Rockaway has volleyball, basketball and soccer summer camps, but there hasn’t been an outlet for kids to learn the proper skills for a sport that doesn’t involve balls and nets—running! That all changes next week as world championship runner and coach, Kerri Inman (formerly Gallagher) and Rockapulco Runs founder and 30-time New York City marathon runner John Edwards, are bringing their expertise to local youth in the first Rockaway Running Camp from July 27 through July 31.
On Monday, July 27 through Friday, July 31, right before the Graybeards Family Fun Run, Inman, Edwards, Therese Gallagher and Alex Inman will be training youth from sixth grade through twelfth grade, daily from 8 a.m. to noon. Home base will be the Beach 94th Street Amphitheater and the boardwalk will be their track. The camp is open to runners of all abilities from newbies to experienced high school runners, and their needs will be addressed accordingly. And there’s still time to register by Sunday, July 26 at www.rockawayrunningcamp.com
Those who participate will get the privilege of being trained by coaches who come with a wealth of knowledge and experience. John Edwards has been a longtime coach from starting the St. Francis de Sales CYO track program in the mid ‘90s to a high school coach at Fontbonne Hall Academy, to giving Rockaway a formal running outlet when he brought Rockapulco Runs to the boardwalk starting in 1999, until he passed the baton to Jimmy McVeigh who carries on the legacy with the Rockaway Track Club. Edwards has even run the New York City Marathon 30 times. And while that all sounds impressive, Edwards says Inman will be the real star of the Rockaway Running Camp. “I’m a dinosaur, she’s the stud. I’m gonna help her get this off the ground this year and hopefully she can continue to have it every summer,” Edwards said.
Edwards sang Inman’s praises, running through her extensive athletic career. Inman, a middle-distance runner, ran in high school for Bishop Kearney with coach John Lovett, and kept on running through college at Fordham University with coach Tom Dewey, before heading to Washington, D.C. after college to continue training with coach Matt Centrowitz, with Olympic dreams on her mind. As she made her way up, Inman found herself with a third-place finish at the U.S.A. Track and Field Outdoor Championships in Eugene, OR in June 2015, which qualified her for the World Championships in Beijing, China, where she placed eighth in the semifinals of the 1500m. Her trajectory caught the eye of brands like Oiselle and Nike, leading Inman to become a sponsored runner. Since then, Inman has been sharing her expertise as a coach. She spent five years as an assistant at American University followed by nine years leading the Manhattan University Jaspers. Nowadays, her focus is on private coaching with some time spent as an assistant coach for the Xaverian Clippers.
Edwards explained that he ran into Inman earlier in the year, not long after she had her second child, and they got to talking about their shared interest. “She retired from college coaching and when I ran into her, she started talking about a day camp. We have experience with camps. She was a counselor and I used to bring kids to the Newport Running Camps in Rhode Island, so she said, ‘What about a Rockaway running day camp?’ She already had the idea, so I said, ‘Let’s give it a shot.’”
Inman and Edwards are eager to start training the next generation and sharing what they know. “We’re excited! Kerri has all the new tools about proper training. I’m the old school guy,” Edwards said. “We’re gonna try to educate these kids and show them how to train properly, and if they like the sport, we’ll give them the basics to keep moving with it, and if they don’t like it, it’ll be a week of fitness for them.”
For the past few weeks, Edwards and Inman have been spreading the word and have recruited about 30 kids so far to participate in the very first Rockaway Running Camp starting next week. The camp costs just a nominal fee to get kids on track.
What can participants expect? “They’ll get in better shape, learn how to stretch and learn about nutrition. We’re going to try to cover as much of the spectrum as we can,” Edwards said. That will start with learning how to warm up and stretch to avoid injury, something that could be valuable for any sport. “The key is to avoid injury,” Edwards said. Then their level will be evaluated. “We’re going to find out what kind of fitness level they’re at. Some kids won’t be able to run 20 feet, and some will have a lot of experience. We expect a big variety, so we’re going to break it up. I’m gonna be on the bike with the high school kids who will run longer and faster, and Kerri will work with the middle school kids and the younger kids with no experience. We’ll break them into groups, warm up and do different exercises and they’ll learn how to pace themselves and eat properly and will learn how important rest is. They’ll learn all these basics,” Edwards said, adding that Inman will also focus on the Five Oregon Principles as written by famous University of Oregon coach Bill Dellinger.
Each camper will get a camp t-shirt along with valuable running and fitness lessons. And with his experience in the bakery business, Edwards will have a reward waiting at the end of the sessions for a job well done—cookies—something his past runners remember him for, along with a few lessons taught with some tough love.
Participants are encouraged to complete all five days, but the organizers are open to accommodating those who can’t make the full commitment. And if this year’s camp goes well, they hope it’ll open the door for more opportunities in the future. “I believe the kids that go to this camp are gonna sell it for next year,” Edwards said. “We’re confident that they’re going to have good results, and they’re gonna be happy and their parents are gonna be happy.”
So, get those stretches in, hit the pavement, get those hearts pumping and give it your all at the Rockaway Running Camp. To register, head to www.rockawayrunningcamp.com by Sunday to fill out the form.
