Front Line Racing Team Coach - Fred Vanhala
1/04/2007

There is a good chance that if you have been to a few road races over the past few years, you have spotted a Front Line Racing Team runner or two. They have runners of all types of abilities and ages that are not afraid to compete on the grass and track, in addition the roads. Behind all of these different runners, numbering well over 100, is one motivated coach - Fred Vanhala. Read on to find out how the FLRT master's team, coached by Fred, did at the US XC Championships in San Fran and also to find out more about Fred Vanhala.

RM:  Fred, congratulations on a successful trip to your masters team in San Fran (national team champs). What were the plans and focus for the team as they looked towards the US Club XC Championships? Was the trip mostly suppose to be a serious trip or was there a laid back attitude going in?

FV: This team was quite focused.  The guys were there to go for the title and knew it would not be given up easily.  It wasn’t – the competition was fierce and we needed a complete team effort to knock off Fleet Feet Boulder (Colorado) and Team Runners High (Southern California) as well as two dozen other solid teams.  Still, we enjoyed the experience and had a great time; before, during and after the race.  The whole weekend was quite memorable.

Individually, a week or two prior to the race, I talked to Tracy Lokken.  Tracy seldom races outside of the Upper Peninsula.  Though he’s a fairly confident runner, I felt it necessary to plant the seed that he could win the race.  (Sometimes if you don’t know you can win, you won’t win.)  Tracy immediately changed the subject; said that it’s all about having a good time and having fun.  I sensed right then that deep down he was focused to win and this was his way of deflecting the pressure.  No seed planting was necessary.

Though a quote later in the USATF press release states that this was only Tracy’s second cross country race in 17 years; I had to chuckle because he runs cross country everyday in the woods and trails around Marquette.  He runs one hundred miles per week of cross country.

RM: What are your thoughts on how the race played out in San Fran?

FV: I’m an analytical geek.  I had a very good sense of who the top competition was.   Fleet Feet Boulder (FFB) was the first team I told our guys to be wary of.  When the three time defending champion, Team Runners’ High (TRH) team finally posted their entries; I thought there might be trouble.  I knew TRH would  be strong – but the team they put together for San Francisco looked stronger on paper than the teams they’d entered the previous three years.  They were the winners of this competition those past three years.  But, you never quite know how things are going to play out, (who’d be fit, who’s got injuries, who will run well), until the race is run.  I was confident, the guys were confident; but we all knew they’d have to race well to win.

I had a chance to talk to Paul Aufdemberge waiting for our flight out of Detroit.  Paul’s raced a lot of the top runners over the years.  He expressed confidence that our guys could run with anybody.  I felt good departing Metro Airport.

Digging deep in my analysis; I didn’t think FFB’s fourth and fifth men were quite as quick as our guys or TRH’s.  I told our guys to focus on the red shirts of TRH and, if we beat them in a dual meet; we should take the competition. 

At about a mile and a half; our top three runners (Tracy Lokken, Mike Scannell, and Paul Aufdemberge) were all in front of TRH’s top man; and were all running near 15th place.  Pat Lencioni was not too far back.  We certainly were looking quite strong at that point; especially vs. TRH.  I was feeling good about our placing and chances.

However, these TRH guys are pros.  Their top two guys made strong moves over the next couple miles.  At the start of the last 4000 meter loop, Peter Magill took the overall lead and David Olds had moved in front of Aufdemberge and Lencioni.  Still, Lokken was running well and Scannell was in front of Olds.  At that point, in a dual meet vs. TRH, we had four of the top six runners.  But, TRH had six runners in front of our fifth man, Dave Watkins.  However, Watkins was looking strong.   

With a couple hundred yards to go, Tracy Lokken had taken a decisive lead and no one was going to catch him.  Magill as third overall and 2nd in the team competition.  Scannell was ahead of Olds, followed by Aufdemberge and a TRH guy.  I screamed at Lencioni that he needed the red shirt (TRH) about 15 yards in front of him.  He went after him and nailed him prior to the finish.  Dave Watkins had made a strong move on the last large lap and was now in front of the fifth and sixth runners of TRH.  At that point, I knew we had TRH.  But, was it enough to win?  I hadn’t focused on FFB – but Laurie and Kevin Decker said they looked very strong.  Luckily we had Tracy Lokken’s individual victory to celebrate for a while until the final results were posted; otherwise it would have been a much more excruciating wait

When Watkins told me he broke 35 minutes – I started feeling pretty good.  I didn’t think FFB could have five guys under 35:00.  Paul Aufdemberge is the US Masters Record Holder for 10000 meters on the track and was our 3rd man.  That was also the sign of a strong team.  Paul had been battling injuries and illness since the Detroit Free Press Marathon and was not as fit as he typically is.  Still, Paul at 50% is better than most runners at 100%.  Paul as #3 was a very positive sign.

I still wasn’t 100% sure until I finally sneaked a peak at the final results about a minute after they were taped to the board.  Bingo – there we were in 1st Place.  I didn’t look any deeper than who were the first (Front Line Racing Team), second (Fleet Feet Boulder with five guys under 35:06), and third place (Team Runners High) teams.  That was all I needed to know.

RM: How often were the masters team able to train together prior to the national championships and were you able to be present for any workouts or did most of your coaching come from the email/phone contact?

FV: Our team is quite unique.  We have runners from all over Michigan and, over the years, have used runners from eight other states as well.  I haven’t coached since the early 1980’s and it would be counter productive for our team for me to start doing so now. This team was composed of runners from all over the state, from Marquette (Tracy Lokken) to Portage (Dave Walch) to Port Huron (Mike Cudlip) , Lansing (Eric Stuber) , Ann Arbor (Pat Lencioni), Chelsea (Doug Ogden), Grand Blanc (Mike Scannell), and three metro Detroit guys (Paul Aufdemberge, Dave Peterson, Dave Watkins).  Peterson and Aufdemberge are regular training partners.  Dave Watkins worked out with Peterson quite frequently as well on the track and at Cass Benton Park.  There’s not much I could tell these veterans about training.  They’ve all been racers for a quarter century or so and know what they need to do individually to peak for a race.  They did what they had to do and I knew they’d be ready come race day.

RM: Other than the masters team, what other runners or distances do you coach for the Front Line Racing Team? What are some of your main theories on training and racing?

FV: Our team is competitive year round.  We compete in indoor and outdoor track as well as cross country, road races, marathon relays, and marathons.  In 2006 our runners ranged from age 11 to age 64.  Our focus is team racing, not individual racing – which is a somewhat unique approach in this sport.  Our goal is to win as many team competitions each year as possible; from Distance Medley Relays indoors to Team Marathons and the Great Lakes Relay.  We’re heavily loaded on marathoners, trying to find a fast post-collegiate 400 runner for our DMR teams is a much more difficult challenge.

For the fourth straight year we’ll be trying to qualify a men’s Distance Medley Relay team for the USATF Indoor Championship this winter in Boston.  Though we qualified in 2006 – airfare and expenses were too much for a couple of our runners; so we weren’t able to run the indoor nationals as we had in 2004 and 2005.  We don’t have a sponsor, so that makes it difficult to travel; especially for our young post-collegiate runners.   (We beat lots and lots of teams with sponsors – so anyone out there reading this, hint, hint.)

In 2006 we tied our team record by winning 13 different team competitions, including two divisions of the Chicago Marathon and the mixed division of the Great Lakes Relay.  We now have sixty team victories this decade.

My focus is not on theories of training or racing – I don’t think I can add anything to the sport in those areas.  (Though in racing – I love to see negative splits!) I relate more to Dave Dombrowski than I do to Jim Leyland.  My job is to get the horses in the Front Line stable, and then get them out of the stable to race in team events.  The better the horses, the more likely we are to get lucky on race day.

A key theory in keeping this team together is to treat all runners graciously.  Nobody is getting paid to run for Front Line.  They don’t even get free shoes, shirts, or entries out of the deal.  Runners owe the team nothing but a good effort for their teammates in the events they choose to run.  And, if they never run for Front Line again after that one race, well thanks for the hard effort in the race you ran.

Another key theory is to be organized.  I’m the equipment manager, the schedule planner, the race entry guy, the van driver, and often the travel coordinator.  I drove to and from the course at 4:30 in the morning in San Francisco in our team van – just to make sure I had the directions down pat.  I couldn’t afford a wrong turn at the wrong time when driving to the race several hours later.  Every little thing counts and I try to anticipate the problems before they occur.  I want the runners to just concentrate on racing and training – most of the aggravating details, leave up to me.

We’ve become so large in recent years – I cannot have a personal relationship with every runner on the team.   It is just impossible.  I love to go to races and see someone running in a Front Line singlet and have no clue who that is.  We had 140 runners compete for us this past year; and have had 300 runners run for us over the years.  Most are quite fast, some quite slow, and a few in between.  We communicate mostly via e-mail and our team Newsletter reaches over 800 runners.  More than half of those 800 are members of our partners, the Kalamazoo Area Runners. 

RM: What are the future plans for the men's masters team for Front Line Racing?

FV:   In 2007 the men’s masters of the Front Line Racing Team should make a strong run     at the Boston Marathon Masters Men’s title, keep our streak going of never having lost a five man marathon relay, and then come together to defend our Cross Country Team Title in West Chester, Ohio in December.

RM: Are there any plans for a women's masters team down the road to be able to compete like the men's team? Why or why not? 

FV: Our women’s masters’ runners are already beginning to gel for 2007.  I already have tentative commitments from Laurie Decker, Julie Winter, Peggy Zeeb and a maybe from Bonnie Sexton (who’ll be turning 40 in 2007) to compete in the USATF Club Cross Country Championship in West Chester, Ohio next December.  Laurie Decker did represent us out in San Francisco and placed 12th in the women’s masters’ competition and was third in the 45-49 age group.

It is more difficult for me to recruit women, and (unfortunately) maybe a bit more difficult for women to get away for weekend travels.  But, when they do come together; they are awesome.  For instance, our women’s masters’ team has been in the top five in their division of the Boston Marathon in each of the past three years; as has our women’s open team.  The Whirlaway Racing Team is the only other team to accomplish that feat in the Boston Marathon in the past three years.  Clearly, Michigan and Front Line has some phenomenal women runners.

In the last two years Front Line Racing has developed a working relationship with the Kalamazoo Area Runners.  We are now their “Racing Team”.  They have a huge base of 500 runners and are exceptionally well organized.  At least half of our women runners are now from the Kalamazoo area.  And, they are fast!

Thanks for the great interview Fred! (Interview conducted by Nick Cordes, RunMichigan.com)