with some notable runners from the past (Chris Winter and Alex Genest), the present (Genevieve Lalonde and Chris Dulhanty) and the future (Josh Kellier).
Breakthroughs...they’re what we live and train for in sport. They can be years in the making, the fruit of consistency, or they can come relatively quicker, perhaps a reaction of realizing a different part of training. Either way, the feeling that comes from reaching that next level is one that we chase, and one that is made of pure elation. On this week’s show, we chat with 2 runners who have recently had big breakthroughs: Corey Bellemore, training out of Windsor, became the latest Canadian to break 4 in the mile going 3:57 in Boston last weekend, and Colin Fewer, a newly minted master out of Newfoundland has handled adversity in the form of injuries and an invasive surgery, but at 40, he just ran an amazing 66:53 at the houston half.
Junior coaching is a bit of a balancing act. If you do it right, your time with the kids in the program makes up a very small part of their athletic career, but those years are so formative, and important for establishing a potentially life long love of the sport. While watching a junior practice in Guelph recently, I noticed that while there were provincial and nationally ranked competitors training their guts out, the interactions between all teammates were still ones that you would expect out of people that age...that is to say, they were clearly having fun. On this week’s show, we look at the junior programs and chat with the coaches, Rachelle Campbell (sprint) and Jeff Haller (distance), as well as assistant coach Joe Chappell, and some of the kids involved in the program.
If we go back ten or so years, the “thing” that the Speed River group would be known for is their 5000m/10000m athletes. Reid Coolsaet had success in the 5, winning FISU silver back in 2005, collecting 4 national championship titles, and representing the Canadian national team at a world championships. His teammate, Eric Gillis, was a 10,000m guy, competing at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. Times have changed though, the club is now known now for a wider variety of reasons, and those athletes have moved up to the marathon, achieving great things in that race, but that’s not to say that the 5 and 10 group is any less potent. There are fresh faces carving out names for themselves in those 2 events, and their aim is to not only match, but eclipse their teammates historical accomplishments. This week’s show, we look specifically at the 5 and 10,000m event groups and some of the athletes training for those distances in Guelph. We’ll chat with former junior record holder Heather Petrick about her time in Guelph, dealing with injuries and what the future holds for her, we’ll also talk with Evan Esselink, the Canadian 10,000m champion, about the accountability of living with other high performance athletes and his move from running in the NCAA to a post collegiate environment, and we’ll check in with Ross Proudfoot, 2 time Canadian Cross Country Champion, who will show us around Guelph, including some great work out spots, and places important to the team.
I don’t know about where you are, but this winter has been interesting where I am...the days haven’t been hitting single digit negatives consistently since mid December...there’s ice and snow everywhere...just disgusting all around. One place that does not have that problem is Houston Texas, the site for the Houston Half marathon last weekend, bringing out some of our country’s best to face off, amongst a solid field. Two of those folks were Blair Morgan and Yves Sikubwabo, Scoring a solid PB and and debut respectively, both going under the world half marathon qualifying time!
Speed River and the University of Guelph Gryphons have long been known for developing athletes interested in the 800m and up, building most of their legacy off of those events, and being dubbed a “distance school” in the process. However, anyone who has been paying attention to university sports in Canada, has probably noticed that there is a change happening. The Gryphons, while doing great, have experienced a redistribution/augmentation of team points, as they’ve been consistently getting incredible scoring opportunities in the sprint events, with the red, black and gold taking key podium spots in events like the 60 (podiums were earned on both the men’s and women’s side), the 60 hurdles (they won first and second in last years men’s race) and the sprint relays. In the space of just a few years Guelph has gone from “a distance school” to a bit of a powerhouse when it comes to sprinting. This week, we’re going to take a look at a sprint program, it’s driving culture, and the persistence and passion of a young coach with a vision.
When one typically thinks of who a track and field club is made of, the obvious answer is: athletes and coaches, that’s kind of a given. However, when it comes to competing at a high level, and trying to explore the limits of your potential, the circle has to be expanded to include others. In Guelph they’ve realized that, and have built an “Integrated Support Team” that includes nutritional and body mechanic researchers, physiotherapists, massage therapists, sport psychologists and a lot more. It’s a story of using people already in the community, but also attracting some of the brightest minds in the country to the Royal City, all in the attempts to make Guelph one of the major track and field hubs. On this week’s episode we pay tribute to the professionals who may not run the races themselves, but are so integral in getting the athletes to the starting line.
This week we have two guests who, at a quick glance, appear to be coming from completely different directions. Reid Coolsaet, Canada’s fastest active marathoner, and multiple time Olympian, has done almost all one can do in this sport, while Stef Smith, on the other hand, is just starting to realize her potential as a distance runner,recently auto qualifying in the 3000m and 1500m for the USport championships. But those differences aside, they have so much in common. Both are so incredibly driven and focused, setting ambitious goals, and delivering, and most of all, both are a true treat to watch race.
2017 is quickly coming to a close. As the year that was fades into the year that will be, I can’t help but think that this year presented us with moments of pride, and jubilation, but also segments of sadness and frustration. Between those frames of time, we got to experience another year of keeping up to date with what’s happening on the tracks, roads and trails, and for that I am thankful. This week, we’ll take some time to reflect, some friends of the show, Adam “Mr. Trackie” Stacey, and run pundit Jeff Costen, pick some of their favorite interviews to re-live, as well, I dig up some of my favorites. A fallen legend, workouts worthy of letsrun fodder, a race walker and a tale of a true underdog. This is the best of The Terminal Mile, 2017 edition.
The success of the Speed River Inferno track meet is not normal. The event got it's start before there was even a professional track in the city, it's geographically not close to any other high performance meets, and the population base to draw spectators from is much smaller than a Los Angeles or a New York. Despite all that, the meet was able to grow on and eventually move from the original high school track, bring in some of the biggest names in the sport, and draw from a strong local support base. There aren't many meets like it, and there's no doubt that it's been wildly positive for the Speed River team. This episode of Something In The Water, we look at the anomaly of the Speed River Inferno.
Taking a look at the current Speed River/University of Guelph roster and you'll see a collection of people who've made the journey from across the country, and in some cases, around the world. This week we take a look at the recruiting process, some of the pull factors to this small city, and some real life case studies of some of the most successful athletes to emerge from the river.
Change is one of those things that is guaranteed, constant and most of all, unpredictable. While we all are going through it, the athletes on this week’s show are truly in the thick of it, as they look to move on from the place where they got their starts onto something much bigger. Justyn Knight just won his first NCAA title, hot off the heels of his world champs 5000m finals appearance this summer, he’ll be entering into his final track season as a syracuse Orangeman before he looks to go pro! Also on the show, Julie Anne Staehli, the stand out Queens Gaels runner is now moving on to the world of post collegiate running, and she’s already finding her stride.
Citius Mag and Speed River present the first episode of Something In The Water. This episode we take a look at the origins of the club, and the latest era of the university team. From using old beer factory conveyor belts in place of an indoor track, to shovelling horse poop to keep the track team together, this episode takes a look at the culture of the club from the point of view of the man who started it all, Coach Dave Scott-Thomas.
Citius Mag and Speed River TFC proudly present Something In The Water, an in depth look into a top tier club responsible for producing countless world class athletes.
The Cross Country National Championships are upon us again. This Saturday, November 25th, Fort Henry in Kingston will play host to a day of top notch racing featuring milers and marathoners alike. As a race companion, we’ve assembled a strong cast for this episode with Claire Sumner, 3rd at this event last year and a USport champion, Clive Morgan, the race director for the meet, and commentator Steve Fleck joins us to talk about the sport and keeping things interesting.
Very full show this week, with a ton of marathoning talent. A few weeks ago at the Canadian Marathon Championships, graciously hosted by the Scotia Toronto Waterfront Marathon, a few runners introduced themselves to a wider audience, making their marks by running very very well. On this week’s show we have two of those runners, we chat candidly with Canadian Marathon Champion, Trevor Hofbauer, about his debut, but first Melanie Myrand talks about her break out race, and winning a national bronze medal.
In this sport, it seems that inspiration can be found nearly anywhere you look...from watching Ed Whitlock spend the last decades of his life outrun time itself, to witnessing Moh Ahmed tear up the track ...competing at the highest level after beginning life in the turbulent Somalia. I would say that the Canadian Marathon Championships this past weekend were no different: Trevor Hofbauer making a heroic 2:18 debut for 1rst after leaving his Alberta life behind to quite literally chase a dream, Leslie Sexton, putting in some giant mileage around he employment, seeing her hard work come to fruition as her first Canadian marathon championship, and of course, our two guests this week, 3rd Canadian across the line, Aaron Cooper talks about being self coached to a national medal while being a father and working full time, as well silver medalist Lyndsay Tessier, a late arriver to the sport and a full time teacher talks about her breakout year.
Good information, it seems, is a rare and valuable commodity. For every nugget of quality information, there is 5 equally awful pieces of advice floating around...case in point, that last statistic. While that can probably measured as a general statement, the same is true within the running community. Everyday we are inundated with questionable studies and off the mark articles telling you how getting faster is one clickbait article away. Luckily for us, there’s guys like Alex Hutchinson out there. Alex, has written his Sweat Science column for Runner’s World for years as well as being featured in the New York Times, The Globe and Mail, The New Yorker and more, breaking down credible information into chunks we can apply and understand.. He really knows his stuff, he has a new adventure ahead of him, and he’s up first in just a second. Also, race director extraordinaire, Alan Brookes talks about the Scotia Toronto Waterfront Marathon that’s less than a week away!
This week on the Terminal Mile, it’s all eyes on the road the road. We have a trifecta of premier pavement pounders in Geoff Martinson, world championship 1500m semi-finalist turned Eastside 10k killer, Rob Watson, Canada’s favourite marathoner is back in more ways than one, and Cleo Boyd, the UVA distance runner from the 613 is back and ready to make a name for herself.
And just like that, we seem to have moved on from summer to fall running. Yes, now is the time to turn in those track spikes for cross spikes, or maybe to transition your shorter distance racing flats for a bit heavier racing flats…if you’re like me, that’s not a bad thing, it’s just a change of season. With that turn in mind, this week we caught up with both a boy, and girl of summer; Cam Levins took this summer to really make a statement, announcing his return after a rough couple of years on the sideline...we’re excited to have him back and to have him on the show, as well, Jess O’Connell has had quite the year, racing on the world stage, seeing some big results!
This week we chat with former Londoner and UVA Cross Country/Track Coach Pete Watson before his team takes on the NCAA and Athletics Canada’s Off Track Manager John Lofranco joins us to chat about the Yorkville 5k/Canadian Road 5km Champs!
The Terminal Mile-Believe It Or Not We're Not Home-Back In September by The Terminal Mile
Note: This was recorded before we knew about a few high profile drop outs in London. August is for Championship running...and not just in London England. Last weekend was the world mountain running champs in Premana, Italy, an event that we were well represented at, we catch up with top Canadian finisher Matt Setlack. As well, we speak with Jeff Costen, our in house run pundit, who dishes on what to expect at the world champs and beyond.
The eight hundo, the half mile, the two lapper, what ever you call it, most of us can agree that the 800 is both one of the most exciting races to watch, and one of the most brutal to race. Not quite a sprint, not quite distance, it takes a special kind to master this race. On this week’s show we feature 2 Canadians who have shown great promise and proficiency in the event:Robert Hepenstall, the multi time all american Hamiltonian, and Brandon McBride, the pride of Windsor and a man who is currently pushing the limits of what is possible in the 800.
What a wild week it has been. The 2017 Canadian Track and Field Championships are all wrapped up for another year, after days of top level action in Ottawa brought to you by the Ottawa Lions and Athletics Canada. I was lucky enough to take a few days in, enjoy the action, listen to some great stories, and package it all up into this file you're currently listening to. This episode doesn’t quite follow the regular format of long form interviews, in fact if I had to describe it, I’d say it’s something like one of those old time christmas variety shows with a ton of surprise cameos along the way. This week, we catch up with Kevin Nault from One Track Mind, Rob Denault and Justyn Knight battle for trivia supremacy...again, Evan Dunfee talks about broadcasting, walking and his place in the world as an athlete, Jeff Tweedle, Corey Bellemore, Rachel Cliff, Chris Winter, they’re all on the show this week.
The University Of Michigan has attracted it’s fair share of our 1,500m talent over the years, with names like Sullivan, Brannen and Sifuentes, but as of the 2017 NCAA Championships, I think we can add Phelan to that list as well. Jaimie Phelan, hailing from the K-W-C, found her groove this season, first winning the 1,500 at Big 10s by just over half a second, and just when you thought things couldn’t get any crazier, at NCAAs she moved from last to first in the final 400, pouring everything she had into the run, taking the Championship win by 2 hundredths of a second. This show we chat with Jaimie about everything from growing up and training in Kitchener/Waterloo, to her big race in Eugene, Oregon.
As far as domestic track racing, we seem to be right in the thick of it. As I record this, I have an eye on the Vic City Elite meet, this Saturday we have the Aileen Meagher, this Sunday 1,500m night in London and the Speed River Inferno next Wednesday. Keeping in line with that, this week we chat with people from 2 of those events...the NTL will be kicking off at the Aileen Meagher this Saturday in Halifax, we have Johnathan Peverill from the Sunday Long Run Podcast to go over how to pronounce the name, and who to watch for. Next Wednesday the Speed River Inferno and 10,000m Canadian champs will be happening in Guelph and organizer Chris Moulton joins us to make the case for all of you to come out and bring your friends...yes even the couch potatoes! First though, Kevin Blackney has been on a tear this season, taking second in the Athletics Ontario 10,000m champs and the same placing in the Canadian 10k road champs!
The track and field meet, the foundation block for what the sport is. Ask any trackie and they’ll probably tell tons of great stories of PBs on track of many different surface types. On this week’s episode we celebrate the track meet with 2 different types of meets...in the last half of the show, we’ll chat with Steve Weiler, race director of the Runners Choice London DIstance Series, a group of twilight meets that include the reknowned 1500m night, first though, Rachel Francois talks about the Vic City Invite, an athlete designed meet set to make major waves.
Thomas Toth has taken the world by storm in the past year and a half. It was at last year’s Houston Half Marathon the then 24 year old runner of Lakefield made a name for himself. Late that year, he went on to take the half marathon national title in Calgary, qualify in November at the National Cross Champs, race this year at the Cross Country World Champs, and most recently, run a World Champs qualifying time of 2:18:58 in the Hamburg marathon with a debut that saw some very rocky conditions.
I think that some of my favorite foot racing, is road racing. The whole idea of the best of the best and the guy who is out grinding 5 nights a week, just trying to get better, sharing the same course...it’s a great thing. This past week saw 2 of the country's premier road races, the Scotia Half in Montreal and the Vancouver Sun Run. On this week’s episode we catch up with runners from each, Lisa Brooking ran in the sun run, as well as in Kampala repping the maple leaf at the World XC Champs earlier this year, and John Mason, coach, farmer, builder of things and as of this past weekend, 3rd man across the line in a stacked Montreal field.
The marathon can be a tricky race to run. It’s a race of patience, hitting that perfect pace, not too fast, but also, not too slow, it’s a race of perseverance, being able to run through distances and discomfort that have been known to digest even the most experienced, and it's a race of preparation, logging endless miles, honing your nutrition plan, and becoming familiar with every known scenario. From its mythical beginnings, runners have found their motivations to run this feat of athleticism in many facets of their life, and my guests on today’s show are no different. On this week’s show we talk with Pan-Am marathon bronze medalist Rachel Hannah as she gets set to tackle the most famous footrace in North America, the Boston Marathon, and we catch up with Blair Morgan before he heads to Prague in May for his Marathon debut, where he will be taking a crack at the World Champs qualifying standard.
You can tell outdoor season is here; the next month is chock full of speedy races south of the border and already we’re talking about who will rep the maple leaf in London at this year’s World Champs. On this week’s show we talk with Scott MacDonald, the technical lead at Athletics Canada about the announcement of this year’s track and field champs happening in Ottawa in July, and rising star, Rory Linkletter, fresh off a busy March that saw him at the World Cross Champs, NACAC Cross and the NCAA indoors!
“Don’t Limit Yourself”-Ed Whitlock Running a race, and in essence, all competition is all about defying expectations, pushing yourself to a place that was previously thought to be impossible. Whenever anyone can pull it off successfully, it is a thing to be marvelled at, and is surely inspirational to all who witness. That can be said of almost every time that Ed Whitlock toed the line. Ed, who sadly passed away last week seemingly re-wrote the 70+ masters record book, and on this week's show, Canada Run Series race director and friend of Ed’s, Alan Brookes joins us to remember him. Also, Rejean Chiasson is just a few weeks away from the Boston Marathon, and after a fairly impressive build, we caught up with him to discuss the legendary race and what he’s been up to.
After an eventful indoor track and field season, it’s time to say goodbye to the short track for another year. Rather than mourning it’s passing though, we can send it off in style with both the USports and NCAA holding Championship meets this weekend. On this week’s show we sit down with Tim Huebsch from Canadian Running magazine to run down what to expect at the USports champs at the Edmonton butterdome, and Ottawa’s own Adam Palamar will be repping the Syracuse Orangemen in the mile down at the NCAA champs this weekend!
Here in Canada it is often the Fall season that we associate with cross country, with the winter being reserved for indoor track. And while the reasoning behind this seems fairly sound, in a lot of the world, they see this time of year as being perfect for cross country. There are 2 big cross meets coming up are, the Pan-Am Cup, March 4th in Florida, and the IAAF Cross Country World Champs meet, March 26 in Uganda. Canada is sending teams to both, with the runners qualifying at last year's Cross Country Nationals in Kingston. We caught up with 3 of those athletes, Nick Falk, Victoria Coates and Trevor Hofbauer as they put together the final touches just before they take on the world in the coming weeks.
In a key moment from the 6th Rocky Movie, Rocky Balboa, the title character, the italian stallion, was having a serious chat with his son when he dropped this often quoted piece.
“You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain’t about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward; how much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done! Now, if you know what you’re worth, then go out and get what you’re worth.”
That scene came to mind when I was talking to Jessica Furlan this week. Jessica has achieved a lot in her career so far, making multiple national teams, as a youth, a junior and a senior, as well as holding the national 3000m steeplechase record for a few seasons. Unfortunately, we haven’t heard much from Jessica over the last few years due to some nagging injuries, ultimately leading to a surgery date this past year. With that behind her, Jessica has her work cut out for her, with dreams of the Olympics, lowering the national record again and returning to steeple dominance. What you’re about to here is a story of perseverance, patience and hopefully of redemption. What you’re about to hear is the story of Jessica Furlan.
It seems that there are moments in sport that, while rare, find a way of universally resonating. Tying both fans and non fans together, sweeping up even the most apathetic viewer. One that immediately comes to mind is the game winning goal scored in overtime by Sidney Crosby at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, winning the gold medal in front of a nation looking nervously on. Another one, equally significant for me, is from last summer’s olympic games, watching as race walker Evan Dunfee battled for 3rd with about a kilometer left in the 50km race walk event, appearing to give everything he had within himself, walking himself to the verge of collapse, even when the medal was out of reach. Looking back, it’s what I imagine the Greek soldier Pheidippides looked like as he completed his famed journey from the battle of Marathon to Athens. It’s with that imagery, I tell you that Evan joins us on the show this week to talk about training, racing, finding balance and even a little bit of the business side of things.
I’m not sure about where you are, but 2017 here has started with a bit of a chill in the air, and some quality bonding time with the treadmill in the basement. If there is one thing that will get us through though it’s the promise of some great track coming up in the months ahead (indoors and outdoors!). To kick off another year of podcasting, we landed some great guests:Kevin Nault from one of my favorite new things on the internet, the brand new multi-sport vlog, One Track Mind is on, and as always, Jeff Costen, our in house run pundit is here to warm you up with his hot takes where everything is fair game: leadership changes, retirements, USports...etc.
The sub 4 minute mile has always been a benchmark standard in athletics. At one point it marked the unattainable,beyond the measure of us mortals...that is, until an English man named Roger Bannister came along in 1954, and, well, you know the rest of that story. While the mile is not run with as much frequency now, especially in Canada, the sub 4 still stands as a mark that separates good middle distance runners from great ones. On this week's show, we go way back to two very important points in Canadian Athletics history and it’s relation to the mile. 50 years ago a man by the name of Dave Bailey ran the first sub 4 by a Canadian, Dave joins us to talk about that, training and the importance of athletics and giving back, also Jason Beck, from the BC Sports Hall Of Fame and author of The Miracle Mile: Stories of the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games sits down to talk about the legendary 1954 Miracle Mile: the first sub 4 on Canadian soil, and the first mile race in the world with 2 finishers under that legendary 4 minute mark.
T’was the Terminal Mile before Christmas and falling in line with the season and all, I thought this would be the perfect time to present you with both the gifts of reflection and the pride of the 6. On this week’s show we chat with Kate Van Buskirk about the state of the sport as it pertains to gender and Justyn Knight comes back for his annual visit after getting 2nd at NCAA XC!
I don’t believe in fortune tellers, nothing about them seems credible, but I do believe that there are moments that we get to take a peek into the future. For snapshots of time ranging between...oh, 19 and 30 minutes, we get to catch a glimpse of what the future faces of distance running look like as they learn their craft on the grass and in the mud of our cross country courses. On this week’s show, we take a peek at the future, and we sit down and chat with Seth Marcaccio, the 2016 CCAA cross country champion from Fanshawe College, and Yves Sikubwabo, the very first USports men’s cross country champion.
Get in the mood for the 2016 Canadian Cross Country National Championships with interviews from; defending champ Ross Proudfoot, voice of the live stream, Steve Fleck, Julie-Anne Staehli, organizer of the ReRUN Shoe Project and Cross Runner, and Clive Morgan, race director for the whole meet!
There is an interesting paradox with running in a competitive setting. I think we’ve all been there...on the bad end of a workout or race, or a season that just isn’t going well and you want nothing more than to pack it in and call it quits on running all together. But when it does come time for you to take a break, whether self imposed or otherwise, it only serves as a reminder of all the good things that come from stepping on the start line and all that comes before and after that moment. This week I have 2 guests who know those feelings all too well. Alex Wilkie got some brutal news last year that brought his running to a screeching halt...we talked about staying positive and maybe a comeback for this gutsy runner in the future. Also, we chatted with Emily Setlack, who took a step back from the sport when she seemed to be on the verge of a breakthrough a few years ago, she’s back in 2016 with a Canadian Half marathon and NACAC 10k championship to show for her comeback.
This episode is a special one. Almost 2 years since we started show, we’ve now hit 50 episodes!We have a ton of incredible guests this week, including: The House of Run Podcast- Probably one of the biggest track and field podcasts in the world right now. Kevin Sully, one of the hosts joins us this week to chat Canadian track from across the border. Jeff Costen- our in house run pundit and newly minted bronze medalist in the Canadian Marathon Championships will fill us in on if he can walk again after his debut marathon and what’s good in the world of Canadian collegiate cross. Mohammed Ahmed, Moh Speed, or just plain Moh, however you know him, he’s had one heck of a year with a Canadian record and a respectable showing at the Olympics and he’s on this week’s show!
Forget your apple pie, your pumpkin spice, your flannel shirts, and your changing leaves, fall is about 2 things, Marathoning and Cross Country racing. On this week’s show we chat about both, with special guest Leslie Sexton, who talks about her upcoming return to the Scotia Toronto Waterfront Marathon, and her experience with Athletics Ontario and the women’s race distance, and Declan White of Trinity Western University discusses his relationship with cross, the upcoming CIS champs and more...Oh yeah, there’s a new episode of #TrackFactOrFiction with Brant Stachel, guaranteed to please the coffee fiend in us all.
Running is a sport built on mythologies and larger than life tales of determination and grit...even (arguably) on the local level. This week, for example, I was chatting with some friends about the Springbank Road races, an event less than an hour away from myself that brought in Olympians, and record holders alike...not really as documented as I would like, but, if you ask the right people...get ready, they’ll talk your ear off about those golden years...even on a more local level, in the small town of Tillsonburg, ten minutes east of the family farm, they used to have a race that attracted guys who would put out low 30 10ks on a regular basis...all the more impressive when you find out that there’s not even a regular road race that happens there anymore. My point is, this sport is rich with stories of amazing performances, but to be honest, they can be hard to verify. One of my guests this week though, George Aitken, has a life time worth of racing photos, programs and results of everything from small town races to some of Sully’s races at world cross, he’s one of the closest things we have to a historian of the sport in this country and you’re going to want to stick around for him.
Also, Evan Esselink, 4th in Yorkville a couple of weeks ago at the Canadian 5k champs, and a promising career ahead of him. We talk Cross Nationals, Yorkville, and more.
It was Tim Rice, with the help of Elton John, who so eloquently nailed the theme of this week’s show with 1994 smash hit for the Disney Classic, The Lion King, The Circle Of Life. The circle moves us all through crappy times, good times, ‘til we find who we are, paraphrasing of course. For every beginning, there is someone taking a step back...it’s just how it is in this sport...you can’t be a world beater forever...unless, of course, you’re Ed Whitlock. Alas, on this week’s episode, we do not speak to Ed Whitlock, but Chris Dulhanty, a promising steepler with a full career ahead of him, and Geoff Harris, taking a step back after a storied career in the 800m. A view from different points on the circle, and another episode of Brant Statchel’s #TrackFactOrFiction all on this week’s episode of The Terminal Mile.
The Summer Olympic Games, the pinnacle of track competition, are over, and I think that there are a lot we can take away from our performances in Rio, both medaling and otherwise. To help us break it all down this week, our in house run pundit Jeff Costen joins us. Also on this week’s show, we try something new as Brant Stachel sits down with us to chat about some running myths, as we put them to the test in #TrackFactOrFiction.
With “the games” starting in just a matter of days, it’s a great time to take a look and see just how well athletics are doing in Canada. With representation in most of the events,from the 100m dash to the 50km race walk, there’s no shortage of Canucks to cheer on as they take on the world in Rio De Janeiro. On this week’s show, I put together some excerpts from some Olympians I got to talk to since this time last year. You’ll hear from athletes like Anthony Romaniw, Chuck P-T, Gabriela Stafford and many more!
After coming out of your track coma over the past couple weeks, with the Canadian trials and the American trials, I would like to inform you, we’re not done yet! Gotta love the summer track season, especially with the big show, just around the corner. On this week’s show I sit down and chat with Mike Tate, you saw him last week at the trials with a huge kick...he’s down at NACACs U 23 right now. Also, we catch up with some beer miling buds, Nick MacFalls and Corey Gallagher, to chat about the World Beer Mile Classic.
The biggest names in Canadian Track will all be in one place between July 7 through 10th in a gathering that will likely see some of the best racing that has ever been witnessed in the “Great White North.” Edmonton is that place and the event, of course, is the Canadian Track And Field Championships, pulling double duty as the Olympic trials for this year. With a tonne on the line, especially in events like the men’s steeplechase, it promises to be a Canadian athletics fan’s dream. This week on the show we chat with a guy who made his name at the Canadian Champs last year, Thomas Riva, and recurring run pundit, Jeff Costen chats about what to expect at the big show.
It’s the breakthroughs, the times when it all comes together, that make it worth it, that make the painful intervals, the dreaded miles all seem like they had a purpose.Now, I can’t say for sure, but I’m guessing that is especially the case when that breakthrough means an Olympic Qualifier. 800m runner Anthony Romaniw is on the podcast to discuss that after a massive race in Portland last weekend, also we chat with Chris Moulton about the Speed River Inferno, a track meet you will not want to miss, right here in South Western Ontario.
Imagine this. A runner who has put in the miles for years, battled back from injury, has somehow avoided the hype machine that surrounds a select few in the spring of an Olympic year...grinds out a great race, clawing through a stacked field to capture an Olympic Qualifier , perfectly setting that runner up for the Olympic trials and a legit shot at the biggest stage of them all . Sounds like a good story, eh? That’s exactly the case for one of my guests on this week’s show. Andrea Seccafien joins me this week to talk training, that race and more, as well, I sit down with Manny Rodriguez, Elite Field Coordinator for the Ottawa Race weekend, and we talk about some amazing fields worth checking out this weekend, including the Canadian 10k Championships.
As the countdown to zero hour on the Olympic qualifying clock winds down, this is the time when things really start to get going, especially for those who are knocking on the door of an Olympic qualifying time, sometimes less than a second off being where they need to be. It makes it interesting for the fans, but it can be nerve racking, to say the least, for the athletes. This week on the show, I chat with 2 guys who are just on the brink of that Olympic qualifying time: Jeremy Rae, a 1500m runner with Speed River will talk the deep 15 field, Drizzy and a whole lot more, and Lucas Bruchet, distance runner extraordinaire.
There’s this period of time every spring, right around this time, that we as track fans are truly spoiled. Between big relay meets, fast time trial-y events in California, it’s hard not to love it all! This week on the show, we pay homage to this wonderful time of the year with two up and comers looking to prove themselves on the track, Ben Flanagan, pride of the KWC and current Michigan distance runner; we’ll chat about his 29:13 10,000m debut at Mt. Sac, being coached by the great Sully and more, as well former BC Thunderbird, middle-distancer, Justin Kent will discuss injury and training with the BCEP guys. Also, I pay a little bit of homage to one of my favourite marathoners whose hanging up the flats.
If you’re looking for the best storylines this spring in the lead up to the Olympics, look no further that the women’s middle distance races. The 8, the 15 and the 5 are all looking super stacked with no telling of just who will be filling those spots.
On this week’s episode we get to chat with two major players who have their gazes firmly set on rio:Kate Van Buskirk, Commonwealth bronze medalist and Rachel Cliff, currently in the middle of a red hot season, talk about training, the state of the sport and more.
A piece of classic Canadiana is the story of the Littlest Hobo, a dog that goes around from place to place, wherever he’s needed, a bit like that Tragically Hip song, “looking for a place to happen, making stops along the way.” This week on the show, we unfortunately do not have the Littlest Hobo, however we sit down and chat with two folks who have been known to travel around in pursuit of great training grounds and fast times, Peter Corrigan, a great 5000m runner will join us before he hits the Stanford invite, and Kevin Coffey, an accomplished marathon phones back home to Ontario from his winter base of Vancouver, BC.
With nothing but the World Championships left to go in this indoor season, I think we can call this one a success. Whether it be Melissa Bishop setting a new national record in the indoor 8, “friend of the show” Justyn Knight getting 3rd in the NCAA 3000, or countless other memorable moments, it’s been a good one. On today’s episode, we’ll take a look back at the season that was, with, Corey Bellemore, the golden Lancer who cleaned up at the CIS Championships last weekend, and our in house run pundit, Jeff Costen, who will join us to chat indoors, marathons and H2MCs.
Just when you thought it had gone away and you wouldn’t have to hear about it until next September….it's back. “It”, being collegiate cross country, that is. Coming up on March 12 in Italy the FISU Cross meet will see some of the best student athletes all in one place, competing in the dirt and grass, hoping to not only make their university proud, but also their country. Of course, Canada looks to be fielding a solid team, and this week, we sit down to chat with two of them. This week we chat with Blair Morgan and Kevin Tree before they take off for Italy!
There’s a famous quote in the rock and roll world, “I have seen rock and roll future, and its name is Bruce Springsteen.” Credited to journalist John Landau, who would later become Springsteen’s manager, and few at that time could have had any idea just how right he would be. You see, the year was 1974, and a young Springsteen had already released 2 killer albums in “Greetings From Asbury Park” and “The Wild, The Innocent And The E Street Shuffle”, but what would come next, would revolutionize the rock and roll world, with albums like “Darkness On The Edge Of Town” and “Born To Run.” My guests on today’s show, might just have more in common with Springsteen then you might think. They’ve both already had some really great races, but they’re both at an age, and both working at such a rate, that you know the future is going to be really special. Trevor Hofbauer and Brandon Lord are on this week's episode of The Terminal Mile.
You’re not going to find too many folks like Taylor Milne, be that on or off the track. Probably best known for known for his trip to the Beijing Olympics as a 1500m runner in one of the toughest Canadian fields in recent memory, or for some memorable runs as a steepler in the last few years, you would be hard pressed to find another runner so passionate about the sport and more willing to tell you exactly how he thinks it is. If all goes well, Taylor is setting up to run Rio this year, and with a few solid results this indoor season, things are looking really good.
Charles Philibert-Thiboutot, Chuck P-T, CPT, whatever you want to call him, if you’ve been following the sport over the past few years, he’s been hard to ignore. While he showed that he’d be a force to be reckoned with during his CIS days, it wasn’t until this past summer when we got to see what he was truly made of, running with the best in the world in some massive meets, snagging a Pan-Am medal, learning a lot and gaining some incredibly fast PBs along the way. This week, it’s our feature interview with CPT on the Terminal Mile.
2016 is set up to be a real doozie of a year, with the World Indoor Championships this winter, the Olympics in the summer and about 100 meaningful races between, that will tell 1000 more stories that will shape the year in Canadian running. On this week's show we talk with a runner who had an astronomical 2015 and who is sure to soar even higher in 2016... Fiona Benson joins us from Calgary to chat training, keeping track relevant, and the importance of great coaching. We also check in with our recurring run pundit, Jeff Costen, as he gazes into his crystal ball to see what the winter holds in store and just what the results from this past fall mean.
2015 is certain to go down as a real barn burner of a year in Canadian Athletics, filled with broken records and interesting stories to boot. It was especially a great year from the perspective of this show, as we got to chat with a tonne of cool people, from rising stars to legends of the sport. This episode is a celebration of this year, a celebration of 2015. Myself, and a few of the people who have helped out along the way, run pundit Jeff Costen and Mr. Trackie, Adam Stacey, bring back some of our favorites, including an uncut version of my chat with legendary marathoner Bill Rodgers, a discussion about indoor track with premier coach Dave Scott-Thomas, and my personal favorite, a sit down with Kevin Sullivan.
Cross country is probably one of my favorite variations of this whole competitive running thing. Especially in the collegiate ranks, it, more than any other race, brings together everyone to the start line, from mid distance mavericks, to the marathon distance donkeys and every runner in between. It’s a race where tactics can be tested, boundaries can be pushed, and it is only with a combination of fitness and strategy that you can dominate the sport. This week’s episode belongs the boys of fall, the collegiate kings of cross country, with 2 time CIS Champ and Guelph Gryphon, Aaron Hendrikx as well as NCAA All American and Syracuse Orangeman, Justyn Knight.
What a way to wrap up a great year of distance running. Kingston will be kicking off its 4 year run of hosting the cross country nationals this Saturday, and they’re doing it in style, with names like Reid Coolsaet, Natasha Wodak, Lanni Marchant, Luc Bruchet, Chris Winter and the list goes on, all ready to toe the line . Given the course’s reputation for being a fast one, you can bet the meet is going to produce some great races. This week on the Terminal mile, we talk Cross Country Nationals with special guests Clive Morgan, one of the men responsible for getting the meet to Kingston and Chris Winter, the current Canadian Sr. Men’s Cross Champion.
“Le roi est mort, vive le roi.” It’s a phrase that originated in 1400s France, used to mark the passing of the old king, and to celebrate the arrival of a new king. Simply put, in English, “the king is dead, long live the king”. This weekend will see the climax of the CIS Cross Country season happen in Guelph, Ontario, and it promises to be the most exciting it’s been in years, both individually and in the team race. With serious threats from the West, Quebec, the East and Ontario alike, could this be the first year that we say goodbye to the old guard, and welcome in a new king? With XC being as it is, no one really knows, but if one thing is guaranteed,it’s going to be great to watch. On this week’s show, we’ll try and make sense of it all with our panel of experts, residing all across this fine land, as well, we’ll chat with Chris Moulton, assistant coach of the reigning champion Guelph Gryphons and an organizer of the meet this weekend.
Everyone loves an underdog story...the classic Rocky Balboa vs. Apollo Creed, Giants vs. Patriots, and going back even further, David vs. Goliath. It’s the little guy, rising up to the challenge and knocking it out when it counts... there’s just something about these stories that seem to capture our hearts and minds. Now, a couple of weekends ago at the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon we saw 2 real underdogs get their well deserved redemption: Leslie Sexton, after a few less than successful attempts at the marathon, bested her former PB by minutes, capturing 2nd in the Canadian Women's’ championship and John Mason; carpenter, farmer and runner, flying in way under the radar to capture 3rd on the Men’s side. Both join me on this week's episode!
Cross country season is one of the best seasons. There is something to be said for races taking place on grueling landscapes, through scenic fall settings, watching as the spectators run from checkpoint to check point to jockey a better view at the runners as they pass by. Cross is a great place to test limits, give trial to new tactics, and perhaps make an error along the way as well. This week, we chat cross country, Sasha Gollish and Steve Boyd join me to debate whether the women’s race should be an equal distance to the mens race, but first Alex WIlkie talks about his season, running style, and Eastern Ontario dairy products.
It’s become all too obvious now. The crisp mornings, the changing leaves, Autumn has arrived in Canada. With fall comes another marathon season though, a time when we get to watch some of our best distance athletes toe the line and chase their goals, whether they be that ever present Canadian marathon elephant in the room or the 2:12:50 Olympic qualifier. This week on the Terminal Mile, it’s all things marathon. We replay our conversation with Canadian marathoner Reid Coolsaet from earlier this year, I’ll preview 3 marathons you need to watch (Chicago, New York, STWM), and we’ll get a notable outsiders view on the Canadian marathon way.
When the topic of “historically important” road races comes up in conversation, there are a few sure fire North American events that need to be mentioned, the Boston Marathon, Around the Bay, The Peach Street Road Races, but there is one event, unfairly, that seems to get left out. An event that, in it’s heyday, attracted the likes of Bill Rodgers, Frank Shorter, Alberto Salazar, Ron Hill, Jerome Drayton, just to name a very select few. This racing event was not in a major centre, it wasn’t on roads that were pin straight,flat and prone to wicked fast times, but through a park with grinding hills in what was Canada’s tenth largest city, London Ontario. This week on the Terminal Mile, we look at the legend of The Springbank International Road Races with special guests Bill Rodgers, Steve Hoag, Steve Weiler and John Loney.
It seems like it’s been repeatedly said, both on this show and else where, but after the last few weeks (and months) of Canadian athletic performances on the world stage, it bears repeating, this is an exciting time to be a Canadian athletics fan. Whether it be at any of the the Diamond League meets, FISU, Pan Ams or our impressive haul at the World Championships, it’s been an exciting summer, with solid results to back it up. On this week’s show, we chat with one of the contributors to that medal count, Ben Thorne, the B.C Race Walker who surprised us all with a bronze medal and the 20km Canadian race walk record in Beijing, about the best heckle he’s ever heard, politics in his event and his time in Bejing. As well we wrap up the summer season (from Pan-Ams and beyond) and look ahead to the fall (marathons and cross) with our in house run pundit, Jeff Costen.
I’m not a businessman, I’m a business, man.
Jay Z on his legendary “Diamonds From Sierra Leone” guest verse, obviously talking about himself, but also very applicable to the running world. Often times, track athletes have a very specific skill set that allows them to perform on a level rarely reached by mankind, and those skill sets can earn them, and others a living. But, at the same time, they aren’t quite as well equipped in the departments of negotiating appearance money, making sure they have their correct visas in time, so on etc. That’s why there’s people like Kris Mychasiw, a managing partner in Sprint Management, a company that looks after the likes of Chris Winters, Taylor Milne and C-P-T just to name a few. He’ll shed some light on the off track situations surrounding the upcoming World Championships in Beijing, including, the men’s 1500m, Nick Symmonds and more... You definitely don’t want to miss that. Also, World Record Beer Miler, Lewis Kent joins us later in the show ahead of his big race at the beer mile world classic.
At first glance, you wouldn’t think that my two guests and what they represent, would have much in common. One, an up and coming middle distance runner, fresh off an impressive silver medal performance at the FISU games,ready to take on the ones she’s looked up to on the grandest of stages, and the other, a representative for the biggest beer mile spectacular the world has seen. Sure, there are the obvious connectors, like running, but still, one would think, not much there. If I had to draw some sort of connection between the two though, it would be this:
Between the two, there is so much yet unrealized potential, Gabriela Stafford currently has the running world right where she wants it, she’s young, she’s already putting down world class times, and she’s still improving year by year, and the World Beer Mile Classic, not even in its first running has already attracted the likes of ESPN, as well as most of the world’s top beer milers. If I had to guess, world records will fall, and we’re just witnessing a fraction of the attention this will receive in the coming weeks. So this week on the terminal mile, it’s all about the big things...still to come.
Links
Beer Mile Fundraising Shirts: http://teespring.com/TeamCanadaBeerMile
Fundraising Video: http://www.trackie.com/track-and-field/TrackieTV/team-canada-beer-mile-fundraiser/6139/
Beer Mile Classic Twitter: @BeerMileClassic
Gabriela’s Twitter: @GStafford13
Whatcha gonna do when Pan Am Mania runs wild on you Canada?
It’s been an exciting couple of weeks in Toronto, as the metropolis played host to the Pan-Am games. And while Canadians in all sports exceeded expectations, in particular, athletics yielded a large amount of hard earned hardware in everything from the long jump to the race walk.
On this weeks episode of the Terminal Mile, I go through the archives and pull out bits and pieces of my favorite interviews with Canadian Pan-Am athletes, including: Sasha Gollish Nicole Sifuentes Nate Brennan Jessica O’Connell Cam Levins Matt Hughes Natasha Wodak Evan Dunfee Rachel Hannah Rob Watson Peter Eriksson
Last weekend saw our nation’s best and brightest heading to Edmonton to meet up and do battle, with national titles on the line. Some races were blazing fast, some were a little more grinding and tactical, but all of them turned out to be entertaining, filled with athletes who were hungry to prove they belong in the national discussion after a particularly prosperous spring.
On this weeks episode, we chat with 2 athletes who really stood out during the meet, and will definitely be ones to watch for come Pan Ams and Worlds. Matthew Hughes, the Canadian Steeplechase record holder, and re-crowned national champion joins us to chat training, Jager and the hometown advantage and Nicole Sifuentes who wowed us all with an impressive 1500 and 5000 double championship, also joins us to talk worlds, and a season full of surprises.
Sunday, June 21rst- The first day of summer, or alternately, the last day of spring. As Canadian track fans, we have a lot to reflect on, as this spring saw canadians go faster, farther and higher than ever before. So what will summer bring? We’ll find that out in the coming months, but on this weeks show we chat with a few athletes who made the spring such a success...Calgary’s Jessica O’Connell joins us to talk about her shiny new PBs, Sasha Gollish talks crowdfunding (http://www.trackieprofile.com/sasha-gollish/)and the Pan Am Games and show contributer and run pundit, Jeff Costen, wraps up spring time on track and in the streets with a look at the bigger picture.
For fans of Canadian Track and field, this spring has almost been an embarrassment of riches, whether it’s been watching the high flying Shawn Barber pole vault his way into the record books, witnessing Canada’s latest sprint star, Andre De Grasse do his thing in the 100 and 200, or Cam Levins run an expertly executed 10000 to take home the Canadian record. Not to be left out, the women of Canadian track have been doing incredible things as well! On this week’s show we sit down with with Natasha Wodak, Canada’s queen of the 10000. We’ll also chat with elite race walker and clean sport advocate Evan Dunfee about the latest developments doping in athletics, Canada’s place in doping, and his training for the summer season.
Loosen your collar Shake off the wires Run like a river Glow like a beacon fire
Words written by Bry Webb on the banks of the Speed River in Guelph, Ontario immortalized by his band the Constantines in their song Young Lions. Without realizing it, Webb seems to have summed up the spirit of the running community, specifically the Speed River Track And field club in that city, running like the river its named after, swift and almost unstoppable and glowing in the pride of their hard work. On this weeks show, Guelph also happens to be the binding tie between our two topics...first we talk with current Guelph resident and recently crowned Canadian 10km champion Eric Gillis about his race in Ottawa last weekend, trying to qualifying for Rio and fatherhood. Then we talk to Chris Moulton and preview the Speed River Inferno, a meet attracting talent world wide happening this Saturday, that you will not want to miss.
It’s a debate you see often in the running world, which generation produced the best distance runners?Was it the 80s with Williams and McLoy, perhaps the 70s with Dave Hill, but the conversation rarely lasts long before the 90s-early 2000s are brought up, and with them, Kevin Sullivan. Sully, as he’s known, has a string of notable accolades that follow him, including 4 still standing canadian records, three trips to the olympics, and the list goes on and on. So it was of little surprise to anyone when it was announced that Sully is on his way to the Canadian Athletics Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2015. This week we chatted with Kevin Sullivan about his favorite races, coaching back in Michigan and good old Brantford, Ontario.
In the last part of the show we also checked in with the Manny Rodrigues of the Tamarack Race Weekend in Ottawa and got the lowdown on the elite field there. This week it’s all killer, no filler!
London Calling to the faraway towns, now war is declared and battle come down.
The iconic opening lines of London Calling, the immortal words of Joe Strummer of the clash. Appropriately enough London Calling is also the theme for this years Runners Choice London Distance Series, a collection of high performance track meets, and many will be coming from faraway towns looking to do battle on the TD Waterhouse track when the series opens May 10th, hosting the Canadian and Ontario 10000m championships.This week on the terminal mile, we take a closer look at this event , with special guests: reigning Ontario champion and rising star, Sami Jibril, CIS athlete and a runner to watch for, Blair Morgan and Steve Weiler, director of the meet. DOn’t go anywhere, you’re listening to the terminal mile, a trackie radio production.
Few races can match the prestige of the Boston Marathon. It’s served as the battleground for the best of the best, the goal of almost anyone who has attempted the 42.2 and the race that your relatives will ask you about if you’ve ever shown any interest in running at all. In a time when the term has been thrown around fairly loosely, the Boston Marathon is truly legendary, and a race that transcends far beyond the running world. When the runners toe the line on Monday April 20th, Kingston’s own Dylan Wykes will be there, ready to put out his best effort . Dylan, currently has the second fastest Canadian Marathon of all time, has been to the Olympics, the World Championships, but this, the Boston Marathon, will be a first for him. With so many factors out there, like the now open Rio 2016 Qualifying Window, the much talked about Jerome Drayton Canadian marathon record and a now healed stress fracture from last fall, this will be a race to watch, and Dylan a racer to watch.
Just when you had almost forgotten about cross country, the IAAF hosted the pinnacle of that event this past weekend in Guiyang, China. Of course, Canada sent a team full of rising stars and athletes hungry to prove themselves on the world stage, including top results from Justyn Knight, who finished an impressive 25th in the men's junior race, Branna McDougall 42 in the women's junior race and my two guests on today's show: Kelly Wiebe, an up and comer who was the top Canadian senior men's placer, we talk cross country, keeping healthy and the BC endurance project,and Rachel Hannah, registered dietician by day, distance runner by night, we talk eating healthy, cold Ontario winters and so much more.
With the CIS Indoor Championships going down last weekend, we have a tonne to talk about on the this episode! Special guests include Sasha Gollish, the 5 time medallist and female CIS MVP from this past weekend, Jeff Costen, our in-house run pundit, as well, we catch you up on the stats of the past few weeks during "The Time Clock".
Make sure to check out the on demand videos from the meet under the Trackie TV tab.
What a couple of weeks it has been since the last episode! With the various CIS Indoor Conference champs going down, there was no shortage of excitement: records were broken, tempers flared, and everything is in place for an exciting CIS championship, just a week away in windsor. On this weeks show, we try to make sense of it all, with Adam Stacey aka Mr. Trackie (@Trackie), giving us the low down on what happened at the OUAs and Graham Neysmith (@GNeysmith), our man on the track putting the AUS, RSEQ, and Can West into perspective!
The sub-4 minute mile...even 61 years after Sir Roger Bannister was the first to break that barrier, it is still the benchmark for fast running. Many excellent runners have tried, but the club is still a fairly exclusive one, reserved for the most talented, the hardest workers and the gutsiest racers.
Both of my guests on today’s show have a lot in common...both grew up around the Toronto area, both went south of the border to chase fast competition in the NCAA and both have gone sub 4 already this year. Rob Denault, the Villanova Wildcat from Aurora, Ontario shares the good and the bad about running in the NCAA and Justyn Knight, talks about his journey from Vaughan, Ontario to his new home in Syracuse as an Orangeman.
For more episodes be sure to go to Trackie.com and click on the radio tab and follow us on twitter @TheTerminalMile.
It was a few years ago, in 2008 that the IAAF decided to introduce a labelling system for a select number of big road races, marking out the best races in the world based on a number of factors, including depth of the elite field, drug testing etc. and while the program has been around for a few years now, there still aren’t many races that have been designated as worthy of a label, let alone the top gold label. In fact as of last year, there were only 3 gold level marathons in all of the Americas..Chicago, Boston and New York. That changed on Jan 8th of this year though, and now Canada has a gold level marathon of its own, and today’s episode is all about that marathon, known as the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon, it’s been the grounds for some of Canada’s best marathon runs, and now it’s finally getting its dues. On the show, we chat with elite marathoner and Olympian Reid Coolsaet about the race, recovery and olympic qualifiers, as well we’ll chat with the man who made it happen, race director Alan Brookes, and Rob Watson and Dylan Wykes also make appearances.
Nathan Brannen has had a pretty good career so far...he’s a two time Olympian, has overcome some pretty devastating setbacks (including a herniated back disk, an injury that doctors warned could have ended his career), cleaned up in the NCAA as a member of the u Michigan team, is the owner of four Canadian records in ranging middle distances, and has a commonwealth silver medal...but here’s the thing..at 32, he’s not done yet, and he’s aiming higher than ever, including setting his sights on a podium spot in Rio.
On the show today, Nate Brannen, the middle distance maverick from Cambridge Ontario talks training, sacrifice and the highs and lows of a running career that is nowhere near finished.
Follow his journey on the web at NateBrannen.com or on twitter @NateBrannen. While you’re there, keep up to date with all things Terminal Mile and follow @TheTerminalMile.
A new indoor season is upon us, and already its shaping up to be super eventful! To make sense of the season taking off, we caught up with Olympian, Commonwealth medalist, Canadian 5000 indoor record holder and Oregon Project member Cam Levins, Speed River and University of Guelph head coach Dave Scott Thomas and Kyle "Real Deal" O'Neill gives us his top 5 for the 3000, 1500 and 1000. Enjoy!
As always, it you have any questions or comments, let us know, tweet us @TheTerminalMile.
It’s been a rocky few months for the sport, with doping allegations, missed drug tests and a constant stream of rumours involving the best in the world. So what does this all mean?This week The Terminal Mile puts things into perspective with insight from people at the top. Our guests this week include Steve Magness (http://www.scienceofrunning.com), a former assistant coach at the Nike Oregon Project, current Ph D. student and author of the Science Of Running (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0615942946/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0615942946&linkCode=as2&tag=onanofthtr-20), Peter Eriksson, head coach of Athletics Canada and Rob Watson, Canada’s favorite marathoner.
As always, it you have any questions or comments, let us know, tweet us @TheTerminalMile.
Christmas is coming, and if you haven’t finished your shopping yet, don’t worry, The Terminal Mile has all the runners on your list taken care of. On this week’s show, we chat with Brian Hagemeier from Runners’ Choice in London, Ontario about what makes the perfect gift for the runner on your list, and we talk great books about running with Steve Boyd aka “Oldster.” We also get our hands on some confidential letters to Santa from some high profile runners from across the country, and you certainly won’t want to miss that!
As always, it you have any questions or comments, let us know, tweet us @TheTerminalMile.
Oldster’s Book List:
Daniels’ Running Formula-Jack Daniels, Ph.D The Lore Of Running-Timothy Noakes 80/20-Matt Fitzgerald Galloway’s Book On Running-Jeff Galloway Anatomy For Runners-Jay Dicharry
The First Four Minutes-Sir Roger Bannister The Golden Mile-The Herb Elliott Story as told to Alan Trengove Brendan Foster-Brendan Foster and Cliff Temple Running- Jean Echenoz
As you probably watched, the Flotrack Beer Mile World Championships went down this past week in Austin, and the results certainly had us singing Oh Canada! On a special edition of The Terminal Mile this week, we go deep into the event that had us all on the edge of our seats, with interviews from the champ himself, Corey Gallagher, @CoreyGallagher4, Jim Finlayson, 3rd overall and the new masters record holder and Jeff Mountjoy, @JeffMJoy, beer mile enthusiast and winner of the sub-elite race. Hang on for some of the most extensive beer mile coverage this side of the border.
As always, it you have any questions or comments, let us know below, or tweet us @TheTerminalMile.
Had a tough go of keeping up with all the running events this fall? No worries, with the help of Adam Stacey (Trackie) and Jeff Costen (post-collegiate runner) The Terminal Mile gets you up to date on all things CIS X-C, a little bit on the CCAA and the Canadian marathon scene. Find us on twitter @TheTerminalMile and @Trackie