Caroline Rotich
United States

United States
“This is a different moment in my career compared to any other one in the past because I’ve suffered a major disappointment. It’s up for debate if I should’ve taken a break after the Trials and reset but, man, I didn’t feel like I could stop. All of this training is in me and this motivation to show the world the hard work I’ve put in. I didn’t take this journey lightly. I really care about making this transformation from middle distances to the longer stuff. I just really wanted to keep going.”
20 minutes of catching up with Olympic medalist and world champion Jenny Simpson before she takes on the NYC Half on Sunday. It is her first race since unfortunately dropping out of her marathon debut at the U.S. Olympic Trials in Orlando last month.
We chat a bit about her lessons from that race, whether she would’ve done anything differently and how she’s taking that into her next few races. Moments before we did this interview, the BAA announced Jenny has been added to the Boston Marathon field for April 15 – along with Sara Hall, Caroline Rotich, Elkanah Kibet and Sam Chelanga. So we discuss her plans for that race and a wider shot of how she views this chapter of her legendary career.
Host: Chris Chavez | @chris_j_chavez on Instagram
Guest: Jenny Simpson | @trackjenny on Instagram
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This week I had the pleasure to speak with Ryan Bolton of Bolton Endurance. He was a fantastic runner at Wyoming and competed at the 2000 Sydney Olympics in the Triathlon. He is the coach of Caroline Rotich, as well as other pros in the triathlon world.
We touch on some of his inspirations, including coaches and athletes, and how he got into running and triathlons. It was fun to hear him talk about his experiences and the energy with which he still talks about it. We get into a bit of his time at the 2000 Olympics, as well as this year's Tokyo Olympics, where he was there as a part of the US Olympic committee.
We get into how he started coaching, building his coaching staff, and how he talks to his athletes. We touch briefly on periodization and will hopefully come back to this subject in a future episode.
What struck me with Ryan is that even though he is highly motivated, some of his life path was following what felt right at the time. His degree and path to coaching are good examples of this.
It was fun to hear some of Ryan's story and just have a great conversation about running and athletics. We touch on the 10k battle at the Sydney Olympics, Seb Coe, Bob Kennedy, super shoes, and so much more.
I hope you enjoy our conversation and take us out with you on a run. It's a new year and it's easy to think about things on a grand scale; new year, new me. But change is easier when you are committed to the little things and consistency. Commit to getting out 4 days a week, or x amount of minutes. Find a group that has similar goals, whether you can meet in person or just text about it. It's things we all know, but following through can be hard. So, get out there, be consistent, be safe, and keep running, New Mexico.