The Just Athletics Podcast

Oh boy, do we have a good episode for you this week on The Just Athletics podcast. Our guest, Don Kardong, has his fingerprints all over the American distance running scene the last 50 years. Don had a remarkable career at Stanford University, where he held school records in the 2 mile, 3 mile, and the 6 mile, graduating in 1971. Some of the big achievements of Don's running career after Stanford include finishing fourth place the 1976 Olympics in the marathon, just three seconds from the bronze medal, in a sensational 2:11:16, running 12:57.6 in the three-mile race behind these guys named Prefontaine and Shorter at Hayward Field in 1974, and winning both the 1976 Peachtree Road Race in Atlanta and the 1978 Honolulu Marathon in Hawaii. Don's impact goes far beyond his athletic achievements. He has been a prominent journalist in the sport of running since the early 1980s, he served as a contributing editor at Running magazine from 1980 to 1983, and a contributing editor (1983–1985) and senior writer (1985–1987) for The Runner magazine as well. Since 1987, he has been a contributing writer for Runner's World magazine also. He has also been one of the top road race directors in the country and served in a leadership role as the President of the Road Runners Club of America from 1996-2000. He founded one of the best road races in the country in 1977 when he started the Bloomsday Run in Spokane, WA, and has served as the race director at times and been heavily involved in that amazing event. This man also has a bridge named after him and an ice cream flavor. Who else can say that?We can't thank Don enough, this was an amazing episode, we hope you enjoy it as much as we did. Thanks Don! 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.

Who is on your Mt. Rushmore in terms of distance runners in the history of the United States? Chris, Dave, and Josh all give you their Mt. Rushmore on the men's side, the women's side, and overall in terms of American distance running. These guys bring it like Stephen A. Smith  on ESPN. Disagree with them? Get on the social media and let us know. We hope you enjoy another episode of The Just Athletics podcast. 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.

We are fortunate to have running royalty as this week's guest of The Just Athletics podcast. A true hero in Joan Benoit Samuelson. Joan, of course, is the 1984 Olympic Champion in the marathon, the first time the distance was ever contested for women at the Olympic Games. She was also a two-time winner of the Boston Marathon and a winner of the Chicago Marathon in 1985 in an American Record time of 2:21:21, which stood for 18 years. Certainly one of the greatest runners of all-time and an amazing talent, another remarkable aspect of Joan's runner career is her longevity and ability to continue to run fast. She has continued to run very fast into the 21st century, most notably running 2:49:08 at the 2008 Olympic Trials at the age of 50. Joan has also made it a big goal to give back in many ways to the sport. She founded the Beach to Beacon 10k road race in 1998, which has become one of the premier road races in the United States. She has authored two books, "Running Tide" and "Running for Women".  She continues to inspire generation after generation of runners, women and men alike. This is an amazing pod and Joan is certainly an amazing person on a lot of levels. Thanks so much Joan!!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.

On a very special episode of The Just Athletics podcast we bring on Amy Flora to dive into her background as a five-time Oregon State Champion and state record-holder at the High School level for Myrtle Point in Coos County or legendary coach Pat Towne, her time at the University of Washington as a student-athlete, and her time as a middle school and high school coach. She also happens to be the better half or really the better 3/4 of host Chris Johnson, which means she's a saint in many ways. Amy is a successful and dynamic administrator, she currently is the Principal at Lincoln School of Early Learning in Coquille, OR. Amy has a unique background and a lot of wisdom to share. You'll recognize her voice quickly, as she is the voice of the JA podcast. Thank you Amy for your appearance and all you do to keep Chris Johnson's life together. 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.

The Men's 800m final at the 2008 Olympic Trials in Eugene, OR was nothing short of epic and we have an epic podcast to reflect on that amazing race for our millions of listeners. A race that people often cite as one of their favorite races of all-time. Christian Smith and Andrew Wheating join us to look back on the race, you know two of the guys who made the team and realized their dreams that day. Christian Smith is a native of Kansas decided to stay in state and attend Kansas State, where he was an NCAA Champion in the mile, four-time All-American, and NCAA record holder in the indoor 1000m. Christian ran professionally for the Oregon Track Club Elite team in Eugene directly after college, where he was part of the Oregon sweep in the race we discuss to become a 2008 Olympian in the 800m. He has a personal best of 1:44.86 in that event. He now lives back in Kansas where is a restaurant entrepreneur, including a couple Fat Shacks, and family man with three young children who keep him busy. Andrew Wheating's story we partially broke down in episode 53 with Jeff Johnson. An atmospheric breaking talent, Andy went from playing high school soccer to trying out cross country to a recruit joining the University of Oregon track & field team to earning a spot on an Olympic team in just over two years. An insane story. Besides making this Olympic team in 2008, Andy went on to become a multiple-time NCAA Champion and All-American for the Ducks. He again made the Olympic team in 2012, this time in the 1500m.  He has personal bests of 1:44.56 in the 800m and 3:30.90 in the 1500m. Andy is now playing a major role for the up and coming ON Running shoe company which is signing and supporting professional athletes across the U.S. and the world. We had an unbelievable time with Christian and Andy reflecting and breaking down this very big moment in both of their lives. Check out the race before and after the pod here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OeIY_M7YJxkThank you Christian and Andy! One of the most fun and entertaining episodes we have ever recorded. We hope you enjoy the show! Subscribe to the show on iTunes or Stitcher or Spotify or really where ever you get your podcast to get future episodes and please follow us on Twitter @just_athletics and like us on the Facebook or our Instagram page.

We are rocking 2021 so far with amazing guests. This week we bring on one of the best coaches in the country in Scott Christensen of Stillwater High School in Minnesota. Scott is a graduate of Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota, where he majored inBiology for for his undergrad and went on to study Physiology and earn his masters degree at the University of Nebraska. Scott wears many hats in the running world. As a coach at Stillwater HS in Minnesota his teams have won with 10 State team titles in track & field and cross country and have had many individual champs, including seven in the “almost a mile” race, the 1600m. His 1997 team was ranked number one in the Harrier's national rankings. He has had three of his athletes go on to become sub-four minute milers.  He is also very involved in coaches education as one of the foremost instructors for USATF, USTFCCCA, and the IAAF. Scott has also served at the international level as a coach for TEAM USA for the 2003 Junior World Cross Country Champions and for the 2008 Senior team at the World Cross Country Championships. To continue stacking on to the many achievements, he is also a published author having written numerous numerous articles , online training courses, and  two books. He is one of the most sought out clinicians in the sports of cross country and track & field. Scott as an athlete was the captain of both his high school and college teams and has a lifetime PR of 2:30:24 in the marathon. We will have to have Scott back, as we just barely scratched the knowledge that this amazing coach has. Thanks so much Scott! Subscribe to the show on iTunes or Stitcher or Spotify to get future episodes and please follow us on Twitter @just_athletics and like us on the Facebook or our Instagram page.

We have an all-timer for our millions of listeners. We bring on an incredibly influential and successful personality in our great sport. Jeff Johnson is famously known as Nike’s first employee and is a big player in the company’s rise to the giant brand it is today. He went to Los Altos HS in California … Continue reading Episode 53 – Jeff Johnson + Surprise Guest

We decided to kick off our 2021 campaign with something a little different. We bring on two guests who were involved in the 1998 dueling biopics about Steve Prefontaine to discuss and compare the two films. Jeff Atkinson joins us. Jeff both had a part, a speaking line no less, in the movie “Without Limits” … Continue reading Episode 52 – “Prefontaine”/”Without Limits” Movie Breakdown

After last week’s glitch in the Matrix, Chris and Dave return for one of the best shows ever with an incredible guest. Want to be inspired? Check out this episode with American Record Holder Courtney Frerichs. We delve into Courtney’s incredible rise from being a 2:24 800m runner in high school to one of the … Continue reading Episode 51 – Courtney Frerichs

We jump to another dimension with two mystery guests and dive into their backgrounds as athletes and coaches. We won’t ruin the surprise, so check out this long and fun episode. Subscribe to the show on iTunes or Stitcher or Spotify to get future episodes and please follow us on Twitter @just_athletics and like us … Continue reading Episode 50 – Multiverse Episode