Brian Sell's Swan Song

You are either receiving wrong information or you are lying.

Many ignorant posters with low self esteem trying to tear others down here.

I saw Brian before the start of a local half marathon today (see link below) and I've talked to him a few times. He's just a down to earth nice guy. Pretty much all of the team members that I have interacted with have all been that way.

When I ran Chicago last year I saw Brian on the train heading to the expo. He was just standing there, on this crowded train full of runners chatting about their running experiences and none appeared to realize they were standing next to a recent Olympic marathon runner. He was not looking for attention, that much was obvious.

I didn't want to invade his space or bother him, but I did want to acknowledge his accomplishment and let him know I was proud to have him represent our country. I was a bit apprehensive knowing Beijing did not go well for him (by his standards). But as we exited the train I did tell him just that, he was very humble and gracious.

So we needed to switch trains, I wasn't sure which one and Brian steers me in the right direction. We end up talking a bit during the ride (he is heading to the expo to sign posters for Brooks) and Brian steers the conversation to me and my running Chicago for the first time. He offers up lots of info on the course and what to expect at different points, etc. He didn't try to talk about himself but he was willing to if I asked him.

http://results.active.com/pages/searchform.jsp#hot_links

A marathon pace run on a very hilly course in the 2nd half. Hope Brian has a good run in NY, he deserves it.

Sorry, wrong link http://www.mail-archive.com/t-and-f@lists.uoregon.edu/msg15040.html

DJJ wrote:

I did a little research on Sell's marathon time progression since he started running with the Hansons and he went from National class to world class in very short amount of time.

'03 Chicago- 2:20

'04 OLY Trials 2:17

'05 Worlds 2:13

'06 Boston and Chicago 2:10

To go from 28th place at Chicago (2:20) to the world stage in a few years is crazy impressive. I would love to have a look at his training logs from 2002-2006.

i believe that 2:20 at chicago was a week after the world half champs, which sell ran. he was just trying to qualify for the trials. i ran with him for a while, he pulled away, and then i caught him on michigan ave with a mile or so left. since then he's been a beast! that was also the year that chicago initially fudged the numbers for hanson's, knocking off a few seconds off the times of their guys who were right around 2:22 and 2:20 (including sell). the trials time was a positive split.

His wife is a nurse. He made more than her this year and for about the past 5 I am guessing but those days are at an end

Noted. Still , facts are facts , international class as the link eludes to keeps Brian just off that list , top 10 is world class ( lets say top 15 in the marathon ) , the next group lets say top 16-30 ranked for international class. Run the numbers please.

Great run by the man , cannot change that , he can be proud , has had a running life that most only dream about.

you know there's a lot of 160-mile weeks in that log

Thanks for the positive contribution amongst the bickering Kevin52.

Kevin52 is pretty sharp, on any number of topics. As a general rule, you should listen to him.

Sagarin wrote:

Sell "made" $100,000 per year for a couple of years maybe, but does he anymore or does he just make $8/hr and maybe a small stipend? If his wife's the main breadwinner, he ain't making anywhere close to six figures anymore.

You obviously have no knowledge whatsoever of the Hansons pay/bonus packages. Sell was making some serious cash for an American runner. He might have made less than his wife in 2009 based on his limited racing (and less than stellar, for him at least, marathon performance).

I find it funny that the very same people who build up Brian Sell as the ultimate blue collar guy, who works so hard and never gives up on his dreams, don't see his retirement at age 31 as him being a selling out for a more stable income.

He's giving up. Maybe its the right move but it is still giving up. Doesn't seem so blue collar to me.

Nothing against Brian, he sounds like a great guy who is trying to take care of his family. But his die hard fans who have built him up to be some type of blue collar, never give up, hard working mega man, should have a hard time reconciling his retirment at age 31 with the image they tried to tag on him.

Is Sell a sellout wrote:

I find it funny that the very same people who build up Brian Sell as the ultimate blue collar guy, who works so hard and never gives up on his dreams, don't see his retirement at age 31 as him being a selling out for a more stable income.

He's giving up. Maybe its the right move but it is still giving up. Doesn't seem so blue collar to me.

Nothing against Brian, he sounds like a great guy who is trying to take care of his family. But his die hard fans who have built him up to be some type of blue collar, never give up, hard working mega man, should have a hard time reconciling his retirment at age 31 with the image they tried to tag on him.

I just don't see what you're getting at.

He worked hard and achieved his dreams. Now he's moving on, because he wants to pursue other dreams. Your argument is silly.

Nope wrote:

That was because Home Depot ''hired'' Olympic hopefuls i 2007 and 2008, gave them jobs at which they worked 1 or 2 hours a day, 5 days a week, just so they could say that Home Depot supported american athletes.

That program was dropped already, and he now works at a running store.

And a definition of blue collar is basically lower working class, 9-5 manual labor jobs.

Read Shop Class as Soul Craft and get back to us with your "lower class" bigotry.

Is Sell a sellout wrote:

I find it funny that the very same people who build up Brian Sell as the ultimate blue collar guy, who works so hard and never gives up on his dreams, don't see his retirement at age 31 as him being a selling out for a more stable income.

He's giving up. Maybe its the right move but it is still giving up. Doesn't seem so blue collar to me.

Nothing against Brian, he sounds like a great guy who is trying to take care of his family. But his die hard fans who have built him up to be some type of blue collar, never give up, hard working mega man, should have a hard time reconciling his retirment at age 31 with the image they tried to tag on him.

This might be the most ridiculous post I've ever seen here, even more than some of mine. Here's a guy, who, above all odds, placed respectably in a world championship race and made an Olympic team through sheer grit, determination, and hard work. But, what's even more rare, because most runners here with even a modicum of talent cannot reconcile themselves to this fact, is that he knows it's TIME to hang it up. He got everything he desired from the sport.

There's more to life than running, and he's still young enough to embrace it. He's not going to hang around and "chase the dream," with another mediocre 5-7 years of running while working at a shoe store with a family to support. He's looking forward to the next phase of his life and a career. Running is not the be all, end all. For most people in this world who are lucky enough to possess talent, it is a means to an education (in the US) or a means to feed one's family (as in Africa). It is merely part of the journey. It ends for EVERYONE, and the sooner you have your priorities in the right place, the better off you and those close to you will be. Running is a very selfish, grueling, damaging (over a period of time and mileage) sport. Trust me, your relatives get this. You don't, not yet.

Sell would be more of a sell out if he kept making around $100k from Brooks, Hansons etc running one or two 2:11-2:14's per year for the next three or four years on less than 100% motivation/effort.

"Blue-Collar" was never really an accurate term for him anyway. I don't blame him for being tired of it.

Is Sell a sellout wrote:

I find it funny that the very same people who build up Brian Sell as the ultimate blue collar guy, who works so hard and never gives up on his dreams, don't see his retirement at age 31 as him being a selling out for a more stable income.

you're the world's largest douche, at least for a few moments here.

VF Runner wrote:

Great interview. I wish I was the hypothetical kid at the beginning. I was a bit faster than Sell in HS and if I'd had his story as motivation...

Makes for a nice dream anyway.

____________________________________

Yes, we should all grow up poor, motivated, and hungry. That would make us ALL better people.

Gimme a break!

Can't you just give the guy credit?

why put the "I was faster than him in high school.."

You are no different than the idiots at the bar in their 40's talking about their "high school glory-filled football" And how they could-a should-a etc, etc.

Boo friggin hoo

The Hanson's (actually Brooks) guarantee is for the two years following a sub 2:11/2:31 marathon or 28:00 10k. Sell ran 2:10:47 at Chicago in 2006, therefore his 100k was done in the fall of 2008. There is no guarantee anymore for Sell, unless he breaks 2:11 at New York, which is a longshot at this point.

Wrong. Brian Sell received the $100,000 guarantee this year. It was originally being financed by Saturn, but the Hansons picked up the slack after the Saturn deal ended on January 31, 2009. Brooks supplies the equipment and performance bonuses but has nothing to do with guaranteed money. This has been verified by Kevin Hanson and Dave Larsen at Brooks.