Full Swing

            As school has started for many of our area students this past week, I cannot help but reflect upon my time as a teacher.  I miss it.  I miss my classroom. I miss my fellow teachers and principal.  I miss the stress of the schedule that only an elementary school environment can produce.  I miss the reward of seeing a young child light up when something “clicks”.  I miss being a part of a greater purpose that you can only find in a school—even more so when that school becomes a part of who you are.  I am thankful for my time at The Palmetto School and wish everyone there all the best as they press forward into the 2015-16 school term.

            Charlotte Country Day School starts this Wednesday and this past week of cross-country has been a whirlwind.  This was the fourth week of official practice and we concluded the week with our first competition—a two-mile preview meet here in Charlotte yesterday.  I have been involved with running in many different facets since my surgery June 1, but this first time back at a race made me really miss what I love to do most.  This meet was small—only seven teams—but the wet grass, seeing everyone in spikes, music blaring, teammates screaming—it all brought back so many memories that helped remind me how unique our sport is.  We have a team filled with young runners, many who competed in their first official race.  Here is a short recap from our head coach Allison Brown as she highlighted the success of our team in a great way:

“We had a full, fun week, including a great course preview practice at Myers Park High School on Friday, followed by the Charlotte Running Company Mecklenburg County XC 2 Mile Preview Meet at Myers Park High School Saturday morning. For some of our runners, this was their first meet ever, and I am proud of you all! Ella Dunn, in her first ever cross country race, finished 7^th overall in the junior/senior girls race, with teammate Molly Mazeine close behind her in 11^th place. In the junior/senior boys race, Alex Domeier finished 13^th with Peter Mitchell right behind him in 15^th place. In the freshmen/sophomore boys race, Jake Morris finished 12^th, Benjamin Whetstone 15^th and Max Gilbert 17^th.

The actual distance of the course was 2.1 miles (about 3400m). The results are also posted online at http://racesonline.com/events/charlotte-running-company-cross-country-run/results/2015-xc-preview/dashboard, and I’ll have a hard copy of all the results at practice on Monday.

I’d also like to give a shout out to Country Day rising 8^th grader Sophie Spada who earned first place overall female in the open 5k at 8am with a time of 21:34.9, which is fantastic on Myers Park’s hilly course. Well done, Sophie!”

Charlotte Country Day XC Team at their first race.

Please follow our team on twitter this season @CCDSXCountry for many more promising updates as our season gets into full swing September 1.

            RunningWorks also had one of their signature races of the year on Saturday as well—The OrthoCarolina Classic 10k/5k.  RunningWorks was one of the focus charities for this event and over 1000 runners participated in one of Charlotte’s most popular summer races.  RW was charged with manning the course monitors for the event and we had several athletes compete in the 10k and 5k races on an unusually cool Saturday morning in August.  One of my “team” members, PerformanceTherapy of Charlotte, was a title sponsor for the race. Mike is truly one of the best at his trade and we at RunningWorks are forever grateful for his support.

Meredith Dolhare, Mike Danenberg, and myself at the OrthoCarolina Classic.

            Life is good. I love what I do.  Therapy is going extremely well and I may get to take my first running steps in almost four months at the end of next week. Every day, I am surrounded by runners: the people I love most are runners, those I coach are runners, and those I serve are runners. I cannot wait to feel the joy they have been experiencing again very soon. I have received many gifts in this life, but none can compare to influence and impact running has had on me.  Full-time training is on the horizon.  My body is ready. My mind is ready. And most importantly, my heart is ready to do the thing I love the most once again.

Coach Matt's New Perspective

Coach Matt explains what an interval means to Charlotte Country Day XC Team.

            Since my surgery ten weeks ago, I have had the chance to reflect upon my life in many ways.  I have been able to think about so many changes and opportunities that I have had and how life is constantly moving forward.  The funny thing about life is that is moves whether we are prepared or not, and the choices we make directly affect its turns.  I have always been a planner.  I am a person who has focused on THEIR personal plan and strived to direct MY life in the way in which I want to achieve MY personal goals.  Many of my goals have been athletic ones, as running has become a lifestyle choice that has colored essentially 100% of the decisions I have made these last eight years.  Running has opened so many doors for me and given me a road to success not only on the track but also with health, relationships and even a way to make a living for myself.  However, these last two months my mind has shifted away from running in a unique way.  Since I haven’t been able to exercise, I find myself not even thinking about running unless someone asks me about my foot and how it is doing.  I find myself not wanting to cross-train or do anything really to start building fitness.  I haven’t really exercised at all in the last three months and in a weird way feel content about that.  I haven’t given up on running—trust me—I have just invested my time in other areas and it is actually quite a relief to know that I can function outside of my own athletic performance and drive.

            I have been in Charlotte for some time now.  It seems everywhere that life has taken me I have, for some reason, been blessed with time and the ability to always be connected to other runners.  I have tried to invest myself in helping others with their running and that has brought me more joy than any personal athletic accomplishment I have ever had.  Helping people as “Coach Matt”, instead of the sub-4 minute professional miler is actually exhilarating.  Letting people get to know me for who I am instead of what I have accomplished as a runner brings a peace to my life.  Seeing people who you have helped become more intrinsically motivated and successful for themselves from using a piece of advice that you have been able to pass on creates a high for me like nothing else.  I would be nothing without the impact of other people in my life.  I would have never been fast, never gotten strong or been able to mentally handle professional level training and racing on my own.  Luckily, I am a person who respected those who have tried to help me with the highest regard and established a family with those who have sacrificed so much for me that will last my lifetime.

            RunningWorks and the Charlotte Country Day Cross Country team have been my saving graces, along with Meredith Dolhare who has helped keep my head above water at home.  She is the founder of RunningWorks but more importantly my best friend.  The main reason I have been able to stay connected to running is because of her and she has paved the way for me to be a mentor to so many people from so many walks of life.  She is the only woman who has ever reminded me of my mother—a “Kim-Possible” type of lady.  She can do anything.   She has done everything. And she will stop at nothing to get the job done.  She has challenged me to be a better person and very few people in my life outside of my immediate family have ever done that. 

My RunningWorks family touring a new program.

            Cross-country practice officially started two weeks ago and I cannot tell you how excited I am to be a part of a team again.  Training on my own and traveling to races by myself for much of my career has not been nearly as fun and rewarding as it has been to have help and support from others.  Knoxville Youth Athletics gave me a team in Tennessee along with my roommate Gabe and strength coach Greg.  Charlotte Country Day and RunningWorks will be my family here in Charlotte.  Pictured below are my new family members—the ones who will support me and who I will have the pleasure of sharing life with in this next chapter.  Malachi is a RunningWorks team member who has so much promise and potential.  Unfortunately this last week he was in a near fatal car crash shattering his hip leaving him immobile for the next three months.  Meredith and the RW team sprung directly in to action and have supported him relentlessly throughout his hospital stay and will be by his side every step of the way on his road to recovery. 

            Opportunities like the ones I will be undertaking this fall are what make my world spin on its axis.  Life is so much more than running, but my life would be nothing without it.  I want to thank In the Arena, Brooks Running and all of you who have supported me and encouraged me in my time away from the competitive side of the sport.  I have probably learned more from not running a step in over 12 weeks than I ever did running 10-12 times per week over the last three years.  I will take my first stride this month and I cannot wait to see how my perspective has changed and how much more driven I will be—to be more than I ever thought I could be.  Onwards and Upwards!

Malachi and I in the hospital in Columbia, SC.