Have you heard? There's not one new training group in Flagstaff, but two! With the Olympic year in sight these groups are starting to kick into gear.
I want to take this post to outline some of the great things that these groups are doing; not only for their athletes, but for the community of Flagstaff as a whole!
Here we go!
I want to take this post to outline some of the great things that these groups are doing; not only for their athletes, but for the community of Flagstaff as a whole!
Here we go!
Northern Arizona Elite (NAZ Elite)
NAZ Elite is organized a lot like other training groups around the United States with a head coach in charge, and athletes who subscribe to the training of that individual. Much like the late McMillan Elite, Ben Rosario and his wife are the primary coaches and business minded people behind this venture.
However, different than training groups of yesteryear Coach Ben is extremely open about the training he prescribes. Their website is filled with workout videos, athlete blogs, and even detailed day to day training logs for every one of their athletes.
The secret to this group is that there are no secrets. Their unique and refreshing honesty as a tool to garner support and collaboration is what it's all about. People would much rather rally around something they understand and can relate to, than some super secret training group that isolates everyone else.
Bravo NAZ Elite!
NAZ Elite is organized a lot like other training groups around the United States with a head coach in charge, and athletes who subscribe to the training of that individual. Much like the late McMillan Elite, Ben Rosario and his wife are the primary coaches and business minded people behind this venture.
However, different than training groups of yesteryear Coach Ben is extremely open about the training he prescribes. Their website is filled with workout videos, athlete blogs, and even detailed day to day training logs for every one of their athletes.
The secret to this group is that there are no secrets. Their unique and refreshing honesty as a tool to garner support and collaboration is what it's all about. People would much rather rally around something they understand and can relate to, than some super secret training group that isolates everyone else.
Bravo NAZ Elite!
Team Run Flagstaff Pro (TRF Pro)
This team holds a special place in my heart already. During my last year in Flagstaff I regularly attended TRF Tuesday workouts where hundreds of community members showed up to run a Jack Daniel's inspired workout on the local high school track. Men, women, and children of every age and every ability level participated. It was flippin' awesome.
TRF and TRF Pro offer opportunities for literally ANYONE that wants to put one foot in front of the other. From Kids Run Flagstaff to Step Into Running to TRF and TRF Pro, the thing that makes this organization so great is that it understands the value of community.
While I was a graduate student at Northern Arizona I did my thesis research on the catalysts and barriers to social capital in the Flagstaff running community. In other words, I was trying to figure out what were the things that needed to exist or needed to be overcome for the elite and sub elite running community to flourish in Flagstaff. What I found was that Flagstaff at that time (2010-2012) functioned as a system of oftentimes isolated islands of runners. McMillan Elite was dwindling, Bagel Runs weren't consistent, and everyone was kind of doing their own thing.
This is where my idea of "Mutual Reciprocity" came in. Mutual Reciprocity is the system of mutually beneficial give and take that can exist in a community. My idea, related to the Flagstaff running community, was that runners needed to break out of their isolated shells and start getting involved and giving back. This was the only way they would garner the support they needed to succeed as elite athletes in the Flagstaff community.
TRF Pro uses mutual reciprocity. In exchange for community support, access to local tracks, healthcare and other resources the athletes volunteer their time at community TRF workouts, as well as offering their skills in coaching, nutrition counseling, strength training, accounting, marketing, and event planning to the community.
Just like NAZ Elite, when people feel connected to the cause, like they themselves are fueling the dreams of real life Olympians and Olympic hopefuls, the system is much more likely to succeed and sustain!
Best of luck to these two new facets in the Flagstaff community!
This team holds a special place in my heart already. During my last year in Flagstaff I regularly attended TRF Tuesday workouts where hundreds of community members showed up to run a Jack Daniel's inspired workout on the local high school track. Men, women, and children of every age and every ability level participated. It was flippin' awesome.
TRF and TRF Pro offer opportunities for literally ANYONE that wants to put one foot in front of the other. From Kids Run Flagstaff to Step Into Running to TRF and TRF Pro, the thing that makes this organization so great is that it understands the value of community.
While I was a graduate student at Northern Arizona I did my thesis research on the catalysts and barriers to social capital in the Flagstaff running community. In other words, I was trying to figure out what were the things that needed to exist or needed to be overcome for the elite and sub elite running community to flourish in Flagstaff. What I found was that Flagstaff at that time (2010-2012) functioned as a system of oftentimes isolated islands of runners. McMillan Elite was dwindling, Bagel Runs weren't consistent, and everyone was kind of doing their own thing.
This is where my idea of "Mutual Reciprocity" came in. Mutual Reciprocity is the system of mutually beneficial give and take that can exist in a community. My idea, related to the Flagstaff running community, was that runners needed to break out of their isolated shells and start getting involved and giving back. This was the only way they would garner the support they needed to succeed as elite athletes in the Flagstaff community.
TRF Pro uses mutual reciprocity. In exchange for community support, access to local tracks, healthcare and other resources the athletes volunteer their time at community TRF workouts, as well as offering their skills in coaching, nutrition counseling, strength training, accounting, marketing, and event planning to the community.
Just like NAZ Elite, when people feel connected to the cause, like they themselves are fueling the dreams of real life Olympians and Olympic hopefuls, the system is much more likely to succeed and sustain!
Best of luck to these two new facets in the Flagstaff community!