I have been very fortunate to make some unique connections in the running world of late. My interviews with
Geoff Roes,
David Riddle,
Anton Krupicka, and my friend
Kyle Kranz have added a new series of voices to
Average Guy Hits the Road and it seems to really be resonating with readers. Traffic has increased by about 500% in the last three months. In addition, I have started doing in-depth analyses of
running shoes and products, which has brought us a lot of new readers looking for information on
barefoot running and barefoot style shoes.
In honor of all our new readers, I have been working hard behind the scenes to line up even more
Above Average Athlete interviews for you, and a series of new product reviews. In the next few weeks, you can expect interviews with
Krissy Moehl, an incredible, world-renowned ultra runner, and
Hal Koerner, another legendary ultra runner and two-time Western States winner. We have sneak peak product reviews of the
New Balance Minimus Road Zero,
Merrell Mixmaster, and
Ashmei Running apparel. Plus, a few more surprises I don’t want to let out of the bag just yet.
One thing I can tell you all about right now is the addition of a few new contributors to
Average Guy Hits the Road. There are three right now, with more to come in the future. These writers all have unique backgrounds and come at running and racing and life from very diverse backgrounds from my own and from one another. I am confident that the quality of their analysis and the spirit of their commentary will be very positive additions to what I am doing here.
The first new contributor has, in a way, been contributing all along. She is a cancer survivor, former high school cross country runner, and newly minted natural running advocate. She’s a mom, writer in her own right, and a living legend. She’s my wife,
Moira Branigan. It was her diagnosis that inspired me to get off the couch in the first place. Since then she’s been in my corner for all my races and struggles. For herself, she recovered fully from her breast cancer, with just a few small exceptions. The biggest was neuropathy from her chemotherapy. She was a casual runner before cancer and assumed she’d be a runner after cancer. But that neuropathy numbness kept her on the sidelines while I ran for the both of us. Then I started to get into barefoot running and it must have rubbed off on her. Now she has been working out, walking, running, and living with minimal shoes…and with the extra ground feel she’s been telling me that she’s had almost all of that numbness vanish! She will soon be writing some posts about some of the
Merrell Barefoot collection and others from her very personal point of view as she trains for her first long-distance race.
The next new contributor,
Mike Andersen, is a guy who can definitely add something very cool to
Average Guy, because he’s an elite runner with a view of the very, very front of the pack. He was on the podium at the
Detroit Marathon in 2011, and will be tearing up
Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth in 2012.
Mike is also a shoe junkie and has reliable, insightful thoughts on the finer points of running form and running shoes, especially racing gear.
Finally, we will be hearing from
Ken Larscheid.
Ken has a reputation earned through 11 years in the running industry for impeccable taste and high standards. His shop,
Elite Feet Brighton, carries only the best stuff with the most style, a boutique running shop with just the right product. As a former manufacturer's rep serving some of the highest volume stores in the country,
Ken also knows the ins and outs of the running business from the manufacturer’s point of view.
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