There are many examples in sports where a competitor prematurely celebrates or “lets up” at the last second turning what appears to be great success to embarrassing failure.  In the NFL season opener on September 5th between the Denver Broncos and Baltimore Ravens, Danny Trevathan purposefully dropped a Joe Flacco intercepted pass at what turned out to be inches before he crossed the goal line to celebrate.  What appeared to be a Denver touchdown quickly turned into a Baltimore first down.  In the August Ironman 70.3 Brazil race, Jérémy Jurkiewicz of France stopped short of the finish to celebrate his victory and literally had to push back Brazil’s Igor Amorelli only inches from the tape to grab the win.  This calls for a look at 5 Great Reasons for NOT slowing down at the finish line!

Finish the Drill

Several sports teams including the University of Georgia football team have adopted “Finish the Drill” as their slogan.  There is great satisfaction both mentally and physically when we complete a race knowing that we left absolutely nothing on the trail.  I feel great knowing I gave it my best shot and I feel lousy knowing I held back ….regardless of my excuse.

Cameras Keep Rolling as Time Keeps Ticking

There is always at least one camera rolling and the footage is hard to refute especially when there are multiple angles.  Those computer chips don’t lie so slowing up at the finish is hard to refute even when the argument is between you and yourself.  After the race, look in the mirror and feel confident telling yourself that you ran through the finish and not to the finish.

It Makes No Sense to Come Up Short

Whether the race is 100 meters or a marathon, giving it your best shot for 99% of the race only to let up at the finish makes no sense.  We have all seen it happen to others but we don’t think it can happen to us.  It can.  It takes both mental and physical toughness to avoid coming up short.  Winners never quit and quitters never win.

You May Get a Big Surprise

I was fortunate enough to be the anchor on my college mile relay team my sophomore year in a dual meet with our arch rival.  We were 1 point ahead going into the final event meaning the winner of the mile relay event would win the dual meet.  Unfortunately their mile relay team was far superior as evidenced by their sweep of the open 400.  Surprisingly their leadoff man lost control of his baton coming out of the blocks!  Baton retrieval was costly however the gap had disappeared by the time the anchor legs made their exchanges.  We went stride for stride through the backstretch. Their anchor patiently waited to make his move.  I just knew I had him beat until I hit the tape and caught a glimpse of him hitting the tape at the same time.  I had no idea he was that close!  First place judge picked me.  Second place judge picked me too.  The points were split and we miraculously won the meet.  I swear I did not “let up” but if I had “let up” no way I would have admitted it.

Your Pain Will be Even Greater After the Race If You Let Up

That inner voice may tell us that we have run a long and hard race and no one will ever know if we let up just before the finish or celebrate those last few steps.  That is no one will know but us.  Truth is the “pain” saved by the “let up” in no way compares to the pain of coming up short especially when a competitor passes us up at the finish line.  Don’t take the risk.  Run through the finish in every race both on and off the trail.

I want to help military Veterans get outstanding employment in the civilian world. I think our military Veterans are currently the United States’s best resource and can make a deep impact. The problem is that military Veterans just don’t have the right skills for today’s economy. It used to be that a “business manager” was a viable career path, but that’s no longer the case in our hyper-digitized society, everyone must not only be able to manage, but also create value with individual skillsz.

I got lucky. I had a brother that introduced me to technology and the Internet early on. I want to pass that luck to other military Veterans.

The first person I’m going to help is Eddie. Eddie has 23 years military service, is a SFC in the Army, and is preparing himself for the civilian world by taking classes in web design at night. He’s using the post 9-11 Bill to pay for it. I used the post 9-11 Bill myself to pay for (a very small portion) of my MBA at Emory University in Atlanta. I’m going to give Eddie some projects to work on for SeriousRunning and National Trail Running Day and connect him to industry professionals.

I’m also going to work with Justin. He was in the Marines for 4 years and is currently in the Army guard. He has a job that allows him a lot of free time in front of a computer so he’s going to try to write a couple of articles and learn how to create quality online content. He can then use these skills writing other sites like About.com. He’s interested in trying adventure racing but he just needs the shoes to take that first step. I’ve got plenty of extra shoes and I can only wear one pair at a time so I’ll help him make that first step.

If you are a Veteran and are interested in learning more about the Internet business please feel free to email me at chris@seriousrunning.com. Those two examples are real people that are beginning an Internship now.

Areas of study:

Social Media

Blog Writing

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Email Marketing

Event Marketing

Digital Marketing

Social Media Marketing

Online Advertising

SEM

Google Adwords

Google Analytics

Potential perks include free race entries, gear, and marketable skillz. Plus doing fun, extreme stuff like XTERRA adventure races.

Requirements are that you must commit to 10 hours per week and 1 weekly phone lesson. Please simply send an email describing yourself and what you are interested in to chris@seriousrunning.com. No resumes please. Internships are open now and will last until November 1st.

Happy Trails!

Chris

Co-founder & CEO

SeriousRunning & National Trail Running Day

Are you a lone wolf runner?  Have you ever wanted to start your own wolfpack of runners, slashing through the woods and engulfing the streets in your local domain?  The movie “The Hangover” gives a good example of what it means to be in a wolfpack; check out this funny clip.  So how do you start your own pack of running wolves?

First, you must learn your domain.  Take some time as a lone wolf runner to learn the area around you and come up with some great running routes.  Running wolves like to join wolfpacks that vary in locations and distances from week to week, but starting from the same home base.  Wolves are very territorial.  Pick a central location for your running wolf pack to meet and mix up the routes with trails and streets in your area.  Wolves love to run through the woods, but also like crowding the streets at night while potentially howling at the moon.

Once you have your wolfpack routes, visit your local running club to recruit runners to join your wolfpack.  Make sure to run with runners of similar ability, age, and training schedule.  Running wolves like to go fast, so they typically want to join a wolfpack that challenges their ability, but provides support from the pack.

Running in a wolfpack can be very beneficial for all types runners.  For instance, if one wolf gets injured, the rest of the pack can take the runner back to safety.  It is particularly beneficial to run with a wolfpack at night because potential attackers will be likely to attack a pack than you running as a lone wolf.  Running in a wolfpack will also increase your performance as you vie for positioning within the pack.  You can organize a wolfpack, but that doesn’t make you the leader of the pack.  Push yourself to become top dog.

Running in wolf packs can be a great way to expand your social circle and develop a tight group of similar wolf runners.  You can even go to races and wear the same T-shirts!  Check out this sweet wolf pack T-shirt; don’t forget to read the customer comments, they’re pretty entertaining.

Here is more information to help you find the perfect running partners for your wolfpack.  At first you were one wolf in a running wolfpack, now there can be two wolves in the pack, so it’s a pack of two…running wolves

Finding the right running partner is just like finding the perfect “significant partner” or a good business partner, you need someone who is similar to you, but also has differences that motivate you to perform better.  The best place to find a good running partner is at your local running club because you live close to the other runners, you can determine ability levels easily, and you both enjoy running.  Once you think you’ve found that special someone there are a couple of things you should think about before making this big commitment.  60% of all running partnerships end in divorce, don’t become a statistic.

Pace: Of course you need to run with a partner that has like abilities, but every one of your running partners are different.  I have some running partners that are good for long easy runs, some that are better for a 5-mile tempo run, or some running friends that are fit for a track work out.  Think about the type of work out you are looking for and base your running partner decision accordingly.  A work out is a horrible thing to waste.

Proximity: Pick someone who lives close to you.  Studies have shown that people that are in close proximity of each other become closer friends than those who don’t.  Science is so amazing.  Driving to meet a running partner can be counter productive if the time spent to get to your partner is not worth the increase in productivity in your run.  I prefer to find a running partner that lives within “running distance” of me.  Of course that could be like 20 miles for a dude like this.

Accountable: Accountability is the most important aspect of any type of partner, but especially for a running partner.  Your running partner needs to be someone who won’t take your excuses for why you can’t run or why you want to run less than planned.  Also, make sure your running partner is someone who will always be ready to run when plans are made.  If they break a running date with you don’t get upset.  Get out there and run anyways.  Even go for a run with another running partner just to make your original partner jealous.  Playing games is fun.

Personality: You need someone who you like being around.  I especially like running with a partner on long, easy runs because it makes it more enjoyable to have a good conversation on the run.  Don’t base your decision on a running partner solely on ability.  Ability may be great now, but everyone loses it with age, it’s better to pick your partner based on personality.  It’s what’s on the inside that matters and will last a lifetime.  At least that’s what I’m hoping…because my insides are so awesome!

So make your running more enjoyable and find the right running partner for you.  Isn’t it about time you started looking for that special someone?

I’ve recently found myself with more time at night this summer so I decided to check out some local running clubs.  I found out that I could attend a different running club within 3 miles of my house every weeknight!  This week I attended 4 different running club events and met some really interesting people at each of them.  There was the guy with a plaque by his table at the restaurant where the running club meets signifying his 17 years of attendance.  That’s dedication.  There was the Div-III University track coach telling stories about elite runners’ personalities.  I met a writer who had recently published a popular book about Eagle Scouts, which I am one, along with my two brothers and father, called Spirit of Adventure.  I met the country club physical therapist who told me not to go to the physical therapists for my knee injury because I could do the exercises on my own without paying for it.  I even met a running shoe store employee who said the best thing for runners is to just run and stop worrying about the exact type of running shoes they wear.  All very interesting people and I definitely learned a lot from all the runners I met.  I really enjoyed myself and plan to continue to attend these social running clubs for the rest of the summer.  Other than the fact that I’m doing it, here are some other reasons to do some social running and attend your local running club runs:

Safer: Most of our routes were on city side streets.  With my recent knee issues I try to run on asphalt as much as possible which was easy to do when running in a group.  Cars seem to slow down and give you the right away, making running in a group much safer.  Plus you get an excuse to why you aren’t running on the sidewalk.  We have too large of a group!

Conversation Substance: As you can see from my intro paragraph I really enjoyed the conversations I had during and post group runs.  Runners all have a pretty universal personality that usually involves being awesome at all aspects of life which makes for some interesting conversations.  I have found that conversations at bars and other social events are usually pretty dumb and lack substance.  Think recapping a television show or movie.  So converse with some runners if you are looking for conversations with more substance.

Increases Motivation: It’s like the Army, you do something you may not want to do if you think other people are counting on you.  How many of the men and women in the Armed Forces do you think care about securing Iraq?  They’re there fighting for their buddies, because their buddies are counting on them.  A running club works the same way.  You know other runners are counting on you to be there, to help them, push them, and socialize.  You don’t want to let them down do you?  No, you’re a runner.

Improved Performance: I always run faster when running with someone else, but not because I am competing with them.  I usually allow the other person to set the pace, always staying a half-step back.  But people just run faster when they are running with others.  I’m not sure why, but it works.

Expand Your Social Circle: See first paragraph.  I love meeting interesting people who are different than me but share some similar interest.  Running club attendees are a perfect fit!

New Running Routes: Even though the clubs started in my area, I ran some new routes that I had never run before.  I had run in these areas before, but hadn’t taken specific back streets that make up the running clubs’ named routes.  I got to see my local neighborhoods in a more intimate setting.  I also saw 3 houses I considered buying a year ago in a neighborhood close to where I eventually bought and all of those houses were still for sale.  Glad I made the right choice…I think.

Seems Quicker: The time running seems to go quicker when you are socializing.  Don’t get me wrong, I love to think when I run but sometimes you just need to socialize and run, not worrying about anything else.

You don’t necessarily have to join a running club to enjoy social running but it does make it easier.  At the very least, grab a friend and go for a run.  It’s a great way to socialize, keep you motivated, and expand your running prowess.  You’ll be more serious about your running!