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Ford Palmer and Nicole Bush join as athlete contributors

By Chris Chavez

February 8, 2017

As we get started on this adventure, the response from the running community has been fantastic and we’re really excited to see what we can do in this space. We welcome all perspectives including the athlete insight and so we’ve decided to bring on Ford Palmer and Nicole Bush as regular contributors to the site.

I’ll start with a little background on Nicole.

Nicole is one of the top U.S. steeplechasers since breaking out as a seven-time All-American at Michigan State. She finished fourth at the 2008 Olympic Trials, was sixth in 2009, took second in 2010 and then qualified for the world championships in 2013 by winning the USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Des Moines, Iowa. Running is something Nicole got into after quitting karate and dancing as a kid. She brought home her permission slip for track to her parents and was asked if she was sure she wanted to do it, considering she quit other things. She stuck with it and ran one of the fastest miles in sixth grade but also refused to run over 400 meters for the rest of her middle school career. Now she runs more than one lap and jumps over water barriers in the process. She has general coaching experience and can share insight on injury.

Then there’s Ford.

He brings an interesting perspective as someone who just purchased a Chromebook to start writing just a few days ago. Ford is a vegan middle distance runner who trains with the HOKA One One New Jersey-New York Track Club and is training partners with Kyle Merber, Donn Cabral and Johnny Gregorek. Ford attended Monmouth University after a successful high school football and track and field career. He decided to leave behind the gridiron for track due to concussions. He surprised many with his fifth place finish at the 2014 U.S. Outdoor Track and Field Championships and after several shortcomings including a 4:00.00, he broke four minutes for the mile. His personal best is now down to 3:55. He’s excited to share his insight into the psyche and training of a professional distance runner.

You will probably also see other athletes pop up on the site on occasion. Right now, we’re really excited to have Ford and Nicole joining the crew.

Chris Chavez

Chris Chavez launched CITIUS MAG in 2016 as a passion project while working full-time for Sports Illustrated. He covered the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and grew his humble blog into a multi-pronged media company. He completed all six World Marathon Majors and is an aspiring sub-five-minute miler.