Your Personal Running Coach

I am the head boys track & field Coach and boys cross country coach at Firestone High School in Akron, Ohio. I started as an assistant in 2006 and became head coach of the girls track team and boys cross country team in 2010. I have been coach the distance runners in track & field and cross country since 2006 and became head coach of the boys track team in 2013. I have led our girls track team to conference titles in four out of the six years I have been the head coach, prior to the girls track & field had won one conference title in school history. Since becoming head coach of the boys track & field team they have won the conference title in two out of the three years I have been the head Coach. The boys had only won two titles prior to that in their 54 year history. I was part of one of those titles as an assistant coach in 2012 where the distance runners I coached helped our team pull away from the competition. I am the winiest coach in Firestone high school history and led both genders to their first back to back conference titles. This past season the girls and boys track & field teams at Firestone High School won the conference championship for the first time in school history in the same year. In Cross country, I have helped Firestone High School continue their conference winning streak to twelve straight titles. I have been head coach for five years and we won the conference title all five years. Our 2014 cross country team had the fastest team average since 1979 this past season. Our team average was 17:58 on a very tough course, and that was our fastest team average of the season. That goes with my coaching philosophy, we want to be running our fastest when it counts the most, and we were the only team out of 14 in our district to run their fastest at the district meet in 2014. Individually I coached senior Harley Moyer to the regional meet and he ran a pr of 16:52 at the regional meet to miss qualifying to the state meet by one spot and 1/10th of a second. He was one of a few runners that had a pr that day at Boardman High School. I coached seven athletes this past track & field season to the state meet in division I Ohio which was the most in school history. Theses athletes included Dara Perry who was District champion and placed 4th at state in the 100 hurdles. Dara will be attended the University of Akron in the fall on a full track scholarship. Dara's Twin sister Janelle was district and regional champion in the long jump and finished 6th at the state meet. She will attend Ursuline College on a full track scholarship. Harley Moyer was 2nd in the 3200 at the district and regional meet and finished 10th at the state meet with a pr of 9:27.10. Harley will run for Washington and Jefferson University next School year. Kamar Majid will attend the university of Akron on a partial track & field scholarship and qualified to state in the high jump finishing 15th. Dara was also part of our 4 x 2 relay that combined with three other female athletes to win the district title and place sixth at the state meet with a pr of 1:40.95. Other highlights include coaching the only freshman male athlete to compete in the 300 hurdles at the regional meet this past season as well as two female athletes in the 100 and 200. Sarah meek who runs for Malone University on a track & field scholarship was district and regional champion her senior year boasting a pr of 5:10 in the 1600 and 11:05 in the 3200. Sarah was 11th at the regional meet her junior year and moved all the way up to first beating the defending regional champion who was also a senior. As an assistant coach in charge of coaching the boys distance runners I helped Josh Clemence qualify to the regional meet on several occasions in cross country and track and field. Josh went on to help Mount Union win several conference titles in track & field and cross country. I have a level one certification from USA Track & Field and am a member and attended clinics held by the Ohio High School Cross Country and Track & Field Association. I am also a member of the Summit County Coaches Cross Country Association. I have helped create a club cross country team at the middle school and elementary school level since our district does not have a program in place.



I was a basketball player in high school and started running with a 60 year old marathoner I worked with in March of 2000 to keep in shape for my senior basketball season. I ended up loving running and me and Dick Foos went from running 5 miles a day in March to running five miles four days a week two 10 milers and a 15 mile hilly long run through Akron by July. I knew the cross country Coach and joined the team for the first time my senior year and was first team all conference and team MVP. I ran track & field that year for the first time as well and was the distance MVP for the team. I went one to run cross country for one year at the University of Akron as a walk on. Between work school and running I decided not to continue after my freshman year so I could improve my grades. In 2006 my former cross country coach at Firestone High School Matt Beaven called me and told me that Firestone's track coach had quit on the first day of practice and he was thinking of taking the job but needed help. That is how I got my start coaching and I didn't know that much at first, I had no experience coaching. I only knew you need to work hard and be passionate and few general training ideas. I have now coached for almost a decade and I get better each year as you have read about the success of the track & field and cross country teams I have coached as a head coach since 2010.



My primary focus is distance running tough if you are interested in hurdle or sprint coaching I coach that as well at the High School level (See below if you would like more information on hurdle or sprint coaching.. I would communicate with the athlete to come up with a weekly plan to achieve their goals for whatever race they would be preparing for. Events or races I am offering coaching for would be the 800, 1600, and 3200 track & field races, 5k for cross country or a road race, 10ks, half marathon, marathon or any other type of distance running event. The athletes I coach will receive a weekly training plan with advice on how to do all work outs for the week and i will be available to adjust their plan as needed from week to week or as the week goes on. athletes will also receive other valuable information such as how to race and take care of yourselves in other ways outside of running to achieve success. I offer online training anywhere in the country and I am available for in person training in the Akron/Northeast Ohio Area.

HURDLE AND SPRINT COACHING: I am a very good hurdle coach and if you wanted training in the hurdles I would teach you to three step ( as long as your fast enough to so so, it takes decent speed to three step.) I'd also focus on your form, most athletes tend to not pump their arms enough as the clear the hurdles and often through their arms out to the side where they are not in proper position. Some athletes our confused and think you should jump the hurdles instead of clearing them by using our speed. I will work with athletes to clear the hurdle without jumping or hanging in the air. I also will work with them on attacking the hurdle and avoiding stutter stepping before the hurdle. In the 300/400 hurdles i would do some of the same coaching techniques mentioned above except the tree step. I would focus on hurdling where the athlete has to accelerate and use what ever leg comes up to clear the hurdle, etc. If you are interested in sprint coaching I'd be willing to help in that area as well.