Looking Back on 2014-The Multitaskers

If there is any real "down time" on the year-round track, road/trail/ultra, cross country seasons it's the XMas New Year's period.  It's a logical time for reflection, memories from the past year.  There were many. It was a good year for people in the sport with Minnesota ties.

I'm obviously not going to try and list everyone deserving of a mention, but rather focus a bit on a theme of "multitasking."  Athletes/individuals who weren't only notable for their performances, but also for other contributions they made to the sport.  For example, It was a banner year for Will Leer, who spends most of his time training and competing, but that's not all he does.

Fear the Beard.  Leer at Millrose.

On the track Leer won the Wanamaker Mile at the Millrose Games indoors, etching his name on one of the signature events of every indoor season.  He competed in the World Championships indoors, but was perhaps more importantly a leader more for what he said than what he did at the US Championships.

When Gabe Grunewald and Andrew Bumblough were disqualified in the women's and men's 3Ks, he didn't avoid the controversy.  He used his post race interview after making the US team in his event to voice the opinion of the majority that the DQs were not fair nor proper.  And he didn't stop there.  Grunewald was reinstated, but it wasn't until the USATF Convention in December that Bumbalough was reinstated and the rules changed to hopefully avoid another situation like that being repeated.

Leer is a member of the Athletes Advisory Committee, and he has made the effort for the last four years to attend the convention and be active in the process of defending athletes rights, and advocating changes as needed to encourage fair and transparent treatment for athletes when disputes occur.  His actions were not without risk, as sponsors and sports administrators tend to favor athletes who are seen but not heard.  Athletes who avoid conflict rather than take a stand.

At the Honolulu Marathon to help pace Michigan coach and Canadian Olympian Kevin Sullivan in his first marathon, Leer and another Olympian, Nick Willis, rescued a damsel in distress, a woman who had fallen into the water after breaking her arm.

Another multi-tasker is the Queen of the Road Mile, Heather Kampf.  Not only did Kampf make the US team for World Indoors and continue her success in road miles, she coaches cross country and track at Apple Valley HS. She has a "day job" at Mill City Running and  does motivational speaking.

The Quuen on her throne.

This multi-tasking is not a new thing for Kampf.  As her mother will tell you, Heather was a whirlwind in High School at Rosemount, where in addition to being a State Champion in track, she did music and gymnastics, among other things. Kampf is seemingly always buzy with something.  Not unlike one of her training partners, Masters runner Lance Elliott.

Lance Elliott on the roads

 In addition to his own accomplishments as a Masters middle distance runner, Elliott is there for others, training with Kampf when she needs a partner, or with the Edina High School boys team when they needed to prepare for the NXN cross country championships.

All that and a full life attempting to keep up with the schedules of his own kids.  At NXN, he not only helped the Edina team, he took photos of the races, documenting the races.  During the NXN post race meal, he got a call from a reporter wanting to get some insight into how the races went in Portland.  Aside from his pride in the fact that the Minnesota teams performed well--they did the State and Region Six proud, Elliott noted before passing the phone off to the Minnesota high school kids from  Hopkins, Wayzata, Woodbury,  and Edina, who were all gathered at the dinner table.  It was their day.

Amanda Smock, Olympian

All these Minnesotans and more that made 2014 another outstanding year for the State's athletes. Double national champ Amanda Smock, who, like one of her mentors, Shani Marks Johnson, paid back Macalester College for the use of their facilities to train by coaching their triple jumpers.  Dennis Barker, who stepped back a bit from multitasking as the coach at Augsburg and Team USA Minnesota to concentrate on Team USA Minnesota, coaching the high school team at Nova Academy, etc.

Carrie Tollefson at the NYCM

Carrie Tollefson: Olympian, mother, runner, broadcaster....All reaching new heights.  All giving something back to the sport they love.