Who we are and why we're here.....

Our Mission: to provide post-collegiate distance runners an environment and community in which they can develop both professionally and personally, with the ultimate goal of achieving success on a national and an international level.

Our Story: the Ragged Mountain Racing team was conceived by several members of Charlottesville's running community, all of whom have known each other for years. But its roots go back decades, starting with Mark and Cynthia Lorenzoni, who first met in 1979.

Bob and Dana Thiele, Bob Wilder, Cynthia and Mark Lorenzoni

Mark and Cynthia first met at Michigan State University, where Cynthia was a three sport varsity athlete (cross country, indoor and outdoor track) and Mark a mathematics major with an interest in coaching. They married in 1980, after moving to Charlottesville, VA. Cynthia continued to train post-collegiately, and during the early eighties Cynthia (under the guidance of Mark) ran personal records at the marathon (2:38), 10 mile (56:53) and 10,000m (34:10) distances. She capped off her competitive career with a 42nd place finish at the first ever U.S. Women's Olympic Trials in 1984.

Somehow, in the midst of all this coaching and racing, the two opened the Ragged Mountain Running Shop in the winter of 1982 and, thanks to overwhelming community support, have outgrown three different Elliewood Avenue locations on the UVa Corner. They count their 40 part-time employees as "family" (in addition, of course, to their four children - Alec, Audrey, Adrian, and Annie), as anyone who has been to the shop can attest to.

Since opening their doors in 1982, the two have spent their time vigorously promoting distance running and fitness in the Charlottesville community, having organized over 500 races (all of them for charity), including the Women's 4 miler (which raised over $300,000 in 2008 alone, all of which goes to community breast cancer programs), the Charlottesville 10-miler, and the Ragged Mountain Cup, as well as having coached various runners of all abilities and backgrounds over the years.

One such runner was Bob Wilder - Dr. Wilder ran distance at Dayton University in the 1980's, and went to medical school at the University of Virginia. It was here, in the mid 1980's, that Mark and Bob first met. Bob wanted to continue training post-collegiately, and asked Mark to coach him. He ultimately ran a 2:35 marathon while a medical student at UVa, and in 1988 started his residency in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation in Texas (he would soon return).

Then, in 1993, another Bob rolled into Ragged Mountain Running Shop - Bobby Thiele (he later shortened his name) was at the time an 8th grade member of Charlottesville High School's junior varsity indoor track team, and he was looking for his first pair of track spikes. Mark and Bob instantly became friends and their paths intertwined almost constantly as Bob grew up in Charlottesville. After graduating from CHS, Bob went on to run cross country at UVa, and he and Mark were able to stay in touch through college.

It was at UVa that Bob Thiele and Dana Coons (eventually to become Thiele) first met - both ran cross country and track for UVa, and by their fourth year both had achieved some measure of success - Dana was an ACC champion and NCAA qualifier in the 10,000m, Bob was a three-time individual qualifier and NCAA All-American in cross country. It was also at UVa that Bob and Dana met Jason Dunn (now the head distance coach at Stanford), whose first year as a head distance coach took place during their senior year.

After college, Bob and Dana went their separate ways - Dana spent two additional years training and coaching at UVa, then left Charlottesville to train in a more structured environment (which she found in Team USA Minnesota). Bob moved to Nashville to go to medical school, then to Chicago for his surgery internship. So how did everything fall into place?

A couple of things happened. First, Mark and Cynthia Lorenzoni met the founders of the Hanson's Distance Project at a conference several years ago, and immediately decided that the city of Charlottesville would be the perfect location for such a group. Second, after finishing his sports medicine fellowship and working for a time in Houston, Dr. Wilder moved back to Charlottesville to work at the University of Virginia. Third, Dana and Bob (who had been dating since 2006) got engaged in the spring of 2007 and moved back to Charlottesville. Last, and not least, Jason Dunn hired Brad Hunt from Kent State, and under their direction, the UVa cross country team continued to improve by leaps and bounds.

With the Lorenzonis sufficiently inspired by the Hanson's Distance Project, Dr. Wilder, Bob and Dana back in Charlottesville, and UVa consistently producing exceptional collegiate athletes, the stage was set for Ragged Mountain Racing. In November 2007, the Lorenzonis, Dr. Wilder, Bob and Dana, Jason Dunn, and Brad Hunt all began meeting to discuss the possibility of creating such a team in Charlottesville. All parties agreed that it could, and more important should be done. Thus, Ragged Mountain Racing was born......

Our Coaches:
- Brad Hunt: Brad Hunt is in his third season as a middle distance / distance coach at the University of Virginia. In his brief time at UVa, he has coached four track All-Americans, a school record holding distance medley relay team, nine All-ACC performers (including the fastest women's 800m at UVA in the last 20 years), several NCAA qualifying and ACC champion cross country teams.

Brad Hunt, Ragged Mountain Racing Middle Distance Coach

As the recruiting coordinator for the cross country and track and field program at UVa, Brad continues to bring top athletes to the program. Last spring, Virginia signed two National Footlocker finalists, three state record holders, four high school All-Americans and 15 individual state champions from Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Ohio, Michigan and New Mexico.

Hunt came to Virginia after seven successful years at Kent State, where he served as coach for the middle distance runners, long sprinters, and cross country. Kent State track and field/cross country won six Mid-American Conference Championships in five years and sent 11 athletes to the NCAA Championships in 2005. In 2005, Hunt’s middle distance athletes set five school records, including a 7:26.61 mark in the 4x800m relay in the Championship of America at Penn Relays. Under Hunt’s tutelage, Mike Inge, the 2003 800m US Junior National Champion, earned two NCAA All-American honors at 800m, and finished ninth at the 2004 Olympic Trials in the 800m, posting a lifetime best time of 1:47.23.

- Dana Coons Thiele: Dana brings to Charlottesville experience both in coaching and racing. After an outstanding career at UVa, Dana spent her first two years post-college as an assistant coach at UVa, continuing to train under Jason Dunn. She then spent two years under Dennis Barker at Team USA Minnesota, where she also helped coach the Burnsville HS distance squad. Dana is a two-time Olympic Trials qualifier (10,000 in 2004, and the marathon in 2008), and has international experience on the road (Seoul in 2002, Chiba in 2004, and Osaka in 2007).

- Mark Lorenzoni: Mark has extensive coaching experience in all the distance events, having coached his wife Cynthia (Olympic Trials qualifier in the marathon, 2 time Marine Corp Marathon winner, personal best 2:38) during her post-collegiate tenure, as well as Charlottesville runners of all ages and abilities over the last twenty five years. He has coached members of the Charlottesville Track Club, which prepares local runner for race distances between 4 and 26 miles, for over twenty years and has coached thousands of athletes of all backgrounds and skill levels. His most recent sucess is 46 year-old Andrea Wright, currently the #2 ranked woman in her age group, having run a 30:05 8k. Still, after two and a half decades of coaching Mark is still perfecting his craft.

Our Medical Team:
- Robert Wilder, MD: Dr. Wilder is an Associate Professor of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, Medical Director of the Center for Endurance Sports and the Runner’s Clinic at UVa and a team physician for University of Virginia Athetics. Dr. Wilder earned his medical degree from the University of Virginia in 1988. Following residency training at Baylor University Medical Center in Houston he completed a fellowship in primary care sportsmedicine at the Nirschl Orthopaedic Sportsmedicine Center and the Virginia Sportsmedicine Institute. He served as director of Sports Rehabilitation Services at the Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas from 1993-1998 during which time he served as Director of the Runner's Clinic at the Tom Landry Sportsmedicine and Research Center and team physician for several programs on the high school, collegiate, and professional levels including serving as Head Team Physician for the Dallas Burn of Major League Soccer. Since 1998 he has practiced on the faculty at the University of Virginia. He has published extensively on topics related to sportsmedicine for runners, including co-editing the Textbook of Running Medicine. An avid runner, he ran competitively on the high school, collegiate, and post-graduate club levels and remains an active member of the Charlottesville Track Club. He and his wife Susan live in Charlottesville with their 4 kids: Lauren (13), Stephen (11), Ryan (9), and Caroline (7).

- Danny Mistry, MD: Dr. Mistry is an Assistant Professor of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation and Internal Medicine and co-Medical Director for UVa Athletics. A graduate of Madras University in India, Dr. Mistry completed residency training in Internal Medicine and a cardiovascular physiology fellowship at the University of Virginia. He is also a certified athletic trainer and massage therapist. In addition to his role as Team Physician for UVa, Dr. Mistry has worked extensively with U.S. Soccer and U.S. Swimming.

- Eric Magrum PT, OCS, FAAOMPT: senior Physical Therapist at the University of Virginia/Healthsouth Outpatient Sports Medicine Center. Eric received his degree in physical therapy from the University of Connecticut in 1994, and completed an Orthopedic Manual Therapy Fellowship. He is board certified through the American Physical Therapy Association and certified as an Orthopedic Specialist. He is involved locally, regionally, and nationally in teaching and research in the fields of lower quarter biomechanics; running injuries, orthotic management, manual therapy as well as spinal evaluation and management. He is also the Center Coordinator for Clinical Education and is involved with the APTA setting standards for student clinical internship education. I have been involved with planning and development of Running Medicine an annual symposium at UVA, devoted to caring for the running athlete.

- Jay Dicharry, MPT, CSCS: Director of the Center for Endurance Sports and The SPEED Clinic at UVa. Jay received a degree in exercise physiology from Southern Mississippi University and his masters degree in Physical Therapy from Lousiana State University. He is a certified strength and conditioning specialist and has earned coaching certification from USA Track and Field and the US Cycling Federation. Jay has competed nationally in swimming, cycling, running, and triathlon events. He coaches the Master's swim program for the City of Charlottesville. He has lectured and published extensively on topics regarding biomechanics and sports performance for the endurance athlete. Through the SPEED Clinic he provides state of the art biomechanical and physiologic assessment and recommendations for runners and all endurance athletes.

- Robert Thiele, MD: Bob graduated from UVa in 2001, where he was an NCAA All-American in cross country and three-time individual NCAA qualifier. He went to medical school at Vanderbilt from 2002-2006, and after completing a surgery internship at Northwestern is now an anesthesiology resident at UVa (graduation in 2011). Given the contraints that residency imposes on his time, consistent training is not an option. Still, he is occasionally able to train with the men's team, and competes in local races whenver possible.

The Athletes' Commitment: we do not have any strict athletic criteria for inclusion in our group. In fact, we believe that our group will be most successful if it incorporates athletes who have achieved various levels of success. That does not mean, however, that we have no expectations. Regardless of their current level of success, we expect that our athletes will strive to compete on a national or international level. Depending on your background, your experience, and an infinite number of intangibles, this could mean next year, or this could mean four. The bottom line is we want people whose goals are to achieve USATF standards.

In addition to that, we expect that our athletes will do the following:
    1) Represent their group with dignity and pride
    2) Treat their fellow athletes and coaches with respect
    3) Become active members of the Charlottesville community
    4) Contribute to our team approach to long term/goal-oriented training

We recognize that running is a very individual sport. However, we are interested in athletes who feel they would benefit by training with a team, who would like to have the social support they found in college without some of the restrictions. We also want our group to provide a positive face for the sport, and expect that our athletes represent their group in such a manner. We also encourage that they contribute to the Charlottesville community through volunteer service projects (for instance, the Rivanna Trail Foundation and Charlottesville Women's 4-Miler) as well as by helping out at local races. So, if you're interested in running after college, want to train with a team, and be an integral, respectful part of a running community as well as a the broader community of Charlottesville, we'd love to hear from you.

Commitment to our Athletes: in turn, we will do everything we can to provide our athletes with an environment in which they can achieve athletic success. This includes coaching, which we can provide, as well as part time employment opportunities. We are looking into various housing arrangements as well as avenues by which we can provide group health insurance, with the ultimate goal of allowing our athletes to both live and train to their maximal ability.

Corporate Structure / Self Governance: one of our goals is to develop a model post-collegiate racing team that is responsible, independent, and sustainable. As a non-profit corporation, there will be a Corporate Board made up of the Founding Directors and an Advisory Board (selected members of the Charlottesville community). The athletes themselves, however, will be expected to select a group of board members who will oversee areas such as recruiting, housing, traveling, social events, etc. The purposes of this group will be to provide a conduit through which the entire group can approach the Founding Directors and Advisory Board (for voicing concerns, advice on matters related to the team, etc.), while at the same time giving the athletes as much control over the organization as is possible.

Likewise, the Corporate Board members will be assigned certain functions, such as fund raising, financial management, public relations, athlete support (sponsorship, coaching, racing, etc.) and others. Both groups will formally meet on a quarterly basis.

Our Sponsors:
Ragged Mountain Running Shop: not surprisingly, Ragged Mountain Racing's first sponsor is the Ragged Mountain Running Shop, which has been supporting and promoting running in the Charlottesville community for over 25 years. Owners Mark and Cynthia Lorenzoni (see above) have been instrumental in the formation of this group, and have agreed to employ members of Ragged Mountain Racing on a flexible, part-time basis, which will allow them to live in the city of Charlottesville without having to compromise their training. This is a huge step in our goal of providing post-collegiate athletes with an environment in which they can train without compromise, and one for which we are incredibly grateful.

We would also like to thank the following athletic shoe companies for sponsoring our athletes. We believe that our athletes should be able to choose which shoes they train and race in, thus while many of our athletes have personal preferences, we hoped that our group could secure non-restrictive sponsorship from all of the companies we like. The following companies have agreed to help us, and for that we are very thankful: Asics, Brooks, Mizuno, and Nike.

Special Thanks To:
We would like to thank The SPEED Clinic at UVa, run by Dr. Wilder and Jay Dicharry, for providing our athletes with gait analysis free of charge. We would also like to thank Al Inigo, partner at Zunka, Milnor, Carter, & Inigo LTD., for all of his legal counsel and help with the process of incorporating.

What are the Ragged Mountains? A small range of mountains in a largely undeveloped area in Albemarle County, just southwest of Charlottesville, VA extending to the communities of North Garden and Batesville. The area is home to the Ragged Mountain Natural Area. Edgar Allan Poe, in his short story A Tale of the Ragged Mountains (allegedly inspired by time spent in the countryside as a UVa student in the 1820s), described the Ragged Mountains as "a chain of wild and dreary hills that lie westward and southward of Charlottesville... there dignified by the title of the Ragged Mountains."