Running In Circles

Today I’m joined by Matt Baxter! Matt attended NAU and placed 2nd at the 2017 NCAA cross country championships. He’s currently a part of NAZ elite and just ran the NYC marathon where he placed 12th overall. Also Matt is currently in the process of releasing a new book (running up the mountain) that covers NAU’s history and story which we discuss in this episode. We also discuss how it felt to watch the cross country championships this year when it played it similarly to his race in 2017 and more! If you enjoy the episode please consider leaving a five star review on Spotify and sharing it with a friend!

Today I’m joined by Futsum Zienasellassie! Futsum just won the USATF marathon in 2 hours 11 minutes and it was his debut marathon! During college Futsum attended NAU where he was a cross country all American all four years and even led NAU to a cross country national title in 2016. Futsum currently runs for NAZ elite and he’s currently deciding if he wants to hop on the track this spring or go for another marathon which we discus in this episode. We also discuss his build up leading up to the marathon, his recovery process, his favorite Christmas song, and more!

Today I’m joined by Ryan Johnson!

Ryan runs for the Air Force Academy and has become quite the impressive runner despite not having insane times in high school. Ryan’s personal records in high school were 4:26 in the 1600 and 9:21 in the 3200 and he’s now a cross country All American after finishing 28th at the NCAA cross country Championships this year.

Throughout this episode Ryan discusses why he decided to go to the Air Force Academy, all of the opportunities that there are when you go to the academy, how Coach Cole (Air force cross country and track director) has built such an amazing team without having crazy talent straight out of high school, his hope to go pro, how he got the nickname Plop, Clash of Clans, how he got into running and more.

Today I’m joined by Ryan Raff! Ryan recently capped off his collegiate career by helping NAU win their third cross country national title in a row! Throughout this episode Ryan discusses how he will be foregoing the rest of his indoor and outdoor track eligibility to pursue ultra running, how he balances life as a college student while being married and having a child, how it felt to win the national title when the odds were stacked against his team, and more!

Today I’m joined by Kole Mathison! Kole recently placed 4th at Nike cross Nationals for a time of 14:55 in the 5k. Kole is committed to run at Colorado University in the fall and as his last high school track season approaches he’s going to try to enjoy every last moment but he can’t wait to be running in the NCAA! Throughout this episode Kole discusses how he felt about his race at NXN, how he gives all the glory to God for what he’s accomplished, what went into his decision to committing to Colorado, his advice for young runners and more!

Today I’m joined by Parker Wolfe! Parker is currently a sophomore at the university of North Carolina where he runs cross country and track. Most recently Parker led UNC to the highest men’s finish at the NCAA cross country championship since 1985 placing 10th as a team and 9th individually to earn an All American title for the second straight time in NCAA cross country. Throughout the episode Parker shares what’s on his bucket list, his experience at UNC, his race at NCAA’s and more!

Today I’m joined by Charlie Sweeny! Charlie currently runs for Colorado University and recently placed 69th at the NCAA cross country Championships where he ran a 29:53 10k. Throughout this episode Charlie and I discuss how his high school coach roped him into doing cross country, his dream of being an NFL commentator, his Fortnite skills, going to Australia, his post college goals and more!

On this episode of running in circles Pro runner Paul Ryan gives us some insight into where he’s currently training, his favorite holiday, his goals for the upcoming season, answers some crazy would you rather questions and more!

This trailer gives you a little glimpse into what you’ll see from the running in circles podcast!

On this episode of running in circles Aaron Bienenfeld gives us some insight into his experience at Oregon, how he’s feeling about Cross country Nationals, his life growing up in Germany and more!