Offense vs Defense Reaction Drill

As I stood waiting to speak to a high school gymnasium full of parents and athletes, my father asked me if I was nervous.  I gave him a quizzical look and said, “No way, I’ve been waiting for this since October when they announced the FBU partnership.”  I spoke for only 5 minutes but I guarantee every person walked away with one new piece of knowledge.

I brought up the idea of separation on the football field and how at Athletic Republic we out TRAIN the competition so that you can out PERFORM yours on the field.  I asked the entire audience if they knew what the separation was in an athlete who is 0.2 seconds faster on a 40 yard sprint.  I stuck the microphone in the face of a shy kid in the first row and he quietly said, “A foot?”  I repeated his answer to the audience and then one of our local Athletic Republic athletes raised his hand and after I called on him he proudly stated, “6 feet!”  I could see the surprised reaction in the audience.  I quickly added that we have a published, scientific study showing that we can produce average gains of 0.2 seconds on 40 yard times.   No less than an hour later I asked the athletes on the field what 0.2 seconds was and they all said 6 feet!

The entire weekend was a great mix of working with the athletes and answering questions for the parents.  The sprint cords were a great draw and all the athletes were amazed at the difference they could feel in just 4 quick starts.  We believe that this weekend will be a great boost to our business and provided a platform to get our brand in front of very influential coaches, parents and athletes in the Phoenix area.  In the first week we have already seen an influx of those athletes whose parents were in our tent all weekend.

Kristopher Birkeland
Director of Training
Athletic Republic Tempe