2011 CAC Track & Field Championship page

Hood men’s and women’s track & field coach Brent Ayer is a nationally-recognized athlete and organizer.  He has spent the past few years building the Blazers’ program while also serving as a staff member in the U.S. House of Representatives and as the President of the Road Runners Club of America.  His unique background and perspective is a great fit at Hood College.  Heading into this weekend’s CAC Track & Field championship (at York College of Pa.), Coach Ayer is this week’s CAC INTRODUCING … featured participant.

What is your background in the sport you coach?   In high school and college in the 1970’s, I ran distance and continued road racing until 2000.  My personal best in the marathon was 2:36. Now, the effort is pretty much recreational, if not completely tragic.  I also have USA Track & Field Level One Certification and Level II Certifications in Endurance and Throws.  

What is your favorite spot on campus?  I enjoy the way the entire campus fits together.  The college has done an excellent job of maintaining the integrity of the original buildings.  By that I mean, the newer buildings blend seamlessly with the buildings that were put up in the 1890’s and the early 1900’s.  As you drive up the main entrance to the campus (Hood College Drive), the overall effect is impressive.

Other than your team, what organization (s) do you participate in (on campus or off campus)?   I am the national president of the Road Runners Club of America, a national association of over 1,300 running clubs and events.  I actually got my start coaching with a local AAU Youth Track & Field team, the Frederick Striders Track & Field Club and continue there as a volunteer.  In the past, I have worked with several professional organizations during my 30 years as a staff member of the United States House of Representatives. I have also volunteered for the St. Vincent De Paul Society.

Briefly describe the most memorable experience during your collegiate athletic career.   At Frederick Community College, we had this seven-man track team with only two distance guys and we would actually try to win meets.  I had days when I ran the 6-mile, the 3-mile, the mile, and a leg of the 4 x 4. (This was the dark-ages, when track events were contested in English units).  It was certainly exhilarating and sometimes just hard, but we chased some teams around.  Maybe now my athletes can understand why I have so little sympathy when they try to duck out of the 4 x 4 :)

What is the most important societal issue facing college students?   We seem to be emerging from recession that has raised a number of troubling issues.  Major financial institutions imploded or had to be rescued to prevent a complete collapse of the entire economy.  Greed and short-term focus at nearly every level, from the consumer right up to the CEO, were all in play. If we are to have a viable economic system, I would hope that recent graduates view every large institution with some healthy skepticism and adopt personal and professional plans that consist of more than “I want it all and I want it now” and focus on long-term gain.

If you could change any one item in the world (in your personal life, school, community, amateur or professional sports, national/international issue, etc.), what would it be, why, and how would you do it?   I am increasingly concerned about the disconnect between our service men and women, the public, and the people who send them to into combat. When men and women are sent into war and the public is not inconvenienced in the slightest, that concerns me.   To me, that is why we are involved in three conflicts right now.  If we are going to send young men and women into harm’s way, then I think some sacrifice from the general public and those who sent them is in order.  If the public is not willing to make that sacrifice, then perhaps the conflict is not important enough.

What is your major in college, and what is the most important thing you learned in that discipline?   My major was Public Administration, but I had only limited aspirations to pursue a career in the field.  I guess the most important concept I learned is that “luck is where preparation meets opportunity.”  No doubt about it, I have been very lucky, but I have also been pretty good at recognizing opportunities and preparing for them.

Other than your family members, who was the most influential person in your life?   Former U.S. Representatives Goodloe Byron and Beverly Byron provided me with opportunities, promoted me, and recommended me to others.  Current Hood College volunteer assistant, 3-time U.S. Olympic Coach Jack Griffin, has always been supportive and now we are just having fun growing this program.

If you could give one piece of advice to elementary school children, what would that advice be?   Don’t be in such a hurry to grow up and don’t try to let an adult tell you that a single sport should dominate your life.  Try things and have fun.  

What is your favorite form of entertainment?    I love going to the beach.  If you have the right spot, it can be anything you want it to be; peaceful and contemplative or active and fun.

Outside of the Capital Athletic Conference, who or what is your favorite sports person or team?   I am a huge Green Bay Packer and Chicago White Sox fan.  The former has been a lot of fun, the latter not so much lately. I have also enjoyed watching the re-emergence of international caliber American distance running: Deena Kastor, Shalane Flanagan, Meb Kezflegihi, Chris Solinski and Galen Rupp.

Name three (3) people, real or fictional, living or dead, that you'd like to have dinner with?    Name three (3) people, real or fictional, living or dead, that you'd like to have dinner with?    I’d like to have dinner with Abraham Lincoln, Bill Bowerman (former track and field coach and co-founder of Nike, Inc.), and David Halberstam (Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author). Lincoln had a wry sense of humor and incredible resolve.  Bowerman is essentially the father of the modern collegiate track program and Halberstam was a remarkably gifted writer whose works covered everything from the Viet Nam war to Olympic crew. When I first started as a congressional staffer, Congressman Byron actually arranged a lunch for us with then-Congressman Ralph Metcalfe, who had finished second to Jessie Owens at the Berlin Olympic Games. I was awestruck.