Now she can break out of the "injury/occasionally healthy" cycle that seems to be the theme of OAC Bolder and revert to the "healthy/occasionally injured" cycle that most pro runners seem to work on.
Never good to write off an entire season because you're hurt, but you have to give her and Flynn credit for catching this early and making the call. Another season of getting obliterated and fighting just to get to the start line was not going to be good.
Going back to Gibby is a smart idea. Best of luck to her.
Smart choice for average results at the pro level. Some people don’t have the chops as a pro.
the goal is the next pro level, this setup isn’t it. College coaching has a ceiling, Boston is a brutal training environment, and while Gibby is solid, he’s not taking her to the level she’s talking about.
It's funny, there was a thread on this before Thanksgiving and it had been announced at that time she was going back to Gibby. It was on a podcast too, I think letsrun, but I'm not sure, I listen to several running podcasts.
Boston might seem like a less than ideal choice (weather, altitude access) but she certainly knows what she's getting (back) into.
Training in Boston is selling yourself short if you have real performance goals because the environment actively works against elite development, no altitude stimulus, brutal winter weather that kills consistency, congested running routes that disrupt rhythm, and a culture built around “grit” and marathon mythology rather than precision training, recovery, and long-term progression, it’s telling that the moment athletes get serious about running fast, they leave for altitude hubs where training is controlled, repeatable, and actually optimized for performance.
Now she can break out of the "injury/occasionally healthy" cycle that seems to be the theme of OAC Bolder and revert to the "healthy/occasionally injured" cycle that most pro runners seem to work on.
Never good to write off an entire season because you're hurt, but you have to give her and Flynn credit for catching this early and making the call. Another season of getting obliterated and fighting just to get to the start line was not going to be good.
Going back to Gibby is a smart idea. Best of luck to her.
Smart choice for average results at the pro level. Some people don’t have the chops as a pro.
Going back to her College coach never works. It’s her not OAC. 18months and bye bye says it all.
Training in Boston is selling yourself short if you have real performance goals because the environment actively works against elite development, no altitude stimulus, brutal winter weather that kills consistency, congested running routes that disrupt rhythm, and a culture built around “grit” and marathon mythology rather than precision training, recovery, and long-term progression, it’s telling that the moment athletes get serious about running fast, they leave for altitude hubs where training is controlled, repeatable, and actually optimized for performance.
Silly post, if anything the great results from Boston’s athletes shows you can perform at the highest level despite the winter and lack of altitude. With treadmills and the density of indoor tracks it’s easy to stay consistent and train well throughout the winter.
People also have such short memories here. Remember just a few years ago when NB Boston swept the USA 1500 podium? There was also a MIT runner, Ryan Wilson who ran 1:46 and 3:55, D3 records at the time.
Graham Blanks beat all the altitude trained runners from New Mexico, NAU etc while training in Boston over 10k as well as nearly all the pros at the trials . BU had two great runners last year, Foster Malleck 3:32 post season and 3rd NCAA indoor + Vera Sjoberg 2nd NCAA 5k. And of course Ramsden World indoor finalist, multiple time NCAA champ and Olympian. How many non altitude, smaller schools have put a distance man and woman on the NCAA podium in the same year? UW, UNC and UVA probably have, but their facilities, budget etc. greatly surpass Harvard and BU
I feel for her not being 100%. She garnered the largest bidding war out of college. Multiple brands wanted her to be the face of the brand like a Valby (before Valby). We’re talking north of $600k//year. I think she’ll work her way back to 2:00/4:00 but will need to aim for 2032 as her year and get to 1:57/3:55
Training in Boston is selling yourself short if you have real performance goals because the environment actively works against elite development, no altitude stimulus, brutal winter weather that kills consistency, congested running routes that disrupt rhythm, and a culture built around “grit” and marathon mythology rather than precision training, recovery, and long-term progression, it’s telling that the moment athletes get serious about running fast, they leave for altitude hubs where training is controlled, repeatable, and actually optimized for performance.
Elle St. Pierre trains out of far northern Vermont - I hear that's even colder than Boston. MacLean and Mackay trained out of Boston, but have gotten worse since they left due to their spat. Sinclair Johnson trains out of Oregon, Cranny is in the UK, Hobbs Kessler trains out of Ann Arbor, Hocker is in Virginia, Koech in Baltimore, Hoey in Pennsylvania... honestly I'd bet only a third of top milers are based at altitude.
Consistency? The only consistency you need is that you're getting the work done. Doesn't matter if it's outside, on the treadmill, or on the banked indoor track. And adaptability and toughness are useful traits to learn as a pro runner, too.
"... a culture built around grit and marathon mythology". What the hell do you even mean by that? Do you think there are these training culture enforcers who force every pro that moves here to follow Bill Rodgers' 1975 training log?
Training in Boston is selling yourself short if you have real performance goals because the environment actively works against elite development, no altitude stimulus, brutal winter weather that kills consistency, congested running routes that disrupt rhythm, and a culture built around “grit” and marathon mythology rather than precision training, recovery, and long-term progression, it’s telling that the moment athletes get serious about running fast, they leave for altitude hubs where training is controlled, repeatable, and actually optimized for performance.
Silly post, if anything the great results from Boston’s athletes shows you can perform at the highest level despite the winter and lack of altitude. With treadmills and the density of indoor tracks it’s easy to stay consistent and train well throughout the winter.
People also have such short memories here. Remember just a few years ago when NB Boston swept the USA 1500 podium? There was also a MIT runner, Ryan Wilson who ran 1:46 and 3:55, D3 records at the time.
Graham Blanks beat all the altitude trained runners from New Mexico, NAU etc while training in Boston over 10k as well as nearly all the pros at the trials . BU had two great runners last year, Foster Malleck 3:32 post season and 3rd NCAA indoor + Vera Sjoberg 2nd NCAA 5k. And of course Ramsden World indoor finalist, multiple time NCAA champ and Olympian. How many non altitude, smaller schools have put a distance man and woman on the NCAA podium in the same year? UW, UNC and UVA probably have, but their facilities, budget etc. greatly surpass Harvard and BU
This. Honestly it seems like this move might be more fit-based than anything. Maia signed a NIL deal with On back in 2023, so there was probably either a good deal of pressure or an outright stipulation that she continue with them if/when she turned pro. Also, she did PR by 3 seconds in the mile this spring (equivalent to a 1500m PR as well), so it’s not like she’s that far removed from encouraging performances.
This. Honestly it seems like this move might be more fit-based than anything. Maia signed a NIL deal with On back in 2023, so there was probably either a good deal of pressure or an outright stipulation that she continue with them if/when she turned pro. Also, she did PR by 3 seconds in the mile this spring (equivalent to a 1500m PR as well), so it’s not like she’s that far removed from encouraging performances.
In this thread, folks are blaming Ritz for her Haglund’s surgery?
The man was a machine. Just grinding day in, day out. Morning? Run. Evening? Run. Snow? Run. Sick? Run. Already ran? Run again. Flight? Run at the airport. Raced? Run again anyway.
Training in Boston is selling yourself short if you have real performance goals because the environment actively works against elite development, no altitude stimulus, brutal winter weather that kills consistency, congested running routes that disrupt rhythm, and a culture built around “grit” and marathon mythology rather than precision training, recovery, and long-term progression, it’s telling that the moment athletes get serious about running fast, they leave for altitude hubs where training is controlled, repeatable, and actually optimized for performance.
Elle St. Pierre trains out of far northern Vermont - I hear that's even colder than Boston. MacLean and Mackay trained out of Boston, but have gotten worse since they left due to their spat. Sinclair Johnson trains out of Oregon, Cranny is in the UK, Hobbs Kessler trains out of Ann Arbor, Hocker is in Virginia, Koech in Baltimore, Hoey in Pennsylvania... honestly I'd bet only a third of top milers are based at altitude.
Consistency? The only consistency you need is that you're getting the work done. Doesn't matter if it's outside, on the treadmill, or on the banked indoor track. And adaptability and toughness are useful traits to learn as a pro runner, too.
"... a culture built around grit and marathon mythology". What the hell do you even mean by that? Do you think there are these training culture enforcers who force every pro that moves here to follow Bill Rodgers' 1975 training log?
Why do people say "out of?" Just say in. As in trains in Boston.