500k: The Man Behind Etrain

By: The Etrain Crew (minus Jarrett)

*Before we get started, we would like to congratulate fellow writer Caleb Gatchell for qualifying for D2 nationals in the 1500! It is an outstanding accomplishment and we are happy to know that he will represent PA as well as the Etrain brand at NCAA's. Congrats again Caleb!*

If you're reading this post, thank you! This means that the blog has reached over 500,000 total views (half a million!) and we couldn't thank you enough for the support.

Jarrett Felix started the blog because he loved the sport. He wasn't in it for recognition, he wasn't in it to bash/criticize certain individuals, and he wasn't in it for money. He simply loved the sport (and that's pretty rare when we talk about track and xc coverage today). Jarrett started the blog because it was a way to facilitate discussion and give credit where credit was due.

For over a decade now, athletes, parents, and coaches have tuned into the blog to read the outstanding content Jarrett has posted. Now, the Etrain writers felt it was time to give Jarrett some of the recognition he deserves, and what better way to do it than to interview the man himself?

Below are a list of questions from the Etrain writers asking Jarrett about himself and his blogging career. As you can see by his answers (and probably by most of his content), the guy is pretty selfless which is why he was initially hesitant to do this interview because he "didn't want the blog to be about him". After some convincing, we got him to agree.

Be sure to read up below and ask any questions we missed in the comment section below! Again, thank you for the support!

-The Etrain Crew

Click here for Jarrett's most recent District Preview/League Recap post

GETTING TO KNOW ETRAIN

1.     If you could interview any runner, who would it be and why?

Unsurprisingly, I think the answer to this would have to be Robby Andrews. As most people probably realized if they read my stuff, he’s my favorite runner and he’s been a part of some of my favorite races to watch over the years. If nothing else, I’d enjoy just reliving all his awesome moments in his career. However, he’s also had a ton of ups and downs in his career with some big highs and big lows, seemingly on the brink of retirement from the sport just a couple years back, so it would be cool to hear and write about his journey first hand.

2.     What was your favorite state meet (XC or Track)?

This a tough one because there have been so many individual races that stand out as extraordinary. However, I’ve only had the privilege of attending a select few meets in person over the years and those experiences have definitely been memorable than watching anything back on replay. So I’d say the 2012 XC State Championships was up at #1. The races were pretty epic including a crazy finish between Galassi and Luke Jones in A, a battle of three of the best AA talents ever in Shearn, Jaskowak and Todaro and, of course, the climax of the Henderson vs. O’Hara debate that had dominated the blog since the summer (I think the original post I made on who would win states back in August is still the most viewed post I’ve had in my career). I’ve found over the years, it’s rare that a race will live up to the hype or turn out how you dream it will. But when they do come together, like that race did, ending in a 6 man tiebreaker again, they are unforgettable.

3.     If you could put together a dream PA alumni race (all in their prime) what event would it be and who would be in it?

Man, another really tricky question. Personally, I always loved relays. I think they are what really made the sport fun and seeing everyone come together to do something special is a great time. Honestly, my favorite race to see would be a 4x800 battle with the top programs from the last decade facing off with their 4 best alumni. I’ve done mock versions of this before, but seeing it live and in person would be fascinating. I’d probably have CB South, Abington, CB West, Upper Dublin, O’Hara, LaSalle, Henderson, Cumberland Valley, Pennridge and State College on the agenda for this race as of right now. If we give it another couple weeks, we may sneak another team or two in based on their performances down the stretch this year. I think 10 teams is probably the perfect amount for a 4x8, but I can push for 12 if need be.

And it’s really hard to pick which schools belong in (Baldwin, DT West, Wissahickon, etc.). Upper Dublin has to get because they are my alma mater, sorry fans.

4.     What is your proudest racing moment?

I feel fortune to say I have a lot of moments I’m proud of in my racing career. I’m definitely not the fastest kid (pretty much everybody I blog about is better than I was at my apex), but I think the best thing about running is that each person can have individual success regardless of their starting point/ending point and each other runner can related to that success. Not to get too philosophical or anything.

But to answer the actual question, I think if I have to pick one moment, my proudest moment is probably the first time I (officially) broke 2 minutes in the 800. It was a goal of mine ever since I overachieved my sophomore year of high school and, despite one split under 2 minutes that I can’t really count, it took me until my sophomore year of college to actually do it. It was fresh off a miserable 1500 and a rough indoor track season, which had made me really question whether I wanted to keep training so hard if I meant I wasn’t going to continue to make any progress.

But on Muhlenberg’s home track on a random day, I pulled out a 1:59.62 and won my heat of the 800 (which wasn’t the fast heat, but still feels good). It was my first time under 2 minutes and I got to celebrate with all my friends after the race was over. I’ve been under the barrier again since, but I’ll always remember that first time.

5.     What are your hobbies outside of running?

Um, nothing really. Just kidding. Does writing about running count? Just kidding. Guys, seriously. I do other things. I really like basketball. It’s probably my favorite sport to actually play, I’m just not particularly good. Ultimately, I’m a pretty competitive person so I’m always down to play games and compete. There’s this game we play called spike ball. It’s pretty sick, look it up. I also listen to a lot of sports podcasts and Bill Simmons stuff. Grantland/Simmons was/is kinda my blogging related inspiration.

6.     If you could go on an easy run with anyone, who would it be?

Well, the cliché answer here (but true answer) in order would probably be my girlfriend Nicki and then my college team, then my high school team. But those aren’t really fun answers, so I’ll give you my fun one.

I think it would have to be Chris Derrick. I feel like he’s the kinda sarcastic, smart, runner dude that would be very entertaining to go on a run with. There’s also like a 50 percent chance I wouldn’t like him much at all and he would think I was lame and stupid. But I’ll never know unless I find out right?

Merber would be invited too. For sure.

7.     Anything the readers should know about you?

I just want to take a quick sec to clear the air about the Steph Curry thing. Yes, I am a bandwagon mega-fan of Steph, but I was a band wagon fan circa 2012-2013 rather than circa the year the Warriors won the title and stuff. It started with NBA 2k and hit its full peak in the Warriors-Spurs series. So, like, don’t get it twisted.

ETRAIN AND THE BLOG

8.     For any new readers or those who might not know, just tell us a little bit about how you got the nickname Etrain and how you began blogging.

Well, at Upper Dublin High School, we had a number of guys who were real into the Penntrack forums (believe it or not they used to be hugely popular among runners, not just people complaining about things). So, naturally, by the time I hit sophomore year I wanted to get involved. My dad had already made an account using our family email (didn’t have my own email back then) so I started borrowing his account. So the name “etrain11” was actually the name my dad created based on his nickname (“Earl” was his nickname because of the basketball player Earl Monroe and “train” comes from the act of training in the gym, my dad powerlifts as a hobby. The 11 comes from the month we were both born, November). Once I got the account, I just got hooked posting and discussing track. I was on the website all the time and became something of a well-known name.

We realized at a couple meets that people recognized the name “etrain” so we (my friends at Upper Dublin) made a fan page on Facebook and got a ton of followers through it (relatively speaking of course). I also made a Top 50 list for XC that became kind of popular on the site and something of a trademark for me personally. My brother then came up with the idea for a blog. He created the very first one for me personally and inspired me to give it a shot and have a bit more freedom to get readers. That was really the birth of the site.

9.     What is it that you think separates the Etrain brand from other track and field websites? Any one aspect in particular?

Honestly, I feel people recognize the name because I’ve been around so long. I strive to be knowledgeable, fair and fun in my work and I hope people are attracted to that aspect. I feel like many people could do what I’ve done, however, I had the advantage of doing it first and growing a bit of a fan base for it. From there, the commenters and the readers have really blown the things up. Without the community of readers we have, the blog is nothing. I get many of my best ideas from them, a ton of information and they are the motivation to keep me working harder and dreaming bigger.

Also, I feel like I’m not afraid to treat the high school sport a bit more maturely. I’m not afraid to make predictions or rankings that aren’t just strictly numbers, but considering the subjective parts of the sport as well (and there are way more subjective pieces than objective). Many sites are afraid to be subjective because they are so concerned with offending people. I trust that my readers are mature enough to know that I don’t mean any offense and I’m just having fun and trying to keep things interesting. I’m always proud to hear that people read what I had to say and were motivated to prove me wrong. It’s just a perfect attitude to have about the site and the sport in general.

10.  When did you realize the blog was going to be this big?

Haha, never. I never had high expectations honestly because I know it’s a very small, niche market and I guess I just never thought I would get any readers at all. I’ve done a lot of writing just because I love it and I love the sport, but when you are behind your computer you have no idea who is actually reading. You can’t get a feel for it at all.

I think in 2012, when the blog really hit it’s stride, I realized just how big of a deal it was to some people. When I went to states and parents were coming up to me and saying that they loved the site it was just amazing. I couldn’t believe it. I never really thought about kids caring what I had to say, let alone parents and coaches.

As long as I have one reader who gets joy or motivation from what I (and now we) do, it’s “big” to me. So in a way I guess never might be a bad answer haha.

11.  What is it like to have a community of runners know who you are and regard your opinion so highly? Why do you think that is?

Again, I don’t really think I’m doing anything ground breaking. It’s amazing to have like a “fan base” of sorts and to have people who I admire and respect reciprocate is really unbelievable. The best part of my blogging career has been readers reaching out and talking track with me. It’s unreal.

But there’s a ton of guys who have brought a lot to the table for our site and I’m just one of the few that was willing to put my name on everything. Really my biggest advantage is I’ve been doing this for a long time. Experience, as I’ve said like a million times on the blog, is important in any part of life. So definitely for the blog as well.

12.  What is your most memorable post and why?

Alright you’ll have to let me over indulge a bit on this question. I have a couple posts that I really like. I think a lot of my best work probably came in the 2014-2015 seasons, just because I had the most time and really got into it. But my favorite actual posts might be on my old blog. I did this one post on Valentine’s Day in like 2012 or so where I just kind of starting writing and then, by the end, I had ending up accidentally making an elaborate running-girlfriend metaphor that I had not envisioned when I started. I thought it was one of my cooler posts.

But my most memorable post is probably the post I made right before the 2012 XC state championships about one of my best friends, Francis Ferruzzi. It was right before his last race and I came up to Hershey to watch him run. The post still brings a bit of a tear to my eye and makes me very nostalgic and happy. Sometimes the best part of running has nothing to do with races or times and has everything to do with friends and teammates.

13.  Is there a certain writer you try to emulate?

I love Bill Simmons. He’s definitely like a writing icon of mine and I get inspired by reading his stuff. I like to be factual and knowledgeable, yet funny and casual. I aim to try and write in a way that lets you imagine we are just talking to each other. I want people to hear my voice when I write and seem like they could talk back. And I definitely want people to laugh and to think. That’s the way Simmons writes a lot of stuff and I really like it.

14.  What went through your mind as you were writing the Brett Favre post on the old blog? What was the reaction to that post like?

Retiring from blogging before my senior year of college was really sad. I think that last year, it had gotten a little overwhelming. When you have a lot of readers commenting and sharing thoughts and making requests, it can take a toll on you, especially because I like to try and please everyone. So I just decided to take a break, especially because I could feel myself getting so old.

But writing the post was very sad and thinking back on all the memories and experiences was crazy. The support the post received was unbelievable. The comments I received both on the blog and off it were unreal. I felt so touched and appreciated and a part of the community. It really meant a lot to have so much support even after I was finished.

15.  What was it that made you comeback to blogging? Any one instance in particular?

Like I said before, I retired originally because I just felt like I was trying to please too many people and I was getting overwhelmed. But I never really stopped writing or following the sport, I just changed tactics. I was doing a decent amount of D3 stuff and crunching a ton of numbers for my XC team that year. I started a new blog on the side, didn’t really tell many people about it and just went about business as usual. I decided that if I was gonna start up another blog, I was going to write about whatever I wanted to and do things my way. Stop trying to be what everyone else wanted me to be and just do what I felt like.

From there, things just kind of grew. I always knew the most about PA High School stuff and, not to brag, but I feel that the time and effort I’ve put into study the sport in the last decade has made my knowledge base pretty darn extensive. So it just was easy to write about that kind of thing and slowly the site became more and more PA central.

I think what really made my comeback complete was finding Grantland.com. I started reading that stuff all the time and it reminded me how much I loved writing. I really love the stuff so it didn’t feel like a job or a duty anymore, it just felt like a passion and things really took off after that. I think people saw my passion and got on board and then the site became as popular as ever.

16.  How have you noticed the impact of the blog on the running community?

I’m not sure how much of an impact it’s had on the runners themselves. I think people like reading it and talking about it, but the kids make the results on their own with hard work and determination. I do, however, think that the way we talk about running has shifted dramatically thanks to the blogs that have existed.

When I was in high school, penntrack forums used to be all the rage. They were huge, bigger than this site was for sure. Now, I feel like the blogs have taken on the role of the discussion which is interesting. I also feel like the small level of competition we have injected into the market has helped push Penntrack and ourselves into better coverage. I’ve seen some of our ideas reflected in their work over the years and obviously I’ve incorporated some of their ideas into our work.

17.  If you could go back and change anything about the blog, what would it be?

I definitely made some big mistakes, especially in the beginning. I was still a kid when I started up and I made some posts and handled some situations very poorly. Even now, there’s a lot of times where I just don’t what the right thing to do is morally. I have had some sleepless nights for sure trying to think about that.

But honestly, I’m not sure I would change anything. The mistakes I made proved to be lessons for the future. I have goals to improve the site in the future for sure, but I’ve kind of accepted what the past of the blog was and I’m very happy with the experiences I’ve had and the positive feedback we’ve received over the years.

18.  What’s your most memorable fan interaction fan from the blog?

The most memorable time period was my junior and senior year of high school. That’s what I started to realize the people actually knew the name “etrain” outside of the UD circle. We met up with the CB South 4x8 that was on the verge of the state record a few days later. CB South knew our 4x8 because they were both really good teams and I was just chilling as an alternate gawking. Then one day in the hallway at Shippensburg, I was talking on the phone and Tom Mallon, future state record holder (and current indoor state record holder), walked by and just said, “What’s up, etrain”.

And I just inwardly lost my mind like nobody’s business.

19.  What is the vision for the blog moving forward?

Moving forward, my #1 goal is to increase the site’s legitimacy. I feel like a lot of people just see the site as “some kid with a blog” and, although that’s technically at the most basic level what it is, I feel like we are so much more than that. I feel like we’ve received some great feedback over the years, but it still kind of feels like no one wants to associate themselves with us at some level. I think I can help improve this by hopefully opening up more of a dialogue with coaches and athletes and getting a more active twitter following going forward and, if things go well, we can continue to make strides in the right direction. We’ve already come a long way from our initial “blacklisting” of sorts where we were the “he who must not be named” of the penntrack forums and stuff and I think we can continue to become more respected in the community if we can continue to respect the sport, promote a fun environment and create strong contact.

I’ve been unbelievably blessed to be joined by a talented and passionate group of writers who want this blog to be just as big as I do (if not more so) and work really hard to expand our range and build on our ideas. I’m so thankful that these guys have come along and done so much. We’ve expanded into a variety of new areas and I think we will hopefully continue to expand in those areas. It’s a much trickier market as there are a ton of sites out there that do what we do for college and professional athletics, but I do think my fellow writers are knowledgeable and creative and bring a lot to the table.

The next big focus will probably be a YouTube channel that we will be working to update and develop. I think we can do a lot of fun stuff through the video avenue in addition to continuing to come up with new ideas for writing pieces. We can’t lose sight of what made us who we are and what got us to this point and, hopefully, we will continue to bring great content to the community.