THE BROOKS BLOG

Brooks Beast Hood to Coast Team

The Brooks Beast team won the 2009 Hood to Coast Relay this past weekend in the smoking fast time of 16:55:35 - a 5:08 mile pace for 197 miles! This was an upset victory over race favorites and multiple-time champions, BAC (Nike). The team was comprised of six Brooks Inspire Daily Members, five local Brook athletes, and one Brooks employee.

The team was third place overall in 2007, and second place in 2008. The Hood to Coast Relay is the largest relay race in the world, with over 1,000 teams of 12 runners competing. It is a highly regarded race among elite runners.

Jeff Powers (3000m), Jordan Fife (1500m), Ty Davis (800m), Derek Scott (1500m / 3000m), and Stephen Haas (3000m) will compete at the 2009 USATF Indoor National Championships this Saturday and Sunday in Boston.

For Powers and Fife, it will mark their second year in a row competing at the US Indoor Nationals, with both hoping to improve on their 8th place finishes from 2008. For Davis, Haas, and Scott, this will be their first appearance at the US Indoors. Haas is a multi-time competitor at the USATF Outdoor National Championships in the 5000 and 10,000m, and Davis was a semi-finalist in the 800m at the 2008 US Olympic Trials.

Results can be found at www.usatf.org, and interviews can be found at www.flotrack.org

–Altitude camp after US Nationals

Six members of the group will head to Flagstaff, Arizona for 5 weeks of altitude training immediately after the US Indoor Championships. This will be the second year that the group will be in Flagstaff. Last year’s altitude camp was very successful, with five athletes setting seven new personal best marks in the 4 weeks after the camp. Look for blogs, photos, videos and updates on www.teamindianaelite.com and www.flotrack.org

For more information on Brooks Team Indiana, visit www.teamindianaelite.com

Men's Open Field

Some estimates had the temperature hitting negative 12 degrees during the Men’s Open race last weekend in Spokane, WA. I’m not sure if weather records exist for the USATF Club Cross-Country National Championships, but this would be difficult to surpass!

Literally hundreds of club teams from across the nation toed-the-line at the annual cross-country championships, but no one stayed long after his or her respective race had ended. Brooks had an amazing showing with half of the teams wearing Brooks racing uniforms, the Hansons distance project had returned, and Brooks bought drinks for its athletes following the race (USATF negated that benefit this year).

My personal experience running with 358 other men in the Men’s Open race was pure torture. The winds were easily approaching 30mph, the ground was nearly frozen, and I couldn’t muster the energy to spit far enough to avoid my chin! However, there were no major catastrophes and everyone enjoyed themselves in the post race festivities.

Even if the run wasn’t happy for everyone, we found a way to making running a happy experience in the end! Is this 30 degrees in Seattle balmy or what???

On Friday, August 22nd, Brooks participated in the world’s largest relay race, Hood to Coast. With over 1,000 teams of 12 athletes, two vans, drivers, support crew, and the like, the Brooks Beast (men’s elite team), Brooks Running 1 (mixed corporate team), and Brooks Baba Yaga (women’s elite team) started their 197 mile race from the Timberline lodge on Mt. Hood to the sunny beaches of Seaside, OR.

In the end, the Brooks Beast men’s team finished 2nd overall and 1st in the men’s open division. Brooks Running 1 finished 29th overall and 3rd in the mixed corporate division, and Brooks Baba Yaga finished 35th overall and 2nd in the women’s open division!

Through all the blisters, irritable bowel syndrome, lack-of-sleep, malnutrition, and everthing else associated with this crazy race, everyone finished in high spirits. Needless to say, 20 hours in a van with 6-8 other sweaty and stinky people creates a special bond that only the racers and drivers can truly know.

We hope to be back next year stronger than ever…competing for those podium spots!!!