We have some really fast runners at NRC. We also have some not so fast runners and some runners in between. But no matter what speed we go, what goals we set, no matter which races we choose and how fast we run them, NRC staff members support each other in the most amazing ways. And as you might expect, that support extends beyond the track or the road. As Steve says, “It’s the power of NRC.”
Nick Holmes is the first current NRC employee to qualify for the Olympic Trials, and he would be the first to tell you that he didn’t do it alone. Not only did he have coaches, family and friends supporting him, he had Steve timing his blistering 1-mile-repeats on the track and traveling to Jacksonville to be at the finish line when he ran his qualifying race. He had Yonny pacing him on the track. He had Kris pacing him and encouraging his training from the bike. He had calls, texts and emails from other staff members offering him encouragement and congratulations. His accomplishment is a win for all of us.
Almost every member of Team NRC has a similar story of help and encouragement from other staff. Each year, Midge makes a list of races one everyone’s schedule, and she lets the rest of the team know. On countless occasions, Midge has woken up extra early to be out on the course to offer her special brand of encouragement for staff members who are racing. Erin recalls how Midge, Steve, Marisa and Caroline cheered her on at a number of races, and she looks forward to Nick Hird’s help with some PRs this year. Dave has been helping Alyssa and Shannon reach their goals with training plans and bi-weekly tips. And, as Jordan recalls, it doesn’t matter if it’s not the a race of a lifetime, the support is there.
“I can remember when Nick, Yonny and I did the Spring Ahead 5k. We were about 1200 meters in, and I heard someone shout something funny at us. I looked over and it was Kris and Paul on their bikes. I thought it was really cool they rode out there to watch us race a small 5k,” Jordan said.
It’s always great to see a friendly face on the course, but it’s particularly welcome when the race is 140.6 miles. Kris said, when he competed in Ironman Florida in 2007, Maria and her husband Jim were “all over the course” cheering him on and taking pictures. He said their presence was especially helpful, because his kids were small at the time and couldn’t spend the day on the course.
NRC staff members regularly push each other out of their comfort zones and help them achieve bigger and faster things. Mary-Rose said she challenged herself last year by running the Ice Age 50k with Steve, Mary, and Mike.
“It was a blast. Even though we didn't complete the whole 50k, mainly because I just didn't have it in me to do a second loop of rollers, Mary and Mike stuck with me the whole way and encouraged me. They even massaged my calves at one point, and literally held my hands for a bit!” Mary-Rose said.
According to Steve, Mary had a 5K goal race for 2015 and asked him if he wanted to train with her, so they made a weekly track workout date during the summer months.
“We crushed our goals and had so much fun, too. I ran the best times I have run in over five years, and it carried over to my half marathon too,” Steve said.
Support doesn’t always come in the form or race day encouragement or training, it also comes in the form of participation. A group of women from the store competed in the local women’s triathlon last year in memory of Dawn’s mother. Dawn has since moved to Colorado, but “Moosie’s Mamas” stay in touch. Several staff members have also traveled to Wisconsin to run the Bear Trax race, in support of Jerry’s family and the Nancy Sellars Memorial Foundation. Still others raced in the PADS Run for Home to support Mike, who raises thousands for PADS each year doing ultras and his annual challenge “Mike Lifts 100 Tons.”
But in the end it’s the support for the person, the team member, the family member that is so important. Marisa recalls, after having a particularly disappointing race, that the staff didn’t care about her race, they cared about her.
“Good races or bad, first place or barely finishing, whatever our athletic endeavor may be, our staff are always our biggest fans. Never any judgments, just a gleam of confidence and a ‘go get 'em’ high five. Someone is always there for a pick-me-up, a pump-up fest, or a consoling hug. I've needed all of these this past year and I never had a question of where to get them,” Marisa said. “We are here for each other, no matter what.”
Mary-Rose echoed her sentiments in an appropriately poetic way.
“On this whole race of life, what would I do without friends I've made on the staff? I have gotten so much support, honesty, love, understanding and encouragement.”
That’s the Power of NRC.