Q&A With All4Running + Team BTC

Event

BTC Fast Laps might be over, but we wanted to reach out to our winning team to ask them what they loved most about the day, and what advice they would give runners in future. Team All4Running hail from the Netherlands, and won the whole event with a limited team! As a result, they’re sure to have some wise words of wisdom for further Fast Lappers. We spoke to two members of their team, Jurjen Polderman and Nina Van Diepen.

Meet Team All4Running!

BTC: How did you prepare for an event like Fast Laps?

Jurjen Polderman: I prepared myself just like every other race, ready to go with the flow. It was an event where you have a lot of new experiences, and you just have to enjoy the ride.

Nina Van Diepen: The week of the event I took things a little easier with training. so that my legs wouldn’t be too tired

BTC: How did it feel to work as a team? What was your winning strategy?

JP: It was crucial that Nina run the shorter distances when possible. As I was the fastest runner in the team, I ran as many laps as I could to create bigger gaps between our team and our competitors.

NVD: I really enjoyed being part of a team competition, especially because I normally run individually. Now I felt even more compelled to perform well. I was the only woman on the team, so we tried to ensure that I ran as little distance as possible. Jurjen started ahead of me to gain some time, and so that I could save some energy for the next rounds when possible.

BTC: What was your highlight of the day?

JP: When Nina crossed the finish line and we realised we had really won the race!

NVP: The moment I crossed the finish line first and I saw my teammates, and we knew we had won!

BTC: How did you hype each other up throughout the day?

JP: We did not have to hype each other up, the event itself was hyping us up! Plus the team scores shown during the day motivated us to stay on top.

NVP: That wasn’t really necessary because the event already gave me a lot of energy, but of course I encouraged my teammates.

BTC: Which race was your favourite and why?

JP: I think my favourite race was the WyldMedley, with a relay over several distances. During this race we were competing with our entire team. It was really close, but it all came together at the finish and we won.

NVP: I think the spicy 600 because it was very exciting right up until the final metres.

BTC: As middle to long distance runners, how did it feel to take part in an event that required you to run fast?

JP: Every lap felt like a rush!

NVP: it was a lot of fun to accelerate every lap on the parts where you could do that.

BTC: What tips would you give runners who want to take part next year?

JP: Try to form the best team you can before the start of the event. Bring up your best team and runners, and just have fun!

NVP: I would say to just participate because it was a great event that you will never find anywhere else. In preparation I would say do quick footwork and practice turning so you don’t fall down 😉

We also took a moment to chat to some members of our very own Team BTC, who came in second place right behind All4Running, about what they thought of the event.

Meet Team BTC!

BTC: What did you enjoy most about BTC Fast Laps?

Björn Trochim: What I loved most about Fast Laps was the spirit of all the teams. It was like a big family all racing together.

Eric: Being part of a completely different, modern racing format. // Teil an einem komplett anderem, modernen Racing Format zu sein.

Leon Schäfer: I definitely enjoyed the atmosphere the most! It was so amazing to see how hyped everyone was. It was electric!

BTC: How did it feel to work as a team? What strategy did you implement?

BJ: It was a ⁠totally different kind of race. I have never done anything like this before so I loved everything about it. We supported each other and it was so special. You never knew what could happen in just one lap.

Eric: Outstanding. It reminded me of the good old times playing soccer, when we used to discuss our tactics beforehand, and tried to promote the strengths of each individual. Sharing the thrill with others gave me an extra push. // Überragend. Erinnert mich an aktive Zeiten im Fußball, wo man auch vorher Taktiken bespricht und die Stärken der einzelnen versucht zu fördern. Das mitfiebern im Team pusht nochmal extra.

Caroline Schenk: It was an amazing experience to run in a team and support each other. All emotions were even more intense compared to just running on your own. I’d like to repeat this over and over again. We reflected on who’d be the better endurance athlete, and who’d be better at sprinting, and assigned our roles according to that, and how much everyone could run so we’d not get tired. // Es war eine sehr schöne Erfahrung im team zu laufen und sich gegenseitig zu unterstützen. Alle Emotionen waren gemeinsam viel intensiver als wenn man alleine gelaufen wäre. Ich würde das gerne noch viele male machen. Wir überlegten wer eher ein Ausdauerathlet und wer eher ein Sprintathlet ist und uns danach aufgeteilt und wieviel jeder schafft zu laufen, damit keiner zu müde ist.

LS: It felt amazing to work as a team. We had to make decisions about who was gonna run which relay and in which position. Our strategy was to put our speedy middle distance runner in positions where you have to be fast. In the longer parts of the relays we put two long distance runners because they have the endurance.

BTC: Did your strategy and mindset change throughout the day? If so, how?

BJ: Not really, but you got more familiar with the track and could optimise your running style lap by lap.

E: Before the race we had great respect for the race track – considering the sharp turns and the one-on-one race. Later on, we started to gain more trust into ourselves, and got spurred by the crowd. // Vor den Rennen war der Respekt vor der Strecke mit den engen Kurven und Mann-gegen-Mann-Racing groß. Später hat man an Vertrauen gewonnen und wurde durch die Crowd beflügelt.

CS: We stuck to the initial arrangement, but we realized how important the start was, considering the narrow track, so we put our focus onto starting off well. // Wir blieben bei der gleichen Einteilung aber haben gemerkt wie wichtig der Start bei der engen Strecke ist und legten daher Wert auf einen guten Start.

BTC: What was your favourite part of the event?

BJ: My ⁠favourite part was seeing all our friends from Europe, Denmark, and London especially. The running family is amazing.

E: The finals, and the vibe afterwards. // Das Finale und die Stimmung danach.

CS: The time together, eating and drinking, with so many fellow athletes. // Die gemeinsame Zeit bei Essen und Trinken mit so vielen anderen Läufern.

LS: I don’t have a specific favourite part, everything was just amazing!

BTC: What was the most challenging part of the race?

BJ: The most challenging part was overtaking runners. The course made it pretty hard to overtake while having to keep the same pace.

E: Taking risks in the sharp turns when first running them. Die Überwindung und das Eingehen von Risiko in den ersten Kurven.

CS: Keeping track of the time while enjoying the good food and the vibe, and to be warmed-up for the start. // Bei dem guten Essen und Stimmung die Zeit im Blick zu behalten und sich rechtzeitig warm zu machen für den Start.

LS: The most challenging part for me was to get safely around the curves without falling over or losing too much speed.

BTC: How did you hype each other up throughout the day?

BJ: ⁠Oh yes! I lost my voice while cheering for the team. I was so hyped I almost jumped on track during the final!

E: Enjoying the music, hydration, coffee, celebrating other teams, and pushing our team colleagues. // Genießen der Musik, Hydration, Coffee, feiern der anderen Teams und pushen der Teamkollegen.

CS: We analyzed our race, and evaluated what went well and what we’ll keep as a good strategy for the next races. // Wir werteten unsere Rennen aus, was besonders gut lief und wir bei den nächsten Rennen beibehalten wollen.

Once again we would like to extend a huge thank you to all our runners, sponsors, and behind the scenes team, and of course Nike Running for making BTC Fast Laps such a huge success. We can’t wait to do it all over again… Watch this space!