All about Coach Tief, and how he grew to love running.You know, I was very reluctant to make this page. I don't want to make this website into a personal running blog. I guess it is important though. When you hear my story, you'll understand why I love running so much. First of all, I really didn't like running that much at the start. I just was pretty good at it. My brother was a year older than me in school and went out for cross country. I followed his path and went out for cross country my freshman year of high school. When I joined the team, there was this kid named Troy Bolton (Not the High School Musical character. That was his name, I swear it.) I wanted to beat him so bad. He was a freshman that looked like he was 30. I never beat him because he got hurt halfway through the season, and then didn't come out for the team next year. But with him leaving, I was bumped up to varsity by the end of the year! By then I was hooked on running. I ran track and cross country all four years in high school. I was a good high school runner. My CC team made it to state my Junior and Senior year. We placed 2nd at state both times. I also qualified individually for 1 mile my senior year in track. This is a picture of me (on the far right) and my team after we set a school record in the 4x1600 meter relay.  Running in H.S. led to running in college. I wasn't great at CC in college, but I was good enough to be on the conference team. In track I never won an individual event, but I placed in the top 5 often. I loved the competition. I also loved being on a team. Runners just seemed like good people. After I finished my education, my running career was over. I started coaching cross country at my old high school. This is where I met my wife. She was an assistant CC coach for the girls. I was an assistant on the guy's side. The season ended, and I asked if I was still going to see her. Two years later, we were married. Because I liked coaching so much, I switched professions. At first, I was a radio station producer. It wasn't much fun so I got a teaching degree. Now I teach 6th grade and coach at the high school. My wife doesn't coach with me anymore. I got a job in a different school district, and she stopped coaching to raise our three children. Basically, running helped me find my profession, and my wife. In a strange way, I owe my life to running. - Written by David Tiefenthaler Related Articles All about tips4running.com Return from About Coach Tief to the running tips homepage.
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