Peter Mancini Bromka

I’m a running coach! Though I’ve been coaching for a bit now, I’ve been hesitant to announce this new chapter too broadly. But being down in Orlando supporting @ari_hendrix1 alerted me that I’m past due to make it known, to begin sharing this story, and to suggest that if you’re looking for partnership in your running journey, please be in touch. “Why didn’t I know that you’re coaching Ari?” @kofuzi asked me at our live podcast with @relay_site “Honestly, I’m comfortable telling my story, but I’m still learning how to tell others’ stories, since I don’t want to make their journey about me.” For me coaching is best when it occurs at the intersection of expertise and empathy. When I’m truly able to feel what the athlete is going through I’m then able to assist them in being their best. But performance is only one indicator. To improve as a coach I hired a coach, and when @coachmichellelake asked my aspiration for the work my answer had less to do with shiny outcomes, more to focus on the space within which athletes aspire. I want to create emotional space and training support with which runners can dream, and try, and fail, and try again. I want to assist runners in aspiring so fully that they feel empowered to take on goals that at first they’re barely able to voice aloud. This game we play as athletes is too difficult to endure if feeling overwhelmed or alone in the process. I’m certainly not the coach for everyone, but if you love this game, are looking to explore your potential long-term, and are seeking partnership in your journey, please be in touch. I am currently able to take on a few more athletes! Please complete the survey linked in my profile to tell me about yourself, your goals, and what questions you have for me. As for telling stories from the perspective of supporter, not athlete, the potential feels limitless, in due time there is so much more to share. Onward friends! (Link to coaching inquiry form in my profile 🔗)

When people write me from around the world asking for advice on how to improve in the marathon I guide them on mileage, weights and intervals, but honestly I'm not an expert at any of those. If they're willing to listen, and open to learn, I also suggest, "Find friends who love this game as much as you do. Who's passion often out paces your own. Build a running life with them. Stack miles through mud, sleet and rain together. Because years from now no one can know which one of you will still be healthy, who will be given the chance to shine, or if any of you will succeed on this stage. And when it really comes down to it, when it's brass tacks, legs in acid, time to hurt, it better be about more than you. Cause those final miles are too damn hard to run only for yourself." · Those who listen are the lucky ones.

2 seconds. It’s a deep breath. A pause to think. Or cause to always wonder, “What if?” · Honestly, I could find two seconds everywhere and nowhere on that course on Sunday. The drizzle soaked asphalt was trampled by hundreds of men racing in unison to achieve a dream together. But of course it’s never that simple. Over a hundred men passed through half under pace. And then it thinned. And then it snapped. Until the final handful of quarter miles in which we surged, shifted and forced ourselves to keep staring straight into the searing sunlight of this painful dream. Some have said you never actually forget a miss like this. That the feeling of falling so barely short etches itself deep into your heart’s memory forever. If that's true, if I am in fact always followed by the day I flew this close to the sun and fell just short, it will be a blessed life spent thankful for speed I never knew I could harness and mettle I always doubted I could muster. 37 men qualified. I was 38th. A 2:19:02 Marathoner Head high, heart full.

“Pick it up sir, you’re not leaving the ground!” I hollered at a 79-year old man that I spotted rounding the bark chip path at my local park this morning. “You’re the worst!” He exclaimed. “I’m just trying to keep putting one foot in front of the other…” Dad voiced how so many of us often feel as runners. His pace might be slight. His flight phase might no longer lift. But he’s still getting miles in as he rounds out his eighth decade. Love you Dad ❤️‍🔥

Happy Mothers’ Day Mom, Our fourth without you is…the best yet? It can feel sickening to say that it’s getting easier here without you, but it’s true. For years I mistook the pain and anger over your absence as a proxy for our connection. As if letting go of my bitterness at the world was akin to releasing our grasp. But of course that’s not true. You’re you. I’m me. And the world keeps spinning with your energy. And there’s so much to catch up on. How my career continues to build forward successfully. Channeling the essence of your energy finds me in new cities, meeting new people, empowering others in a way I think you would feel proud. And oh how W is thriving. How your heart would burst at the site of his success. How the kid who couldn’t read for shit when you died, can now read. Really READ. Can pour his intellect and empathy into the world’s stories, arriving out the other side a new little boy, growing into such a kind man. So yes, I’m glad that the fourth Mother’s Day in your absence is the best so far. Because I was sprinting through life’s best years with eyes teary and heart aching, at risk of missing it. Today’s wonderful because mom’s are the best. But that’s not just about today, since each day is powered by your presence. Of course, I wish I could call. So I do call. I find a moment in my mind and we speak. Much the same as always. Happy Mother’s Day Mom. Love you, P

How do the mind and body work in concert or conflict? Though slightly reluctant, @hrowe802 engaged us in a thoughtful discussion of this topic. Given she runs a neuroscience lab at Northeastern we feel fortunate! We also get into her wonderful running journey as well. How she hit the 2020 OTQ then spent years on a journey to the trails to find her mojo again before hitting the sub-2:37 at @mckirdytrained OTQ in March! We are so thankful to meet such incredible athletes and people on this journey to the '28 Trials!

"A lot of physicians get this, so you're in good company," the medical technician told me yesterday. Like many of you, I was shaken by a recent death in the running world due to to a cardiac event. So I decided to stop sitting on my hands and get the coronary artery calciun score CT scan that friends have been encouraging me to schedule for over a year. "Do you have risk factors? Or a history of heart disease?" The tech inquired. "Well, my grandfather had heart attacks, and my father had heart attacks..." I trailed off as her head nodded. This stuff is real, and though no test can guarantee a thing, I figure it's best for us to learn from those around us. Us athletes like to think we can outrun everything, but maybe similar to actual talk therapy, it's alright to slow down and rely on modern science in addition to all the miles. I post this not for support, but to encourage other athletes, especially over 40, to see what tests they might be overlooking. Stay safe friends. Hug your loved ones. And give thanks for everyday on this spinning blue planet. ❤️‍🔥🌎

“All you gotta do is trust it. They’re gonna sing either way,” was my final advice for Kris pre-Eugene half. It was a butchered adaptation from an iconic scene from A Star Is Born. I’d rewatched it flying home from Boston, and was immediately brought back to the emotionality of performance that I so connected with back in 2019. Cause nerves can feel debilitating. And toughness can only take you so far. But Race Day is a gift, that goes off either way. Whether you step to the stage or not. So, to see Kris round the turn, pump his arms into overdrive, and sprint home in 1:29 Was Hayward Magic on full display. ❤️‍🔥

Sunday blew my mind, but there were whispers… Though breaking 2 still boggles my brain, one of my biggest take aways from this weekend is how few people grasp just how fast a 57:30 half marathon is. 4:24 min/mile 66 second laps of the track. Yomif Kajelcha had run that years ago. Twice! Sebastian Sawe was only 35 seconds slower. Double that up and the men have 4-5 minutes to break 2. Though insanely quick, it’s 10 sec/mile slower. But a jog! 😂 I’m in awe of what they did together on Sunday. Yet also somehow not that surprised that Yomif, who I used to see floating around the Nike track, was capable of such a feat. 1:59:30 & 1:59:41 Bravo to their entire teams. What a beautiful time to be a runner ❤️‍🔥

Medical professionals are incredible… We are continually astounded by what qualifiers can do! Please enjoy our conversation with @brookeaboo breaking down how she’s learned to make marathoning work amid her 3rd year residency in pediatrics. It’s a lesson in flexibility, trust in your sense of self, and a WHOLE LOT OF CAFFEINE! We’re rooting for Brooke!! 🔥

What a month ❤️‍🔥 From the desert to sin city, The Gorge to Beantown, Tracktown USA and back, This month has filled my heart beyond the brim, And instilled deep belief in the power of this sport. Running, is so many things, to so many types and paces of people. “I feel like it dims your light,” is how a friend gave me feedback at the beginning of the month on how I’d recently gotten caught up commenting on running drama in March. Call it winter blues. Or boredom. I’d gotten a bit bogged down in the things I didn’t want to see, rather than amplifying the stories and people who uplift this running world. In a moment, his comment reframed my mind, setting me on one of the most beautiful running months of my life. There’s so much negativity and actual suffering in this world. Why focus our short period on this blue planet, amplifying anything other than what inspired us most? Onward and upward friends, many more miles ahead…

PETER VS FLAPJACK @bromka came to Eugene for 2 things… 1. To host a live show of @roadtothetrials in the @eugenemarathon expo 2. To beat Flapjack in the 5K! For some background, for men if you beat Flapjack or women if you beat Flapjill you win a year supply of @krusteaz pancakes!