Coaches’ Blog

After four years of going toe to toe with Daniel Murner—okay, more like staring at his back—I’m now getting the unique chance to work with him as a colleague. And to introduce him. I’ve only had a handful of opportunities to be even within sight of him on the track (not a height joke, I swear) and am now extremely excited to work alongside someone with his experience and passion for the sport.

Though he has close to a hundred new names to put to new faces as he starts to get to know the men and women of TUXC, I can safely say most of them know who he is. As one of the top runners in New England from the time he set foot on campus in Amherst, Daniel was a four-time All-Region runner in cross country. Not too many guys can put that on their resume. He began truly to turn heads, however, when he dropped nation-leading times of 14:24 indoors and 29:45 in the outdoor 10k last year. It’s a select few in Division 3 who have broken the 30-minute barrier, and far fewer who laid claim to the fastest times in the country in two different events in two separate seasons. Both eventually led to All-American performances at Nationals.

As a competitor looking on, what impressed my teammates and me most in watching Dan compete was how explosively fast he closed races. There are kicks, and then there are kicks. I think he could have scored in the open 200m with the move he dropped on the field to win the New England 5000m last February. I’ve never seen someone shift so quickly into high gear not just off a tactical sit-and-kick affair but even away from a field running 14:30 pace. Each race we would think, “He can’t possibly blow them away. This time he’s really hurting. Look how his head is drooping, and his arms look like lead.” And then he’d win by 25 meters. One of the many talents we hope he can impart upon his new pupils…

Can't wait to see this face in the office every morning.

As a student Murner was certainly no slouch either. On top of his All-American honors on the track, Dan was a multiple time Academic All-American and majored in Political Science at Amherst. At Tufts he’ll be working towards a Masters in Classics at Tufts. His prime academic interest is in the field of political philosophy, which he focused on as an undergrad and hopes eventually to continue to pursue in a PhD program. As would seem fitting for someone as disciplined and dedicated both to his training and to his sport as Dan, he likes the field because it sharpens your mind. One conversation with him and you can tell his critical thinking and acuity matches the strength in his lungs and fire in his legs. Though the field of philosophy is often viewed in a negative light or criticized as elitist, Daniel sees political philosophy more as a chance to pit competing arguments against one another—to see how their logic, assumptions, and relevance hold up when put to the test. To me, this seems to fit perfectly with our sport, and I think Murner might agree: no judges, no style points, no subjective referees. Get on the line, cut the BS, and see how it shakes out in the end—whether a philosophical perspective or Regional championship.

After beginning in seventh grade to get in shape for hockey and instead finding a lifelong passion, Daniel now brings his running career to TUXC. It’s only fitting that a guy whose love of the sport came most alive when leading his teammates to their full potential—his proudest moment is of their Regional cross win in 2007, one point ahead of Williams—now begin his chapter as a teacher and coach. I couldn’t be more thrilled to begin mine alongside him.

Wow, am I really glad that I wrote that last post when I did.  It came in incredibly handy as I was working to motivate myself in my greatest hour of need.  I actually said out loud to myself…”What would you say to an athlete in this situation?”  I’d never tried to consciously coach myself before, but it needed to be done.

So far, I’ve competed at nationals, coached there, gotten married, and been near unconsciousness on a plane…so what was the most stressful moment of my life and my greatest hour of need.  It was marrying two of my best friends.  (p.s. From now on, I’ll only be responding to The Reverend.)

Sorry. No wedding pics yet. Soon.

This weekend was the 2nd most amazing wedding that I’ve ever been too.  That’s right, Marion and mine still reigns as #1.  Sorry to everyone else who’s ever been married for all eternity.  Good effort though.  Finishing as runners up are two of my favorite people Kevin Bright and Christine Bolger.  Some of you may know Kevin from his famed career coaching Track and Field at Tufts for the past four years.

I used to turn to this couple as a source of logic and rationalism when needed.  That all went up in smoke as they asked me to officiate their wedding this summer.  I was mostly shocked because Kevin has had the auspicious privilege of sitting through four years of my team meetings.  He understood my penchant for rambling and my complete inability to know how to wrap up a meeting.  Yet they still wanted me there.  I was honored.  Honored and scared out of my head.

I’ve never actually experienced knocking knees or jelly legs before, but I hope that no one in the audience this weekend was able to see them shaking.  In the end, I remembered my lines and they went through with it.  In my eyes, that’s a hugely successful first time.  I’m 1-for-1, batting a thousand, undefeated in marrying couples.  Doesn’t get any better than that.

Big congratulations to Kevin and Christine!!!!  I’m so happy for you and immensely proud of you.  You put together an amazing weekend.  Only you two could make so many people feel like they were right at home.  Thanks for letting Marion and I be a part of your day.  I’ll be happy to help you renew your vows in 2060.  I already put it in my iCalendar.

Potential, chance, and what if’s. There’s nothing better? Think about it. Don’t we all pause as we’re about to scratch the last spot on our lottery tickets. We pause and think “If this last spot says $5,000 or if this last one is a cherry…”

It’s its own natural high and I won’t lie, I’m addicted to it. Not the lottery tickets that is, but the surge that you feel when you ponder the possibilities of the future. Personally, it’s the infinite possibilities that come at the start of any season. They’re invigorating.

This fall it seems like we have more “what if’s” than I can ever remember. So many athletes who were teetering on the edge of huge breakthrough’s last season are putting together some great summers, the rookies seem engaged and dedicated at an early stage, and the veterans are as hungry as ever.

Maybe it’s because there is an abnormally large group of the team on campus for the summer. I’ll be driving to the grocery store and see them running. On my way to the gym, and they’re running. Having a cup of coffee at True Grounds and they’ll blow by me on a training run. It really gets my mind working. What if? I’m telling you, it’s addicting.

“If if’s and but’s were candy and nuts, then we’d all have a wonderful Christmas.”

I’d never really heard this phrase until recently. To be honest, I don’t even really like it, but maybe it fits my current state of mind. I’ll rework it for the XC coach…

If ‘what if’s’ and potential gave us an extra chance, then we’d all have tickets to the big dance.

Alright, I’m no poet. I don’t claim to be. But you get my drift. Potential and possibility don’t mean much. You still have to go out there and take care of business.

I have a few numbers for you. 115, 108, 94. It’s not my locker combination. There’s 94 days to NESCACs, 108 days to Regionals, and 115 days to Nationals. That’s a long way off. There’s still a lengthy trek ahead.

But you know what? What if’s are fun. And I’m going to sit here, sip on my iced chai and enjoy the fruits of a few good what if’s.

What if LeBron, Wade, and Bosh all signed with the same team…wait a sec…I guess sometimes these what if’s come true.

Long story, short. Dare to dream. The alternative is just too boring to endure.

I know that my Nationals post is still due up.  It’s written, but this one is a little more time sensitive so I thought I’d throw it up there.  Also, we’ve had some pretty good discussions on this site about performance enhancing drugs so I thought you’d be interested.

The BBC just interviewed Ben Johnson about his new book that is coming out “Seoul to Soul” and they will be broadcasting the whole interview this evening.  It will be at 9:00pm BST which I believe is 4:00pm EST (I may be wrong), so it could be a good way to kill some time at work.

The interview oddly reeks of Jose Canseco who drummed up support for his books by saying some outlandish stuff.  However, didn’t most of what Jose say turn out to be true.  I haven’t heard the interview yet, just read some excerpts.  Here’s the link to the BBC article.  You be the judge.

I’ll hold out judgement on anything until I read the book and hear the interview, but ask me if I think that all of Athletics (all of professional sports for that matter) could be dirty and I don’t know how I’d answer.  The fact that I pause scares me a bit.  It scares me, but it saddens me more.

I was going to save the world. Easy as that- sail through medical school, move to East Africa and save lives. But life always takes a few unexpected left turns and rather, I found myself sitting by the Cleveland airport curb, waiting for my ride. A large immaculate white Suburban pulls up. Two men in shades, button down shirts and various hues of baby blue ties jump out and take my bags (one is my husband, the other may have been Coogan, not sure, he seemed a little too polished and cleaned up). My first Track Nationals trip officially begins.

To be honest, I had no idea what to expect. The only exposure I had ever had to Nationals prior to this trip was being told that we couldn’t go out to brunch on Sunday because entries were due, receiving a series of SOS texts from Ethan on banquet night and the graveyard of NCAA “free gear” (mostly computer bags) piled high in our basement. So who could have foreseen that the 2010 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championship would be the most fun I have ever had at a track meet.

It might have been the king sized bed, the free cable that we don’t get at home, the rare time to read leisurely or even the two meals at the Olive Garden (that’s right, I like the Olive Garden). But upon reflection, the parts that were the most fun for me were the small moments. I don’t know much about this sport, but I know that there are moments of heart and pure enjoyment of competition. For most, these intense moments slowly dissipate as they graduate, get a job and enter the “real world”. But at Nationals, it’s all about these intense moments- stepping up because this IS Nationals.

At Nationals, everyone is good. An obvious statement but wow, it makes for some pretty exciting events and races. Unconsciously, I began to root for pole vaulters I didn’t even know, cheered for high jumpers who just couldn’t seem to get a clear height until the very end and even heartached for the athlete who fell hard and got up to finish the race in last place. Watching twenty-something tough guys step up to the podium is a moment to enjoy. As Ethan said with wisdom, it brings out the little boy in all of them. Head down, both hands gingerly around the prize, the best of the best are almost humbled by their own accomplishments.

Knowing my husband, this last part will probably be cut out. But truly I have to say, my favorite moments were watching Ethan. Not everyone knows the mental aspect of his coaching job. It is nearly impossible to leave it at the office and with Barron’s dedication; it would be just immoral to not care, worry, ponder and contemplate his athletes’ health, both mental and physical on and off the track, on top of workouts, strategies and recruiting. But at Nationals, Ethan seemed to thrive on being able to give each individual athlete all of his attention, 100%. Don’t get me wrong, he was a head-case. Hermitting behind the press box before Jared’s first event, pacing like an expecting father amongst the crowds at Jessie’s second to last lap and chewing the stopwatch rope like Luka on a steak bone moments before Trevor’s race. But during the downtime, he watched events, chit chatted with this and that person and even bought himself a hotdog like any other spectator who loves a three day track meet. I also got to watch a whole lot of other coaches. While I love my husband the best, after Nationals, I respected him the most as a coach as well. He is there for his athletes, with humility and a calm demeanor. I didn’t see a single other coach carry their decathlete’s bag in between events and it was one of those small moments that reminded me why Ethan is such a good coach. Ok, so you can roll your eyes, because the cheesiness is gag inducing and many could argue that I know diddly squat on what makes a good coach. But you know, I was going to save the world. And it wasn’t until I met my husband that I learned that small moments and gestures can just as equally have profound effects.

We asked each other, “Do you think he’s as excited as he was last year at this time?” We thought there had to be something special about the first time an athlete goes to nationals that could not be replicated a second or third time around. As we watched him compete for the third and final time, we received our answer. The intensity he put forth in each of the 10 events, and the pride displayed on his face when he stood on the podium told us that this time was as special as the first.

As parents, the stress level of watching him compete and wanting him to achieve All American status was as intense as the last two times…perhaps more so because we wanted him to end his athletic career on a high note. He is now moving on to the next chapter in his life, while we are left with the dilemma of what to do on weekends. We will miss the competition, teammates, coaches and parents, but forever cherish the great times we’ve had over the years. We will remember how fortunate we were to have been part of an outstanding track program, headed by a brilliant man who could write a book on “How to Successfully Mentor Student Athletes.”

Larry and Rhonda Engelking

This year was a first for me and my wife…she came to nationals.  Afterwards, she came up with the great idea of posting some of her thoughts on this site.  I thought it would be great to expand that one step further.  With that in mind, this will be a four part blog entry giving you all a different perspective on this springs national championships (athlete, coach, parent, coach’s wife).  I hope that you enjoy it.  I know I enjoyed the meet.

Our first installment is brought to you by graduating senior Jesse Faller.  Enjoy.

Jesse Faller competed in the 10k and 5k at this spring's NCAA Championships.

“Going into my last national was certainly a weird feeling, knowing that it would be simultaneously the culmination of a great year and the end of my running career at Tufts. It was hard to put it out of my mind that this would be the last time competing in a Tufts uniform. I kept thinking about what I was going to do without NCAA running – will I stay in shape after college without a team pushing me? will I stay sane without a daily dose of running? wait, I can do stuff on Saturdays now? am I forever going to be a six, seven, or eight time All American? Even with all the thoughts and all the pressure of this being my last nationals, I stayed surprisingly calm throughout the trip. Everyone has a different nationals experience based on the goals, expectations, and attitude they have before the meet. Most people say to just treat it like any other meet, and you’ll be the most successful. Personally I never found that advice very helpful, because good racing requires mental preparation, and nationals isn’t like every other meet. It’s all about being in the proper tension between calm and energized. Too calm, you might fall asleep and the race will go by you; too nervous and energized, you might hype yourself up and burn out. Going into the 10k I really focused on remaining as calm as possible; I knew that 25 laps was going to be plenty of time and I didn’t need to get the adrenaline going too quickly. Since this would be only my second 10k ever, I was getting pretty nervous about how I would perform, so I really had to distract myself from the race. After some visualization, I spent a lot of time sitting around reading, or watching TV, or watching Jared perform. By the time the race came around, I was only a tiny bit nervous – I was relaxed, excited, comfortable with the competitors, and smiling (probably the most out of all my nationals races). Maybe it’s just something about the 10k. After all, as you get shorter in distance, you’ve got to squeeze all 25 laps of competitiveness into shorter and shorter distances. Needless to say, I performed well and was happy with my performance. In my events, attitude makes all the difference towards the end result.

However, this mental preparation did not prepare me well for the 5k on Saturday. Before the race even started I was mentally defeated – I hated having the #1 time going in, I put a lot of pressure on myself because it was my last race, and I was pretty tired and beat up from the 10k just two days earlier. I tried to relax, but there were so many negative thoughts. The negative thoughts plagued me, especially when my legs felt significantly worse on Saturday than they did Friday. Even a relaxed attitude wouldn’t have helped me in a 5k. I know this is hard for some people to believe, but after running the 10k I’ve come to believe that the 5k is a fast race. Perhaps in the same way a 1500m runner thinks the 800m is a fast race. You have to get out near the front, the pace is relentless, it’s hard to pass people, there’s no time to relax, you always have to be on your toes (for me, that’s true literally). I wasn’t mentally prepared for this kind of race, and ultimately I had a sub-par performance.

At the national level, the stakes are pretty high and mental preparation is crucial, especially for distance runners. What I’ve found is that my attitude before the race is incredibly important, both for how the race will play out and how I will look at it in hindsight. It is interesting to see different athletes who thrive under the pressure and others who fold under it. Some athletes are happy no matter how well they placed, and some are seemingly never satisfied.

Anyways, those are just some short thoughts about race preparation and performance. As for the trip itself, this was a fun and enjoyable nationals. It was awesome to travel and compete with three seniors, to have friends and family at the meet to cheer us on, to finish our track careers in good style. Everything else was the same – same boring hotel experience, watching a lot of movies and sports (indoor track was march madness, outdoor was NBA playoffs), same boring banquet (except the evolution of dance guy), same old swag that I don’t know what to do with. I remember when it was all cool and exciting. But still, man am I going to miss these meets.”

As a student, am I a good role model or a bad role model for the team? I’m now 4 classes deep into my new program, well 3.5 classes deep which is what prompts this question. I’ve yet to finish a class on time yet in the last two years. I’ve taken an incomplete in every one and then handed in my final paper late. On some level, I’m incredibly embarrassed by this, but on another, it makes me proud. Proud of the student I’ve become and proud to be a part of this program at Tufts.

Finals week isn’t just a time of final papers and exams. For me as a 30-year-old coach, finals week represents a whole litany of other stuff. In the winter, I’m finalizing our recruiting class, trying to buy xmas presents for the loved ones, and getting the team prepped for the new year. In the spring, finals week coincides with the NESCAC, DIII New England, and Open New England Championships. You can see how my class work may take a backseat to some of my other responsibilities.

Here’s my issue. I could definitely hand something in on time and finish the class, but it wouldn’t be something I was proud of. I’d rather take the incomplete and write something that was meaningful to me and didn’t waste my professors’ time. At my age, pumping out something that you’re not proud of just seems like a waste of time and that’s not something I’m interested in.

More importantly, I’m thankful that my professors are willing to be patient with my busy schedule and allow me to get them something of value. I can’t express enough how amazing this is. I love working at and being a part of a school that can see the goal of knowledge, learning, and wisdom through all the BS of grades and exams.

My class this past semester was 3 people. Well, 4 if you count the professor. We talked. It was great. There wasn’t a syllabus. No set structure or game plan going into the semester. Yet somehow I got so much out of the class just from our 3 hours of conversation each week. It helps to have a professor who knows so much about the field that he can go along with any topic, at any time, at a moment’s notice.

Long story short, I think that my focus on learning and quality is the #1 foundation for academia. Don’t do it for the grades. Other than the C that I got in English class in 11^th grade, I couldn’t tell you exactly what my grades were. But I could definitely tell you all about the conversations we had in class this semester. Even still…you should probably try to get your papers in on time. You’ll get some leeway when you get to be my age.

Wow, this is a crazy life we track coaches live.  Thursday/Friday/Saturday meets on 4 of 5 weekends is a tough one.  I guess I bring it on myself by having decathletes.  Speaking of the decathlon, I realized yesterday exactly how much of a love-hate relationship I have with that event.  If anything is going to give me an ulcer, it’s going to be the decathlon.  The consistent stress of making first attempts in the HJ, LJ, and PV on top of getting your first SP and DT in, is enough to make me scream.  Add to that the chance that any of 10 hurdles could just jump up and bite you at any moment.  Sometimes I just want to go take a walk and clear my head.

In the end, it’s great practice for controlling your emotions.  You’re insides feel like they’re doing the equivalent of back flips, dry heaving, and screaming all at the same time.  Think about it.  That’s some serious stuff.  But on the outside, you have to have a face of calm, control, and togetherness.  It definitely wouldn’t help my guys if I was burying my head in the sand like an ostrich.  That’s probably why I cheer so much more in the decathlon than in other events.  I have to purge that energy as soon as they make a good height or put a good throw out there.

You also get to experience so many different coaching styles in the decathlon.  This weekend was the best example for me.  I won’t get into details, but there was definitely a full spectrum of coaching techniques at work this week.  Feel free to find me sometime, I’ll be more than happy to share a few stories with you.