SpeedPass Run Short

Declan O'K.

I signed up for the coached NY Flyers SpeedPass program when it was launched earlier this year and I am just finishing up my second season. I have been doing the Thursday "Go Short" speedwork option. This is aimed at runners training for races in the 5k - 10k range. The workouts are focused on reps and intervals with some threshold work thrown in as well.

I had been a fan of the Jack Daniels approach since I first read his book, Daniels' Running Formula, but I had never really incorporated his methods into a structured program. Flyers Head Coach Brian Rosetti provides a great program that incorporates a coached session on Thursday, and also includes a weekend work-out tailored for each runner to do on their own.

Both workouts are added to our calendar via the Run SMART Project app, which is a great resource. It provides paces for all types of workouts based on the Jack Daniels VDOT score, and we can update it based on recent races and it evens has projected times for future races.

Brian is very involved in the workouts, and discusses the purpose of each workout at the start of every training session, and also provides us our target-time for each type of workout (reps/intervals/tempo). During the workout, he gives us tips on running form and then discusses with us how it went afterwards. And Brian keeps up-to-date on upcoming races to allow for planning workouts with those races in mind.

Brian Rosetti Instructing Flyers Group

The program definitely has worked for me.  Despite not being able to train as much as I would have liked because of work commitments, I set new 5k, 5-mile and half marathon PRs since I started the SpeedPass training.

I would recommend SpeedPass to any NY Flyer who wants to get faster, and the Thursday Run Short sessions are especially great for anyone who is focusing on distances shorter than a half marathon, or even for those who want to build speed before switching to a half/full marathon-based program in a later session.

-Declan O'K.