From the Editor – RUSS EBBETS
Brooks Johnson
The first time I met Brooks Johnson was at a Level 1 School Kevin McGill hosted at Columbia University in NYC in the early 1990’s. In truth, Brooks was not an “early adopter” of the Coaching Education model. The curriculum and program that had been assembled by McGill, Vern Gambetta, Loren Seagrave, Gary Winckler, Bob Williams and Joe Vigil was minimalized and marginalized by many of the top U.S. veteran coaches. By this time, I had already done one master’s thesis on the necessity of a program such as this and also completed two study tours to the Soviet Union and East Germany to marvel at the effectiveness of their well-established programs of talent identification and career development.
By the 1990’s USATF’s Coaching Ed was no longer a “hard sell.” My first Level 1 school in Boston had three instructors and two participants. By the time of McGill’s Columbia school we had a classroom full of 40 participants with many of the top high school and collegiate coaches from throughout the Northeast prepared and excited for the 21-hour weekend program. In truth, Brooks assumed the role of “that guy” who felt it necessary to comment or question virtually every point made not so much for clarification but rather to highlight the weaknesses of the teaching staff. Cocksure and hard-headed, Brooks engaged me in a hallway discussion that scratched the edge of civility and was finally diffused by Kevin McGill’s intervention. I never forgot the interchange and over the next decade essentially avoided Brooks whenever possible.
Imagine my surprise in 2005 when I was chosen to be the U.S. National Team chiropractor for the IAAF World Championships in Helsinki. The honor and excitement was soon tempered when I found out our team manager would be none other than Brooks Johnson.
For this World Championships USATF resolved to bring the 4×1 sprinters, both men and women two weeks early for a relay camp to eliminate the recent history of poor stick work and dropped batons with an intensive team approach that would address the issue and prepare our national squads to battle the world. Upon arrival in Helsinki Brooks addressed both teams and underscored how the relay camp would progress, why this process would work and how the medal count at these international championships would either positively or negatively affect the sport’s public image in the U.S. that in turn would either positively or negatively impact fundraising, athlete support and help create a more professional model for the future. I remember the athletes being attentive and hard-working as they cycled through two-a-day workouts in the two weeks before the Helsinki Worlds.
These international assignments are a series of “long days” with morning, afternoon and occasionally evening therapy sessions. There is much structured time and little free time as the different four-person squads practiced and competed in some practice meets in Sweden and Denmark, if memory serves me.
On my one day off I had contacted the Finnish Chiropractic Association to introduce myself and offer to speak in Helsinki on the role a chiropractor plays for the U.S. National Team. To my good fortune they accepted my offer and quickly assembled a group of 20+ American-educated Finnish chiropractors for a lunchtime presentation and discussion. Lunch was reindeer, Santa’s reindeer, and it was delicious.
As the meeting adjourned, I was taxied back to the U.S. team bus at one of the famous amusement parks in Helsinki. The younger sprinters on the team, Justin Gatlin, Shawn Crawford, Alison Felix and Joanna Hayes all made a day of it while the bus awaited their return from their afternoon off. When I returned to the bus there was only one person on the bus, Brooks Johnson. I sat near the front and we talked.
I explained to Brooks that I had just addressed the Finnish chiropractors of Helsinki for a lunchtime talk. He was intrigued and many, many questions followed. Eventually I got to the point how I emphasized the import of the foot and how during the 1980’s, in my coaching days, I used foot drills with much success for injury prevention and speed development. Brooks spoke with enthusiasm how he had done similar drills during his tenure at Stanford when he had many of the great early collegiate female distance runners (notably Patti Sue Plumer among others) and also noted similar successes. In the two hour’s time we had to kill until the athletes returned he questioned me at length how I came up with my “thoughts and theories” on the foot. The time available allowed me to review my Soviet studies, coaching background, my master’s thesis and how I was able to combine all this knowledge into my lower extremity course I taught at NY Chiropractic College. In the end he asked if I had heard of the High Performance Summits he organized in Las Vegas each December? I had not but he extended to me the opportunity to speak for 90 minutes on my thoughts the coming December to address coaches from throughout the U.S. on how to improve distance running of the national teams. I welcomed the opportunity and began to work on my presentation as soon as I returned to the U.S. from the Helsinki World Championships.
In the early 2000’s the East African dominance of the middle and long distances at the international level was without equal. The U.S. languished as a top five country and medal production or significant performances were spotty at best for both the men and women. Brooks’s vision was a long view, not a quick band aid approach. As the Summit grew close I remember finalizing what was to be my opening statement, “It has only taken me 18 years to get this audience…” and then I was off on a series of 12 topics that justified my claims using neurology, kinesiology, biomechanics, neuroplasticity, technique and training to create an argument that American distance running could transform itself with a different approach. The December 2005 presentation went very well and I was asked to return in 2006 to give a similar talk.
It should be noted that the Helsinki men’s 4×1 dropped the stick. On the 1-2 exchange the baton flew up in the air and that was the end of the U.S.’s race.
The relay exchanges are a clear example of the psychomotor skill called Fitt’s Law. Fitt’s Law states that the more rapidly one tries to do any activity the sloppier the whole process becomes. This applies to many activities from relay racing to stacking plastic cups on YouTube. The solution here is to automate the whole process, as much as possible and then practice what can be done.
In a previous Track Coach we addressed the many aspects of the short relay with a panel of experts that included Brooks Johnson. Dennis Grady was a participant in the roundtable and he has penned his thoughts on the why’s and how’s that hopefully will mark a new starting point that will help the national teams achieve the results their unquestioned potential signifies.And former TC editor Kevin McGill has sent us a letter deploring the recent lack of international success by U.S. men’s long throwers—and how we might improve those results.
Long ago teammate of mine Jerry Bouma penned a short piece on what it means to be part of a team. He is a product of one of America’s storied programs (Villanova) and the support I received following an August health scare has been nothing short of fantastic and will no doubt underscore the importance of a shared heritage and development.
Finally, a farewell to Brooks. Brooks Johnson passed on June 29, 2024 at age 90 narrowly missing the outstanding performances of the women’s U.S. 4×1 team at the recent Paris Olympics. Brooks, thank you for a lifetime’s worth of efforts to improve this sport and leaving an indelible mark. May you rest in peace, my friend.