2020 High School Clinic
Five Presentations and Three Panel Discussions
John O’Malley - How To Run 7:54 When Your Best Runner is 1:59: A Case Study Of A Season Of Preparing For The 800, Day One To State Finals
Jeff Messer, PhD - Endurance Athlete Nutrition: An Evidence-Based Perspective On What We Know, What We Need To Know, And What Can We Apply To Student-Athlete Performance Enhancement
Panel Discussion - Coaching Boys: John O’Malley, Jamie Kirkpatrick, Paul Vandersteen and Jonathan Dalby
Jay Johnson - When I Think of Boulder: Ten Short Stories with Ten Take-Home Messages
Kim O’Malley - Coaching The Whole Human
Jessie Magoto - Coaching Females to be Strong, Confident and Consistent Runners
Panel Discussion - Coaching Girls: Kim O’Malley, Jessie Magoto, Jeff Messer, Scott Bliss, and Kelly Christensen
Q&A with coaches
2020 Boulder Running Clinics – Speaker and Panelist Bios
John O’Malley - Boys XC and Track - Sandburg HS (Illinois)
A Brooks “Top 25 Most Inspiring Coaches” award winner, Coach O’Malley has an unprecedented coaching resume. He has had the unique ability to coach the “average” runner in addition to being able to take elite runners to the highest levels in Illinois and United States history. His cross country teams at Sandburg H.S. have qualified for state 14 years in a row, which accounts for every year he’s been coaching. His teams have placed in the top 10 in state eight separate occasions out, including three top four finishes, a runner up in 2014 and a state championship in 2015. Without their #2 runner, his team placed 4th at NXN in 2015 after qualifying and placing 16th in 2014. In additional to coaching two NXN teams, he has coached two individual qualifiers. He coached two-time Illinois state champion, 8:29 2-miler, 3:59 miler, only double Footlocker and Nike National Champion, Lukas Verzbicas. Last year Dylan Jacobs won Footlocker Midwest Regional, making Coach O’Malley the only coach to have coached two Footlocker Midwest Regional champions. Jacobs would go on to be a double All-American at NXN and Footlocker as a junior. At Detweiller Park, the Illinois state cross country course since 1972, two of O’Malley’s runners have broken 14:00, a feat only achieved by a total of six runners in Illinois history. His ability to create a culture in which all his athletes are fully engaged and determined is perhaps best exemplified by David Gleisner who as a healthy senior did not manage to make the team’s top seven and run at state or nationals, but would run 9:16 for 3200 that spring.
On the track, O’Malley has coached five runners who have run 4:10 or better for 1600 and 15 runners 1:57 or better in the 800. His 4 x 800 relays have been most dominant. Having run 7:46 or better for the last six consecutive seasons, they placed in the top five in state seven times, including two state champion relays and setting the Illinois State Record of 7:37.3. In all, he’s had ten different foursomes run under 7:48. Additionally, Sean Torpy set the all time Illinois State Record in the 800 of 1:47.9. His 4 x mile relay won the 2016 New Balance Indoor National title. Sean Torpy would go on to become the Illinois state champion in the 1600, Chris Torpy the Illinois state 800 meter champion, and his team won three of the four distance events at the state meet in 2016, a feat only achieved two other times in state history. Last spring, after graduating three of his four state champions from 2016, his 4 x 800 came back to place 2nd in state in 7:46 and Dylan Jacobs ran 4:07 for 1600. O’Malley has coached three Gatorade Athletes of the Year: Lukas Verzbicas, Sean Torpy and Dylan Jacobs.
The Illinois Track and Cross Country Coaches Association Coach of the Year, NFHS Coach of the Year, United States Track and Cross Country Federation Coach of the Year, Coach O’Malley’s coaching resume is perhaps only surpassed by his teaching accolades, which includes the Northwestern University Distinguished Secondary Teacher Award, the Stanford University Excellence in Teaching Award, the Illinois Education Association Leadership in Action Award and the Western Illinois University Inspiring teach award.
Dr. Jeff Messer – Girls and Boys Coach - Phoenix (AZ)
Dr. Jeffrey I. Messer serves as department chair and faculty in exercise physiology for the Exercise Science Department at Mesa Community College, Mesa, Arizona.
Dr. Messer holds a Ph.D. in exercise physiology from Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona. His doctoral research program emphasized exercise biochemistry with a specific research focus in skeletal muscle mitochondrial bioenergetics. In addition, he has earned an M.S. degree in exercise science from Arizona State University, a Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) degree from Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, and a B.A. degree in economics from Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut.
Dr. Messer has taught a variety of courses including Introduction to Exercise Physiology, Introduction to Evidence-Based Inquiry, Introduction to Research Methods in Health and Exercise Science, Sport Nutrition for Fitness Professionals, Strength & Conditioning, and Methods of Enhancing Physical Performance. His ongoing teaching pursuits have been complemented by the September 2010 opening of the Mesa Community College Human Performance Laboratory. Prior to the transition to the aforementioned department chair position, Dr. Messer served as director of the laboratory with a corresponding mandate to not only complement the foundational teaching / learning mission of the college but also engage in scholarly research focused on optimizing human performance.
Dr. Messer has published research in Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, The American Journal of Physiology and The Journal of Applied Physiology. Most recently, Dr. Messer and co-authors published a 2016 paper entitled “A Simple Hydraulic Analog Model of Oxidative Phosphorylation.”
He has offered research presentations at the Annual Meeting of the Southwest Region of the American College of Sports Medicine (SWACSM), the Annual Meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), and the Annual Meeting of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB).
Corresponding professional memberships include The American Physiological Society (APS), The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA), USA Track-&-Field (USATF), the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), and the United States Track-&-Field and Cross-Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
Dr. Messer applies his passion for teaching and scholarly inquiry through his strong involvement in coaching both interscholastic endurance athletes and, periodically, pre-secondary and post-collegiate endurance athletes.
From 2006 – 2012, Dr. Messer served as co-head coach for cross-country and assistant coach (distance) for track-&-field at Xavier College Preparatory, Phoenix, Arizona. The Xavier College Preparatory cross-country program earned six consecutive (2007 – 2012) Arizona high school girl’s state cross-country championships. During the three-year period from 2010 – 2012, the Xavier College Preparatory cross-country program concluded the associated cross-country seasons ranked 22nd, 8th, and 21st in the United States. During the 2012 Arizona high school track-&-field season, Xavier College Preparatory had twelve (12) student-athletes average 5:13 for the 1,600-meter distance.
In February 2013, Dr. Messer began to serve as head coach for girl’s cross-country and assistant coach (girls’ distance) for track-&-field at Desert Vista High School, Phoenix, Arizona. The Desert Vista High School girls’ cross-country program earned the 2013, 2014, and 2016 Arizona high school girls’ state cross-country championship. In late-May 2014, the Desert Vista High School girls’ distance program was ranked by MileSplit US as one of only two girls’ high school track-&-field programs in the United States with “top ten” groups in each of the 800-m, 1,600-m, and 3,200-m events. In December 2014, the Desert Vista High School girls’ cross-country program finished fifth (5th) at the Nike National High School Cross-Country Championship and thus concluded the 2014 high school cross-country season as the fifth (5th) ranked high school cross-country team in the United States. More recently, the Desert Vista High School girls’ cross-country program finished sixth (6th) at the 2016 Nike National High School Cross-Country Championship.
Subsequent to the 2016 high school cross-country season, Dr. Messer retired from his head coaching endeavors in order to expand his community college leadership pursuits.
Most recently, Dr. Messer returned and transitioned to the Desert Vista boys’ distance program as a volunteer assistant for the 2017 cross-country season. The Desert Vista High School boys’ cross-country program earned its first opportunity to compete at and ultimately finished eighth (8th) at the 2017 Nike National High School Cross-Country Championship. During the 2018 and 2019 Arizona high school cross-country seasons, Dr. Messer served as a volunteer assistant for the Desert Vista High School girls’ and boys’ cross-country programs.
Additionally, Dr. Messer serves as the coach for professional runner Jessica Tonn. Miss Tonn recently finished as national runner-up at the October 2019 USA Track-&-Field 5-K Championships and hopes to compete at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Track-&-Field Trials.
Dr. Messer has been recognized by the United States Track-&-Field and Cross-Country Coaches Association as the 2016 National Girls High School Cross-Country Coach-of-the-Year.
Jay Johnson – Boulder Running Camps
I’ve coached collegiate, professional and adult runners for close to two decades. I’ve been fortunate to work with three athletes that have won United States Track and Field (USATF) national titles in indoor track, cross country and on the roads during our time together. Renee Metivier-Ballie (3,000m – 2010), Brent Vaughn (Cross Country – 2011) and Fernando Cabada (25 km – 2011) are some of the quality runners with whom I’ve had the opportunity to work over the years.
My first coaching position was Head Coach of Track and Cross Country at Pratt Community College in Pratt, Kansas. Both cross country teams finished third at the Junior College national meet (Division II), while on the track athletes broke numerous school records. Following two years at Pratt I moved back to Boulder, Colorado, to serve as the Recruiting Coordinator and Middle Distance coach at the University of Colorado, where I coached for six years. I also assisted in cross country and was fortunate to be part of three NCAA Division I team titles. In my final year at CU, the men won the Big 12 Track and Field title in Boulder. The highlight of my career was seeing fifth-year seniors, who I first connected with during their senior year high school in the recruiting process, celebrating their title Potts Field.
In 2016 I published a training manual, Simple Marathon Training, to help the busy adult with a hectic life run to their potential in the marathon.
As the camp director of the Boulder Running Camps, I interact with high school runners – the soul of the sport – each summer. The camp is sponsored by Nike and 2020 will mark our 18th year.
I was a modestly successful high school athlete, having just run fast enough in the 1990’s (4:25 and 9:45) to walk on at the University of Colorado. I am blessed to have spent five years of my life running training under the tutelage of one of the best distance coaches in the world, Mark Wetmore. I studied Kinesiology as an undergraduate and Kinesiology and Applied Physiology as a graduate student, earning my M.S. in 2000. I was fortunate to compete on the 1998 varsity cross country team chronicled in Chris Lear’s book Running with the Buffaloes. That spring I was awarded the athletic department’s Male Scholar-Athlete award. My PRs are 3:49.5 for 1,500m, 8:20 for 3k, 14:20 for 5k, and 30:15 for 10k, all as an athlete at CU.
In the past I’ve written for brands such as Nike, sites such as Active.com, multiple magazines and has been quoted in a variety of publications, including Wired, Outside and Runner’s World.
Kim O’Malley - GALS INC
Kim O’Malley is a Youth Development Specialist with 20 years of experience designing and delivering leadership curriculum in a wide range of settings. Kim has been a public high school teacher, head cross-country and track coach, an outdoor trip leader, a parent education facilitator and a professional development coach, blogger, public speaker, mom, and seasoned ultra-marathoner.
As a program manager for the national non-profit organization Girls Leadership and a curriculum specialist for the Girl’s Athletic Leadership School network (GALS INC), Kim is committed to equipping teachers, coaches, parents and students with the tools they need to bring holistic, relationship based teaching and learning into the arena. Kim’s career reflects her life-long passion for connecting leadership, athleticism, and social-emotional development.
Kim’s coaching career began as an undergraduate student at Northwestern University when upon discovering the university lacked a running program- started her own. She co-founded Northwestern’s running club, served as its president and coach, and eventually elevated the program to varsity status at which it remains today. Kim has successfully led large co-ed cross-country and track programs with diverse populations in California and Colorado. She led the North Monterey County girls’ cross-country team to the first sectional championships for any girl’s program in the school’s history while focusing on holistic coaching practices that prioritized personal wellness, character development, and leadership.
Kim uses her expertise to address the growing mental health crisis for adolescents and is especially versed in the experience of girls, and in issues surrounding equity and inclusion. She was the keynote speaker and consultant for Athleta Girl in 2018 in which we she outlined the connection between leadership, social-emotional learning and physical movement. She provided tips for Athleta store employees on how to engage girls and their grown-ups with body positive messaging focused on keeping girls involved in sports. Additionally, Kim developed a national program called the Girl’s Guide to Epic Outdoor Adventures. This program was funded by REI’s Force of Nature campaign and aims to get girls outdoors and pursing their own adventures while practicing key social-emotional skill sets.
Kim holds a BA in History and Political Science from Northwestern University and a MA in Education from the University of California, Santa Cruz. An avid runner herself, Kim has completed over 40 road and trail marathons and keeps herself active today by pursing high mountain ultra marathons. She lives in the mountains of Colorado with her husband, two kids and a ever-growing number of family pets.
Jessie Magoto – Girls XC and Track – Minster HS (OH)
Jessie Magoto has spent the last 20 years as the head cross country coach in the small town of Minster, Ohio. 11 of those years she has also been the head track and field coach. During Jessie’s tenure at Minster she has coached 13 state championship and 6 runner-up teams. All 20 of her cross country teams have qualified for the state meet and they currently hold 3 Ohio state records: lowest score, largest margin of victory, and most team titles for a school. In total, she has coached 37 All Ohio runners in xc, 29 All Ohio relays and 26 All Ohio individuals in track. She has also coached two Footlocker finalists who placed 5th and 10th. Jessie was named NFHS state coach of the year in 2016 and 2018 in cross country and 2015 in track. She teaches English at Minster High School and has received the Franklin B. Walter exemplary teacher award on 4 separate occasions. Jessie lives in Minster with her husband Jeremy and 3 kids.
Paul Vandersteen – Boys XC and Track – Neuqua Valley HS (IL)
Coach Paul Vandersteen is in his 23rd year at the helm of the NV cross country program. Since the program’s inception in the fall of 1997, it has grown to consistent numbers in the 130 range (120 men are part of the summer program, grades 7-12) and is regarded as one of the top programs in the State. The Wildcats have placed in the top fifteen 19x at the IHSA State Meet. NV has also had a streak of 14 straight top 10 finishes and ranks as the top team in Illinois the last ten years. The Wildcats have been fortunate to win three State titles (2007,2009,2016); place 2nd in 2017, place 3rd in 2010, 2011, 2015, 2018, and 4th in 2003, 2008, and 2014. Under the Naperville South name, The 2007, 2009, 2010, 2015, 2016 teams also qualified for the Nike Cross Country National competition in Portland, Oregon, and were national champions in ’07, placing 12th in ’09 and ’10, 19th in 2015, and 5th in 2016. The 2016 team had the fastest cumulative 1-5 time in Midwest NXR history. An avid runner since the age of nine, his age-group performances ranked him nationally in all distance events. As a 6th grader, he ran 4:58 for a mile and he was the National Junior Olympic Cross Country Champion in Longview, Washington at the age of 14. In 8th grade, he ran a 4:42 mile and ran 33:00 for a certified 6 mile race. As a high school sophomore, he was an All-State performer in cross country (12:29 for 2.5 miles) while attending Bloomington South High School in Bloomington, Indiana. After moving, and graduating from Sterling H.S. in Sterling, Illinois, he went on to compete at Northern Illinois University his freshman year before the program was eliminated due to budget cuts. He went on to compete briefly at The University of Iowa where he received his degree in exercise science with an emphasis in science education. Coach Vandersteen has thirty three years of coaching experience. His coaching resume includes the head women’s track and field coach and assistant cross country coach at Peoria Notre Dame High School and the assistant women’s track and field coach at Pekin Community High School. After moving to the suburbs of Chicago, he coached the hurdlers, sprinters, and distance runners during his tenure at Waubonsie Valley High School before transferring to Neuqua Valley. While at WV, he had three different hurdlers run 14.7 or faster. Overall, he has had numerous state qualifiers in track and field, including a State champion 4 x 8 in 2016. He has coached twenty one different all-state runners in cross country, including two Footlocker All-Americans.
Jonathan Dably – Girls and Boys XC and Track – Mountain Vista HS (CO)
Coach Dalby coaches Cross Country & Track & Field Coach at Mountain Vista HS in Highlands Ranch, Colorado (2007-Present). Since 2012, Mountain Vista boys and girls teams have won 7 Colorado State Cross Country Championships, 4 NXR Southwest Championships, and 7 appearances at Nike Cross Nationals including a 3rd place podium finish by the boys in 2017. Coach Dalby teaches freshman world history classes at Mountain Vista High School.
Jamie Kirkpatrick – Boys XC and Track Coach – Edina HS (MN)
Jamie just completed his 18th year as head boys cross country coach at Edina High School in Edina, Minnesota. Edina is a first ring suburb southwest of Minneapolis. He has also served as the distance coach during track during that time and was the head track coach for 6 years (2005-2010). The Edina boys won their first state title in 2018. They have also finished runner-up in the Minnesota State meet three times (2012, 2013 & 2016) and were the Nike Heartland regional champions in 2013. They have qualified for NXN 5 times, with finishes of 18th in 2010, 10th in 2013, 9th in 2014, 13th in 2015 and 18th in 2016. In 2014 and 2015, they qualified for NXN after not qualifying for the Minnesota State meet. Jamie is proud to be the only attendee (if you don’t count Jay) to have been at all 7? Boulder Running Clinics.
Prior to coaching at Edina, Jamie coached at Minnetonka High School (where he ran in high school) for two years and competed collegiately at Saint Olaf College (go Oles!!!).
Scott Bliss – Girls and Boys XC and Track Coach -
Champlain Valley Union HS (VT)
This is my 30th year at CVU and I now teach Wellness (physical education/health). I was inducted into the RunVermont Hall of Fame in 2015. I am the head coach of both the boys and girls cross country teams and I am an assistant coach in track working with the distance group. This was my 21st year as the head coach of cross country and I began coaching in 1999.
State championship teams:
Boys - 4(most recent - 2019)
Girls - 16(16 of past 17 and 11 in a row)
New England Championships: Girls - 6 time champions - 3 of the last 4
NXN:
Boys - 1 individual qualifier
Girls - 3 team qualifiers - 3 individual qualifiers and 1 All-American
Kelly Christensen – Girls and Boys XC and Track – Niwot HS (CO)
2016 - present
2019 - 3rd NXN Girls
2018 - 5th NXN Girls
4 x NXN All-American athletes (2014 Eric Hamer (4th), 2018 Ares Reading (17th), 2019 Cruz Culpepper (20th), 2019 Samrawit Dishon(15th))
1 x Footlocker All-American (2018 Ares Reading (19th))
1 x IAAF World Cross Country Championship Qualifier (2015 - 4th at USA XC Champs, 42nd at 2015 IAAF World XC Championships)
4 x 4A Colorado State Cross Country Team Titles (2 girls, 2 boys)
15 Individual Colorado 4A State Champions
5 x CHSCA Cross Country Coach of the Year
2004 NCAA Div II Steeple Chase National Champion
9 x NCAA Div II All-American
3 x NCAA Div II Cross Country National Championship Team Titles