Running; it is one of nature’s most
primitive sports.
It is about your body and mind working
as one. Succeeding as a runner takes dedication in the form of sweat, blood and tears and a renowned coach to push athletes to their potential.
For the Oregon Club running team that coach is Tom Heinonen, a former Oregon intercollegiate women’s track and field and cross country coach. Heinonen retired from his coaching position after the 2003 track season and agreed to coach the Club running team starting in the fall that same year.
Before Heinonen became Club coach, the running team included a grand total of
six members and no practice schedule or consistent workouts.
“Before Heinonen we were begging to enter a race, and now we race all the time,” said Meriel Hartling, one of the original running Club members. “It’s so great to know that there will always be people to run with at every practice.”
Heinonen said his initial goal for the running Club when he first arrived was “to give it focus and stability while also increasing the amount of runners participating.”
With an average of 30 runners showing up for routine runs and 20 coming to speed sessions each week, it’s safe to say the Club has reached Heinonen’s goal. As the Club grows, Heinonen makes a point to know the first and last name of every runner, bringing a team feel to a once individual sport.
A typical week includes steady runs for three days, alternating with three days of speed workouts, one of which is a race on a Saturday or Sunday.
Heinonen incorporates sprint, middle distance and long distance in the workouts. He adjusts workouts according to the team’s physical endurance, when the next race is and how the runners are performing on a given day.
Heinonen competed in the International Cross Country Championships in 1968, 1969 and 1970 prior to coaching at Oregon for
27 years. He is the only women’s coach in NCAA history to win multiple national titles in outdoor track and field and cross country.
After his team won three national championships, Heinonen was deemed NCAA coach of the year. He was also the Pacific-10 Conference Coach of the Year eight times.
According to Heinonen, the hardest part about the transition from the Division I program to the Club team was the budget restraints.
“My budget went from $750,000 to $600,” Heinonen said. “The Club team is a self-help organization. These runners compete because they really enjoy the sport, not because a scholarship is holding them accountable. There is no sense of entitlement in Club sports. All the athletes have to buy their own shoes and pay their own entry fees to compete.
“Club athletes are passionate about
their sport on a different level than an intercollegiate athlete. It is the pure reason Club sports flourish.”
Some runners have used the Club as a stepping stone to take their talent to a new level. One has become a professional runner on Team Eugene and two more will walk on to the intercollegiate team in the fall.
Intercollegiate athletes who no longer have eligibility or have chosen to stop competing at the Division I level join the Club to keep in touch with the sport and stay in running shape.
“We cater to all types of runners. It has been very encouraging to see so many people who want to run,” Heinonen said.
Tiffany Beechy, a graduate
student and one of the Club’s top
female runners, said the Club
running team is engineered for
running enthusiasts.
“The Club is for the people who truly love to run,” Beechy said.
“We are so lucky to have Club as an incentive to run every day and to feel a sense of team camaraderie. There is so much moral support from everyone. It makes me motivated to run.”
Heinonen agreed that the
Club environment keeps his job
interesting.
“This Club has given me one fun thing to look forward to every day,” Heinonen said. “I have met so many interesting people, and I continue to every week.”
“Club athletes live much more
interesting lives than intercollegiate athletes,” he said, chuckling.
He pointed to one of the Club members and added, “I mean, this guy even tap dances. Club athletes have way more personality.”
Heinonen’s athleticism, lifelong passion for running and personable nature has transformed the running Club into a dedicated, competitive team of athletes.