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Adam Trausch, Baker College · The Red Banner Race Report

• 0:04
  SPEAKER_01: Welcome back to the Red Banner Race Report Podcast, where we dive into the mindset, miles, and moments that make up NAIA cross-country and track and field.
• 0:13
  SPEAKER_01: I'm your host, Maren, and today we have a special guest who is at the helm of a brand new program just beginning to break ground.
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_01: Baker College has recently announced the addition of athletics to its Awaso, Michigan campus, including cross-country.
• 0:27
  SPEAKER_01: The Baker Beads will be part of the Wolverine Footer Athletic Conference, competing within the NAIA division.
• 0:33
  SPEAKER_01: Baker College named Adam Trouch as its new head cross-country coach, who brings nearly 15 years of collegiate coaching experience and improvement track record of building successful programs, developing student athletes, and fostering academic achievement.
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_01: A native from Grand Rapids, Michigan, Trouch joins Baker after serving as the head men's and women's cross-country and track and field coach in Arkansas, where he successfully relaunched the institution's cross-country programs and later expanded his leadership role to include track and field and athletic compliance responsibilities.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_01: Trouch guided student athletes to conference championships, all-conference honors, national qualifying performances, and academic recognition.
• 1:12
  SPEAKER_01: In 2024, Trouch and his staff were named USDAA Men's Cross-Country Coaching Staff of the Year.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_01: And prior in 2022, he was recognized as the American Midwest Conference Coach of Character.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_01: His team has consistently earned USDF CCCA All Academic Team honors, reflecting his commitment to excellence both on the course and in the classroom.
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_01: Trouch's coaching career included collegiate stock at Science College, the University of Wisconsin Oscott, and Wisconsin Lutheran College, where he helped mentor conference champions, all-conference performers, and nationally recognized student athletes.
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_01: A former cross-country and track and field student himself at Davenport University, Trouch was the first runner in program history and earned four WAC all-conference elections while also being recognized as a Dectronic Scholar athlete throughout his collegiate career.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_01: He holds a bachelor's degree in business administration with a concentration in health service administration and is a U.S.
• 2:07
  SPEAKER_01: ATF Level 1 certified coach.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_01: As Baker College continues to grow its athletics programs, Trouch will lead recruiting efforts and help establish a strong foundation for cross-country while supporting the college's commitment to student-first success, leadership development, and competitive excellence.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_01: Thanks for taking time out of your day and joining me on the podcast.
• 2:30
  SPEAKER_01: I'm excited to hear about your vision for Baker and getting a brand new program going.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_01: So thanks for coming on.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no problem.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I'm excited to dive into uh what's the first cross-country team for Baker and um, you know, what's coming up next.
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_01: So let's get to know you a little bit first.
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_01: Let's start with your introduction to the sport.
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_01: So you are a former collegiate runner.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_01: You ran at Davenport University, which is in Grand Rapids.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_01: You're from Michigan originally.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_01: So tell us how you first were introduced to the sport of cross-country or track and fields, and then any influences that played a role in your development early on as you chose to participate.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, uh, I would say that uh it kind of started like during recess in like grade school with the Feeling Good Mileage Club.
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_00: You get your punch card and you run during launch, and the the kid that had the the most mile, most laps done would would get some prizes.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_00: So uh I think that it started then.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_00: Um I did track in sixth grade at St.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_00: Anthony's in Grand Rapids and uh enjoyed it.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_00: I thought it had a had a good time, but I think it really kind of sunk in when uh I moved uh moved into the Kenwell Hills district and uh started started cross country and uh um like coach Reed, he was very influential, um, really kind of built me up and gave me a lot of confidence and like really kind of drove uh kind of began the love of the sport there for sure.
• 4:12
  SPEAKER_01: Now you are a Michigan native and you've been around the country, various places working.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_01: So, how does it feel to return to your home state and taking the reins of the Baker program as its inaugural coach?
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's great.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I'm I'm glad to be back uh in Michigan.
• 4:30
  SPEAKER_00: Um have been down in in Arkansas for nine years, so um glad to be closer to to family and that.
• 4:38
  SPEAKER_00: So um it's been good, it's been a pretty smooth transition back back here.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: So uh just kind of getting the lay of the land here at Baker.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_00: We've had some orientations uh on campus and yeah, just kind of hit the ground run recruiting-wise as well, too.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_00: So it's all all been really good and excited to get things going here.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_01: Well, when the opportunity presented itself and you found out that Baker was looking for a coach, um, what was it about this opportunity in this college that made you say, ooh, I'm interested and this is where I want to go and and build the program?
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I mean, I've always had I've been always pretty open about wanting to get back to Michigan.
• 5:23
  SPEAKER_00: Uh uh like I like said, like I'm from Grand Rapids, my wife's from Cedar Springs.
• 5:30
  SPEAKER_00: So I think it's always, I mean, it was no real secret, um, even when I was down in Arkansas that uh wanted to get back into Michigan.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_00: So um I was really more familiar with the Meskegan campus that Baker has.
• 5:44
  SPEAKER_00: Um I had like I worked at a Boy Scout camp, Cub Scout, Boy Scout camp in Twin Lake, Michigan.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_00: So we was really more familiar with that.
• 5:54
  SPEAKER_00: So when I saw the job posting, so it was a while.
• 5:56
  SPEAKER_00: So I was like, oh uh, I didn't really know what was going on, did some research, and um no uh Heather was uh no, it's emailed her and she emailed me back the next day.
• 6:08
  SPEAKER_00: So uh that was that was awesome.
• 6:11
  SPEAKER_00: So um, so yeah, was really was really excited.
• 6:14
  SPEAKER_00: Uh I mean new new bits and pieces about Baker, but just kind of what they had planned uh in terms of kind of get getting athletics going here was uh very exciting as um at Davenport.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_00: Um I was one of the the first student athletes in the in the tracking cross-country program there.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_00: Um they started they were at AI when I was there, so I was one of the first athletes there.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_00: Um saw a lot of a lot of parallels to to Davenport to here.
• 6:46
  SPEAKER_00: Um and then at Lyon down in Arkansas, um, restarted the programs there.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_00: So um they had they kind of put the cross country programs on pause for like 10 years.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_00: So um some similarities there where you know no no athletes and just kind of uh get involved in the community and recruit and uh kind of build, yeah, build build the program from from nothing.
• 7:13
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, well, Baker College is going through a lot of brand switch ups and um kind of reinventing some of their logos.
• 7:24
  SPEAKER_01: And one of the really exciting things throughout this transition was adding athletics.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_01: Obviously, we we didn't have any on campus.
• 7:32
  SPEAKER_01: So the plan is to add cross-country basketball and soccer, and then um you know go from there and see how things are going.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_01: Um but Baker is really focused on their student first philosophy that's ingrained in any department that you meet with or you know, any program director.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_01: Um, that's the focus of the college.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_01: So, with that in mind, how do you think that aligns with your coaching or recruiting style when you know that Baker is a student first philosophy?
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's always about the the student, the student athlete, um, especially like uh college runners, you know, that this you're you're a student first and um you're that then you're an athlete.
• 8:13
  SPEAKER_00: So um yeah, there's some really, really good academic programs here, and we're we're gonna definitely lean into that.
• 8:19
  SPEAKER_00: And and I mean there's a lot of things to um promote here on camp that Baker has to offer and definitely excited to find find student athletes that are interested in that.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_00: I think um yeah, uh no talked to a to a girl that that visited the Mesquegon campus and um you know there was no there was no athletics over there or at Baker at all.
• 8:45
  SPEAKER_00: And like now that we we have athletics, it's kind of sparked an interest.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm excited to kind of hit the ground running and uh yeah, you know, just trying to provide a good experience, help people help stu uh student athletes get better and turn running as well as bettering themselves to uh start their careers.
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_00: So um that just yeah, just being a part of the the community here in Oaso and part of the community as a whole in the the Baker network, uh trying to like, yeah, like I'm gonna support our student athletes, but it's also connecting them with the different resources that um that we have to offer and um that they need uh throughout their college career.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
• 9:29
  SPEAKER_01: Yep, it's a a whole student idea, not just, you know, oh you're just an athlete.
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, everything plays a role in their success.
• 9:37
  SPEAKER_01: And yeah, student, student first means all the things they need to be successful.
• 9:42
  SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_01: Well, the associate VP of Athletics, Heather Bateman, you mentioned her, um, she highlighted your track record of building programs from the ground up in the press release announcing that you were hired as the coach.
• 9:54
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you mentioned Arkansas most recently, where your staff was actually named USDAA Men's Cross Country Coaching Staff of the Year, which is a very high honor.
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_01: So, what do you think are the unique challenges and opportunities that you will have recruiting and then establishing this culture of a program that is in its very foundational stages?
• 10:15
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, what do you think are some of the most important elements that you will have to focus on as you're starting this program?
• 10:22
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I think we just need to see what works for Baker.
• 10:26
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I've been at some different uh different schools, but I know put I don't know, putting Baker first, so trying to uphold the the mission and values that we have in place.
• 10:36
  SPEAKER_00: And um, I mean, just trying to get on people's radar.
• 10:39
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I was talking to a family that they were like, hey, uh we you know we you weren't on our radar.
• 10:44
  SPEAKER_00: It's like, well, yeah, no, don't don't apologize.
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_00: Like, I just got here last month and we just announced it a couple weeks ago.
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah, we we gotta get on people's radar.
• 10:56
  SPEAKER_00: And um, and yeah, it's been that that part's been fun um to to get the word out.
• 11:02
  SPEAKER_00: And um, you know, people are excited, been able to to I mean there even a lot there's uh there was an alum in the Lansing area.
• 11:12
  SPEAKER_00: He um he graduated um a while back and like he has kids that that run and he has some businesses, so was able to connect with him.
• 11:22
  SPEAKER_00: So there is a lot of excitement amongst the uh staff here at Baker than um just uh the Wasso community that are excited, so just uh yeah, ready to kind of get things going here for sure.
• 11:38
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I I can agree there is a lot of excitement.
• 11:40
  SPEAKER_01: I'm one of those people that's very excited about the fact that we have runners on campus now.
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_01: So well, as you're starting the recruiting process, I mean the I think the first official season is going to be next fall, 2027.
• 11:53
  SPEAKER_01: Is that correct?
• 11:54
  SPEAKER_00: Uh yeah.
• 11:56
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, um, I mean that's that's kind of the the the goal.
• 12:01
  SPEAKER_00: Um, yeah, since that that'd be really the first recruiting class, but but uh after these orientations, though there there are quite a few kids that ran in high school that are coming here.
• 12:13
  SPEAKER_00: So um, you know, we have some interest already and you know trying to you know get get some things going in the fall to kind of spring towards the future too.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_00: So um, so yeah.
• 12:26
  SPEAKER_01: Well, what key traits would you say are the most important to you as a coach when you are looking for a student athlete who will become one of the first members of this program?
• 12:37
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, um just like trying to find people that it's a good academic fit.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_00: So um, you know, talking with them and their families, I think location, you know, it um how far away from home do you want to be?
• 12:51
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, we have dorms on campus, but um at some of my last schools, we've had kids from all over the the country.
• 12:59
  SPEAKER_00: So it's just trying to and they get homesick and things like that.
• 13:03
  SPEAKER_00: So it's okay to have those conversations on location.
• 13:07
  SPEAKER_00: Um and just try yeah, people that want to be a part of something like that, uh giving people opportunities where um they may not have had opportunities uh um in other years or uh at other institutions.
• 13:20
  SPEAKER_00: So um just trying to to you know put into development first in the the whole student athlete and um yeah, just trying to engage people's interest and um just trying to get to know people.
• 13:34
  SPEAKER_00: You can kind of uh no, I always like to ask what people's hobbies are, and that might be a weird question to ask, but uh I want to know what people do in their free time.
• 13:42
  SPEAKER_00: Like what are they what do they do?
• 13:43
  SPEAKER_00: Who what what kind of structure do they have?
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_00: And um that can kind of give me a decent idea on okay, when they're here and they don't have their parents, like what are they how are they gonna use their their free time uh away from the classroom, away from practice?
• 14:02
  SPEAKER_01: All good questions.
• 14:04
  SPEAKER_01: Well, in 2022, you were named the American Midwest Conference Coach of Character.
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_01: So, in a highly competitive sport like distance running, which oftentimes the emphasis is on the mileage and the preparation physically, how do you actively coach an athlete's character or their accountability when that's something that definitely plays a role in their performance but doesn't always have you know the main focus?
• 14:32
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I mean it's it's uh um you know, you're trying to I mean the kids kind of see how you act.
• 14:39
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, like modeling after like my behaviors and that the the respect, being on time, treating people right.
• 14:47
  SPEAKER_00: So um, like back back during that time, like um I ta I like talked to the kids about like the shopping cart theory where um where it's kind of like how how do you act when no one's watching?
• 15:01
  SPEAKER_00: Like, no, you're not breaking a law by not returning the uh shopping cart to the corral, but like um like it's it's doing the things that people don't watch, like how do you act in public and um and yeah, the shopping cart theory was kind of a big one.
• 15:19
  SPEAKER_00: People like the team really liked that line of thinking and um just doing the little things that um like yeah, it's not not a law, but yeah, do doing doing those little things.
• 15:32
  SPEAKER_00: So um yeah, character definitely comes first, you know, and and when people are out of line, it's trying to find the the the right ways to reach people to like hey, like um like that there's a different there's a better, different way to to act in public.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_00: You know, you're just you're representing a lot of different people uh programs and um when you're when you're not doing what you need to be doing.
• 16:02
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, agreed.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_01: Setting an example for where you come from.
• 16:05
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I love that you mentioned the shopping cart because that is one of my biggest pet peeves is seeing people who just meh put it wherever and then they're everywhere.
• 16:16
  SPEAKER_01: Um, although I will say I do give a free pass to um women or dads with kids, little kids, that can be difficult.
• 16:24
  SPEAKER_01: People with you know, an ability to um get in their car in and out by themselves, maybe they're wheelchair bound or you know have a disability, or an older person that needs a little help, totally understand.
• 16:36
  SPEAKER_01: But yeah, you know, yeah, anybody else who can walk the cart back 50 feet, come on, you can do it.
• 16:42
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, yeah, yeah.
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_00: And that that was kind of yeah, the audience that I was kind of the college kids like, hey, you can you can put away a you can put away a cart, you know, that's not that's not hard.
• 16:52
  SPEAKER_01: If you can run a cross-country race, you can you can put back your coachy cart for sure.
• 16:57
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah.
• 16:58
  SPEAKER_01: Uh let's talk about your training philosophy.
• 17:01
  SPEAKER_01: So, how would you describe yourself as a coach?
• 17:04
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, are you more like a high mileage guy or do you lean more towards aerobic capacity with some speed and strength?
• 17:11
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, is it a good balance of both?
• 17:13
  SPEAKER_01: Everybody kind of has their own preference as far as how they build their program.
• 17:17
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm curious how you would describe yourself.
• 17:19
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so I would say it's a good balance between it all, but I mean, it ultimately kind of comes down to the student athlete.
• 17:27
  SPEAKER_00: Um, like, yeah, there are um like race demands that we need to prepare for, but um like just like teaching, you know, like there's a lot of ways or cooking or anything like that.
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_00: Like, there's a lot of ways to bake a cake, cook it cook an egg, things like that.
• 17:45
  SPEAKER_00: So it's really trying to find out what makes each individual athlete tick and what works for them, and uh yeah, building the team aspect around that.
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_00: Um and yeah, preparing that taking them where they're at and building them up from there, whether it's uh what whether they did like twenty five miles in high school per week.
• 18:06
  SPEAKER_00: It's um just taking them where they're at and uh meeting their needs, but also pushing them to find those those pushing past those limits that they never thought would have thought of.
• 18:21
  SPEAKER_01: Well, your previous teams also were consistently earning all academic team honors along with any athletic achievements that they garnered.
• 18:29
  SPEAKER_01: So, how do you help your athletes balance that extreme physical demand of running long distances with also the extreme academic load of classes and studying and all the things that are very time consuming?
• 18:45
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, um, yeah, it's just yeah, it's trying to find that balance, you know, like when it's midterm time, like you know, you're kind of looking at like, all right, meh, we should probably back off a little bit.
• 18:56
  SPEAKER_00: Uh that academic load is a little bit higher.
• 19:00
  SPEAKER_00: So uh just kind of just kind of trying to read the room uh a little bit and um and yeah, just kind of talking about time management.
• 19:10
  SPEAKER_00: I mean uh at at my last school we've had a sports psychologist come in and and meet with the team and kind of talk about those different things.
• 19:18
  SPEAKER_00: So it's not just me hammering home those points every single day.
• 19:22
  SPEAKER_00: It's uh kind of an outside perspective and um you know, kind of like what we talked about, it's just like kind of connecting them to the different resources on campus, whether it's study tables or tutoring, things like that, when they're you know freaking out about academics, it's yeah, trying to make sure that they're getting the help that they need and connecting them to people that they would not have thought of.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_01: Well, as obviously mentioned previously, this is an NAIA podcast where we cover, you know, the things that relate to the sport in the NAI division.
• 20:00
  SPEAKER_01: And if you have been following this particular segment of sports for any length of time, you will know that improvement within cross-country and track and field in the NAIA has been exponential over the last few years.
• 20:14
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I was an athlete in the NAIA from 1997 to 2001, and the times that I ran to be all American are now barely qualifying times to get to the national meet.
• 20:26
  SPEAKER_01: So um, you know, it's not what it once was.
• 20:28
  SPEAKER_01: It's very competitive.
• 20:29
  SPEAKER_01: I'd say it's comparable to NCA D2.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_01: There are definitely athletes within the NAI who could compete at the D1 level if they chose.
• 20:37
  SPEAKER_01: And um, you know, we just see from year to year it gets faster and faster.
• 20:42
  SPEAKER_01: I think the um unofficial term is trackflation.
• 20:45
  SPEAKER_01: So, what do you know about the NAI that makes you excited to compete within this specific division?
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, um, I think yeah, I mean, there's a lot of good things that uh the the NAI covers, the like the five core values and um um ran ran at when Davenport was NAI and then uh those first few years that line um they were an NAIA school.
• 21:14
  SPEAKER_00: So um yeah, I mean it it's it's great to to uh be back in the you know we're in the NAIA pathways program, so um that's all that's kind of what we're kind of gearing towards.
• 21:27
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah, it it's gonna be uh kind of a fun journey, but I always kind of tell I always kind of tell our kids like, hey, it's it's not so much uh no, don't find a division, find find a school, you know, find find that place that fits you.
• 21:43
  SPEAKER_00: And like that's the beauty about cross country is we can go to D1, D2, D3, and AIA meets.
• 21:49
  SPEAKER_00: And um, you know, those those lines kind of do get blurred at this level.
• 21:53
  SPEAKER_00: It's not like football or basketball, like exhibition games, things like that.
• 21:58
  SPEAKER_00: You know, it's like people really can.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_00: Um can't like those the those NAI athletes, D3 athletes that they can go toe-to-toe against those D1, D2 athletes.
• 22:09
  SPEAKER_00: So that's the like that's the cool part about uh cross country and track for sure.
• 22:15
  SPEAKER_01: Well, is there any hope that in the future you will also institute a track program, or is that kind of a few years down the road and we'll see how things go?
• 22:25
  SPEAKER_00: A lot of it kind of comes down to facilities.
• 22:28
  SPEAKER_00: I think that's that that's uh some of the stuff that we're we're trying to figure out.
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_00: And um so uh at at this time, like since we don't have facilities, we don't want to offer something that we don't have don't have, but yeah, it might be something down the line.
• 22:47
  SPEAKER_01: Well, you have collegiate coaching steps at several different colleges within different divisions.
• 22:52
  SPEAKER_01: Um so looking back at those experiences and how each one was unique to the school, what is a lesson that you feel you've learned about student athletes that is common across all campuses or common across all development of an athlete that you plan to carry with you into your coaching at Baker?
• 23:13
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I mean it it it comes down to the student first, you know, just helping them like you know, providing uh environment and experience that can like can launch them into their careers and uh hopefully uh continue running postgraduately, whether that's just recreationally, or you know, maybe they they do they do some uh they become a money shark and and hop in some some races that can make a little bit of money, but um but yeah, it's just trying to uh yeah create that environment, uh create that fun and excitement that um because uh that that kind of day-to-day grind of running.
• 23:58
  SPEAKER_01: Well, as you mentioned, you were one of the first runners at Davenport, and being part of a program that was building from the ground up and having been in those exact same student athlete shoes yourself.
• 24:10
  SPEAKER_01: How do you feel that your unique perspective will shape how your first runners come in and you relate to them?
• 24:18
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I mean, yeah, perspective, you know, uh just trying to um like just trying to figure out figure out what works and for um and yeah, just trying to help k the team get better, the kids get better, and um just yeah, and that's the fun part is you can develop a culture, develop um expectations within within the group, and um and you don't have to look back at like at the past and um in that so if if one guy breaks a school sets the school record then the next week they they another guy breaks and it'll create a competitive environment.
• 25:02
  SPEAKER_01: Well, let's pretend we could look ahead in the future and you're done with your first year at Baker competitively, so you had your first season under your belt, and you were looking back, and I know it's it's hard to pinpoint every element that would contribute to success, but if you could say, hey, it's been a year, I feel like it was successful, successful year one, what would that look like for you and the program both on and off the course?
• 25:29
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I think uh I mean, just going, I mean, I know it sounds very simple, but just going to meets uh and completing them like that's making history in itself, and then uh just kind of creating that uh competitive environment where um like individually get better, uh as a team we get better.
• 25:50
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and then you know, recruiting, you know, that's gonna be the lifeblood where um getting kids on campus, uh kind of developing the team through recruiting and uh just kind of creating that culture year after year, kind of shaping it uh um like as we kind of on the fly.
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_01: Well, it's gonna be interesting to see what happens.
• 26:14
  SPEAKER_01: I love the fact that you get to start from scratch, right?
• 26:19
  SPEAKER_01: And kind of build it how you want it to be, and and the kids get to be a part of that.
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_01: So let's get to know you and your personality a little more.
• 26:27
  SPEAKER_01: So these are some questions that I usually ask the runners who come on my podcast, but I thought it would be fun to see what your answers would be from the coach perspective, you know.
• 26:36
  SPEAKER_01: So, what is your favorite running spot in the state of Michigan?
• 26:41
  SPEAKER_01: If you could pick anywhere to run and it was in the mitten, where would you go?
• 26:45
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, I really like I really liked uh Mackinac Island.
• 26:49
  SPEAKER_00: Like that that was always fun to uh to run and bike around there.
• 26:54
  SPEAKER_00: So um I spent quite a few summers doing the the uh Mackinac Island Governor's Honor Guard.
• 27:02
  SPEAKER_00: So we'd always run up and down that hill uh before um before duty and stuff.
• 27:08
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah, I love Mackinac Island.
• 27:11
  SPEAKER_01: I think a lot of people run around the perimeter on the bike trail that kind of goes around the outside of the island.
• 27:17
  SPEAKER_01: But if you can get up into the trails on the inside roads, there's a lot of cool places to see.
• 27:22
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 27:22
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, definitely.
• 27:23
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, there's there's all sorts of trails and uh it it's a it's a really cool place.
• 27:29
  SPEAKER_00: It's been a while since I've been up there, but yeah, love doing stuff for Almacro Island.
• 27:34
  SPEAKER_01: That's a great place to run.
• 27:36
  SPEAKER_01: Good suggestion.
• 27:37
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, so what is the go-to pre-race meal that if a runner asked you, hey coach, what should I eat, you would suggest?
• 27:47
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I mean, uh yeah, but like pasta dinner, you know, I can't go can't really go wrong with that because it's a good good little team gathering kind of deal.
• 27:58
  SPEAKER_00: Um but yeah, uh yeah, pasta, bread, little breadstick, salad.
• 28:05
  SPEAKER_00: Uh-huh.
• 28:05
  SPEAKER_00: Can't really go wrong.
• 28:07
  SPEAKER_01: Are you an Olive Garden fan?
• 28:09
  SPEAKER_00: Uh uh, so it's been a while.
• 28:12
  SPEAKER_00: So it's been a while since I've been to an Olive Garden.
• 28:15
  SPEAKER_00: There isn't too many, wasn't too many where I was at.
• 28:19
  SPEAKER_00: But uh yeah, I mean Olive Garden is good.
• 28:23
  SPEAKER_00: Uh um yeah, any any pasta place, I mean, like even like Fizzoli's, you know, uh those places are always good.
• 28:33
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, our our coach, I ran for Spring Arbor University, and our coach always had us eat the night before at Olive Garden.
• 28:40
  SPEAKER_01: So that that was always my pre-race go-to.
• 28:44
  SPEAKER_01: Well, what if you could pick a music genre or a song, what would be your ultimate playlist to get you in the right frame of mind before either training or competition?
• 28:57
  SPEAKER_01: Some some athletes like calm and focused because they're already feeling very nervous or they already have enough adrenaline, whereas other athletes really like like you know, the songs that hype them up.
• 29:08
  SPEAKER_01: So what would you pick?
• 29:09
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, the hype up songs, you know, rock, hip-hop, things like that.
• 29:13
  SPEAKER_00: So pretty wide.
• 29:15
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, I I listen almost anything uh on a daily basis.
• 29:20
  SPEAKER_00: So um, but yeah, I think yeah, anything the yeah, those anything to kind of pump you up and uh like those think of that like 150, 160 beats per minute, just kinda um get gets the the blood flowing a little bit.
• 29:37
  SPEAKER_01: Okay.
• 29:38
  SPEAKER_01: Do you have hobbies or interests outside of running that you like to spend time doing when you're not coaching, you're not working, anything that interests you?
• 29:49
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I mean I mean it's still kind of work, but um like I did like I did the shot clock, got my last the basketball shot clock.
• 29:57
  SPEAKER_00: Um so that that was fun to to do.
• 30:01
  SPEAKER_00: Um to you know, you're still I mean I'm at the game any I'm at the gonna be watching the basketball game anyways, and they needed some help.
• 30:10
  SPEAKER_00: So um, so yeah, learned how to do that.
• 30:12
  SPEAKER_00: That was a fun experience.
• 30:14
  SPEAKER_00: Um I I like biking, though.
• 30:16
  SPEAKER_00: I live in East Lansing now, so um there's a lot of bike trails uh in East Lansing and Lansing, so uh biking and then yeah, just watching s watching sports and uh reading books.
• 30:31
  SPEAKER_01: Okay.
• 30:32
  SPEAKER_01: Are there any pro runners or other athletes?
• 30:36
  SPEAKER_01: They don't have to be a runner that you like to follow.
• 30:40
  SPEAKER_00: Um like yeah, I mean like I mean, I I'm a big like Detroit sports fan.
• 30:49
  SPEAKER_00: Um not I don't have any like pro runners I that I really follow.
• 30:54
  SPEAKER_00: I think just the typical let's run discussion boards and just kind of the the key stuff that's online, the the note the like and all that.
• 31:07
  SPEAKER_00: I know I follow the the headlines, but yeah, big Detroit sports fan and uh no really really excited to be closer to Detroit so I can get to some some games here in the future.
• 31:22
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, for sure.
• 31:23
  SPEAKER_01: Uh do you have a particular running venue, event, or race that you would love to attend in person and see?
• 31:32
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I'd love to go to Hayward Field uh or just like go to a it doesn't matter like where it's at, but would love to get to an Olympics just uh to see the track, but uh track events.
• 31:45
  SPEAKER_00: But yeah, I'd love to it doesn't matter what kind of event, but I've heard some really good things about Hayward Field and all the stuff on TV, I'd love to check that out.
• 31:55
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that's on my bucket list too, and that's a very popular answer among athletes and coaches alike.
• 32:01
  SPEAKER_01: I think it's kind of the the mecca of track that people would love to see.
• 32:06
  SPEAKER_01: Well, this is a final question for you.
• 32:09
  SPEAKER_01: If you could run with anyone, and they could be someone from the past in history that is no longer living, it could be anyone from the present.
• 32:19
  SPEAKER_01: Who would you pick to run with and where would you like to go for a run with them?
• 32:26
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I mean, like, I mean, there's always the cliche ones like Pre, you know, I that movie was always kind of interesting.
• 32:34
  SPEAKER_00: And uh, so I think that like yeah, running it around Eugene and uh Pre, I think that'd be fun.
• 32:44
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I think that's always uh but yeah, I mean I'm always open to kind of run it, uh running uh anywhere, anytime.
• 32:54
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I think uh everywhere I've been, you know, it's always been like a community, and that's like that's the cool part about like the about running is like you might be away, like might leave somewhere, but you can always connect with somebody and talk about those those times run it.
• 33:12
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, running is a very supportive and open and kind community.
• 33:16
  SPEAKER_01: I agree.
• 33:17
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, absolutely.
• 33:18
  unknown: Yeah.
• 33:18
  SPEAKER_01: Well, if an athlete wants to reach out and they want to get more information about being a part of the upcoming Baker College cross-country season and team, how would be or what would be the best way to get a hold of you or to contact you to get more information?
• 33:36
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, they can email me.
• 33:39
  SPEAKER_00: Uh my email is at R A U S 03 at baker.edu.
• 33:50
  SPEAKER_00: Or you can just call or text my cell.
• 33:53
  SPEAKER_00: My number's 616-634-3706.
• 33:58
  SPEAKER_00: And yeah, feel free to contact.
• 34:00
  SPEAKER_00: And uh, we'd love to love to see if we could be a fit for you or if there's any coaches out there that listen, we'd love to get in contact with you as well.
• 34:10
  SPEAKER_00: Too.
• 34:11
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, we will put the word out and keep spreading the news that there's a whole new program waiting to get going.
• 34:18
  SPEAKER_01: And hopefully athletes are as excited as you are, and I am.
• 34:22
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I'm excited.
• 34:24
  SPEAKER_01: So well, thank you so much for taking time out of your day to chat with me.
• 34:28
  SPEAKER_01: I can't wait to see what happens next.
• 34:30
  SPEAKER_01: And it's gonna be an exciting new chapter in Baker College's athletic history book.
• 34:35
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, thank you so much.
• 34:38
  SPEAKER_01: Thanks so much for tuning in to the Red Banner Race Report.
• 34:41
  SPEAKER_01: I can't wait to feature more cross-country and track and field athletes from the NAIA.
• 34:45
  SPEAKER_01: So stay tuned because just my video.
• 34:48
  SPEAKER_01: If you enjoyed today's podcast, please share, subscribe, and leave a review.
• 34:52
  SPEAKER_01: You can find the Red Banner Race Report podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and other major media players.
• 35:00
  SPEAKER_01: You can also ask for SmartSpeaker to join the podcast.
• 35:03
  SPEAKER_01: If you have an idea for a great topic or guest you'd like to hear about, feel free to contact me through the show notes or reach out on Instagram.