Bill thinking about taking my money on poker night!
I first came in contact with Bill as an athlete back in the 70's. I was running for Anoka HS at the time and we were pretty darn good. We were led by a senior named Mark Nenow who came out for the sport reluctantly by his buddies. He had run a frisky 3200 the spring of his junior year and he figured to be of some help his senior year. The rest is history as he went on to win the state title in his first season during the year of 1976. He would later go on to set the American Record in 1986 for the 10,000 meters that would stand until 2001.
While our squad was running well and having visions of a possible state championship, a powerhouse was being put together at Cretin High School by one Bill Miles. At the time we did not realize it, but I believe most of his charges would go on to be multiple All-Americans in college. Time does not serve me well in exact remembrance, but lets just say these guys were flat out studs!
When the dust settled at the state meet we had taken 3rd, with a great Osseo team 2nd and of course the hated Cretin boys at the top of the podium. All three teams had great runners that would go on to make an impact in the running community. Don Hurley on that Cretin team would later be in my wedding an I in his.
As I gravitated to coaching during college, Bill would make the move to Wayzata high school. Interestingly, he narrowly missed a state championship not with the boys, but with the girls in 1979. Owatonna beat Wayzata by 2 points for the win.
During the 80's, I had a multiple coaching experiences moving from high school to college and back to high school again. When I came on board at Wayzata in 1992, the boys had risen to the top of the cross country food chain in Minnesota. That is where they have stayed for 25 years.
In the last few years we have had a nice little run on the girls side. When I am asked what has been the reason for this, I say it is because we have built a better sense of team. We run for a purpose greater than just championships. We run for each other. For most of my coaching career this was lost on me, in looking back, this was always the bedrock of the Bill Miles coaching philosophy.
Coaches, if you want to know the secret of the success of Bill Miles, and would like some inside scoop, here it is:
-Stay up all night typing up results even when you have to teach AP history the next day, so your boys can have them early the next day. (It usually takes me much longer)
-Be meticulous in you organization having an itinerary for just about everything.
-Know all 5 thousand of your runners names so they feel special. (I can't remember names, everyone sounds like Melissa)
-Love the beauty that is the very essence of distance running and be able to convey that to your athletes.
-Be in awe of others and honor them as he does and know that yours is not the only game in town.
-Create a safe place for belonging that everyone has a chance to contribute.
-Never stop learning and not be afraid to try new things.
I wish I had a greater gift as a wordsmith because these words don't seem to quite convey what I want, oh well, at least I gave it a shot! Thanks Bill for leading the way and having a lot to do in the success of our girls.
Dave Emmans