The Run Around Iowa

Joe opens the show by talking about his legacy at Wartburg, which included 11 American Rivers Conference titles, with eight coming in track and field. Joe also chats about his move to Portland in September, when he will take a tax position with Deloitte and will be running for the BTC Elite team. He is busy now studying for the CPA exam. Joe talks about unfinished running goals, which includes bre...

Oksana talks about pursuing her master's degree in early childhood therapy at South Dakota State. She goes into detail the struggles she has felt being a Division I athlete and student while juggling a job. The former Des Moines Christian star tells of meeting her husband Bryce and how he balances her life. Oksana also tells of her life in a Russian orphanage and the changes she experienced coming...

Lance opens the podcast by talking about Sammy Rotich's runner-up finish in Duluth, Minn, on Saturday. He also shares a story of meeting Sammy for the first time. Other top performances at Grandma's came from former Iowa Hawkeye and Ottumwa prep Kevin Lewis, former Iowa State athlet Andrea Toppin of Clear Lake and also Jen Van Otterloo of Sioux Center. The report also features several former Wartb...

Lance opens the podcast by chatting about the outstanding performance by Iow State junior Jason Gomez in the 800 at NCAAs in Eugene. He also talks about Drake's Isaac Basten going for broke in the 1,500 final and running a gutsy race. The focus then turns to last weekend's inaugural Ironman Des Moines event. Lance gives his thoughts on the course, competition and brutal heat, with comments from me...

Matt comes on the show to talk about his prospects for a win at Sunday's Ironman Des Moines, which serves as the North American Championship. The Buena Vista University graduate is the favorite to win in his return to racing in Iowa and will wear the No. 1 bib Sunday. Matt chats about the confidence he gained from a runner-up finish at the Ironman 70.3 North American Championships in Chattanooga....

Carson comes on the show to kick off a big week of coverage for the Ironman Des Moines event on Sunday. Carson, a Cedar Rapids Washington and Luther College grad, is in the men's pro field in Sunday's race. He is coming off a victory in Sunday's Pigman Triathlon in Palo that took place after this interview. Carson talks about his journey that began when he was a swimmer at Washington and Luther to...

Lance opens the podcast by giving his top 10 performances, either individually or by a team, from the past two weeks of NJCAA, NCAA and NAIA nationals, as well as NCAA Division I prelims. Two professional athletes also make his list. Former Iowa State All-Big 12 runner Abby Caldwell then comes on the program to give an update on Cailie Logue and to talk about the Cyclone distance runners who are h...

John Taylor III lives by the adage, "Go for your dreams." John has overcome physical challenges over the years to become the first Iowa man to join the Boston Marathon Quarter Century Club. This club is for runners who have qualified for and finished 25 consecutive Boston Marathons. John is also only the second Iowan to join this prestigious list. He talks about the close calls that nearly ended t...

Caroline talks about returning to Drake University's Blue Oval last weekend to break Northwest's school record in the 5,000 meters by about a second. She also chats about her marriage at age 19 to former Knoxville runner and current Northwest assistant coach Wick Cunningham. She tells the story of when she and Wick began their relationship and how their personalities mesh very well. Caroline also...

Lance opens the podcast by giving his favorite distance running moments from the recently concluded 112th Drake Relays. He also talks about an Iowa native's induction into the Relays Hall of Fame last week and a Northern Iowa transfer pickup. Abby Caldwell comes on to give her view of Iowa State's performance at the Relays and (kind of) answers the question of where has Cailie Logue gone to. The s...

Ben and Linda of Pink Gorilla Events out of Omaha and Lincoln, Nebraska come on the show to chat about the return of the popular relay on May 14 after a two-year hiatus. Ben talks about his creative side that led to the formation of the company and the relay in Nebraska in 2008. He also details the origins behind the Pink Gorilla name. Ben talks about the pandemic's effect on the company when only...

The podcast opens with news on seven-time Iowa State All-American Wesley Kiptoo turning pro and joining the NAZ Elite team in Flagstaff, Arizona. Kiptoo started his pro career with a third-place finish in the 5,000 at Mount Sac Relays on Friday. That same night, former Dowling Catholic star Karissa Schweizer was a winner in a women's elite 5,000 in her first race since having Achilles surgery in O...

Annie (Andrea) talks about juggling a full-time job, pursuing a master's degree in business administration and running the indoor track and field season at Mount Mercy this winter. Annie describes her final races as Mustang, when she finished national runner-up in the 1,000 meters and mile at Brookings, S.D., a month ago. Annie talks about choosing Mount Mercy after a stellar career at Marion High...

Lance talks about a recent podcast with an NCJAA championship coach. Then it is on to the news and additions to the Running Wild Elite and Runablaze Iowa teams. Former Iowa State great Abby Caldwell then comes on to chat about the Cyclones' top performances at the Raleigh Relays and also looks back at indoor nationals, including ISU's strong effort in the distance medley. Abby also tackles the que...

Doug talks about the Reivers' dominant performance earlier this month en route to winning back-to-back NJCAA women's indoor team championships. He details about joy he feels coaching these athletes and also his saddest times. Doug goes into his recruiting philosophy, which has been successful in starting a pipeline to Kenya for distance runners. He also talks about how track and field first attrac...

The highlight performance of the week came from senior Kassie Parker and the Loras College women. The Duhawks captured their first indoor national title by outscoring Wisconsin-La Crosse, 59-45. Parker, from Guttenberg, helped seal the title by winning the 3,000 title, a day after capturing the 5,000 crown. Teammate Allysa Pfadenhauer helped the cause by winning the 400 title and anchoring the 4x4...

Betsy talks about the joy she has with new 2 1/2-month-old son Kalya and deciding to have a child during a rough 2020 when she wasn't racing because of the coronavirus pandemic. Betsy describes the journey toward becoming an America citizen and her relationship with Kalya's father, who was the family's doctor in Kenya. Betsy, who is 33 years old, goes into detail about dropping out before the Chic...

The podcast starts with the Iowa Western women's dominant victory at NJCAA national in Pittsburg, Kan., on Friday and Saturday. Freshman Hilda Chebet paced the Reivers with three national titles and a runner-up in the 1,000. The Iowa Western men were third in the nation and paced by Nicholas Kiprotich's runner-up finish in the 5,000. Iowa Central placed fifth and sixth in the team races and had tw...

The preview of action from Pittsburg State focuses on the battle between the No. 1-ranked and defending champion Iowa Western and New Mexico JC. Lance believes the 1-2 punch of Hilda Chebet and Mercy Biwott and depth all across the board could be too much for New Mexico to overcome. On the men's side, No. 2 Iowa Western, No. 4 Indian Hills and No. 5 Iowa Central all have hopes for the team title....

Lance breaks down the chances for the Grand View men, ranked No. 3 nationally, and No. 6 Dordt. He says both teams will have to excel on relays and middle distance events to have a chance to knock off No. 1 Indiana Tech and No. 2 Oklahoma City. He also looks at the Dordt women, who enter nationals ranked eighth nationally. Like the men, the Defenders will be powered by their middle distance runner...

Lance details the Iowa men's repeat Big Ten indoor championship in Ohio, which included Jeboah McIver's 600 title. He also talks about another Big Ten indoor title for Minnesota and Abby Kohut-Jackson. The Big 12 meet 8n Ames is highlighted by the high points award by Iowa State senior Cailie Logue. Abby Caldwell comeson the show to chat about where the Cyclone program goes forward from here. The...

Mallory talks about breaking one of Iowa's oldest records - Bethany Praska's 800 indoor record from 2011 - at Arkansas two weeks ago. She also chats about growing up in an athletic family with sisters who ran track and field and her father, Wade, the Assumption football coach. She discusses running on one of the great track and field high school dynasties. She never lost a state track meet in four...

Lance selects his 12 best performances in distance running from last weekend. You can be sure Iowa State's Wesley Kiptoo makes the list after breaking his school record in the 3,000 meters at Arkansas by nearly 5 seconds. And also Drake's Isaac Basten after retaking the school record with a win anf meet record in the mile at Arkansas. But who else? A hint: Iowa Western, Grand View and Dordt Colleg...

Reece comes on to talk about his fast rise to stardom his freshman season of high school, when he finished fifth at state cross country and helped G-H-V to a state title with his brother, Chase. The Northwest Missouri State sophomore describes the disappointment of finishing runner-up at Iowa state meets five times before breaking through as a senior. Reece details his reasons for leaving the Univ...

Lance changes things up for this edition by focusing on the 14 efforts he loved most over the Valentine's Day weekend. Many of the top performances came at the Iowa State Classic, but Lance taps heavily into the NCAA Division III and NAIA ranks for some entries as well. Did Grand View's 4x8 relay in Michigan make the cut? How about Mallory King, after taking down an 11-year record for Iowa at a me...