We were convinced we’d already had the great Jeff Hess on the pod… turns out we hadn’t, which made this conversation even more exciting. We’re thrilled to welcome Coach Jeff Hess of South Eugene High School to the show.

As an athlete, Jeff was a multiple-time state champion at South Eugene and a true phenom, setting the national high school record in the boys’ 3000m steeplechase with an 8:50 mark as a senior—a record that stood for decades. He went on to become an All-American at the University of Arizona.

Jeff began his teaching and coaching career at Glendale High School in Southern Oregon, where he coached multiple state champions, including a young athlete named Tom Pappas, who would later become an NCAA champion and Olympic decathlete. In 1999, Jeff returned to his alma mater at South Eugene, where he coached numerous individual state champions and state championship teams.

After several years away, Jeff returned to coaching at South Eugene this fall and made an immediate impact, already producing a state champion in cross country and helping reestablish the teams as true powerhouses.

We wish we’d had more time with one of the best coaches in the country—but we’ll definitely have him back. Enjoy the show!

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Chris, Dave, and Travis discuss all the clinics they attended this winter, some takeaways, Dave's fantastic voyage around the Northeast including attending The Millrose Games and the races at that outstanding meet, and later in the show they do a Seinfeld episode draft - give it a listen and vote on the instagram page who won the show.

If you want to send in any questions for our next show or send us any message, please reach us at justathleticspodcast@gmail.com.

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We decided to have return guest Dr. Ross Dexter back to discuss the impact carbon plated shoes may have beyond really fast performances. Do they cause injuries? Ross is our go to guru to discuss just about anything related to the physio world. Ross is now the Assistant Athletic Director for Health and Performance at Southern Oregon University.

This is a great discussion with a true expert.

If you want to send in any questions for our next show or send us any message, please reach us at justathleticspodcast@gmail.com.

Please subscribe to the show on iTunes or Stitcher or Spotify or really where ever you get your podcasts to get future episodes and please follow us on Twitter @just_athletics and like us on the Facebook or our Instagram page. Plus we would love to have you rate the show!

Alex Lyons competed at American University for Matt Centrowitz Sr. and Sean Graham, for two years before transferring to the University of Illinois to focus on academics.

He coached at the high school level for ten years in the state of Illinois at Lyons Township HS and Downers Grove North HS. Alex moved to Utah in 2023 and started coaching at Olympus HS in Salt Lake City in January of 2024. During his stint in Illinois, Alex coached a girl who broke the state meet record in the mile. He has had 14 former athletes go on to compete at the NCAA Division One level.

Alex is a USATF Level 1 and 2 certified coach (in endurance) and a graduate of the Altis Mentorship Program. Recently Alex started Lyons Performance Consulting where he works with coaches at every level to improve their programs. Alex is also a licensed massage therapist. We asked good friend of the show, Jay Johnson, to share his thoughts on Alex and they are as follows:

"I've coached for 25 year, at all levels of the sport, and I can say with confidence that Alex Lyons is one of the sharpest minds and clearest thinkers in distance running. Alex is one of the few coaches who truly understands both the science of coaching and the art of coaching. Perhaps the strongest endorsement I can offer is this: as a father of both a high school and middle school athlete, I would trust Alex completely to guide my own children's training.

If you're a parent with the opportunity to have Alex work with your son or daughter, you won't regret it. Alex's expertise and approach to coaching will set them up for success in high school and beyond.

If you're a coach - at any level - looking to accelerate your professional development, spending time with Alex is invaluable. Whether you're trying to get your team on the podium or simply want to deepen your understanding of the sport, an hour or two on a call with Alex will do more for your coaching than attending a typical coaching clinic (and I say this as someone who puts on coaching clinics)."

Alex truly is "so damn good" as Dave states on the show and this pod is a good representation of just how smart Alex is. We hope you enjoy the show!

Also, if you want to send in any questions for our next show or send us any message, please reach us at justathleticspodcast@gmail.com.

Please subscribe to the show on iTunes or Stitcher or Spotify or really where ever you get your podcasts to get future episodes and please follow us on Twitter @just_athletics and like us on the Facebook or our Instagram page. Plus we would love to have you rate the show!

If you know of Dirk Lakeman’s running career you are probably in awe.

If you don’t know about it, sit back and relax and listen to Dirk take you through his time at powerhouse South Eugene in the late 1970s under the guidance of legendary coach Harry Johnson, who after building the dynasty of all high school dynasties went on to coach a little professional group called Athletics West.

DIrk was the best HS miler in the country in 1977. His 4:04.94 mile time set at the Pre Classic was an Oregon State record that held for 27 years until it was broken by another home grown Oregon Legend and Olympic medalist. His high school 4xMile team ran 17:05 and his DMR ran 10:07. Both of those records stood for 40 years. Dirk got it done before super shoes and altitude tents with pure grit, determination and good old-fashioned hard work. And he was coachable. He won state titles in cross country two times and on the track.

His friendly, but fierce rivalry with the great Billy McChesney is one of the most iconic in Oregon HS history. It’s amazing to hear about it in Dirk's words (highlighted by their epic clash in the mile at the district meet their senior year).

After HS Dirk went on to be an All-American at the University of Arizona, then on to a professional career that included National Championships in several distances and participation on World Cross teams.

Dirk coached all four of his kids, no doubt highlighted by Caleb’s dramatic double victory at the Oregon State meet in 2022 in the 1500 and the 3000. Currently, Dirk is coaching cross and track at Clackamas Community College and his love for running has never been stronger.

If you know Dirk, you love him like we do. If you don’t know Dirk, after this podcast you will know why we love him and you will probably love him too.

This was a special one for the Just Athletics Podcast. Dirk is a legend, a great father and husband and a dear friend. We hope you enjoy this as much as we did.

Also, if you want to send in any questions for our next show or send us any message, please reach us at justathleticspodcast@gmail.com

Please subscribe to the show on iTunes or Stitcher or Spotify or really where ever you get your podcasts to get future episodes and please follow us on Twitter @just_athletics and like us on the Facebook or our Instagram page.

No guest this episode. Chris, Dave, and Travis just talk. You must really like these fellas to listen to this episode. The guys talk about some random stuff, but mostly about training.

If you do enjoy the show, especially outside of this episode, please give us that five-star rating!

Also, if you want to send in any questions for our next show or send us any message, please reach us at justathleticspodcast@gmail.com

Please subscribe to the show on iTunes or Stitcher or Spotify or really where ever you get your podcasts to get future episodes and please follow us on Twitter @just_athletics and like us on the Facebook or our Instagram page.

Fresh off of the Boulder Running Clinic, we are thrilled to have Jonathan Dalby, Co-Head Coach of Cross Country and Track & Field at Mountain Vista High School in Highlands Ranch, CO.

Jonathan is regarded as one of the best high school coaches in the entire country. His girls team won Nike Cross Nationals this fall by an impressive 32 points. This was the first national title for Jonathan, but his Mountain Vista teams have consistently been making trips to NXN on both the boys and girls side with multiple top our finishes. Jonathan was just recently named the National Cross Country Co-Coach of the Year with his co-head coach Eric Selle by USTFCCCA for the 2024 season.

Jonathan shares incredible insight into his program at Mountain Vista and the dream season for his girls team this last fall. We hope you all enjoy the pod with one of this brilliant coaching mind and an incredible person in Jonathan.

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We are fortunate enough to finally have Jamey Harris on the pod to breakdown his epic win at the 1998 USA Track & Field Championships in the 1500m in New Orleans.

You can find video of the race here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Us2CfrGmR_M

Jamey ran and graduated from Fresno State University in 1994 and went on to compete as a professional runner before taking his talents to the coaching ranks. Jamey is currently the Head Cross Country Coach at Cal Poly Humboldt, you can read more of Jamey's accomplishments as a coach here: https://humboldtathletics.com/staff-directory/jamey-harris/232

It was fun breaking down Jamey's most glorious race....so far. We will have Jamey back for trivia or just to hang out, because if you're eve hung out at the Wild Duck in Eugene, OR, you know Jamey is always the life of the party. Jamey also now has the distinction of being the first time we needed to label one of these episodes as explicit, how fitting. Enjoy the show!

Please subscribe to the show on iTunes or Stitcher or Spotify or really where ever you get your podcasts to get future episodes and please follow us on Twitter @just_athletics and like us on the Facebook or our Instagram page.