tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-88057852667738095382009-11-03T07:07:33.859-06:00News, Comments, Thoughts and Ideas on the American track and field and distance running scene.Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.comBlogger569125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-26399558505568712772009-11-03T07:03:00.002-06:002009-11-03T07:07:33.872-06:00

The fall marathon season is almost over, with the NYC Marathon being the final major marathon of the year. This year has been an eye opening one for me, especially the past few months, where I've really studied road racing, the top races, and what makes it so special. The road racing community is a unique one, perhaps the most unique of any sport. You can combine professional runners with one

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-20781602364814576052009-10-12T10:32:00.002-05:002009-10-12T10:54:58.197-05:00

This past weekend, I soaked in the Chicago Marathon and everything it had to offer. While I've been to many major events in our sport, a major marathon is one of the great spectacles of the sport simply because there are tens of thousands of people all taking part, meaning millions of people watching and millions passing through the expo the few days before.Here are some observations from this

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-60231628913013469382009-09-30T10:28:00.003-05:002009-09-30T21:58:17.909-05:00

Matt McCue, who ran for the University of Colorado, wrote a book that provides a great read for runners of all abilities, and especially those who love the high school running realm, DI running realm and appreciate their coaches. An excerpt of the book was published today on The Huffington Post. This is a must read for any running fan.An Honorable Run Excerpt

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-84476487251189243692009-09-28T15:32:00.001-05:002009-09-28T15:34:00.263-05:00

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-18845281203567090902009-09-28T07:32:00.002-05:002009-09-28T07:36:32.579-05:00

There are many great articles floating around the online track and field community the past few days. Here are three of my favorites:Obama to Visit Denmark - The President will travel to Denmark to campaign for the 2016 Olympics to come to Chicago.Is Bolt Good for the Sport? - The editor of Track and Field News questions whether Bolt is good for the sport, mostly discussing appearance fees.A

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-30804926372674529952009-09-20T14:00:00.003-05:002009-09-20T14:09:52.693-05:00

Since college, I've grown to love the state of Minnesota. I like the cool summer temperatures, I don't mind the insanely frigid winters (or at least I say I wouldn't) and I love how nice the people are. The thing I love most about Minnesota though, is the way the state embraces nature and being active. Minnesota is a great state if you're a runner. Between the Twin Cities and Duluth, there

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-40142134379729122282009-09-14T16:33:00.003-05:002009-09-14T16:37:53.108-05:00

Can road racing be a professional sport? This is a question I asked myself today as I filled out a short ballot for the Sports Travel Awards. You see, the Rock n' Roll race series was put in the category of amateur sporting events, while I looked at the professional sporting events category and couldn't find a single road, cross country or track and field competition.This got me thinking, our

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-84080597962016852612009-09-14T07:13:00.003-05:002009-09-14T08:09:41.243-05:00

On Sunday, in Chicago, the Chicago Half Marathon took place, with some top end Midwest talent running exceptionally well. Being a distance running fan, I knew this race was taking place, and looked for the results in the afternoon. However, this morning, when I wanted to learn more about the race and how it unfolded, there wasn't a shred of coverage anywhere. Not a single newspaper covered the

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-11645486514082707942009-09-11T05:39:00.003-05:002009-09-11T05:50:00.561-05:00

When I was a freshman in high school, I nearly quit track and field. I remember going for a five mile tempo run, in the freezing cold of early March, getting dropped by a ton of my teammates and swearing and crying that I was going to hand in my uniform the next day. While I brought my uniform to school the next day, truly content to hand it in, I couldn't muster up quitting the team. That

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-6591446066953651052009-09-09T06:33:00.003-05:002009-09-09T06:44:42.937-05:00

Reading through a variety of articles this morning, I came across two fascinating pieces that tell a lot about our sport. The first was a piece on Kenenisa Bekele, the world's greatest distance runner, breaking down how much he made this year from competition. Bekele, who races fairly often during the track season, earned just over $1.1 million this year. The second article was a good insiders

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-66486766887631378192009-09-08T05:55:00.002-05:002009-09-08T06:05:56.653-05:00

The Wild Wild West of distance running is road racing. While USATF and RRCA organize the sport of road racing to a degree (mostly by verifying courses or providing insurance, which doesn't really organize), road racing is one of the most unorganized sports in the entire world. Thousands of races are put on each year with no centralized body overseeing everything, giving races credibility or

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-72719558964288507922009-09-04T05:24:00.003-05:002009-09-04T05:34:06.916-05:00

It's fantasy football time across the U.S., with millions of people having their annual drafts. While I've never taken part in fantasy football, I have taken part in fantasy track and field when it's offered by USATF (the predictions contest). The fantasy sports realm is a growing one, that keeps becoming more profitable year after year.One area where I think our sport would thrive is in the

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-51159956597022670802009-09-03T07:04:00.002-05:002009-09-03T07:23:13.788-05:00

All the reports I've read over the past year show that running is still a growing sport. Not only are road races maintaining growth and popularity, but the actual activity of running grew more than 10% in terms of participation over the past year, which is a big statistic.In those same reports, trail races were marked as having the most significant rise of race registrants. Trail races grew

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-54994841314199683422009-09-02T06:23:00.003-05:002009-09-02T06:50:55.533-05:00

I woke up this morning reading a thread on LetsRun, where the main topic was whether Dathan Ritzenhein should stick with the marathon or focus on the track for a few more years. While the thread is entertaining (to a degree), I wondered, what is more marketable, being the top American distance runner on the track or being the top American marathoner?From a money making standpoint, it would seem

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-56157150984871469892009-09-01T07:55:00.003-05:002009-09-01T07:58:16.588-05:00

In a Runner's World interview with Kevin Hanson released today, Hanson talked mostly about the wonderful performance by Hansons-Brooks runner Desiree Davila at the IAAF World Marathon Championships. However, right at the end of the interview, Hanson was asked about Brian Sell's preparation for the New York City Marathon this November. Here is what Hanson had to say:Runner's World: Brian Sell,

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-56763223540102825202009-09-01T06:33:00.003-05:002009-09-01T06:37:42.653-05:00

I was re-reading the book Tribes yesterday, the phenomenal book by Seth Godin. I read a short piece that must not have registered as much the first time around. The topic was tightening up your ship, focusing on making sure your original fanbase is solidified before you go and work hard on attracting new members and fans to your group.I talk a lot about expanding our sport's reach in this blog.

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-6041059283543464312009-08-31T16:26:00.003-05:002009-08-31T16:38:00.610-05:00

On Saturday I wrote about USATF needing to hire three new staff members to run the USATF Road Race Series, so let me explain why three individuals should be hired and what types of work they would be doing. But first, I want to say that this series is for the betterment of the sport, not just the professional end. These events would have a professional runner portion to them, but these races

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-28516119079129164102009-08-29T10:46:00.002-05:002009-08-29T11:10:26.640-05:00

Yesterday I wrote about the need for USATF to really put themselves out there, take a risk and start a road race series across the United States. Not only would this help USATF solidify itself in the road race ranks, but it would offer them an opportunity to make money and increase their exposure and influence over the road racing community, which they have VERY LITTLE influence in at the moment

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-60051244079445757012009-08-28T14:53:00.000-05:002009-08-28T14:54:53.133-05:00

Exposure is the name of the game for every sports entity, both on the field (or track) and off. One of the main issues surrounding our sport in the U.S. is that USATF doesn't have that strong of presense, especially in the road race community. While many road races apply for sanctioning from USATF, which enables them to be insured, USATF's association with the road races is minimal at best.This

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-35446115769777485362009-08-27T16:18:00.002-05:002009-08-27T16:20:27.586-05:00

I might be completely wrong on this, but the recent upswing of fan fests in major sports is happening because of the success that's been seen in the city of Chicago, with John McDonough first popularizing Cubs fest as president of the baseball team, then getting a successful fan fest going with the Blackhawks when he became president of that team. Regardless, the recent upswing in fan fests has

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-38913348103668120992009-08-25T14:49:00.003-05:002009-08-25T14:51:12.057-05:00

(photo courtesy of Sports Illustrated)

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-88190435626764846662009-08-25T07:27:00.003-05:002009-08-25T07:53:49.359-05:00

Team USA just wrapped up an impressive World Championships in Berlin over this past weekend and much of the credit should be given to the USATF staff. They do a great job at managing the U.S. athletes at the championship events, as well as all the resources they've provided over the past year for the athletes.With the World Championships now over, and an absence of an international championship

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-53782603819426124742009-08-24T07:30:00.004-05:002009-08-24T07:55:03.610-05:00

Nearly two weeks of intense competition came to a close Sunday, as the IAAF World Championships wrapped up. While there are a wide range of thoughts pertaining to the U.S. distance runners, the overall performance was rather strong, especially in the middle distance events. Here are the top five U.S. performances of the championships:IAAF World T&F Championships Website5. Dathan Ritzenhein (

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-91545198375316589632009-08-21T07:48:00.003-05:002009-08-21T07:54:52.131-05:00

Yesterday's men's 5,000m prelims were great. Matt Tegenkamp and Chris Solinsky are beasts, running tactical races and putting themselves in great position to advance to the final. Same goes for Bernard Lagat. Evan Jager didn't advance, but the 20-year old phenom earned valuable experience and will come up big in 2011.So, I wait now until Saturday, when the 5k final takes place and I can

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8805785266773809538.post-3387803484440411902009-08-21T07:11:00.002-05:002009-08-21T07:32:33.521-05:00

As a company, your website is your message. In a day with marketing budgets shrinking, newspapers dying, and way too many sports to follow, having a strong website for any sport is an absolute must. I've complained about the USATF website for a long time now, and feel it needs to be revamped. Every day the USATF website remains the same is another day our sport loses ground to other sports.The

Scott Bushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04707834158165133847SBush1002@gmail.com0