Thursday, April 30, 2009
A Brief Chat with Nick Willis
After yesterday's news, it was great to see a Brief Chat with Nick Willis pop up at Runnersworld.com.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Rashid Ramzi Caught!
It's not like we didn't see this coming, but it is gratifying to see a cheat like Rashid Ramzi go down. Which means that a guy I am a big fan of, Nick Willis of New Zealand, is going to get bumped up to the silver medal. I was also remembering this morning the grief Nick was taking on the Letsrun.com message board after the 1500m final when he insinuated that some of the guys he was racing were not clean. Turns out he was spot on.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Ryan Hall interview with the Ryun boys
Ned and I were out in Los Angeles for business last week and Ryan picked us up for dinner. While we hit our old favorite, In-N-Out, I pulled out my video camera to grab a quick interview.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Another Ryan Hall interview
This one out of Chicago as Ryan gives some insights to the life of an elite marathoner.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
David Adams, Ryun camp counselor, ranked in steeplechase
It's always great to see former Ryun campers (and current counselors) rise in the ranks of American track and field. One such is David Adams, now a sophomore at Nebraska. A 1:59 high school 800m guy, David is quickly finding his nitch in the steeple, running a big PR of 8:48 a few weeks ago. With the Arkansas and Stanford meets coming up, I think he's got a good shot of going into the 8:30s.
3000m Steeplechase
1 Jake MORSE 8:30.19
2 Hillary BOR SO 8:36.84
3 Kyle HEATH SR 8:38.03
4 Barnabas KIRUI SR 8:41.12
5 Evans KIGEN JR 8:43.77
6 John MARTINEZ JR 8:44.92
7 Chris WINTER SR 8:46.91
8 Ryan GASPER JR 8:47.39
9 Gilbert LIMO SO 8:47.48
10 Kyle PERRY SR 8:47.92
11 David ADAMS SO 8:48.10
12 Scott MACPHERSON SR 8:48.35
13 Brandon BETHKE JR 8:48.66
14 Harry MILLER JR 8:49.09
15 Kevin MCNAB SR 8:49.76
3000m Steeplechase
1 Jake MORSE 8:30.19
2 Hillary BOR SO 8:36.84
3 Kyle HEATH SR 8:38.03
4 Barnabas KIRUI SR 8:41.12
5 Evans KIGEN JR 8:43.77
6 John MARTINEZ JR 8:44.92
7 Chris WINTER SR 8:46.91
8 Ryan GASPER JR 8:47.39
9 Gilbert LIMO SO 8:47.48
10 Kyle PERRY SR 8:47.92
11 David ADAMS SO 8:48.10
12 Scott MACPHERSON SR 8:48.35
13 Brandon BETHKE JR 8:48.66
14 Harry MILLER JR 8:49.09
15 Kevin MCNAB SR 8:49.76
Running Times interview with Ryan Hall
A great piece by Scott Douglas as he interviews Ryan heading into next week's Boston Marathon.
Monday, April 13, 2009
A Brief Chat with Ryan Hall
Another great interview with Ryan Hall leading up to the Boston Marathon next Monday, this one courtesy of Runner's Worlds "A Brief Chat" series.
Monday, April 6, 2009
Four of the Greatest
In an odd turn of events, dad and mom happened to be in Melbourne, Australia a few weeks ago the day a lunch was held honoring the great Australian miler, John Landy. Billy Mills and Ron Clarke were in attendance as well and I thought this picture was too good not to post. From L-R: Billy Mills, John Landy, Ron Clarke and Jim Ryun.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Gettysburg 2008 Camp Video
As camp 2009 rapidly approaches, I thought I would post the video from last year's Gettysburg camp.
Jim Ryun's Response to Runner's World
As many in the running world know by now, Runner's World ran what could best be described as a hatchet piece on dad's old coach, Bob Timmons. Ben Paynter's piece was unbalanced, unfair and in the end, as poor a piece of journalism as what could hope for from Runner's World. I know I am not alone in asking, "What in the world was Runner's World thinking publishing an article like that?"
Dad recently submitted a response to Runner's World which I have already posted on Letsrun.com's message board (one of my favorite sites to go to multiple times a day). However, I thought it would be appropriate to post it here as well.
Here is dad's response in its entirety . I edited it slightly to correct the error in Cliff Cushman's event-400m hurdles versus 400m.
"As I read the recent Runner’s World story on Coach Timmons, I was struck by the courage Coach Timmons displayed in allowing the writer to interview him during one of the most vulnerable times in his life. Some who have dementia don’t go out in public let alone allow themselves to be interviewed by someone who clearly had another motive than to record Coach’s outstanding accomplishments. Typical of Timmie, he made himself available to someone who obviously lacks a mature understanding of one man’s gift to the world of track and field. Coach is to be commended for his willingness to be interviewed in his home with Pat by his side.
I lived through many of the years referenced in the Runner’s World article. I recall one summer when I lived with the Timmons family in their Lawrence, KS farmhouse in order to train for the 1964 Olympics. They welcomed me as a member of their family. I treasure the nearly 50 years that I’ve known the Timmons family as a student athlete and now as lifelong friends. Timmie and Pat are grandparents to our children, great grandparents to our grandchildren and Godparents to our son, Ned. We have celebrated many holidays and family events together. Yes, there were those who didn’t “make it” under the Timmon’s program, but the larger number of us did, and became not just better athletes, but more importantly, better human beings.
Cliff Cushman, a KU great, silver medalist in the 400 meter hurdles in the 1960 Rome Olympics once wrote, “Unless your reach exceeds your grasp, how will you know what you can achieve?” Coach believed in this principle and applied it daily to our workouts. He wanted the best for each of his athletes, and while he wanted them to win in their individual event, he was more concerned about the character and well-being of the athlete.
While the writer attempted to capture the Timmon’s years by allowing athletes to tell their story, he failed to make some very important points. First, he selectively chose the athletes who did not enjoy all the success they’d hoped for in Timmie’s program (with the exception of Steve Heffernan). Where are the quotes from guys like Bill Lundberg, George Mason and others who had great success under the Timmon’s system? A coach, any coach, has a particular philosophy that has given him success. I thought Coach executed his program extremely well. Secondly, an athlete has a choice as to what program he will submit himself to. Simply said, it is the athlete’s choice to remain with a certain program or leave it
I will readily admit that the training loads were challenging, but no one gets to the top of his event without overcoming many obstacles. I was a boy who was cut from my church baseball team who Timmie turned into a world record holder and three-time Olympian. Coach Timmons was in the business of helping each athlete reach his full potential. I know it pained him when someone dropped out of his program. What is not mentioned by the writer is that Timmie anguished over those athletes who didn’t make it.
I submit to the readers of this poorly written article, that there is another side to the story of Coach Timmons. After retirement from KU, Coach gave his time to coach junior high track and volleyball as well as encourage those around him to continue to set goals in life. All those that come in contact with Coach and Pat are never the same- the love, kindness, encouragement and sincerity they exude are attributes I have always strived to emulate and examples I have set before my children and grandchildren. I wish Coach all the best in these latter years of his life. I am saddened the writer of the article does not appreciate Coach Timmons and the sacrifices he and his family made for his athletes. He is and will always be loved and respected by a whole host of former athletes, their families and his fellow coaches throughout the Big 8 (now the Big 12).
Jim Ryun
United States Olympian (1964, ’68 & ’72)"
Dad recently submitted a response to Runner's World which I have already posted on Letsrun.com's message board (one of my favorite sites to go to multiple times a day). However, I thought it would be appropriate to post it here as well.
Here is dad's response in its entirety . I edited it slightly to correct the error in Cliff Cushman's event-400m hurdles versus 400m.
"As I read the recent Runner’s World story on Coach Timmons, I was struck by the courage Coach Timmons displayed in allowing the writer to interview him during one of the most vulnerable times in his life. Some who have dementia don’t go out in public let alone allow themselves to be interviewed by someone who clearly had another motive than to record Coach’s outstanding accomplishments. Typical of Timmie, he made himself available to someone who obviously lacks a mature understanding of one man’s gift to the world of track and field. Coach is to be commended for his willingness to be interviewed in his home with Pat by his side.
I lived through many of the years referenced in the Runner’s World article. I recall one summer when I lived with the Timmons family in their Lawrence, KS farmhouse in order to train for the 1964 Olympics. They welcomed me as a member of their family. I treasure the nearly 50 years that I’ve known the Timmons family as a student athlete and now as lifelong friends. Timmie and Pat are grandparents to our children, great grandparents to our grandchildren and Godparents to our son, Ned. We have celebrated many holidays and family events together. Yes, there were those who didn’t “make it” under the Timmon’s program, but the larger number of us did, and became not just better athletes, but more importantly, better human beings.
Cliff Cushman, a KU great, silver medalist in the 400 meter hurdles in the 1960 Rome Olympics once wrote, “Unless your reach exceeds your grasp, how will you know what you can achieve?” Coach believed in this principle and applied it daily to our workouts. He wanted the best for each of his athletes, and while he wanted them to win in their individual event, he was more concerned about the character and well-being of the athlete.
While the writer attempted to capture the Timmon’s years by allowing athletes to tell their story, he failed to make some very important points. First, he selectively chose the athletes who did not enjoy all the success they’d hoped for in Timmie’s program (with the exception of Steve Heffernan). Where are the quotes from guys like Bill Lundberg, George Mason and others who had great success under the Timmon’s system? A coach, any coach, has a particular philosophy that has given him success. I thought Coach executed his program extremely well. Secondly, an athlete has a choice as to what program he will submit himself to. Simply said, it is the athlete’s choice to remain with a certain program or leave it
I will readily admit that the training loads were challenging, but no one gets to the top of his event without overcoming many obstacles. I was a boy who was cut from my church baseball team who Timmie turned into a world record holder and three-time Olympian. Coach Timmons was in the business of helping each athlete reach his full potential. I know it pained him when someone dropped out of his program. What is not mentioned by the writer is that Timmie anguished over those athletes who didn’t make it.
I submit to the readers of this poorly written article, that there is another side to the story of Coach Timmons. After retirement from KU, Coach gave his time to coach junior high track and volleyball as well as encourage those around him to continue to set goals in life. All those that come in contact with Coach and Pat are never the same- the love, kindness, encouragement and sincerity they exude are attributes I have always strived to emulate and examples I have set before my children and grandchildren. I wish Coach all the best in these latter years of his life. I am saddened the writer of the article does not appreciate Coach Timmons and the sacrifices he and his family made for his athletes. He is and will always be loved and respected by a whole host of former athletes, their families and his fellow coaches throughout the Big 8 (now the Big 12).
Jim Ryun
United States Olympian (1964, ’68 & ’72)"
Friday, April 3, 2009
New Sponsorship for the Jim Ryun Running Camps
I am pleased to announce that we just locked in a new sponsorship for the running camp with Garmin. As camp has grown, it has been my goal to slowly add great sponsors to the camp to continue to expose our campers to products that will help them achieve their individual goals in running. Along with Garmin, ASICS and Gleukos will again be sponsoring the Jim Ryun Running Camps.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Interview with Jen Barringer
This is a short interview that I conducted with Jen when she stayed with us for the Olympians event at the White House last fall.
Juli Henner to join us at the Colorado State camp!
I confirmed recently with Juli Henner, 1996 Olympian at 1500m and current coach of Chris Lukezic, that she will join us for the better part of a day at the CSU camp. Juli and I have been friends for years and she has some great insights not only from having run at the highest level of our sport but also coaching at it as well.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
The High and The Mighty
On my previous blog I was going through SI.com's Vault to find old stories about dad. I don't believe I found this one before. It's from the 1972 Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon. The title is The High and The Mighty.
New Ryun Running Camp Blog
I apologize that our old blog site went down. I am still not sure what happened, but we're up and running again. I will be posting camp updates, news, who will be at camp and various observations on the running world here at this blog.
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