QUALIFICATIONS & CREDENTIALS
Roy T. Benson, MPE, C.F.I., is an exercise scientist and distance running coach. After a BA degree in Geography from Dartmouth College, he earned a Master’s Degree in PE with an emphasis in exercise physiology from the University of Florida. Since 1976, he has held a national certification as a Fitness Instructor from the American College of Sports Medicine. He has presented over 500 professional papers and lectures for academic and popular audiences.
PUBLICATIONS
He currently serves as a Senior Writer for Running Times magazine. Running Times has over 105,000 subscribers and has a monthly readership of over 250,000. His booklet “Precision Running,” published by Polar Electro, has sold over 200,000 copies and has been translated into 7 languages. His computerized training program, Coach Benson’s Heart Rate Training, has been a best selling program from PC Coach in Boulder, Colorado. His new book, "Secret Workouts", recently published by Beaufort Books, has already sold well over 7,000 copies.
RUNNING RESUME
Coach Benson ran competitively for over 45 years with personal bests of 1:53.4 for 880 yards and 4:19.8 for the mile. As a master’s runner, he ran 36:06 for 10k, 17:22 for 5k, 4:52 for the mile and qualified for the Boston marathon with a 3:09:05 PR at age 40.
CURRENT ACTIVITIES
Since 1987, Benson has been the owner and president of Running, Ltd., a company in Atlanta, GA that has been operating Nike-sponsored summer camps for high school runners in North Carolina and Vermont for the past 36 years. In their six weeks of operation, the camps attract over 1800 runners and coaches. Benson’s business, Running Ltd, also features his private coaching services for adult runners at all levels of ability that are serious about improvement.
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COACHING EXPERIENCE
He has coached professionally for 45 years for military, club, university and high school teams. From 1969-79, at the University of Florida, Benson served as Head Cross Country Coach for 7 years and Head Track Coach for three years. During his tenure with the Gators, he was president and then Executive Director of the world-famous Florida Track Club that placed marathon gold medalist Frank Shorter, along with 9th place marathoner Jack Bachelor and also Jeff Galloway and Ron Jourdan on the 1972 USA Olympic Team. Coach Benson was a national advisory coach to the Philippine Olympic track team that competed in the ‘72 Munich Olympics. While his star adult runner, Kellie Eyre, placed 6th in the 1500m at the World Veterans Championships in Brisbane, Australia in 2001 and won the American national title in 2002 in 4:47, Benson also coaches adults trying to break 60:00 for 10k road races. He has successfully coached 6 National Masters champions.
COACHING CROSS COUNTRY & TRACK AT MARIST SCHOOL
Since 1993, Coach Benson has been a part-time Community Coach for Marist School in Atlanta. His boys and girls teams have won 13 state 4A cross country championships. His most successful female athlete, Kyla Barbour, placed 16th and then 7th at the national Foot Locker XC championships in her junior and senior years. Brendon Mahoney, a 1999 graduate, was 2 time state X-C champion and was undefeated in the mile his senior year winning the National Scholastic Championship Meet in 4:04.78. In that race, he defeated Allan Webb and pulled him to the 4:06 that broke Jim Ryun’s sophomore year national record. Mahoney also ran 1:49.8 for 800 meters after breaking a 23-year-old state record while winning the state championship in 1:50.1. Coach Benson’s track and cross country runners have won a grand total of 20 individual state championships.
