moving to colorado post HS to pursue running, please help

You've probably already thought about this for a while, but make sure you are prepared to give up a lot things while you're living on your own. Look at yourself in the mirror and ask yourself if you will have the discipline to train on your own while working probably 40+ hours a week at close to minimum wage. You probably won't be the only one out there "following a dream" and although I'm sure there's plenty of jobs out there for people with no experience, most of the people that your are competing with for those jobs will probably have some experience or at least some college credits. With that being said, good luck, and make sure you save enough $ for the bus ticket home.

Nate,

I agree with Fat Dude that you might have a hard time finding a job in the area. Do some research first before you go. College towns are sometimes a bitch to find a job in, especially colleges with graduate programs because many of those students are married to someone taking a good job.

Certainly there are DI teams that will let you walk on with those times. Let's be frank though and say that those times of yours are good, but not eye openers. You do have another season of track though, and if I were a coach willing to take you on, I'd like to see some steady improvement in your senior year of track.

As far as Colorado goes, I can see how you might have a shot in a year assuming that you improve. Look at what the 8:49 3200 meter Schoolmeester did this year at CU and you have to think you'd have a shot. On this year's CC team once you got past the injured Ritz, the Torres brothers and Slattery, there was a pretty big dropoff although Billy Nelson did very well for a freshman. Seems that Schoolmeester was a bit of a disappointment. Hopefully he will recover and not be known as a "one race wonder."

Good luck. If you really do it you have some serious challenges ahead of you, namely:

1) Being on your own for the first time ever - depending on your maturity level, this could be a problem. Not everyone has the ability to leave a pretty much protected and structured environment and structure their lives the way they want to, even if they really want to make it work. You just don't have experience with that yet, and it will be difficult. Doesn't mean you can't do it, just that it will be a challenge.

2) Getting accustomed to the new lifestyle and you find that you'd rather stay in it than go to college the following year.

3) Getting a SERIOUS girlfriend. With all that you are looking to accomplish, a SERIOUS girlfriend just might be a hurdle to your goals.

4) Finding out that you lack the motivation when not running on a team and getting all the accolades a high school track star gets from people within the high school.

Good luck young man. There are tons of examples of moderately talented runners who greatly improved with singular focus. It can be done. It will not be easy though, or tons of people would have done it. There are probably equal numbers of runners who had stellar times in high school never to be heard from again. Right now you are on a line. Get better and make a name for yourself or don't and finish in the top 10 each year in the local 5K.

You can always move to Denver if you need a job. The trail system on the south side of town has 155 miles of dirt paths. That way you don't have to put up with the egos in Boulder.

Why dont you just go to another school in Colorado who has developed more average runners than CU has. I am talking about WESTERN in gunnison. I heard that that place has endless miles of trails right from there school. The team is amazing as well. They are so deep that any one would improve just by going there.

Let Ah help you dude. None of the people on this board giving you advice has accomplished jack in the sport. Why? Because the sport leads to nowhere. You are wasting your life away trying to live your life centered around a worthless sport. Worthless advice comes from people who stupidly engage in a worthless sport. Take Ah's advice and center your life around academics. It will take you far. Track will take you around in circles.

Ah

Buffy wrote:

You can always move to Denver if you need a job. The trail system on the south side of town has 155 miles of dirt paths. That way you don't have to put up with the egos in Boulder.

No egoes in Denver, especially not down south in Highlands Ranch, aka home of fundamentalist Baptist yuppie golfer scum, aka Orange County ex-pats. They are truly humble, self-effacing and attitude-free people!

Then again, no distance running world record holders or Olympic medalists down there, either. Go figure.

Just are you nate lockett ??? yes?

The only people who don't see how wacked the people in the Republic of Boulder are, are the people in Boulder. Go hire someone to lobby for you in DC. Try to own a dog. Blame the fires on the porch furniture. What effect does the "world record holders or Olympic medalists" have on a kid who can't find a job? Is Frank going to house him? Are you going to give him a job? Maybe he could get a job finding young women for Wetmore so he doesn't pick on the runners.

Just like the people who go around claiming Boulder's wacked are those who have never lived there and have absolutely no clue what it's like or what they're talking about, it's all just a smokescreen for jealousy. Yeah, the terminology of one who has a dog is SUCH a major issue/problem, so is rotten furniture on the porch, along with all the other unimportant stuff that the city gov't does that grabs headlines. Just gripe about what the gov't does all you want, it's all unimportant and really has nothing to do with living and training there. That's why you bring that stuff up, along with imagined complaints, rather than real issues. Yeah, and it's so damn hard to find housing and a job in Boulder. Get real, is that why unemployment in Boulder is lower than the state and national averages? And what are you talking about with Wetmore and young women and picking on runners?? If you know something, spill it.

Not related to Bob.

Relax Bob. I think that he was saying that if some of the fore mentioned concerns came to pass ( expensive rent, low paying job, or no job) he could move somewhere else and still be able to accomplish his goals. Boulder is not the only place to run in Colorado.

As for the crazieness in Boulder, I can comment, according to your rules as I lived there, had a business there, and chose to leave because I didn't think that it was a good place to raise kids. I wouldn't move back there, and I would not recommend that anyone run for the school. But if you run for Wetmore and like it, good for you and good luck to you.

Yeah, let us in on what you know about Wetmore and young women, Buffy!

Hey, I was just responding to a slam on Boulder re: egos. Of course, I know that's just Buffy's ego talking, but still...

I'm a late-comer to this thread, but thought I'd chime in:

If you hadn't mentioned the part about qualifying for in-state tuition, I'd have told you not to do it. Why? Because you've been talking about UC as if it were some pro team that you wanted to try out for, and not an University from which you hope to gain an education in something other than running (which, the last I checked, wasn't a major). And if, in fact, that's how you're looking at it, I would still say don't do it, because the odds of your making it through a year off, getting accepted, and graduating would be slim without proper academic as well as athletic motivation.

I still don't know much about your academic goals, but will give you the benefit of the doubt. Then, provided you have a plan on how to fund yourself throughout your career (what are your parents saying about this little venture?), it's at least worth a shot. But I do think you'll be bucking some long odds - Boulder (and a lot of other college towns) is probably full of people who went there with the same dreams and never got in after that 1 year off.

yes,i am nate lockett

i think it will work if you:

1 get a roommate

2 dont quit

3 contact wetmore to see which he would rather have you do. run now or run after a year

if any CU runners read this give him some input

Ah says if you want a good life then quit the sport. The sport is dumb and no one goes anywhere in it. Do you think you are going to be the first to succeed? Look at the failures galore; Ritzenhein, Webb, Trotter, Odlaug, Kennedy, Stamps, Davis, Prefontaine, Ryan...I mean the failures keep stacking up. Focus on your education and stay away from the sport. You won't regret it like these other John Doe's will who are trying to give you poor advice.

Ah

how do you classify failure, not being the best? not winning the olympics? not doing yuor best? because i classify it as having fun and if he enjoys what he is going to do then i would deem it a success but it is obvious that you are a pesimist and a loser.

You people surround your life with sport that eventually lead nowhere. Why in world would someone go to school base on running more than academics??? Because they are idiot not know better. The sport long lost with failure. No one put you on television and no one pay you money. The longer you stay in sport the more failures you endure. Ah, even if you win Olympic medal no one in your country care. You are waste of time getting advice from people who are nowhere.

your nearly illiterate, you need to understand that people in this sport aren't competing for others they compete for themselves, they do it because they enjoy it, even if it doesnt bring money, or fame its enjoyed and thus they dont care about the rest. it is obvious that you are driven by money and probably a failed runner or else you wont be on a site cause letsrun.com.