In this episode we bring you an interview with Bob Larsen -pioneering running coach, retired Head of Track and Field at UCLA, Meb Keflezighi’s coach, and co-founder of the Mammoth Track Club.

Plus Angie will tell you about a GPS watch with a super long battery life.

Interview with Coach Bob Larsen

In our last episode author Matthew Futterman told us about the “guru who unlocked the secrets of speed”. Well, we are thrilled to have an opportunity to speak with that the guru himself!

Coach Larsen was born in 1939, he’s 80 years old at the time of this recording and still runs everyday! He coached at Grossmont College and Monte Vista College where his teams won conference titles and national championships. He then became the Head Track and Field Coach at UCLA where he led athletes to a total of 20 NCAA titles.

After he retired from UCLA he and coach Joe Vigil founded the Mammoth Track Club in order to made US marathoners competitive again on at the international level. On the team was Meb Keflezighi -the only man who has won the New York City Marathon, The Boston Marathon, and an Olympic medal, and Deana Kastor -holds the fastest marathon time (2:19:36) for a female athlete in the U.S. and winner of the Chicago Marathon, the London Marathon, and a bronze medal in the 2004 Olympic games.

In 2019 he was given the Legend Coach Award by USATF -the National Governing Body for track and field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States.See the movie City Slickers Can’t Stay With Me: The Coach Bob Larsen Story. You can currently get it on Amazon Prime and iTunes.Also check out the book Running the Edge -A Band of Misfits and the Guru Who Unlocked the Secrets of Speed by Matthew Futterman. You can hear our interview with the author here.

Also Mentioned in This Episode

The Chirp Wheel+ is a back-pain relief device that targets muscles around your spine. Use code MTA for 15% off.

The Runner’s Toolbox -8 inexpensive items to keep at home to prevent and self-treat running injuries.

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