Braun Looks to Build on Momentum in 2014
By Scott Bush
With strong and experiened competition, Aaron Braun came up big at the .US National Road Racing Championships in November, using a strong final surge to pull away and win the final race of the USARC season. Braun's proved time and again that he's one of the very best distance runners in the United States and as 2014 kicks off at the USA Half Marathon Championships, Braun shifts his focus to longer distances.
We caught up with Braun this week, discussing his expectations for Sunday's race in Houston, what looks different for him in 2014 and much more.
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Scott Bush (SB): It's been a couple months since you last raced. How's your fitness? How are you feeling heading into the USA Half Marathon Championships?
Aaron Braun (AB): I took 4 days off after Manchester, but got back to good training, so even though I'll only have 7 weeks of training from 'this season' going into Houston; I don't think I lost much from a good fall season. I'm feeling pretty fit, and definitely excited for the opportunity to race against a great field on a fast course!
SB: Last year you were fifth in Houston at the Aramco Houston Half Marathon. Being on the same course, what were you able to pull away from last year's race that you can apply to this year?
AB: Last year's race was my first ever half marathon, since then I've done 2 more halfs at St Louis and Boston; I think the extra experience at racing that distance will be a big benefit for me going into this race, knowing better how my body should feel at each point of the race. Knowing the course is a benefit, but not as much so as knowing what the distance is like.
SB: The USA Half Marathon Championships are the start of a new USARC season. Any chance we'll see you hit the roads a bit more in 2014?
AB: I think I will be on the roads a little more this year, but looking back on last year, I didn't really run significantly less on the roads than in years prior, I think it just felt that way because I was only able to do 2 road races that were on the USARC circuit. Overall I still ran 9 road races compared to just 4 on the track, so I was still more road based, but I believe this year can be even more tilted towards the roads since there are no World Track Championships this year.
SB: You've had tremendous success on the track. With it being a non-championship year, how do you season your competition calendar shaping up?
AB: I think the biggest benefit of there being no World championships this year is that it provided people a great opportunity to experiment with different things. For me, that means experimenting with how I can do in the marathon. I'm planning on doing a spring marathon, and then as long as that isn't a total disaster, probably run a fall marathon as well. I think 2014 is a great year for me to decide what direction I will going in 2016, towards the marathon, or on the track with 5ks and 10ks. I'll still do plenty of other races sprinkled in throughout the year as well, my favorite ones from years past, and hopefully some new races!
SB: You're training in Alamosa these days, which seems like a place you are very comfortable with. Do you do most of your training on your own or do you have others to train with?
AB: I'm certainly very comfortable with Alamosa, going to school here at Adams State, and really developing into the man and runner I am today over my previous 5 years here. We only moved here 2 weeks ago, so I don't think I've yet to have a 'set' schedule, especially with most of the runners from the team being home for Christmas break, and how cold its been. But I anticipate I won't change my routine too much from what I had been doing in Denver, so that would mean doing the majority of my training on my own, and then occasionally running with guys on the team when I want to have people to talk with during easy days, or when their workouts are going to be similar to mine.
SB: What type of core and weight work do you put in during a typical week of training?
AB: I don't know if I should be admitting this, but as of lately, I haven't really been doing any! I've been so busy/tired from moving, and the big training I've been doing, and other excuses that I've been giving myself. Usually I try to do about 20 minutes of core work on easy days before my second run. Nothing with weights really, just exercises using my own body weight: pushups, pull-ups, sit-ups, etc. It is time for me to 'get back on the wagon' with that, so hopefully the combination of this shameful admission, and Annika's subtle nagging about it will get my butt back in gear!
SB: Okay, so it's finally 2014! Care to share what your non-running New Year's resolution is?
AB: My non-running resolution for this year is to start going to church more often. We had a good church in Flagstaff that we liked going to, but didn't go nearly as often once we moved to Denver. Now that my long runs are on Sunday again, it is harder to get that done, and get the family to church. But just like the past question, I just have to drop the excuses and find a way to make it happen.
