Rush Running gaining popularity in Bentonville
Posted on Wednesday, July 23, 2008
BENTONVILLE - Standing on the blistering hot track at Old Tiger Stadium, Mike Rush is beaming almost as brightly as the late-afternoon summer sun.
As hot as it is, Rush is impressed by the large group of runners that has again joined him for weekly sprint training - offered as an offshoot of his new company.
Rush Running Company opened in March in Bentonville, offering just about everything local walkers and runners need.
The store and the four different group runs give Rush, a former University of Arkansas runner, a chance to share his passion.
"I'm an absolute geek," he says. "I like to work out. I like to run and I want to see everybody doing it.
"It's a healthy lifestyle. It's how (my wife Alison and I ) live and how we'd like everybody to live. We're just trying to promote that."
The group runs have attracted big crowds featuring all stages of runners - from children to adults, from those training to those just looking to get in shape.
More than 60 people attended Monday's sprint training - dubbed Rush Hour - at Old Tiger Stadium.
Rush, in a company T-shirt and running shorts that don't hide his Razorback and running man tatoos, hands out a workout and then spends the hour cheering on runners or answering training questions.
He's excited by the large crowd and that energy spreads to the runners, who support each other during the workouts.
Rush has also had big groups for fun runs that start at the North Bentonville Trailhead on Wednesdays, for hill workouts on Fridays and for longer runs on the Slaughter Pen Trails on Sundays.
Rush runs with the group on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays but still offers advice, training and route ideas.
Rush, who ran for the Razorbacks form 1995-99, met his future wife Alison at Arkansas as she put together a successful career as a distance runner.
Alison Zeinner Rush who ran from 2000-05, had top three finishes in SEC cross country, indoor and outdoor meets and advanced to the national outdoor meet twice.
Mike Rush's involvement in running continued after college.
He's been a coach at Fayetteville High School, the director for the Race for the Cure, a representative for adidas and a trainer.
"I used to be a personal trainer where I charged people and I felt bad (because ) I have a little too much fun doing that," Rush says. "This is what I know.
"There are not too many places you can go and get free training and that's what I want to offer. Boy, people are jumping all over it up here."
And not just in Bentonville. Rush said he has runners from as far away as Fayetteville and Joplin, Mo., participating in the different group runs.
The high-energy Rush has already seen an impact from the training sessions, sensing a buzz in the community about getting healthy.
"People see their progression and that makes me feel good too because I want to help them out," Rush says.
Runners often stop by Rush's store, located at 2104 South Walton Blvd., to share their recent experiences or achievements.
"It makes me feel like I'm making an impact when people just drop in," Rush says.
"That's what I want this store to become - that cool walking / running hangout."
Rush Running Company offers a full line of footwear as well as apparel, accessories and sports medicine and nutrition products. Rush also does a gate analysis to make sure each shopper gets the correct shoe.
Whether its out on the track and trails or in his shop, is happy to be promoting the running lifestyle.
"I'm a runner in a running store," Rush says with a big smile. "It really doesn't get much better than this."
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