BJ Maack Testing, Teaching & Training @ Football University - Orlando

The first weekend of April found me in sunny Florida “working” at the FBU - Orlando event.   While I was away from my family for my second Football University camp, and putting in some long hours, I can hardly say that it was “work” because it was such an amazing event.   I was immersed in a 100% athletic environment for three days, around some very talented and driven athletes who were being coached by former athletes sharing the same desire.   Along with AR staffers Jen Davidson, Jon Drenckhahn and All Star Sports Director Todd Robinette, I found myself in the midst of near football bliss!

Simply stated, we had a great weekend!   I was most excited to see a great mix of what we do best at Athletic Republic:  testing, teaching and training.   The Fusion timing and reaction system, combined with the Dartfish software, put on a great show in front of the parents, coaches and athletes!   It was amazing to see the folks’ light up when we showed the video segments captured by this next-generation testing and evaluation system.  It’s no exaggeration to say that Athletic Republic is unmatched in this area of sport!

It was also fun to be able to demonstrate some tangible take-home teaching points to the athletes over the weekend.  Whether it was about arm angle in the 40-yard dash, nutrition tips, ways to get faster, whatever … we were being asked all weekend about WAYS TO GET BETTER.  And we delivered.   The athletes gained a lot of benefit from our staffs’ ability to communicate practical things they can do at home.

Having done two of these FBU events now, I am impressed with the FBU staff’s talent and methods of communicating football expertise to the athletes.  I can say without reservation that I believe that Athletic Republic’s army of trainers and staff are unparalleled when it comes to being able to teach an athlete how to be a better athlete.

I am so excited to see what the future FBU events will bring.  It is clear to me that Athletic Republic continues to gain stature in the sports world as the leaders in performance sports training!

BJ Maack
Athletic Republic – Arkansas Sports Performance

Athletic Republic in Russian

In 1986 John Frappier, the founder of Athletic Republic, was invited to join the U.S. Gymnastics Team delegation in the U.S.S.R. for the Summer Goodwill Games. John quickly realized that America’s athletic training lagged behind that of the Soviets and began translating his experiences into better training plans for athlete development in the United States. Many of the training concepts John learned from the Soviets focused on over-speed training, plyometric training and athlete testing. On John’s return flight home, he devised new ways to train and new machines to test an athlete’s limits. Thus, the thinking behind Athletic Republic was born in Russia.

Twenty-three years later, Athletic Republic was invited back to Russia to provide our Athletic Republic Hockey Performance System and expertise to the city of Yekaterinburg and their city’s professional, junior and Olympic academy hockey players. The city of Yekaterinburg is considered a hotbed for young aspiring hockey talent. The city boosts two Olympic Development academies ranging for athletes 7-16 years of age – the Automobilist Authority and Automobilist Unost. In addition the town is home to one of the region’s elite junior programs as well as a professional team in the 2nd Division Russian Liga, the Yekaterinburg Automobilist. Over the years, Yekaterinburg has produced such NHL superstars such as: Alexei Yashin (Ottawa Senators, NY Islanders), Pavel Datsyuk (Detroit Redwings), Nikolai Khabibulin (Chicago Blackhawks) and hundreds of others to star in the Russian KHL and 2nd Divisions.

Russian entrepreneur Igor Balandin first approached Athletic Republic in the fall of 2008, after returning home with his son Ivan, an aspiring hockey standout. Ivan had spent weeks training in one of the Athletic Republic’s many Chicago-land facilities with trainer Tyler Bosch, and had seen incredible improvement in his skating. So much so, the head coach of the academy team took special notice that Ivan was clearly a stride ahead of his opponents and decided to examine the possibility of opening an Athletic Republic facility in Yekaterinburg further.  After researching Athletic Republic, and traveling to the U.S. to visit our performance sports centers in Libertyville, Illinois, Albany, New York, Stamford, Connecticut, and Chelsea Piers, in Manhattan, Igor was hooked on the concept of developing his very own center in Russia.

So, 23 years later the goodwill shown John Frappier on his trip to Russia comes full circle. State-of-the-art, patented equipment like Athletic Republic’s Hockey Treadmill, and scientifically tested and proven training methods offer hockey players in Yekaterinburg the best of both worlds.

“It is with great pleasure to bring an Athletic Republic facility to Yekaterinburg, Russia. The results that I have seen firsthand with my own son, and the fact that Athletic Republic has trained so many NHL stars is incredible – it’s an opportunity that I am excited to give back to the hockey community and help to provide a safe and effective way for hockey players to gain speed, power and efficiency.” –Owner Igor Balandin

Suffolk PAL National Champs!

At Athletic Republic, we pride ourselves on providing hockey players a program dedicated to “lighting the lamp”. Last week, the Suffolk PAL Junior “B” franchise took that to another level when they clinched a National Championship Title from the Central Penn Panthers with a decisive 4-1 win.

“Unbelievable,” was Head Coach Aleksey Nikiforov’s response right after winning the USA Junior B National Championship. “We were aware of how tough it would be and the boys worked hard to accomplish their goal.”

Suffolk PAL came into the USA Junior B National Championship as the fourth seed from the Metropolitan Junior Hockey League after losing in the Semi-Finals of the Keegan Cup to the Central Penn Panthers.  That would turn out to be their last loss of the season.

“This has been an absolute incredible experience for these young men. They have all worked extremely hard on and off the ice and when the battle was needed to be won they were well equipped,” said Jake Laime, Suffolk PAL Assistant Coach and Hockey Manager at BlueStreak, Hauppauge.

Equipped is an understatement. This team boasts the top three goal scorers in the nation, as well as the leading defensemen, and one of the finest coaching staffs in Junior Hockey with “Coach of the Year” Aleksey Nikiforov, Jim Wright, Jake Laime and GM Ron Kinnear. The team also is equipped with their own state of the art Athletic Republic Hockey Training Center, BlueStreak Sports Training.

“This is the moment we have all waited for. Since we first opened BlueStreak Sports Training four years ago at the Rinx in Hauppauge, NY, the overwhelming goal was to be able to provide the Suffolk PAL players with a state of the art training center. Being a fellow Long Islander. I wanted the best for these kids. They have the best coaching staff and the finest facilities, but I felt that they needed a training facility that could improve their on-ice strength, power, efficiency and overall conditioning,” said Matt Stack, VP of Operations at BlueStreak Sports Training. Read more

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

Hello Blog Fans!

I just finished up my first FBU event in Southern Cali’s own, San Diego.  The camp was held at Cathedral High School, whose football team won the State Champs of last year.  The brand new campus was awesome as it had an Aztec look plus a monastery feel to it.  The camp started off great because I had the chance to individually meet every kid.  All seemed nervous, yet super excited  at the same time.

After the FBU introduction we went immediately down to the dynamic warm up.  Within minutes it was easy to tell who had been working out, and who hasn’t been doing anything but PS3 and nachos all month.  We then went to our “Speed, Burst, Acceleration” drills which included Dice Drills, Hurdles, 40 Yard Dash Technique and Drills, and Pro Agility Technique and Drills.  This went great, as we got a chance to show the kids what we do, and they in return got to show us what they can do. I had a chance to go over with the kids my “38 Yard Dash” technique, a technique which allowed me to run a 4.51 electronic time for NFL scouts at 250 pounds. One kid that immediately stood out was a kid named Kenny Stills.  After talking with Kenny I found out that his dad had coached me when I played in NFL Europe.  His dad played at Wisconsin and went on to play for the Packers. It seems like Kenny is following in his dad’s footsteps, looking to play some Big Ten football of his own in the near future, so I look forward to following his career.

Saturday came fast as it was time to see who can play some football and who is just “bells and whistles”.  The talent was great and the coaches did an excellent job emphasizing proper technique in everything they did.  The position coaches consisted of a group of Techmo Bowl All Stars, including Andre “Full Moon” Rison from the Falcons, and Lorenzo White of the Houston Oilers.  I remember playing as these guys on Nintendo back in the day so it was a great experience to meet them.

Now that the technique aspect was installed, Sunday was more of a competition day.  I had the chance to run into Eric Allen, who left Oakland soon before I joined them, so we had the chance to chat about some Raider football.  After practice we ran the kids through a grueling obstacle course and tested them out in the vertical.  I believe these kids were definitely ready for a long long nap after the camp was over.

Overall I thought the camp was awesome.  I have been to tons of football camps in my life and this had to be one of the best.  Having former NFL players as coaches was a huge plus because these guys have more knowledge about the game than anyone out there.  Plus the mix between technique and competition was a top notch combo.  Most importantly having Athletic Republic there separated the FBU camp from any other camp in the nation.  No matter how good you are at football, it doesn’t mean anything unless you are at your max potential in speed, agility and explosiveness.  Throughout my career, I’ve beaten out numerous football players who were WAY better players than me, simply because I was quicker, faster and stronger than all of them.

I really hope all the kids at the camp take what they learned from all the coaches and apply it to their everyday training.  FBU should just be the beginning of preparation for a successful 2009 season.  I encourage all FBU athletes (and all non-FBU athletes) to find your nearest Athletic Republic to improve your performance, continue to practice the proper techniques of football, and take your game to the next level!

Yours In Speed!

J.R. Niklos

Athletic Republic’s patented Hockey Treadmill and performance sports training programs gives hockey players the speed and separation needed to compete in the “new” NHL.  Each individual training program increases a player’s stride frequency, stride length, skating mechanics, edge control and stability, conditioning, shot velocity and puck control. Visit an Athletic Republic training center for one of our programs designed to “light the lamp!”

Are you football fast? Do you have the speed to separate from a defender or close the open-field gap? Athletic Republic has been the answer, for more than 500,000 athletes of all ages, looking to improve their speed, power and agility.

Fact is, with Athletic Republic’s help you can train your body to be faster on the football field. Our Acceleration Training program is focused on improving your speed and fundamental movement skills, on developing your explosive power to deliver a blow or gain that first step, and to be in condition to perform as well in the fourth quarter as you do in the first.

Get football fast with Athletic Republic.

What a weekend!  Athletic Republic was out in full force at the first Football University camp in Dallas last weekend.  Over 170 high school and middle school athletes who are serious about football attended the weekend-long event.  As a former collegiate player, the opportunity I had to learn from the FBU coaches was phenomenal.  Former NFL standouts who are passionate about teaching kids who are passionate to learn is a winning combination! The athletes were incredibly focused and attentive to everything the coaches had to say, from the beginning to the end of the camp.  Every parent I talked to was extremely happy with the experience their kids had over the weekend.

Athletic Republic was fully integrated into the curriculum—from conducting all dynamic warm-ups, to providing solid tips on improving test scores and football movement skills, to administering vertical jump, standing long jump, short-shuttle, and 40-yard dash tests.  We used our new SmartSpeed electronic timing system with RFID technology to record the 40 and short-shuttle tests and captured Dartfish video with every clip.   The system performed flawlessly!  We were able to automatically upload the tests scores and videos to AIMS shortly after the event.  Each athlete will be able to access their scores in the coming week and select which scores and video they want to include in their Rivals.com profile.

All in attendance were intrigued by the system and loved looking at the videos.  Using the most accurate electronic timing available at every FBU event makes it possible for kids to truly see how they stack up to some of the best football players in the country—there will be no question about the accuracy of the timing as the same system is used at every event. Plus, recording video with each test allows the athletes to better showcase their skills to college coaches.  A video also gives an Athlete Republic trainer a means to fully evaluate the athlete and find ways to make them better.

I would like to thank Shawn Dassie, Jerry Hill and Kyle Foster from our New Braunfels, Texas facility for all their hard work at the event.  They did a phenomenal job along with Tanya Porter and Tad O’Had from our corporate team.  We are very excited about the next FBU in San Diego on February 13-15 and the rest of the upcoming season. Come join us at FBU—it’s a blast!

Steve Swanson
Chief Science & Technology Officer, Athletic Republic

FSU's Derek Nicholson

Hi everyone, I’m Derek Nicholson. I played inside linebacker at Florida State University the past four years, and I’m currently training at All-Star Sports in Paisley, Florida, in eager anticipation of FSU’s Pro Day on March 15th.

Over the next several weeks, I’m looking forward to keeping you up to date on my training progress. Before we get started, though, here’s a little more background on my high school and college career.

I graduated from Mt.Tabor H.S. in Winston-Salem, N.C. in 2005. I was a second team USA Today HS All-American, and played for the east squad in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, where I led the team in tackles.

Moving on to FSU, I played in all 13 games for the Seminoles as a true freshman, including our ACC Championship victory over Virginia Tech and in the Orange Bowl against Penn State. I also led all first year players with 21 tackles. As a sophomore, I only got to play in five games before tearing my ACL. As a junior, I started all 13 games and led the team with 99 tackles. This past year, I started all 13 games, led the team with 81 tackles, and returned a fumble for a touchdown in my last game as a Semonole–a 42-13 victory over Wisconsin in the Champs Sports Bowl!

All that is in the past now, as I focus on doing my best when the pro scouts visit Tallahassee in March. Between now and then, I’m working with Todd Robinett, All-Star Sports’ Director of Sports Performance, to improve my agility and 40-yard dash times specifically, while I also try to become a little leaner. Of course, I’d like to improve on everything I work on, but I think the agility and 40-yard dash tests are particularly important for linebackers seeking a high draft position.

Check back regularly as Todd and I update what we’re working on here in Paisley. And, thanks for reading!

Football 365 defines the Athletic Republic training network’s commitment to helping youth, middle school and high school football players maximize their potential and achieve their goals. We’ve partnered with Football University (FBU) and Rivals.com to develop a year-round, systematic approach to overall stamina and speed development, position-specific skill building and the X factor—getting noticed by college recruiters.

The mindset behind Football 365 is that every season is football season—Athletic Republic encourages athletes to train like a football player 365 days a year. From in-season practice and games, to post-season development of movement skills, power, strength and efficiency, to spring practice, to pre-season preparation, to playing a second or third sport, Athletic Republic and FBU present unparalleled opportunities for players to improve their game. And, when the time is right, Rivals.com is there to provide the platform for college-bound players to be noticed by recruiters.