Our USA 25K National Championships are this weekend in Grand Rapids, MI. Its my favorite race in the United States for 7 reasons.
- It is perfectly timed for our USA developing athletes. You won’t find Galen Rupp or Jared Ward or Desi Davila or Molly Huddle because of the proximity to Boston, London, Berlin, etc. I’ve always contended that it is The National Champs race to cut your teeth on, if you are serious about testing yourself against similar national level of American talent.
- The race accepts any and all serious racers. You don’t need to be a big name to get your shot. They’ve accepted two of our Run Guru Elite athletes for tomorrow’s race, neither named Wintheiser or Starbuck.
- Greg Meyer is the Elite Athlete Coordinator. Winner of the 1983 Boston Marathon and the single biggest proponent of developing American runners in the U.S.
- The staff at Fifth Third River Bank has hosted this National Championships since 1995 and they do it right. Waived, seeded entry, ground transportation, meals and no detail to small to accommodate.
- The Amway Grand Plaza. The magnificent host hotel, the epitome of treating every athlete like a world class runner.
- The course. Beautiful 15.5 mile tour along the Grand River. Wide open roads as it should always be. You’ll never sell me on a bike path or sidewalk as a legitimate road race whether at the Friends of the Dog Pound 5K or a champs race.
- The competition.
We’ve got a lot of talented runners here in Nebraska that I think would fit right into and benefit from this race. The Bigger Picture.
Team Nebraska alum Mike Morgan knows all about the 25K. So does Olympian Brian Sell.
Greg Meyer has accepted so many of our Nebraska athletes. Kevin Hanson makes sure that his club is always well represented. We’ll be taking a new kit to Grand Rapids tomorrow but the message remains the same.
In 2008 I toed the line and won the USA 25K 50-54 title.
About Author
