Our NFLR IT/Runner Guy

Friday, September 04, 2015 · Mike Davis

Good morning! Friday!! For me Friday is extra special today because I start a 4 day weekend. Very lucky know! This morning I actually slept in to 6:35 and that is pretty late for me. Even when I have the opportunity to sleep later I usually awake early despite my best attempts to sleep longer. I have been pretty wiped out the past couple of weeks and getting a little over 8 hours of sleep last night was amazing and hopefully exactly what my tired body needed. Sleep is so important to not only good running but, good health however, it can be a challenge at times. Last night we had our Thursday night Destination Race/group run from the Center and of course it was hot and humid! September is supposed to mean lower temperatures and less humidity! Oh well, we all kept our feet moving and made our way through 45 to 60 minutes of running. I ran mostly with one of my favorite people, friend and NFLR team member, Doug Mackinnon. Doug has been part of our NFLR team since pretty much day one and may be as valuable if not more as any of us. Doug does all of our website building along with our individual online training plan and runners log. Our www.nofinishlinerunning website has evolved from a blog centered website to one that provides information, online training plans and logs and many other resources. All we offer today is the result of us coaches asking Doug if he can do this or that and then Doug ultimately making it happen. If you have worked with us individually you know firsthand about our online training plan and log and how valuable that is for individual training. When we proposed this concept to Doug a few years ago he took a fair amount of time to figure it out but, when he rolled it out I nearly teared up because of my euphoria. Having an online training plan and log that gives us the ability to load a training plan into a calendar that our runners can instantly see and then log the detail of their run is such a tremendous tool for working with runners. I know that there are many apps and online logs available but there is nothing like a personal online training plan and log that a real person at each end is updating. We are definitely the envy of many other similar businesses that are trying to find a way to train their clients online. Doug has created a tool that he could easily sell to others and I am grateful that NFLR has it. Our next challenge for Doug with our online training plan/log is to make it even better. Last night I told Doug I wanted to have our runners log to reflect as if I were actually there at the workout. He looked at me like I had 3 heads! Right now we get a lot of valuable information from the runner but, I want enough info without overtasking the runner and yet I want enough details that would make it seem like I was there. This will be no easy task because logging is not always something runners want to take the time to do so, I want to create a simple way for them to log yet a way that I can feel like I was actually at every workout. Doug told said: “You’re the coach, you tell me what that means.” He is right and now I have some work to do in figuring out the information that will get the desired results. After that I have no doubt Doug will make it happen! Didn’t start out this morning with the idea of getting detailed about the inner workings of our IT department but, I have such an appreciation for Doug as a valuable member of NFLR team. What makes working with Doug so easy and great is that he is also a tremendous runner so, he can combine his running experience with his technical knowledge whenever we discuss ideas for the website. All of this aside Doug is a great friend that I appreciate so much and I have also enjoyed working with him as a runner. He has some future goals that I am excited about and looking forward to helping him accomplish. Doug is one of NFLR’s most valuable assets but, more importantly he is an awesome person and friend. Time to get my 4 day weekend started! Have a great weekend and see you on the roads! God Bless! Mike