Strib Memorial on Steve Hoag

Strib Memorial on Steve Hoag HERE

Updated: Memories of Steve Hoag

Steve Hoag wasn't born with the physical gifts that would have tempted him to seek a career in  basketball or hockey.  Lucky for us it was  among distance runners where Steve was a giant. He was a Big Ten champion on the track for the Gophers.  On the roads a runner up in the Boston Marathon.

Steve Hoag(Left) and Ron Daws(right) on a training run

He touched the lives of most runners, however, as a running store trail blazer.  Back in the 1970s Garry Bjorklund and John Naslund started the running store movement in the Twin Cities with a small shop in Dinkytown called Body 'n Sole.  That morphed into GBS Sports(Garry Bjorklund Sports) with Steve as a partner.  That shop was located near Macalester College on Grand Avenue in St. Paul.

Other running entreprenuers joined Hoag and the franchise and kept it going.  Phil Jenni, today the Executive Director of the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, was involved, as well as Chris Fuller. Hoag would move on to a store of his own in Edina, Marathon Sports, now owned by John Long as Fleet Feet Marathon Sports.  Hoag was the engine behind the proliferation of running stores in the Twin Cities area.

Hoag's efforts paved the way for Perry Bach and the Run'n Fun franchise that blazed the trail for running entrepreneurs who now operate their own stores in the Twin Cities.  After selling Marathon Sports to John Long, Hoag "retired."  That retirement was mostly full of coaching high school runners at a number of schools.  His last stop being as an assistant coach for Minnetonka. It was his way of giving back to the running community and for him to stay in touch with the sport he loved.

Star Tribune obit HERE.
2007 Running Minnesota Interview HERE
University of Minnesota tribute to Steve Hoag HERE
Paul Raether's tribute to Steve and Ron Daws HERE
For more "history" read the comments attached to this posting

The family wishes to thank the caregivers and staff at University Of Minnesota Hospital and the two angels, Sue Simonet and Ali Kmieciak, for their loving hospice care. In lieu of flowers the family encourages donations to the Steve Hoag Memorial CC/Track Scholarship Fund. Service 11AM, October 4, 2017 at Zion Lutheran Church, Anoka MN. Visitation one hour before service.

Boston Marathon Minnesota Runner's Results

Boston Marathon Minnesota Results HERE

Instructions: Click on HERE above.
On the screen are several "boxes" to be clicked.
Use the State box and click on the arrow on the far right, scroll down to Minnesota.
Go to the Limit my search to the top box. use the arrow and scroll down to 1000.
The first 25 Minnesota finishers will appear.  Scroll down to the end of the first group of finishers. 
Click on the Next 25 records box.  After the next group of 25 you can go backwards or forwards by clicking on the appropriate box.

Drones added as a Security Measure at the Boston Marathon

Drones added as a Security Measure at the Boston Marathon HERE

Beware of Slow Moving Trains

Beware of Slow Moving Trains HERE

Boston Marathon Results, MN Finishers

Boston Marathon Results HERE
(Instructions: Go down to State, fill in Minnesota, go down to the "Limit my search to the top" fill in 1000. Click on search.  At the bottom of each search click on Next 25)  You can also search by runner's name or type in a city to get the runners finishing from that city in MN.

Sarah Barker on Boston Past and Dick Beardsley

Sarah Barker on Boston Past and Dick Beardsley HERE

Boston Finishers

Want to see how Minnesotans did at today's Boston Marathon.  Click HERE.  These are the searchable results so you can type in Minnesota in the State box and 1000 in the "Limit my search to the top" box and scroll on through the finishers.  You can further refine it by city or any of the other variables.  If you know the runner you're looking for's race bib number, you can find that individual.  Or you can use their last name along with the State.  Add the State if it's a common last name.

@GopherWCCTF also, Alexandra Brackenwagen (3:14:50) and Christine Volkman (4:30:02)

— Minnesota W TrackCC (@GopherWCCTF) April 20, 2015

Congrats to @coachafrye (2:39), @doronclark (2:41) and @koester_freya (3:18) on their #BostonMarathon finishes!

— Hamline T&F/XC (@HamlineTFXC) April 20, 2015

News: Kampf; Aldis Inde; Boston Bragging Rights; Fernando Cabada

BBTM interview with Heather Kampf HERE.

Recapping a school record.  Edina grad Aldis Inde breaks Williams College 5K mark HERE.

Amby Burfoot wrote an article for RW on Michigan runners' success at the Boston Marathon(HERE) that will probably get the stat folks busy trying to document that their state has a better record than Michigan.  From memory, Minnesota has a good case.  Fritz Carlson won Boston in 1913.  Steve Hoag and Dick Beardley were runners' up.  Garry Bjorklund, Bruce Mortenson, and Ron Daws both finished well.

So, who has the "bragging rights" for the elites at Boston?  Michigan?  Massachusetts?  Minnesota? Does the state have to have to start with M?

Fernando Cabada uses adversity as motivation, opportunity.

A Marathoner Outruns a Childhood of Poverty http://t.co/gpfdMZg9w6
— EP Track & Field (@edenprairietf) April 20, 2015

More HERE.

BAA Invitational Mile Women's Field

The women's field for the BAA Invitational mile:

                                               

Name                            Country                    Age        Mile Personal Best

Heather Kampf                 USA                       28           4:30.07i

Morgan Uceny                  USA                       30           4:29.39i

Gabe Grunewald               USA                       28           4:27.94

Brie Felnagle                     USA                       28           4:29.83

Dawit Seayum                   ETH                       18           3:59.53(1500)

Rachel Schneider               USA                      23           4:30.62i

Emily Lipari                       USA (B.A.A.)        22           4:35.24i

Top athletes #BAAMile (W): @MUceny @HeatherRaeKampf @gg_runs Dawit Seayum @briefelnagle @rachschneid18 E Lipari pic.twitter.com/dvk7Qy28IP

— David Monti (@d9monti) April 10, 2015

News: Memorable Moments of 2014; Undaunted; LR 1500 Rankings: Farmington

FloTrack has a list of memorable events and people from 2014 that features several Minnesotans. In Moments of the Year, flormer Twin Cities resident Elizabeth Herndon and the Beer Mile are featured HERE. Gopher distance runner Kate Bucknam and her role in the sportsmanship moment is HERE. Gabe Gruewald's IAAF Indoor Championship race moment is HERE.

The FLOPRO Series of the year featured Kara Goucher HERE.

Undaunted: Chasing History at the Boston Marathon, story of a new documentary on one person's quest HERE.

Will Leer was ranked fifth in the Let's Run men's US rankings HERE.  Garrett Heath got Honorable Mention.  Gabe Grunewald and Heather Kampf were Honorable Mentions in Let's Run's women's 1500 rankings HERE

Neither rain, nor sleet, nor snow...

There. A usable track again. #runnerspace #tracknation #trackandfield #400m http://t.co/uRILl78Kbw pic.twitter.com/nlnxovyvdN
— Scott Meier (@ScottMeier1) December 28, 2014

News: Underreported Stories; Stress Fractures; Kenyans; Ron Hill; Fatigue

Stories on Alysia Montano and Tatyana  McFaddin, one pregnant, the other continuing her dominance.  Both under reported during 2014 HERE.

Journal paper on stress fractures, what causes them, how to heal from them, manage them HERE.

Physiology isn't the only reason for success by Kenyan runners HERE.

What have you done every day for the last 50 years?  The UK's Ron Hill has run at least one mile HERE. Hill finished fifth in the 1975 Boston Marathon.  Can you name the Minnesotan who finished three places in front of him?

It was the Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi who is credited with the quote: "Fatigue makes cowards of us all."  Scientific studies has shown that a bit of motivation can counteract that fatigue HERE. the power of positive thinking.

News: HS; Bersagel; Keflezighi, Sportsmanship, Gophers

Stillwater Gazette AOW is freshman Rana Kraftson, top runner in Section 4AA for the Ponies HERE.

Worthington Daily Globe story on the comeback of the Heron Lake-Okabena team HERE.

Winona Daily News story on Winona HS's Caitlin Domeyer  is HERE. Photo album of the 1AA Sectionals is HERE.

Strib story on Rosemount's Alex Berhe is HERE, Chaska's Joey Duerr HERE, Four South Metro standouts HERE, Osseo's Grace Koskela HERE..

Park Rapids Enterprise story on Park Rapids' Isaac Overmyer and MSHSL 8A Sectionals is HERE.

Rochester Post Bulletin State Meet preview is HERE.

New York Times article on Annie Bersagel HERE.

Wall Street Journal feature on Meb Keflezighi is HERE.

Follow up story as Devil's Lake runner's "Good Samaritan" story goes national HERE.

Minnesota Daily preview of this weekend's Big Ten Championships is HERE.

News Bits: Hamline Elite Meet, Cancer Fundraiser, Joe Renier, Megan Geyen, UMAC Champs, Golden Goldys

Sun Sailor coverage of Hamline Elite Meet HERE, Shakopee Invitational HERE

Worthington Daily Globe article on Worthington pole vaulter Will Dudley is HERE

MSHSL photo gallery from Hamline Elite Meet on their Facebook page HERE

Sun Current story on Edina coach Dave Boone and May 2 Cancer Fund Raiser HERE

MIAC Student Athlete Spotlight on Gustavus' Joe Renier is HERE.

Minnesota Daily story on quater miler Megan Geyen is HERE.

Heather Kampf on the life of an elite runner HERE.

UMAC Conference Championships May 3 at U of M Morris info HERE.

Gopher's press release on Golden Goldys HERE.

Other Weekend Results and News Clips: Bolstad Twilight, Drake Alternative, St. Mary's Open, Janis Rider Invite; HS results, Meb and Brother Colm

Bolstad Twilight Meet results are HERE

Drake Alternative Meet results for men are HERE, women HERE

St. Mary's Open results for men are HERE, women HERE.

Janis Rider Invitational results are HERE.

Opening day results for NSIC multi event championships are HERE.

Preliminary team results from Get In Gear/USATF Minnesota 10K team championships are HERE.
Get In Gear photo album is HERE.

U-Mary's Jennifer Agnew accepts Female Student- Athlete of the Year Award

Minnesota Daily story on Gophers at Drake Relays is HERE.

Stillwater Gazette article on the Cambridge-Isanti Invitational is HERE.

Shakopee Valley News report on Shakopee results from the Hamline Elite Meet is HERE with link to photos HERE.

Sun Sailor stories on the Lake Conference Relays; Hopkins summary HERE, Minnetonka boys HERE, Minnetonka girls HERE, Wayzata HERE. Feature on Wayzata's Alayna Sonnesyn is HERE.

Meb on what he was thinking during and after his Boston win is HERE.

Patrick McHugh, Athletic Director and track coach at North Shore Country Day School in the suburbs of Chicago, on Brother Colm O'Connell is HERE.

Boston Strong-Meb Keflezighi

I met Meb Keflezighi many years ago on the Stanford track.  He had just finished winning the 5K, it was dark as the lights were on and all around Meb was a throng of people, more than two dozen, happily basking in the glow of his win.  "Who are all these people?" I asked.  They were members of the Keflezighi family and friends.

Over the years Meb has won more races, shared more victory celebrations, and made more friends.  On Monday, nearing his 39th birthday, he gained more followers by winning the Boston Marathon.  It was another improbable victory in an illustrious career that includes an Olympic silver medal and a New York City Marathon crown among his many triumphs.  Back when Americans won more frequently at the Boston Marathon, the late Boston Globe sports writer Joe Concannon used to ask other journalists and/or well known individuals in the sport to predict who would win and place in the annual trek from Hopkinton to downtown Boston.

If he had been around to go through that ritual this year, it's a safe bet that Meb would not have been at the top of anyone's list.  Meb has made a career of exceeding expectations.  From a silver medal in Athens in 2004 to becoming the first American in 27 years to win a New York City  men's title in 2011, and now Boston Marathon crown 31 years after Greg Meyer became the last American man to win, Meb has defied age and PR bias to race to wins in the marathon world's most prestigious events.  It's no accident that he has triumphed in conditions that require meticulous preparation, intelligent pacing, and challenging courses.

In an era when 2:04 and 2:05 marathons have proliferated among the Africans who now dominate the event, the refugee from Eritrea set his personal best on Monday of 2:08:37.  As Minnesotan Ron Daws used to preach, you need to study the Boston course and prepare for its unique challenges if you want to do well in Beantown.  In an era where many major marathons are on courses designed to improve the runners' chances to run fast times, Boston challenges the runners not only to be fit and healthy physically on race day, but to manage their energy wisely or suffer the consequences.

While Meb may not be the fastest marathoner on the planet, he may well be the smartest in how to manage his race, how to disperse his energy throughout to get the best result.  Marathoning, in essence, an exercise in energy management and Keflezighi has demonstrated again and again his proficiency in that skill.  His coach, Bob Larsen, who is, like Meb, an often underestimated jewel in the running world, is part of the impressive support team surrounding Keflezighi. (Runner Academy podcast on Larsen is HERE, interview with Larson starts at 6:28.  Larson is a Minnesota native.). San Diego residents Rich and Pat Levy have also been an important part of "Team Meb."  Levy, himself an accomplished athlete who ran for the University of Houston, will ride along with Keflezighi on a bike during long tempo runs.  He and his wife Pat have become members of Meb's extended family, providing support, friendship, and camaraderie in addition to help on training runs.

Meb's brother, Merhawi, manages his business affairs, and his wife Yordanos and two children ground him in life outside the sport.  Meb's win represents, perhaps, the biggest affirmation of the tag line for this year's event, Boston Strong.

Easter Updates

Hope everyone enjoyed the wonderful weather on Easter.  Below is some catch up on the weekend's activities.

Heather Kampf post-race interview on Runnerspace after the BAA Mile is HERE.  Interview with Nick Willis HERE..

Carleton Relays results are HERE(women) and HERE(men).
Carleton women's summary is HERE, men's HERE.
Hamline summary is HERE.
MSU Mankato weekend wrap up of their athletes at the Carleton Relays, Mt. SAC, and Long Beach is HERE
UMD women's summary is HERE, men's HERE.
Gustavus women's summary from Carlton Relays is HERE, men HERE.
Long Beach Invitational summary for U-Mary men is HERE, women HERE
Augsburg women's summary is HERE, men HERE.
Gopher men's summary from Carleton Relays and Mt. SAC is HERE. Gopher women's Carleton Relays summary is HERE.
St. John's summary is HERE

U-Mary grad and 2014 NCAA DII XC champ Jennifer Agnew won a double at the Carleton Relays, winning both the 5K and 1500. Minnesota Running Club's Cara Donohoe finished third in the 5K.

St. Ben's results and summary for the Prairie Wolf Invitational are HERE.
.
U-Mary Mt. SAC women's summary is HERE.

Video interview with Kara Goucher on Boston is HERE.

Kampf Second in BAA Mile; Zimak, McGee Win Fitger's 5K

"A nice start to the outdoor season, second place, and just .3 from the win.
Most importantly I felt great and had a great time celebrating the community of running in Boston.
Now Ben Kampf and I have an even bigger 'M&M Bowl'!!"--Heather Kampf

Team USA Minnesota's Heather Kampf finished second in the BAA Mile in Boston on Saturday in 4:44.3, three tenths of a second behind winner Morgan Uceny.  Medtronic TC Mile men's champ, Nick Willis won the men's race in 4:11.3, Rob Finnerty finished 6th in 4:15.2.  Results are HERE.

Lead pack about 8 seconds into the race.

Leaders, front view. RRW photo by Jane Monti

In Duluth, Trevor Zimak won the men's title in 15:54, and Duluth Masters runner Katie McGee the women's in 19:30 at the 25th Anniversary Fitger's 5K. Results are HERE.

News Clips: Mt. SAC, Boston, HS, Grandma's, Gophers, Manitou Classic

In today's early results, MSU Mankato's Chris Reed wins the Hammer Throw  U/O at Mt. SAC(65.70/215'7") on second to last throw HERE(event #146).

Kara Goucher's Boston blog is HERE.

Rob Finnerty and Heather Kampf among the entrants for the BAA Mile HERE.

Thursday Mt. SAC results are HERE. 10K:  Event #122: Minnesota,  Andrew Larson 7th in 29:28.30;  Event #221. St. Thomas, Erin Statz 28th in 37:32.98; Event #120. Minnesota, Adam Zutz  13th  in 29:59.18; Event #220. St Thomas, Gabrielle Pepin 18th in 37:53.58; Event #123 Bethel , Matt Berens 30th in 32:34.37

Stillwater Gazette story on Pony Classic HERE(boy's) and Prior Lake Invitational HERE(girl's)

Results from Wayzata/Rosemount dual meet HERE.

Duluth News Tribune story on Grandma's under new leadership is HERE.

Minnesota Daily story on 400 hurdler Rashawn Fountain is HERE.

Manitou Classic meet results are HERE.

St. Paul Pioneer Press article on Rosemount hurdler Rachel Schow is HERE.

Staying Alive (Healthy vs. Fit)

By Dave McGillivray

First, this is a “good story” with a happy ending…so far.

For the better part of my entire life, I thought I was as close to invincible as was humanly possible.   With all the running I have done, I thought no physical challenge was insurmountable.  It took 59 years, but, recently that all changed in a “heartbeat.”

Dave McGillivray in 1978
running over the Rocky
Mountains during the Run
Across America

For over a year now, I’ve been experiencing difficulty breathing as soon as I start my run workout.  For the first 10-15 minutes, I’ve had to run and then walk just to be able to catch my breath.  This has been embarrassing to say the least.  It felt like I was running at altitude.  It seemed like angina-type symptoms.  After about one to two miles, the discomfort seemed to either go away or at least became less painful.  I seldom ran with others choosing rather to run alone because I didn’t want anyone else to know “my little secret”.

Like most people, I know my own body very well and knew something wasn’t right, that something was very wrong.  I proceeded to have all the normal tests done – pulmonary, heart, EKG, inhalers, echo tests, stress tests and on and on.  The good news, nothing was detected.  The bad news, nothing was detected.  In fact, although my fitness level isn’t close to what it used to be when I was in my 20’s and 30’s, I am much fitter now than most folks my age walking the planet or any age for that matter and as such the stress test showed nothing out of the ordinary.  Then, what the heck was causing this nagging, non-stop breathing issue?

Unfortunately, I do come from a family that has a history of heart disease, in particular, a higher than normal cholesterol level.  It is simply in the gene pool. I only realized this about ten years ago and started taking a cholesterol lowering statin for it.  However, I had a bad reaction to the statin (mainly muscle cramping) and as such got frustrated and  stopped taking it for quite some time.  I eventually experimented with different ones until I came up with the one that worked best.

Through a methodical process of elimination, I tried valiantly to determine what the cause of my condition was but I kept coming up with no answers.  Was it hot weather or cold weather, running up hills, running after eating or drinking something?  What is causing this?   I even went on a run with my cardiologist, Dr. Aaron Baggish, but, of course, I could not replicate the problem right then and there for him to diagnose first hand.

After a year and a half of this, I had had enough and Dr. Baggish ordered a CAT scan.  The result, in his words, “severe blockage and chronic ischemic heart disease.”  The word that jumped out at me more than any other one was “severe”.  Really?  Severe?  I was devastated and really scared.  How can this be me?  I’ve run across the darn country averaging 45-miles a day, run hundreds of marathons, run over 140,000 miles, done the Ironman in Hawaii numerous times and just ran 59 miles on my 59^th birthday.  Really, severe?

Dr. Baggish immediately scheduled me for an angiogram at Mass General Hospital on October 9th.  I thought, okay, go in, maybe get one stent, leave and start running again the next day…all fixed up.  Problem solved.  Not so fast.   As I lay on the operating table, I nervously looked up at the monitor and saw the image of my arteries looking like the twisted branches of an oak tree.  My jaw dropped as the doctor pointed out “all” the blockages and narrowing in many of the arteries…no, not just one.  I started counting them on one hand and then stopped when I ran out of fingers.  The doctors determined it would be more risky to operate than not to and wheeled me out of the operating room.  As I was leaving, I was thinking to myself, how much more time do I have?  Is this possibly…terminal?  I usually don’t get emotional but I broke down uncontrollably.  So much for being Superman anymore.

After some “heart-to-heart” discussions with my doctors, it was decided that since I probably put myself in this position, it would be up to me to get myself out of it.   Have I followed the best nutrition plan all my life?  Hardly.  A few of my mottos have been, “anything and everything but in moderation” and “sleep is over rated.”   

I realized for the first time in my life that these just might be flawed statements.  I always rationalized that whatever I ate, I burnt off.  However, it’s like putting a bad grade of gas in your car.  The car will still run, but your engine will “gunk up” in no time.  And, I always thought I’d sleep enough when I’m dead.  There is even a song that says so.   And, I’ve been told that stress can be a factor, too.  I guess you could say this past year in Boston has been a little stressful for many of us.  There seemed to be a confluence of factors coming into play here.

I can personally name a half dozen friends who were really good athletes who in the past 10-15 years went for out for a run from their home and never came back.  I thought that could have happened to me but how lucky am I that I am now getting a second chance.  I never believed that I would “drop, you know what” on a run, but now I wonder if I actually could have.   People often use the expression, “at least he died doing what he loved to do.”  Well, I’m sorry, but I do not want to die doing what I love to do and that is while out for a run.  Dying in my sleep when I am 110 seems like a better option to me. 

Only a few weeks ago a 52-year-old man dropped to the ground in my Thanksgiving Day race and lucky for him our medical people saved his life.  He later found out he had 100% blockage in a major artery and he didn’t even know it.  If he went down in his back yard shoveling snow, he probably wouldn’t be with us today.

The biggest lesson I have learned from all of this is that being fit does not necessarily mean being healthy.  Seems like a simple statement -- because it is.  I’ve spent my entire life focused on being fit but not really focused on being healthy because I thought one meant the other.  Well, that’s all changed now.  I only need one warning.   Interestingly, being fit saved my life as my other arteries were healthy and developed enough to overcompensate for the blocked arteries but my fitness also seemed to “mask” my underlying problem, something all “fit” people should take notice of.

It’s been two months since my “rude awakening”.  I’ve done a complete 180 degrees in my lifestyle.   I totally changed my diet (no meat, no fat, no soda, no beer, no anything that is bad for you) and have lost 21 lbs in these short two months.  I’ve started swimming again and lifting weights and hooked up with a personal trainer and a nutritionist and have been taking dietary supplements.  My cholesterol level has dropped 65 points from 212 to 147.  When my doctor gave me these results all he said to me was “you over achiever.”  Hey, this has nothing to do with over achieving, I just want to stay alive a little longer – I got the message loud and clear! 

And, guess what?  I now no longer have the breathing issue! Yahoo! My running has felt the best it has felt in the past 15 years!  However, I do take my cell phone with me every time I go for a run now.  And, I am thinking of doing another Ironman triathlon which I haven’t done in 25 years and something which has been the furthest thing from my mind…until now.  And, today I actually passed someone out jogging while I was out running myself, first time in a long time.  He was probably 90 years old but you got to take what you can get.

At first, I didn’t want to tell anyone this story…no one.   Why?  Because I was embarrassed about it and I also didn’t want to burden anyone with it.  And I’m not good with sympathy and all that stuff.  However, after now processing it all and after talking to some close friends about it, I’ve realized a few things.  First, I needed a support group myself…of family and friends who care.  They actually “rescued” me.   My wife, Katie, has been my biggest supporter…what would I do without her?  A number of others have helped “educate” me on all of this…that has made a huge difference.

I’ve also realized that there are many people out there just like me who are in the same boat as me, some who have caught this just in time and others who don’t even have a clue that they are currently in big trouble.  They deserve a second chance, too, but they need to take action right away.  Maybe my story can help bring some awareness to this.  Could this be you? 

That is the second lesson here, that is, for everyone to get checked, now, no matter how fit you think you are, before it is too late.   Truth be told, we are not invincible.  Even though I am no Superman, even Superman went down when he came up against his weakness -- kryptonite.  

I have a beautiful wife and five children with the youngest being 4-years-old.  I want to be around when she graduates from college and has her own family (although, I may be so old by then that I will be in an assistant living facility by then but we’ll leave that for another day).  Frankly, I’m still praying that I haven’t missed the “health bus” myself, but I am grateful that my destiny is now in my own hands not in anyone else’s…right where it should be.

After I finished my cross country run in 1978, my brother put a slide show together which included the Bee Gees hit, “Staying Alive”.  I loved that song.   I love it even more now.