McArthur Farm Supply ~ Kevin O’Brien featured in Runner’s World magazine ~ McArthur, Ca
Posted By Tiffany on May 5, 2010
McArthur Farm Supply ~ Kevin O’Brien featured in Runner’s World magazine ~ McArthur, Ca
Fall River Mills resident Kevin O’Brien is featured in the April issue of Runner’s World explaining his strategies for managing a hectic work schedule and strong family commitment while training for 13.1 mile half marathons. He is married with two children and is assistant manager at McArthur Farm Supply in McArthur, Ca.
“Blown away,” is the athlete’s description of his profile in the “prestigious magazine.” The modest runner states he is “not a trained athlete by any stretch of imagination” His wife Georgia’s cousin is a former Stanford Universitycoach who consults with the on-line training website, Focus-N-Fly. The coach suggested his”profile fit perfectly” for a developing story titled “Work Hard, Run Hard” for the globally circulated magazine with 650,000 subscribers. O’Brien 33, is one of four runners featured in the article.
He started running in 1996 while a Chico State University student who “ate too many restaurant meals” while a member of the college livestock judging team. “Just in the last four to five years I’ve been more consistent without serious lapses in my running schedule,” he said.
His first half marathon was at Oregon’s Crater Lake. The run was “manageable until mile 9.5 then it climbs for 2.5 miles. Very brutal. It beat me up pretty bad but at 12.5 miles it starts to taper off,” he said. The athlete’s first formal training began last September when he enrolled in the on-line Focus-N-Fly program. O’Brien attributes that program with giving him valuable suggestions such as pacing to improve his time along with a coach’s motivational comments. “It’s like someone is there pushing me to get out of bed and keep me moving” at 4:30 a.m., the intrepid runner said.
A month after enrolling in the training program, he ran the Long Beach, Calif., half-marathon posting a time of 1:29:00. Four months later, O’Brien’s running time was 1:26:00 for the 13.1 mile course during February’s Surf City half-marathon in Huntington Beach, Calif. He finished 21st out of 645 runners in the competitive 30 to 34 age bracket and 85th overall in a field of approximately 11,000 runners.
O’Brien attributes trimming three minutes off is running time to the on-line training program, a fact he repeats several times. “It’s kind of addicting to see how far you can push yourself to see what you can reach in the next race,” O’Brien said with a smile on his face. The humble and shy O’Brien is training for July’s San Francisco half-marathon where he hopes to cut an additional three minutes off his time to qualify for the New York City Marathon in 2011.
At the conclusion of that half-marathon he receives a plaque and coat for finishing the three races in the ”California Dreaming” series. “A year ago, if you had asked me if I was even thinking of trying to qualify for New York or potentially Boston (marathon) I would never guess that,” he said. “Just seeing how well I’ve done in the last few races (Huntington and Long Beach) is a big change,” O’Brien said.
Boston the granddaddy and most prestigious of all marathons, is “full of Olympians and elite runners and you wouldn’t even think about running in that race,” he said reflectively. O’Brien “uses races to keep me focused on running because it gives me a goal to get up (at 4:30 a.m.) in the morning.” He is considering the Portland or Sacramentomarathons next fall or early winter. The on-line training program suggests frequently changing training schedule distances to maximize his two-work day and one long weekend runs. He spends one weekday on his track routine of running intervals, which are short hard efforts, and tempos, which mixes his running pace. Both are key tactics to a runner’s competitive success.“He isn’t a lazy trainer and he isn’t super indulgent after a race, which makes him kind of weird and kind of irritating. He is a pretty level guy,” his wife laughingly said.
O’Brien’s favorite route is the 10.1 mile run from his home, located on Highway 299 in Fall River Mills, to McArthur down the hill and across the Pit River on Jim Day Road to Dee Knoch Road to Fall River Mills and home. “It’s a pretty route and you get some elevation change,” he commented. During the winter, O’Brien usually runson his treadmill while watching son, Emmett, 4, and daughter, Sophia, 2, in the large playroom containing toysfor both Dad and the children. The two motivate him to run so “as these guys get older I wanted to make sure I had the energy to keep up with them.” He said they are his main focus and always in his memory. The runner’s early morning training schedule enables him to spend evening time with his family.
Georgia said all the family receives a fun benefit from his racing because they travel with her husband to competitions. Her brother, sister and mother sometimes participate with him in races. Georgia’s siblings were motivated to run by Kevin. “It wouldn’t be their first choice,” she said. A substitute elementary school teacher, Georgia said, “ It’s important for our kids to grow up hearing about this. For them to hear us talking about his exercise routine or eating healthy.”
O’Brien’s diet has not radically changed. He eats better “but we haven’t gone overboard and cut out certain foods altogether. I try to keep that part of me regular,” he said. His supportive wife said, “The thing I love about this so much is it’s his, entirely his and his success is entirely under his own steam. He’s found notoriety, he’s found success. People are taking notice and given reason to cheer him on.”
Written By Bill Campbell of The Intermountain News
To see this article visit the Intermountain News
McArthur Farm Supply ~ Kevin O’Brien featured in Runner’s World magazine ~ McArthur, Ca
All of McArthur Farm Supply is cheering Kevin on and are so proud of his accomplishments. Our diverse group helps to make this company more than a job it is a family that is there to support each one of our team members in what ever they aspire to do.
We will keep you updated on Kevin’s running and wish him all the best!
McArthur Farm Supply ~ Kevin O’Brien featured in Runner’s World magazine ~ McArthur, Ca
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