Low- to moderately-informed takes on a trio of exceptional boys XC races, including the final chapter of the Manny Putz era. How (Wisconsin) Rapid(s) will the nation's #1 prep cross country performer run?

On the eve of a potentially historic state championship meet, Spencer, Matt & Thomas give their takes on individuals and teams to watch across all three divisions, including a LOADED girls D2 field.

Join us dive into all things running, from our own marathon training to the evolving landscape of the upcoming cross country season. In this episode, we discuss competitive balance changes in high school cross country, exciting upcoming events like the WISCO Running Summit 2024 and RANGER XC RELAYS, and the state of college and post-collegiate cross.

Check out the links below for some fun upcoming events, or let us know if you'd like to be on the next episode of FRIENDS OF THE POD

Register for the RANGER XC RELAYS on August 1st: Wisconsin Runner

Learn more about the WISCO Running Summit 2024: WISCO Running Summit 2024

Sign up to be on a FRIENDS OF THE POD episode: Friends of the Pod Form

As we roll into July, we talk through some strategies for doing more than just making it through summer training, and instead making the most out of the seasonality our state offers. We tackle both what types of workouts work best this time of year (both from a weather and training periodization perspective), as well as the significance of effort-based training.

As elite coach and Wisconsin native Jerry Schumacher expressed, there are big long-term benefits to be had from having a training cycle that is responsive to the climate. While certain types of workouts can be brutal on a muggy morning in July, some of the types of workouts that are most conducive to the summer forecasts also align nicely with a long-term build towards fall performances, regardless of whether those goal races are a marathon or a 5k cross country race.

Beyond being a bit of a necessity in the heat and humidity of the Midwest, we also share why we believe mastering effort-based is key to optimizing training and maximizing performance over an entire running career.

We're back at it! Pumped to get things rolling again!

If you've got any feedback for us, or topics you'd like us to cover PLEASE reach out to us at: [email protected]

A man of remarkable range, from PR's of 1:51 and 3:50 to a top 5 GrindFest finish in a loaded year, to being the social media mastermind of WRRT, Joe Zack covers a similarly impressive range of topics in our spotlight. 

A graduate of Oconomowoc HS ('13) and UW-Oshkosh ('18), Joe talks us through his unique journey to finding the sport, growing his passion for running within a similarly growing team culture at Oconomowoc, and some of the highlights along the way. He also opens up about how just missing out on some of his biggest goals at the high school and collegiate levels have had silver linings that continue to shine through in his career today. 

2020 was a year that will be tough to forget. On top of all that went on in the world, it’s was also a very memorable one for one of the newest members of WRRT, Tai Dinger.

Today we sat down with John Simons to talk about the news that came out a couple weeks back with the press release stating that University of Minnesota planned to discontinue Men's Track & Field, Gymnastics, and Tennis programs ad the end of the 2020-2021 school year.

John takes us into the mind of a Minnesota TF alumni and someone who helped create part of the legacy that is University of Minnesota Track & Field.  He also gives us some insight into the argument they are making to the Board of Regents.  

This is not yet a done deal and if you're willing to help spread the word and advocate for not only University of Minnesota programs, but our sport in general please click on the link below.

https://linktr.ee/reinstateumnmenstf

The loaded Wisconsin high school class of 2009 saw a proliferation of talent, producing a year in which it took 9:15 to make the medal stand in the 3200m. The man standing on that final podium position, John Simons of Arrowhead, had a weekend that looked to be the peak of an athletic career years in the making, bringing home two individual medals (though none higher than 5th place), as well as taking part in his team's runner-up 4x800m relay, culminating in a dominant team state championship for the Warhawks. His performances were significant breakthroughs, yet Simons, like several other members of Wisconsin's Sub-4 Club, was far from the most sought after talent coming out of the state that year. What may have appeared to others as a culmination was really a launching point.

With a college career that included transferring, uncertainty, disappointing performances, and a struggle to find the success he knew he was capable of, John once again burst forth on to the scene, this time on the NCAA level, with a now legendary performance at an indoor last chance meet at Notre Dame in 2013.

This episode is an excerpt from a forthcoming full-length episode with John, now an assistant coach at Dartmouth University. Keep an eye out for a great conversation about the full scope of John's career and some phenomenal insights on the power of self-belief in the days to come!

Catch our pre race and post race shows from this weekends first event in The Series, the Fort "Four".   We make some individual, team, and time predictions and then reflect on how close, or FAR off we were.  

Catch us on the Wisconsin Runner Racing Team Facebook Page for more immediate updates on events and live feeds, but we will always keep you in the loop here on the podcast.

Results of The Series Race #1: The ~4 Miler*

Men:

Women:

*The course ran slightly short of 4 miles (most GPS readings were between 3.88 & 3.93), so adding .1 of a mile at an athlete's given pace (ie. 5:00 = 30 seconds) should give an indicator the time for a full 4 miles.

Team scores: