To Sug - JD did apply to Fredonia, he was 1 of 6 finalists (of 80+ applicants). He (and several other applicants) was initially interviewed by telephone over Memorial Day weekend. He made the cut to 6 finalists, who were all extensively reexamined by the search committee. 3 of those 6 were "second interviewed" (in person) shortly thereafter, and JD was not one of those 3. It was determined that he was not a good fit for the job at this time, for several reasons.
This is epic for Brevard.
For those of you who don't know about Brevard...
They were a junior college for most of their years and were coached by Dave Rinker, who has been at James Madison for a number of years (and won a number of Colonial Conference titles over the years). Brevard was the JC national champ in xc and track numerous times under Rinker. They decided to become a 4 -year college back in the late 90s i think, and went NAIA in the process. Their program basically died right then. It has since moved to DII but has not regained any stature among distance running programs.
Jeff Campbell came through that program.
Simmons coached a post-collegiate group in Brevard back in the days.
It's a great place to train. Hopefully, Brevard can return to be a great program under JD. Recruiting just took a major step forward with this hiring.
Should've waited and applied for the William & Mary position.
Still at Still? wrote:
Anybody know if he will still be teaching the online graduate courses for A.T. Still Univ.?
bump .. anybody know? the courses are online so it is feasible he could do both
I remember hearing about Brevard in the early 80s. A teammate in HS from Alabama said they were the sh!t. I looked it up, and he was right.
Its a totally different institution now, but there are obviously some alums and admin who want to see running succeed there. That's good all around.
Gus wrote:
To Sug - JD did apply to Fredonia, he was 1 of 6 finalists (of 80+ applicants). He (and several other applicants) was initially interviewed by telephone over Memorial Day weekend. He made the cut to 6 finalists, who were all extensively reexamined by the search committee. 3 of those 6 were "second interviewed" (in person) shortly thereafter, and JD was not one of those 3. It was determined that he was not a good fit for the job at this time, for several reasons.
what a mess that place is. i'd love to hear their "several reasons."
"...there are obviously some alums and admin who want to see running succeed there. That's good all around."
I wouldn't give the admin too much credit. The guy that turned down the job had talked extensively about Daniels (his college coach) in his second phone interview.
When he chose to stay at his current job, as an assistant at a D1 school, the A.D at Brevard, who had no idea who Jack was, how old he is, what his credentials are, etc, called him.
And with the High Altitude training center having shut down and Jack not having a steady income source the timing was right. This was a magnificent stroke of luck on Brevard's part.
Still, with an A.D that cares more about roster size (tuition money) than performance, only 2.5 scholarships, and a laughable operating budget, it will be challenging for even Jack to turn that program around.
I think that it is great that JD is going to Brevard. I can see why he wants to go there. It is probably one of the best trail running places on the east coast. I know from brevard you can get up to some trails that average between 5k-6k altitude for 10-15 miles. The Art Loeb trail runs right out of brevard and is great for running.
I also imagine that JD is not hurting for money, so this could be a bit of a retirement plan for him as well. The Western North Carolina area is some of the most beautiful terrain in the country. Brevard is also a very nice small town with very low crime and a low cost of living. I hope that he turns brevard into a DII powerhouse.
Recovers wrote:
I think that it is great that JD is going to Brevard. I can see why he wants to go there. It is probably one of the best trail running places on the east coast. I know from brevard you can get up to some trails that average between 5k-6k altitude for 10-15 miles. The Art Loeb trail runs right out of brevard and is great for running.
I also imagine that JD is not hurting for money, so this could be a bit of a retirement plan for him as well. The Western North Carolina area is some of the most beautiful terrain in the country. Brevard is also a very nice small town with very low crime and a low cost of living. I hope that he turns brevard into a DII powerhouse.
Agree with everything you said except "trails that average 5k-6k altitude for 10-15 miles." No. I've run all around that place, including the Art Loeb trail. First of all, the highest point east of the Mississippi River is Mt. Mitchell, in western NC, at just over 6000 ft. Brevard sits at about 3000 ft. No way you can average 5000 ft on any of the trails around there. Having said all that, it is a GREAT place to run.
The stretch from cold mountain to black balsam knob is a good 8 mile stretch at around 5k altitude with black balsam being at 6214 ft. You can't tell me I am wrong because I am looking at my trail map right now.
i wont tel you i am rong butt yer rong
and don't underestimate the Asheville area as the #1 retirement community in NC and one of the top areas in the country. This area, including Blowing Rock, is incredibly busy from June through September with retirees fleeing the heat and humidity from NY to Fla. Who knows, maybe the NC college system will assist with his former project. UNC and NCSU both run their camps in that area and you also have UNC Asheville and W. Carolina nearby and all of these schools are within 3 hours away.
[quote]dasfafsdaasfsadfdsasd@hasd.com wrote:
Make a list of every DIII coach who has coached a world beater.
How many World Beater (distance runners only) did McDonnel, VIn, or Bowerman coach? Off the top of my head I am coming up with 0 olympic or WC medals but I am sure I missed one or two. Coaching a "world" beater is more about luck than skill. Having teams that consistently perform well means your a good coash or a great recruiter.
I don't want to be rude, but it really seems like you are assuming that what you haven't heard about hasn't happened. Sure it was a completely different era, but Bowerman had a number of medalists from the sprints to the distances. And almost a medalist in the marathon in Kenny Moore.
you should meet him. more enthusiasm and energy than many 40 year old coaches.
I share your enthusiasm for Brevard, but this is an exaggeration:
"I know from brevard you can get up to some trails that average between 5k-6k altitude for 10-15 miles."
The only trail I can think of in Brevard that gets up to 5000' is the Art Loeb trail at Pilot Mountain and you are going to do a long run indeed to get up there. You'd have to do 10+ miles of running just to get there. You could park on the dirt road up there, I guess. I have trained quite a bit in Brevard and I think the highest point I have ever run to is about 3800'at the top of Chestnut Mountain on the Art Loeb trail by way of Butter Gap from the fish hatchery and it takes probably 50 minutes to get up there on foot. You could run Art Loeb to the Parkway, but you'd want someone to pick your ass up at the top. Now if you parked at the Parkway, you might do some runs at 5000', but I am not sure you could get in a 10 miler at that altitude. You could do 10+ miles over 5000' running on the Parkway itself.
I used to do one run on the BRP that started at Wagon Road Gap near Waynesville and climbed to Richland Balsam and back - 5200-6050'. An 10 or 11 miler. But runnable trails that high?
Brevard is at 2200'.