Michael Eaton is a 2006 graduate of Greenwood High School in Bowling Green. Michael was a mainstay of the coverage during the first couple years of KYtrackXC.com when he was a two-time Foot Locker National Qualifier. During his high school years he won five Kentucky State Championships including setting the Kentucky State Record with a 15:05. He also won Foot Locker South his senior year with a 14:46. His senior track season saw him earn a spot on the USA Junior World Cross Country Championship team that competed in Japan.
He just finished his eligibility at the University of Louisville, where he was a two-time National Championship Qualifier in the 10,000 Meter Run. Eaton is now looking towards the future as he moves up events to the Half-Marathon and Marathon.
You can follow his blog at: http://runningwithmichael.wordpress.com/
KY: Current & Future Running Plan Post U of L?
ME: Currently I'm training in Flagstaff, AZ for the Rock'n'Roll 1/2 Marathon in Philadelphia on September 18th. I hope to run sub 1:05 in Philly to get a qualifying standard for the Olympic Trials. After the race I plan on coming back to Flagstaff until sometime in November to prepare for the Olympic Marathon Trials in Houston in January.
KY: What kind of mileage have you been putting in?
Training has been different this summer. I'm still training under Coach Mann from Louisville. My mileage hasn't gotten any higher yet, but I've been doing all my weekly mileage in 6 days with a day off every week. So 80 to 90 miles per seems a lot tougher when you have to do it in 6 days. I've got a big month of August planned, with a few weeks at 100 miles and some long runs of 20+ miles. I actually did my first 22 mile run this past weekend..
KY: Are you ready to take on the marathon?
ME: Right now my training is more specific to the 1/2, but I'm excited about running a full early next year. So right now training wise I'm probably not ready for the marathon, but mentally I'm excited about the idea and looking forward to some different training come this fall.
KY: How has your approach to running changed now that you have gone up to the longer events?
ME: Training has changed a little bit, but more because of the altitude here in Flagstaff over going up to longer events. Ideally I'd still like to get in 3 quality bouts per week plus a long run, but recovery time has been a little longer here in Flag and so I've been working with two quality bout and a long run. I think my approach has always been consistency. The longer I can stay healthy and train at a high level the strong I become, so now more so than in school I'm listening carefully to my body and watching out for injuries before they become a problem. With longer races come fewer races so I can definitely focus more of my time and energy on training.
KY: Overall, what has life been like in Flagstaff?
ME: Flagstaff has been great so far. I spent a few months here back in college and loved it so much. I always joked about how great it would be to live and train here full time. Now that I'm here its kind of surreal. I'm about a 1/2 mile away from the trail system here in Flagstaff, so I haven't had to run on the pavement much at all. This is great for me, especially with all those injuries I had in college.
KY: How does it feel to be out of the daily routine of being a college runner?
ME: I actually have more of a daily routine now than I did in school. In college there is always something to do, someone who wants to go out, some project to finish that messes with you sleep. Since I've been in Flagstaff I've pretty much followed the same routine almost everyday. I get up around 8ish, go for a run, come back and eat, nap, read, job hunt, etc. Lunch, run again, have some dinner around 6:30 to 7:00, call a special lady back home and hit the bed by 10. I've been logging a solid 10 hours of sleep per night, which has been awesome. I think keeping some kind of routine keeps me sane. If things get off schedule I have trouble getting them done, so I find it best to just set a schedule for the sake of just getting things done everyday.
KY: At Louisville, your XC teams made it to NCAA Nationals 4 times. I know a lot of people helped make Louisville a national power (Coach Mann, Wesley Korir, Corey Thorne, Coach Allen, etc.) How did it feel to witness and be there as an important part of the reason for this happening?
ME: Qualifying for XC nationals every year that I ran was one of the greatest thrills of being a Cardinal. The fact that every year I ran we made it hold a special place in my heart. Track and Field is great, but its so individual. Cross Country brings together 7 guys like few other activities in life can, for a few months every fall its amazing how single minded those 7 can become. Each team that qualified was different in its own way, but they all shared that hunger to make it back to the big dance. My best results may be in track, but I will always be a cross country man at heart.
KY: Favorite memories from your Louisville years?
ME: It seems so weird to talk about college in the past tense now. I don't feel like it really hasn't set in yet that I'm done with school. It feels like summer vacation, but I think once September rolls around and I'm not taking classes it will set it for me. I think some of my favorite memories from school would have to be getting to spend my last year with my brother on the team. It was kinda like high school all over again, but instead of making state we were qualifying for nationals. The team atmosphere will always be something I miss I think. When you run that many miles with the same group of guys you just form a bound that I think regular people miss out on. Technology is great, but Facebook can never replace a 18 mile long run or a hard set of 400s. Some of the best times were just travelling to meets. Bus rides just lend themselves to good times. There were a lot of good laughs on the bus. I'd say my favorite memory though had to be regionals my last season, having my whole family there, spread out around the track. I had someone cheering for me on every corner of the track during that 10k at IU. It was such a great feeling to qualify for Nationals again. After I crossed the line my family and friends were screaming and celebrating and everyone else was just kind dumbfounded, wondering why people would be so excited about a guy getting 9th, you would have thought I had won the way everyone I knew was celebrating.
KY: Best hopes where and what would you be doing in 5 years?
ME: In five years I hope to be well into a great career as a professional runner. I hope to win some big marathons and a few US Championships on the roads. But most of all I hope to still be having fun doing what I love and using it to do more than just pay the bills. Running for me is a gift, and there has been times in my life when I've taken it for granted and it was taken from me, be it injury or just set back. It took me some time to realize running couldn't be my everything, that if my soul existence was simply to run then I've missed the point of why I'm here. I think God gives us all gifts or talents in life, things we can do well, but the reason for those gifts isn't so we become obsessed with them, they are given to us so that we can give back. Be it through our time, effort, money, or whatever, if we do not use our gifts to give back and ultimately give God glory, then we've missed out on how wonderful life can really be. So in five years do I want to still be running? Yes, but more than that, hopefully running and finding ways to use my gift to give back to others and to God himself.
Thanks again for the opportunity, always love talking with KYtrackxc.com.