Brooks PR is moving outdoors
Brooks PR is moving outdoors
In just a short pan of the past three years, the Brooks PR Invitational had become of the more popular and desired competition destinations for elite high school track & field athletes during the indoor season. The invitational was typically held on the third weekend of February at the University of Washington's indoor track facility at the Dempsey Indoor Stadium in Seattle.
Brooks and the meet management will be making a drastic change in venue and date of this year's Brooks PR Invitational as the meet will now showcase many of the nation's top high school talent in the post-season of the outdoor season on Saturday, June 21st on the outdoor track & field facility found at the Renton Memorial Stadium in Seattle, Washington. Despite the drastic change in venue and date, Brooks is confident the meet will draw the same caliber of top track preps to produce PR's across the board.
MileSplit got the opportunity to speak with Jesse Williams, Sports Marketing Manager of Brooks Running, on the beginnings and start-up of the meet, how it has evolved and the success enjoyed already in its short time of existence, and what we can expect from this year's event after the changes in setting and date.
MileSplit US Interview with Brooks Running sports marketing director Jesse Williams
MileSplit US: How did the idea of the Brooks PR Meet originally come about?
Jesse Williams (Brooks Running): High School running is an important part of our sport, so we’re always thinking of ways we can create opportunities for high school runners. We started thinking of the PR Invite when we saw some indoor meets at the University of Washington. Every year people run crazy fast at the Dempsey indoor track. A lot of people say it’s the track itself, but I think it’s because all of the fastest athletes in college track are in the same place at the same time with the same goal… to run fast! Why couldn’t we bring together the fastest high school athletes together for the same reason?
MileSplit US: In the first year of the event, you were able to instantly attract many of the nation's best high school track athletes. How were you guys at Brooks able to pull that much talent out to the Northwest in a first year event?
Williams Honestly, we worked very hard talking with athletes, parents, coaches and athletic directors to answer every question they had about the event. Overall though, everything came together faster than we expected and I think it had a lot to do with the unique angle we took with the event as whole. With every component of the event, including the invite, we tried to look at it from the eyes of the high school runner and what we thought they might like. Our goal was also to guarantee great races for everyone who came. We stacked the fields so that the kids who raced knew they were running against the best in their event.
We announced the meet in late December the first year with a funny video talking about the meet and telling athletes to “check the mail” for their invites. What the invited athletes found in the mail was a Golden Ticket invitation to the meet wrapped around an actual chocolate bar. They loved it and that was the spark!
MileSplit US: What are some of your favorite highlights or moments from the past 3 Brooks PR meets?
Williams We love meeting and watching all of the athletes race, but one athlete and race that sticks out in my mind was the Boys’ Mile run in 2012. I had received a few emails from a local athlete Marcus Dickson who was really hoping for an invite. He was right on the cusp of getting in as he had run about 4:13 for 1600m the previous year. We had a few changes the last weeks prior to the event and were able to extend Marcus an invite. He was so excited. He made a ton of friends over the weekend with his optimistic and infectious personality. His race, the mile, was the final event of the meet and with a lap to go I see Marcus moving up through the field. The last lap was amazing and in the final 20 meters Marcus took the lead and won in 4:07 for the full mile!! He had his own little fan club at that point cheering and congratulating him after he finished. It was just a great moment to cap off the meet. Until then, Marcus was a local guy who was pretty well known but after that performance I am sure every coach in the country knew his name.
MileSplit US: This year the event moves outdoors. What were the deciding factors on matching the change from an indoor to outdoor event?
Williams We loved running at the Dempsey, but it’s still early in the year and athletes aren’t in top form yet. A lot of states don’t even have an indoor season so some athletes were opening up at our event. We saw some amazing times and races, and even records, but most athletes went on to run even faster during their outdoor seasons. We knew we had a recipe for PR’s and decided to move the event outdoors to help each athlete run their fastest times of the year. It’s also the most beautiful time of the year here in Seattle!
MileSplit US: How were the venue (Renton Stadium in Seattle) and the date (June 21st) selected?
Williams When selecting the venue we were trying to match the aura of the Dempsey to make sure we could create the best meet experience possible. Renton Memorial Stadium is about as good as it gets for track. The facility was recently renovated and the covered stands hold up to 6,500 spectators. At first, we were intimidated by the size of the venue but realized that if we truly want to bring the fastest high school meet of the year to this facility then we should also challenge ourselves and track fans to fill this place! Why shouldn’t the best high school runners in the country draw a crowd this big?
MileSplit US: What are some things that we can expect and maybe even new for this year's Brooks PR meet?
Williams As far as the athlete weekend is concerned, we want to keep that as a surprise for the athletes that are invited. For the event itself, I think you will see some very fast times. The conditions in Seattle at that time of year are ideal for racing. We have also been talking up the idea of a 4x1 mile relay since there are a few teams out there right now that we think could take down the high school national record. Other than that, the events will remain basically the same as past years.
MileSplit US: Brooks Running as a company seems to be taking it up a notch as of late in many areas including sponsorship of athletes and events. Most notably the recent signing of one of the nation's best middle distance runners in Nick Symmonds. Fans of the sport do take notice and appreciate when they see companies re-investing back in the sport especially sponsoring events and athletes. How important do you feel it it is for Brooks to be visible and active in that way supporting and being involved with the sport's events and athletes?
Williams We are a growing company and we are 100 percent focused on running. We feel that it is our job as a company to continue to invest and re-invest in the sport year after year. The PR Invitational is a great example of that investment. The weekend is a celebration of high school running at its finest and we are very proud of this event and what it has become.
MileSplit US: What do you feel is special or unique about the Brooks PR meet for high school athletes?
Williams We hope the whole weekend is special for the athletes that are able to participate. We try our best to make the weekend about the sport and about showcasing these athletes to a larger audience. We turned out the lights in the Dempsey, brought in an LCD screen for better viewing, lined the inside lane with LED lights, brought in the best announcers around and pumped in some beats to try and create a unique racing environment for these high school runners. Our hope is to not just create another race for the participants but for them to leave with a PR and race experience that they will remember forever.