This week I had the privilege to take some
of Chris Twiggs time for a short discussion on the Endurance Sports
Industry. Chris is the National Program
Manager for Galloway’s Training Programs. Chris is also the Founder and Co-Program Director for the Jacksonville,
Florida Galloway Training Program. In
addition, he sits on the Board of Directors for the 26.2 with Donna, the National Breast Cancer Marathon held every February, where 100% of the proceeds
go to the fight to finish breast cancer.
One of the reasons I enjoy getting but early on a Saturday morning and
running is due to Chris’s magical spirit and unbelievable knowledge of what it
takes to get mostly middle aged women, some a bit overweight, to run a
half-marathon or marathon, without injury in 7 to 4 months, all while making it
fun.
Chris
Twiggs got into running and endurance running less than 20 years ago. He was going to graduate school at Florida
State University, working 3 jobs, one teaching at a community college in Gainesville,
Florida when his new bride, an avid runner, told him about a new Marathon that
would be held at Walt Disney World. Chris’ new wife wanted the two of them to
do this together and as is typical with Chris’ personality he said sure. Chris picked up a book at a local bookstore
read it and started to follow the training schedule. The problem with the schedule was that it was
not practical for anyone who worked full-time and lacked time to run 13 miles
on a Wednesday. Chris muddled through
the training and half way through determined that he would do another marathon
but it would not be using the training in this particular book. So he headed back to the bookstore and found
another book, this time by Jeff Galloway, an Olympic marathoner. It just happened that Jeff Galloway was a
speaker at the first Walt Disney World Marathon, and Chris and his wife stopped
to listen and get autographs from Jeff.
During
his speaking engagement at the Disney Marathon, Jeff Galloway was introducing a
new way to run using a run/walk ratio.
Chris and his wife decided to try this new method out. Using walk breaks Chris went from a 4:15
marathon to a 4:01 while Chris’ wife went from a 4:14 to a 3:38, qualifying for
the Boston marathon. They became instant believers in this new method. For
their third marathon the two run the Marine Corp Marathon in Washington DC.
Chris was just in the process of finishing another of Jeff’s books this time
more of a novel. As fate would have it
Jeff Galloway rode in the bus back to the airport with Chris. As an English Professor, Chris had taken note
that in the back of the book Jeff had asked for feedback on how to improve the
book. During that bus ride Chris went
out on a limp and asked Jeff if he could provide feedback. Three months later
Chris and Jeff came together yet again at the Disney Marathon where Chris
provided Jeff with feedback on the book.
A few short months later, Chris received a call from Jeff asking him to
start a Galloway Running program in Gainesville, Florida. Unfortunately that
didn’t work out but Chris took Jeff’s offer and started one in Greensville,
South Carolina. Chris enjoyed it so much
that when he moved to Jacksonville, Florida he started a chapter in
Jacksonville and Daytona Beach. The
Jacksonville chapter has grown from just 20 people to well over 500 in just a
short 7 years.
Because
of Chris and Jeff’s relationship Chris once told Jeff that if the National
Program Manager position ever came open he wanted the opportunity to take the
position. As fate would have it, again,
in 2011, Chris became the National Program Manager for over 90 chapters of
Galloway Training Programs across the United States and now internationally. As National Program Manager, Chris provides
all of the marketing materials, training needs and advice that a local chapter
needs to become successful. In our discussion,
Chris mentioned that the most successful chapters have not one but two Program
Directors and work with local running stores or health organizations like the
local YMCA to gain membership and the support that is needed to grow and
sustain a chapter. Those in trouble are
usually chapters where there is no one in the waiting to take over the reins. It is Chris’ responsibility to help out as
best he can to ensure that there is a succession plan and that a chapter is set
to succeed.
I also wanted to
get Chris’ feedback on some of the larger races that are out there and
understand why he feels that some races are so successful and why some right
now are receiving such negative feedback yet are continuing to see huge volumes
of runners and continue to draw people year after year. Chris’ assessment of this is that some of
these larger races that are in their first years draw 30,000+ people are put on
for the first time runner and not the avid runner, who knows from experience
what they like and don’t like from an event.
Many races won’t recover from some of the mistakes that these races have
experienced recently. If you advertise a
“scenic route” you have to deliver on that promise, cutting costs by running
through lesser traveled sections of town and calling that scenic won’t cut it
for the repeat runner. The little things
like having enough T-shirts, medals and water are important to runners. Smaller races won’t recover from these
mistakes.
One of the trends
in producing marathons is to use a cookie cutter approach and come into a city
with a plan that has worked in one city and use the same methodology for all
cities. It just doesn’t work and leaves
the runner with some extremely bad impressions. The problem is that these same
races are bringing in millions of dollars to the cities they are held in and
making millions for themselves while runners suffer. In 5 years it will be interesting to see where
we are and if races like the 26.2 with Donna will be more successful as a home
grown, home town feel then the big cookie cutter approach guys.
I could have talked
to Chris for many more hours and feel a great privilege that he took time out
of this day to talk with me. If there is
one thing I learned more than anything from my conversation with Chris is that
if you want something or your interested in something let people know. You never know who might be sitting next to
you on a bus to the airport.
