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Beyond Fast: How a Renegade Coach and His Unlikely High School Team Revolutionized Distance Running
The awe-inspiring true story of a high school cross-country team that went from obscurity to becoming the fastest squad the country (and perhaps the world) has ever seen, as told by the coach who led them to greatness. For fans of Born to Run and Finding Ultra.
When Sean Brosnan arrived at Newbury Park High School in 2016, their cross-country team hadn’t so much as qualified for a California state championship in twenty-five years. Brosnan himself had never coached high schoolers, though he was no stranger to the sport. A collegiate All-American, he had spent years trying to chase his ambitions of becoming a professional runner, along the way learning from some of the most successful coaches in the country.
From day one at Newbury Park, Brosnan made a Give me your total commitment and I’ll give you a state championship in four years. He did them one Brosnan’s runners would take an unprecedented three consecutive national championships, smashing records, winning Division I scholarships, and representing their country in the Olympics.
With expert insights and a deep love for the sport, Sean Brosnan’s Redefining Fast offers a riveting chronicle of that journey. Tracing Newbury Park’s early successes, their heartbreaking missteps, and the winding road that would lead them to running glory, he tells a story of guts, sacrifice, and determination. By turns heartbreaking and exhilarating, it reminds you that the only limits that matter are the ones you set for yourself.
When Sean Brosnan arrived at Newbury Park High School in 2016, their cross-country team hadn’t so much as qualified for a California state championship in twenty-five years. Brosnan himself had never coached high schoolers, though he was no stranger to the sport. A collegiate All-American, he had spent years trying to chase his ambitions of becoming a professional runner, along the way learning from some of the most successful coaches in the country.
From day one at Newbury Park, Brosnan made a Give me your total commitment and I’ll give you a state championship in four years. He did them one Brosnan’s runners would take an unprecedented three consecutive national championships, smashing records, winning Division I scholarships, and representing their country in the Olympics.
With expert insights and a deep love for the sport, Sean Brosnan’s Redefining Fast offers a riveting chronicle of that journey. Tracing Newbury Park’s early successes, their heartbreaking missteps, and the winding road that would lead them to running glory, he tells a story of guts, sacrifice, and determination. By turns heartbreaking and exhilarating, it reminds you that the only limits that matter are the ones you set for yourself.
288 pages, Hardcover
Published September 2, 2025
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2607 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
December 9, 2025
I received this book as an ARC from Goodreads.
As a runner (5Ks are my sweet spot), I love inspiration found in running books. I have no intention of doing ultras, but am utterly inspired by those folks. I’m addicted to summer Olympics and watch all track events. A documentary on the Barkley has had me talking about it for months. I am inspired by great long and short distance runners— and conveying the success of Nico Young and his brothers Lex and Leo, Colin and Aaron Sahlman (in this book) carried some of that inspiration. Uphill sand training, altitude training— inspiring. Seeing how they transformed and expanded their mindset into an ability to break records— inspiring. I’m rounding up to 3 stars because of this. But I think the target readers for this book are coaches and people who thrive on endless statistics. Not runners like me.
The repeated theme of this book is: I, the coach, do things differently, I get pushback, I demonstrate success, people still don’t believe in my proven methods. It’s filled with a ton of “I” statements that are uninspiring, even whiny.
Because the theme is tediously drawn out with tiring repetition, weighed down with an endless record of countless running times— every single stat is recorded for nearly every race and practice leading to number exhaustion, more running times than dates in a history textbook— I was annoyed by the writing style and Brosnan’s self-pitying/near-martyrdom tone.
I told at least a dozen friends I was reading this, with a brief description, and EVERY one of them asked if it was the story of the underprivileged kids who made it big (McFarland USA), which it’s not. These kids come from affluence and privilege with parents who could financially support whatever their kids wanted, including attending camps, driving kids to other states for non-school races with seemingly no work restrictions on the parents who came; but every friend of mine was disinterested in this book, because, as my friend Marty said, Where’s the intrigue in a bunch of rich kids dominating a sport? That’s the norm.
Brosnan purposely makes provocative statements when interviewed and then is shocked by negative feedback. I think he loves being misunderstood.
He coaches the girls cross country team as well and BARELY mentions them throughout the entire book, naming only one female runner. As a female who’s dealt with coaches that focus on only their favorite star athletes and ignores the rest, that irritates me — his few references, mostly silence on the girls team speaks of his lack of care.
He details his attention to the way college coaches of adult elite runners train their athletes, applying those methods to his HS students, repeatedly increasing the difficulty of how he trains. Not once does he refer to studies or research that ensure these methods are safe for young developing bodies. I would’ve expected something, any article at all, to support that his methods considered his 13-17 yo developing athletes more than his obvious ego. In fact he details a medical emergency brought on by one athlete’s extremely low body fat, which one could speculate is a result of overtraining.
He’s surrounded by Karens while coming across as a Karen himself. The book left me wanting to throttle him and his affluent community who complain endlessly— but the runners themselves came across as really great athletes attempting great feats. For them alone, I was cheering.
As a runner (5Ks are my sweet spot), I love inspiration found in running books. I have no intention of doing ultras, but am utterly inspired by those folks. I’m addicted to summer Olympics and watch all track events. A documentary on the Barkley has had me talking about it for months. I am inspired by great long and short distance runners— and conveying the success of Nico Young and his brothers Lex and Leo, Colin and Aaron Sahlman (in this book) carried some of that inspiration. Uphill sand training, altitude training— inspiring. Seeing how they transformed and expanded their mindset into an ability to break records— inspiring. I’m rounding up to 3 stars because of this. But I think the target readers for this book are coaches and people who thrive on endless statistics. Not runners like me.
The repeated theme of this book is: I, the coach, do things differently, I get pushback, I demonstrate success, people still don’t believe in my proven methods. It’s filled with a ton of “I” statements that are uninspiring, even whiny.
Because the theme is tediously drawn out with tiring repetition, weighed down with an endless record of countless running times— every single stat is recorded for nearly every race and practice leading to number exhaustion, more running times than dates in a history textbook— I was annoyed by the writing style and Brosnan’s self-pitying/near-martyrdom tone.
I told at least a dozen friends I was reading this, with a brief description, and EVERY one of them asked if it was the story of the underprivileged kids who made it big (McFarland USA), which it’s not. These kids come from affluence and privilege with parents who could financially support whatever their kids wanted, including attending camps, driving kids to other states for non-school races with seemingly no work restrictions on the parents who came; but every friend of mine was disinterested in this book, because, as my friend Marty said, Where’s the intrigue in a bunch of rich kids dominating a sport? That’s the norm.
Brosnan purposely makes provocative statements when interviewed and then is shocked by negative feedback. I think he loves being misunderstood.
He coaches the girls cross country team as well and BARELY mentions them throughout the entire book, naming only one female runner. As a female who’s dealt with coaches that focus on only their favorite star athletes and ignores the rest, that irritates me — his few references, mostly silence on the girls team speaks of his lack of care.
He details his attention to the way college coaches of adult elite runners train their athletes, applying those methods to his HS students, repeatedly increasing the difficulty of how he trains. Not once does he refer to studies or research that ensure these methods are safe for young developing bodies. I would’ve expected something, any article at all, to support that his methods considered his 13-17 yo developing athletes more than his obvious ego. In fact he details a medical emergency brought on by one athlete’s extremely low body fat, which one could speculate is a result of overtraining.
He’s surrounded by Karens while coming across as a Karen himself. The book left me wanting to throttle him and his affluent community who complain endlessly— but the runners themselves came across as really great athletes attempting great feats. For them alone, I was cheering.
November 25, 2025
PSA: This is the slowest speaking I have ever heard in an audiobook. Even I had to listen at increased speed.
This guy rubs me the wrong way. Not because he's intensely all in. That's actually kinda cool. A lot of kids enjoy that sort of attention and guidance, and clearly Brosnan was in luck with finding a kid who was not only extremely physically talented but also mentally talented and responding very well to his own mind set. It's awesome how much energy he put into helping these boys be the best they can be, even fundraising and using his own money to fund training camps.
I do think it's a little suspicious that he's selling himself as this god-like coach, when he was also coaching the girls' team, and we hear nothing about them.
I also think it's a bit of a red flag to have athletes this young incur injuries at the rates they do on his team. I think longevity beyond the age of 18 should be prioritized, and I don't think that's what you're doing when you're training kids into the ground. I don't blame the kids, I certainly thought I was invulnerable at that age, but an adult coach should know better.
Speaking of things adults should know, it's pretty shitty for a grown man to call out a teenage boy for saying something stupid and arrogant which is extremely par the course for a teenager. The aforementioned teenager probably felt stupid enough for blabbing to the press that the only question was by "how much" he was gonna win without someone writing a book with that being pretty much his only mention.
I also would like him to if not acknowledge the part that privilege played in his success, then at least not outright deny it. Sure: electrolytes don't cost a lot. Bananas don't cost a lot. But training camps (even discounted) do. Having parents volunteer takes free time that not everyone has.
It really rubbed me the wrong way how he kept talking about Covid-19 as if it was some annoying impediments to the boys' training and not a disease that killed millions and left millions more still dealing with the consequences of long covid to this day.
He doesn't appear to have any ability to self-reflect at all. He definitely had the perfect storm going with that boys' team, but according to this book Brosnan didn't do a single thing wrong including his idiotic "4:20 is slow for a mile". I get the point (cause he explained it) but the execution was lacking to say the least.
I haven't proof-read this because it's long and I'm tired and this guy frustrated me, so tl;dr: HS coach experiences the perfect storm and gets impressive result but has a distinct lack of both introspection and general understanding of anything outside his own little world.
This guy rubs me the wrong way. Not because he's intensely all in. That's actually kinda cool. A lot of kids enjoy that sort of attention and guidance, and clearly Brosnan was in luck with finding a kid who was not only extremely physically talented but also mentally talented and responding very well to his own mind set. It's awesome how much energy he put into helping these boys be the best they can be, even fundraising and using his own money to fund training camps.
I do think it's a little suspicious that he's selling himself as this god-like coach, when he was also coaching the girls' team, and we hear nothing about them.
I also think it's a bit of a red flag to have athletes this young incur injuries at the rates they do on his team. I think longevity beyond the age of 18 should be prioritized, and I don't think that's what you're doing when you're training kids into the ground. I don't blame the kids, I certainly thought I was invulnerable at that age, but an adult coach should know better.
Speaking of things adults should know, it's pretty shitty for a grown man to call out a teenage boy for saying something stupid and arrogant which is extremely par the course for a teenager. The aforementioned teenager probably felt stupid enough for blabbing to the press that the only question was by "how much" he was gonna win without someone writing a book with that being pretty much his only mention.
I also would like him to if not acknowledge the part that privilege played in his success, then at least not outright deny it. Sure: electrolytes don't cost a lot. Bananas don't cost a lot. But training camps (even discounted) do. Having parents volunteer takes free time that not everyone has.
It really rubbed me the wrong way how he kept talking about Covid-19 as if it was some annoying impediments to the boys' training and not a disease that killed millions and left millions more still dealing with the consequences of long covid to this day.
He doesn't appear to have any ability to self-reflect at all. He definitely had the perfect storm going with that boys' team, but according to this book Brosnan didn't do a single thing wrong including his idiotic "4:20 is slow for a mile". I get the point (cause he explained it) but the execution was lacking to say the least.
I haven't proof-read this because it's long and I'm tired and this guy frustrated me, so tl;dr: HS coach experiences the perfect storm and gets impressive result but has a distinct lack of both introspection and general understanding of anything outside his own little world.
December 4, 2025
Probably 2.5. His athletes obviously did great things and are inspiring, and I’m sure part of that was actually his training methods and belief and yada-yada. But how many high schools in the country have parents that can afford to send their kids to a month long summer running retreat and all the other races and such on top of the base cost of participating. You put this guy in a high school in a marginalized or working class area, and he might have some success, but we wouldn’t know who he is and he wouldn’t be writing books about it. The main secret to his success is genetic outliers and rich parents.
October 30, 2025
Runner friends, memoir lovers, thriller readers- READ THIS BOOK.
That is all.
That’s the review.
One of the best running memoirs I’ve read.
I love cross country and running, so I was enamored with Brosnan’s story of the famed rise of a no-name small team, Newbury Park, that took high school cross country by storm.
I LOOOVE a memoir story that reads like a moment-by-moment page-turning, cant-put-it-down novel- it was perfect. Each race, each running, flashing between Brosnan and the boys that made up this team- I could NOT put it down during these major races, each blazing fast mile was devoured.
For the point, I made so many bookmarks, ran two easy runs at a faster pace than normal while listening to this story, eager to find out what happens and believing I can!
That is all.
That’s the review.
One of the best running memoirs I’ve read.
I love cross country and running, so I was enamored with Brosnan’s story of the famed rise of a no-name small team, Newbury Park, that took high school cross country by storm.
I LOOOVE a memoir story that reads like a moment-by-moment page-turning, cant-put-it-down novel- it was perfect. Each race, each running, flashing between Brosnan and the boys that made up this team- I could NOT put it down during these major races, each blazing fast mile was devoured.
For the point, I made so many bookmarks, ran two easy runs at a faster pace than normal while listening to this story, eager to find out what happens and believing I can!
July 13, 2025
This is a book for people who REALLY like or are interested in the world of distance running. I found the dedication and passion from the coach honourable and was cheering on the runners through their successes, but there was a whole lot of running specifics here that just didn’t hold my interest. If running was or is your sport and you always wished you had a coach that believed in you, then this might be a book for you.
Thanks to Netgalley and Atria books for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Thanks to Netgalley and Atria books for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
December 18, 2025
As a runner obsessed by the sport who adores reading about it, I expected to love this. But the writing style was so pedestrian and formulaic-none of the kids emerged as distinct personalities on the page, merely existing as times. And the author comes off as so abrasive and self-aggrandizing, constantly complaining about every perceived slight, every time his coaching style and decisions are questioned.
October 14, 2025
The focal point is very much on the coach. It's an alright read, if you're looking for it, but there are more inspirational options out there. I applaud all the athletes who give the sport their all and their individual mental fortitude is impressive. Not quite what I expected.
August 23, 2025
Fun read. Great to have Chris Lear back in the game. Would have loved to have a coach like Brosnan in high school!
September 17, 2025
At times the book feels like self-aggrandizing by the author, but really I think the author is just really passionate about what he was doing; bringing out the best in the athletes he was coaching. I suspect a lot of his fire comes from feeling like he missed out on it due to several circumstances during his high school years (he share his own history as a high school, collegiate, and post collegiate runner and coach), and in addition to what he learned from a wide variety of college and professional coaches whoch obviously shaped who he is as a coach, I got the feeling the passion comes from his own tribulations and from his memories of what he wanted from his coaches and teams and at times found lacking. So when he describes himself as a “renegade coach” I felt like it was partly a chip he put on his own shoulder as much as the roadblocks he faced from things like school and state rules and bureaucrats, and traditionalists in the sport.
One thing you cannot argue with is the results, and he did it without a lot of the pitfalls you sometimes see from coaches so laser focused on winning; pitfalls like a huge uptick in injuries to the kids, or burning them out. The quick and incredible rise of Newbury Park is testament to his methods, which I think were the result of the coach’s use of logical thought, understanding of science, research, crunching numbers, experimenting with new methods, all of which were also the result of his passion/obsession which he poured into his job. This and tayloring his coaching to each individual, and being flexible day to day and willijg to come up with new workouts on the fly which were still effective, which requires a deep understanding of all the above and each athlete.
The book is very well written, but I do feel it would be less appealing to non-runners or those without some connection to the sport. Some books can transcend the genre but I don’t know that this is one, it is so specificly about just what it says; how the author did what he did. While it includes some insight from his former student-athletes we don’t really get to onow more about them or any broader message or sports philosophy other than speed and winning are good. In contrast, co-author Chris Lear’s first book, Running with the Buffaloes, which followed the Univ of Colorado XC team through a season felt like it was more appealing to a broader audience because it connected on a personal level with all the runners and coaches and others. Or the book Amazing Racers by Marc Bloom, which details a legendary high school XC team from NY similarly transcends the genre because its so much about the building of the runners into young men and women, there was a strong ethos and philosophy that team shared that went beyond running which the coach formented, and the book also addressed issues regarding gender roles, differences, health of young athletes, etc…
So I think this book is better suited for those specifically interested in running and want to know the story of how this coach was so successful. That said, it is lacking on details if you are looking for specifics, like a list or chart of the workouts the team did. They include a few examples but this is not a how to guide, rather its more about touting the philosophy.
One thing you cannot argue with is the results, and he did it without a lot of the pitfalls you sometimes see from coaches so laser focused on winning; pitfalls like a huge uptick in injuries to the kids, or burning them out. The quick and incredible rise of Newbury Park is testament to his methods, which I think were the result of the coach’s use of logical thought, understanding of science, research, crunching numbers, experimenting with new methods, all of which were also the result of his passion/obsession which he poured into his job. This and tayloring his coaching to each individual, and being flexible day to day and willijg to come up with new workouts on the fly which were still effective, which requires a deep understanding of all the above and each athlete.
The book is very well written, but I do feel it would be less appealing to non-runners or those without some connection to the sport. Some books can transcend the genre but I don’t know that this is one, it is so specificly about just what it says; how the author did what he did. While it includes some insight from his former student-athletes we don’t really get to onow more about them or any broader message or sports philosophy other than speed and winning are good. In contrast, co-author Chris Lear’s first book, Running with the Buffaloes, which followed the Univ of Colorado XC team through a season felt like it was more appealing to a broader audience because it connected on a personal level with all the runners and coaches and others. Or the book Amazing Racers by Marc Bloom, which details a legendary high school XC team from NY similarly transcends the genre because its so much about the building of the runners into young men and women, there was a strong ethos and philosophy that team shared that went beyond running which the coach formented, and the book also addressed issues regarding gender roles, differences, health of young athletes, etc…
So I think this book is better suited for those specifically interested in running and want to know the story of how this coach was so successful. That said, it is lacking on details if you are looking for specifics, like a list or chart of the workouts the team did. They include a few examples but this is not a how to guide, rather its more about touting the philosophy.
October 16, 2025
Beyond Fast by Sean Brosnan is about the extraordinary ascent of the Newbury Park High School Cross Country program. I have followed the program from afar and this is an inside look from the eyes of the coach. There are a lot of training details to keep the running geeks happy and yet there is some great storytelling to keep the casual fan turning pages. Chris Lear (“Running With The Buffaloes”) is a co-writer and has a bit of that feel. Great Read!
September 18, 2025
Listened to the audiobook. Narration was good. If you are a runner, this book is for you. I am not a runner however I did want to read it for its inspirational aspect. And that it was. Interesting as well. It did lose me many times when the facts were heavy on running times and specifics however over all I’m glad I read it.
November 27, 2025
I’ve been a Newbury Park fanboy forever and it was great to hear the whole story. It really showed me you are so much more capable than you think you are. Also he shouted out Oxnard 🔥🔥🔥
November 20, 2025
Brought back memories of watching scores of middle school and high school XC meets.
November 15, 2025
The first few chapters establish that Coach is a bit of a knucklehead. Avoidable injuries, half-baked choices, and so on - but he's one of these guys that just keeps on moving, keeps on learning, keeps on trying, and has the right balance of irrational confidence and technical insight to make it work. Are there hundreds of similarly wired coaches out there? Yep. But their teams didn't win the national championship, so we're not reading their book. They didn't catch lightning in a bottle. Is Brosnan intrinsically different? Maybe he's a couple standard deviations from the mean, but he's still got a cohort. The next decade will tell whether he's the right man finding the right situation at the right time, or if he's so transcendent that he creates the situation around himself.
Anyway, an engaging story. A likeable team. Some interesting tidbits and a philosophies.
Anyway, an engaging story. A likeable team. Some interesting tidbits and a philosophies.
August 10, 2025
Disclosure: I received a copy of Beyond Fast: How a Renegade Coach and His Unlikely High School Team Revolutionized Distance Running in exchange for my honest review.
Sports success stories motivating others to dream big, set lofty goals, and put in the hard yards to achieve are such a joy to read—as satisfying as endorphins following a distance run.
Renegade coaches shake up the status quo and light a fire under teams formerly satisfied with participation ribbons and last place. Great coaches know how to bring out the best in their runners, and it’s a thing of beauty.
Believing you can win and PR is such an important component of competitive track, or any sport. Confidence is key and, as Sean Brosnan points out, is developed during training, not competition.
And addressing the mental side of any sports endeavor is super important, including not getting psyched out by a team rumored to be unbeatable, one that is all talk, or by a cocky one sporting the latest gear. It’s all swagger and window dressing by a group of braggart poseurs with expensive shades and too much hair gel. Instead, keep your eye out for a lanky, rag-tag team dressed in well-worn sweats who continue to improve and strive toward a shared goal because they’re laser focused on medaling. That’s the team to beat.
Sports success stories motivating others to dream big, set lofty goals, and put in the hard yards to achieve are such a joy to read—as satisfying as endorphins following a distance run.
Renegade coaches shake up the status quo and light a fire under teams formerly satisfied with participation ribbons and last place. Great coaches know how to bring out the best in their runners, and it’s a thing of beauty.
Believing you can win and PR is such an important component of competitive track, or any sport. Confidence is key and, as Sean Brosnan points out, is developed during training, not competition.
And addressing the mental side of any sports endeavor is super important, including not getting psyched out by a team rumored to be unbeatable, one that is all talk, or by a cocky one sporting the latest gear. It’s all swagger and window dressing by a group of braggart poseurs with expensive shades and too much hair gel. Instead, keep your eye out for a lanky, rag-tag team dressed in well-worn sweats who continue to improve and strive toward a shared goal because they’re laser focused on medaling. That’s the team to beat.
November 12, 2025
Describing Sean Brosnan as passionate would be an understatement. Chris Lear is so good at telling a story.
May 15, 2025
** I received an advanced copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This book is scheduled to be published on September 2, 2025 in the US. **
This was such an interesting read as a sprinter transitioning into endurance running. I spent a lot of time in track sprinting and never really learned about what cross country was up to and how it functioned until I read this book. So much more strategy than I thought was involved! While I have never run the type of racing that these boys (and Coach Brosnan) competed in, it was exhilarating to read about. I can not even fathom going that fast in the mile/2 mile/3 mile distances and not being absolutely destroyed for several days post race. I especially enjoyed the snippets of information, as they remembered it, from the teammates involved in the book. It's great to see both the coaches and his athletes' points of view. As I have never competed seriously, or followed cross country news, or even really the Olympics, I could not completely connect with the story.
However, the punishing workouts, grit, dedication, and perseverance - regardless of what distance you run, or how fast - are facets to our sport we can all agree on in the running community. Amazing/Inspiring work!
This was such an interesting read as a sprinter transitioning into endurance running. I spent a lot of time in track sprinting and never really learned about what cross country was up to and how it functioned until I read this book. So much more strategy than I thought was involved! While I have never run the type of racing that these boys (and Coach Brosnan) competed in, it was exhilarating to read about. I can not even fathom going that fast in the mile/2 mile/3 mile distances and not being absolutely destroyed for several days post race. I especially enjoyed the snippets of information, as they remembered it, from the teammates involved in the book. It's great to see both the coaches and his athletes' points of view. As I have never competed seriously, or followed cross country news, or even really the Olympics, I could not completely connect with the story.
However, the punishing workouts, grit, dedication, and perseverance - regardless of what distance you run, or how fast - are facets to our sport we can all agree on in the running community. Amazing/Inspiring work!
August 22, 2025
I just finished Beyond Fast by @realseanbrosnan, with Chris Lear and Andrew Greif (Pub day 9/2).
Let me preface this by saying-I am not a runner! 🏃♂️But as a mom of a high school runner, who has been begging for this book for months, I can vouch that this book is great for runners, coaches and parents of athletes.
Sean’s journey to having a three-time national championship team is compelling and Newbury Park’s path to success represents the true definition of an underdog success story.
As a coach, he was always questioning, pushing boundaries, thinking outside the box, and pushing his runners to dream big, break barriers and not limit themselves.
He also had expert ability to face criticism head on and create unique opportunities for his team.
Along with Sean’s story, I especially loved the inserts from his initial group of star runners! For lovers of the sport, this is a must-read. Preorder your copy at your fave indie bookstore @elmstreetbooks 😉
Thank you @atriabooks @simonandschuster for this early copy!
Let me preface this by saying-I am not a runner! 🏃♂️But as a mom of a high school runner, who has been begging for this book for months, I can vouch that this book is great for runners, coaches and parents of athletes.
Sean’s journey to having a three-time national championship team is compelling and Newbury Park’s path to success represents the true definition of an underdog success story.
As a coach, he was always questioning, pushing boundaries, thinking outside the box, and pushing his runners to dream big, break barriers and not limit themselves.
He also had expert ability to face criticism head on and create unique opportunities for his team.
Along with Sean’s story, I especially loved the inserts from his initial group of star runners! For lovers of the sport, this is a must-read. Preorder your copy at your fave indie bookstore @elmstreetbooks 😉
Thank you @atriabooks @simonandschuster for this early copy!
November 4, 2025
Audiobook version
September 24, 2025
So not the best-written story, but at the same time it was a fascinating story. I read the first half of the book in one sitting—enthralled to hear about Nico’s success.
October 23, 2025
I really enjoyed this book about the epic rise of the Newbury Park High School Cross Country Team, the individual athletes, and their coach.
September 19, 2025
I've been running more recently and was hunting for books about running on what happened to be the day this book was released. I picked up the audiobook to listen to during my own runs. The book is cross country coach Sean Brosnan's story, starting with his own running history as a teenager and young adult, his pursuit of better coaching and development, and eventually becoming a coach himself. Landing at a California high school with a non-competitive cross country team, he tells the athletes and parents that if they go all-in on his training methods, they will win a state championship - and eventually they do, and then some.
The book follows the runners (specifically the men's team) as they age through the program, ramping up the intensity in both the work and the team itself. It is inspiring to be sure, but there is a good amount of detail on specific people running specific distances at specific times that can feel like a lot of information to keep straight (or at least it felt that way for me in audio format). In the process of all of that growth and inspiration is a good amount of minutia that some people will really appreciate (particularly fans or runners) and some people might not. A few of those sections in particular felt a little long, but by the end I was looking up the different runners on Instagram and feel genuinely happy and proud for these people I've never met! (It also kept me running, albeit MUCH slower than Brosnan's runners.)
I get most of my books from the library and my ultimate rating system is, "would I pay money for this?" In this case, I'd say maybe. I ended up using an Audible credit on it so I did technically buy it, and I'd say it was a good use of a credit.
The book follows the runners (specifically the men's team) as they age through the program, ramping up the intensity in both the work and the team itself. It is inspiring to be sure, but there is a good amount of detail on specific people running specific distances at specific times that can feel like a lot of information to keep straight (or at least it felt that way for me in audio format). In the process of all of that growth and inspiration is a good amount of minutia that some people will really appreciate (particularly fans or runners) and some people might not. A few of those sections in particular felt a little long, but by the end I was looking up the different runners on Instagram and feel genuinely happy and proud for these people I've never met! (It also kept me running, albeit MUCH slower than Brosnan's runners.)
I get most of my books from the library and my ultimate rating system is, "would I pay money for this?" In this case, I'd say maybe. I ended up using an Audible credit on it so I did technically buy it, and I'd say it was a good use of a credit.
December 25, 2025
Interesting book and I enjoyed learning the backstory of the fastest two or three teams in US HS history. Brosnan rubs some the wrong way and I get it. His philosophy is different than mine as a HS and DIII distance coach but I think it’s mostly personality.
Was it the right place at the right time with so many elite all time HS kids in one place or was Brosnan something historically better than everyone that ever coached? Eh I don’t really care. Probably a bit of both catching lightning in a bottle and him being an amazing coach. Any coach that has ever done it for a long time (I’m over two decades in) knows some times you get lucky but also that the better you are the more your luck improves. I think it was brutally hard to coach during COVID shutdowns and many of us would have absolutely lost our jobs if we did some of the things Sean did during that era including cutting the links of a chain fence for track access (it was so HS kids could work out and my HS would not have allowed that). And despite his personal belief that what levels of financial and time commitment he got from parents wasn’t anything outrageous, there are a very limited number of public schools in the country that would get the same support and it’s not because they don’t care or aren’t committed. My teams run against a team that won NXN this year and is a fixture there through three coaches and they don’t do that stuff.
All that said Sean and the NP kids are great and I won’t let personality or difference of opinion try to take anything from them. Historic group and fun read.
Was it the right place at the right time with so many elite all time HS kids in one place or was Brosnan something historically better than everyone that ever coached? Eh I don’t really care. Probably a bit of both catching lightning in a bottle and him being an amazing coach. Any coach that has ever done it for a long time (I’m over two decades in) knows some times you get lucky but also that the better you are the more your luck improves. I think it was brutally hard to coach during COVID shutdowns and many of us would have absolutely lost our jobs if we did some of the things Sean did during that era including cutting the links of a chain fence for track access (it was so HS kids could work out and my HS would not have allowed that). And despite his personal belief that what levels of financial and time commitment he got from parents wasn’t anything outrageous, there are a very limited number of public schools in the country that would get the same support and it’s not because they don’t care or aren’t committed. My teams run against a team that won NXN this year and is a fixture there through three coaches and they don’t do that stuff.
All that said Sean and the NP kids are great and I won’t let personality or difference of opinion try to take anything from them. Historic group and fun read.
November 4, 2025
I've been a runner all my life. I've followed high school and college XC closely since 2010. NPHS XC, starting with the years when Nico Young attended, became one of the most interesting teams to follow in any sport at any level. What the Sahlman and Young brothers achieved, along with talented and committed teammates, might never be matched (and was pretty inconceivable when even they were doing it).
The book gives a lot of background as to what was going on outside of the race videos and social media posts at the time. One race I would have liked to have learned more about was the NXN race that Aaron Sahlman won (Not a spoiler. It is in the record books). At the time, it seemed as if the running media and fans were expecting one of the Young brothers to take the win. Aaron's victory was inspired. But seeing both Young brothers fade toward the end of the race was shocking, and might have warranted a bit of explanation in the book.
It is great to see Chris Lear's involvement in telling the story of Sean Brosnan and the NPHS teams. I don't know of any XC coach or distance runner who hasn't read Running With The Buffaloes. Beyond Fast tells the team story from the perspective of Brosnan, a talented, dedicated (and perhaps slightly difficult) coach who took the team from obscurity to the acme of XC and track.
I have recommended the book to coaching friends. And I would recommend it to runners and people who like inspiring reads.
The book gives a lot of background as to what was going on outside of the race videos and social media posts at the time. One race I would have liked to have learned more about was the NXN race that Aaron Sahlman won (Not a spoiler. It is in the record books). At the time, it seemed as if the running media and fans were expecting one of the Young brothers to take the win. Aaron's victory was inspired. But seeing both Young brothers fade toward the end of the race was shocking, and might have warranted a bit of explanation in the book.
It is great to see Chris Lear's involvement in telling the story of Sean Brosnan and the NPHS teams. I don't know of any XC coach or distance runner who hasn't read Running With The Buffaloes. Beyond Fast tells the team story from the perspective of Brosnan, a talented, dedicated (and perhaps slightly difficult) coach who took the team from obscurity to the acme of XC and track.
I have recommended the book to coaching friends. And I would recommend it to runners and people who like inspiring reads.
November 5, 2025
I received this book for free as a Goodreads giveaway.
I’m not a runner, but I have family members who are so I’m not entirely clueless.
The author spent most of his 20s wandering the US, finding ways to observe elite running coaches before finally trying his hand at coaching a high school cross country team. He teaches the kids to push their limits beyond their wildest expectations and very quickly turns the team into the best high school cross country team in the US.
As many reviewers have noted, you have to wade through a lot of numbers (times, distances, reps) to get to the story. I was mostly able to let the numbers drift by, taking as much as I needed from them to understand the story. It was a decent read.
Do I agree with his attitude? His methods? I’m not sure. But I understand why he felt he was right, and he wasn’t forcing those kids to be on the team. Learning what you can do when you really commit to doing your absolute best is a great lesson to learn, but there was a certain level of arrogance that I found off putting- like the “too cool for dual meets” attitude, and the author’s absolute belief that he - and only he - knew what was best . Still, he gave an awful lot of himself to make things happen, particularly during the Covid shutdown era, when he could have walked away.
So - some mixed feelings on this one, but I think it’s worth a read.
I’m not a runner, but I have family members who are so I’m not entirely clueless.
The author spent most of his 20s wandering the US, finding ways to observe elite running coaches before finally trying his hand at coaching a high school cross country team. He teaches the kids to push their limits beyond their wildest expectations and very quickly turns the team into the best high school cross country team in the US.
As many reviewers have noted, you have to wade through a lot of numbers (times, distances, reps) to get to the story. I was mostly able to let the numbers drift by, taking as much as I needed from them to understand the story. It was a decent read.
Do I agree with his attitude? His methods? I’m not sure. But I understand why he felt he was right, and he wasn’t forcing those kids to be on the team. Learning what you can do when you really commit to doing your absolute best is a great lesson to learn, but there was a certain level of arrogance that I found off putting- like the “too cool for dual meets” attitude, and the author’s absolute belief that he - and only he - knew what was best . Still, he gave an awful lot of himself to make things happen, particularly during the Covid shutdown era, when he could have walked away.
So - some mixed feelings on this one, but I think it’s worth a read.
September 2, 2025
The author who grew up in a family with a history of runners, at the tender age of 5 years old begs his parents to let him run in a 5K and they let him. The author drifted away to other passions but eventually comes back to running with a push to build on his early surprising speed with efforts to continue to get better. No one was happier about his return to running more than his grandpa who someone to share his knowledge with and would literally drive him anywhere to help him train. While the author continues to build on his own personal knowledge about himself, he also takes tidbits from the various coaches and programs he runs for. I was curious to see if Adams State here in Colorado would be mentioned due to their successful program and the author did run there for a while.
The author finds himself living in California with his wife and apprehensively pursues coaching opportunities in the high school ranks. During his traveling days he tried to pick up tidbits of knowledge from various coach and implements these along with his own thoughts and methods that went against the norm with eventually amazing success. This was a great read where you find yourself rooting for the individuals and team and reading the pages fast to see what happens next. Even if you are not a runner this should be of interest to you. Give it a read.
The author finds himself living in California with his wife and apprehensively pursues coaching opportunities in the high school ranks. During his traveling days he tried to pick up tidbits of knowledge from various coach and implements these along with his own thoughts and methods that went against the norm with eventually amazing success. This was a great read where you find yourself rooting for the individuals and team and reading the pages fast to see what happens next. Even if you are not a runner this should be of interest to you. Give it a read.
November 3, 2025
GOODREADS GIVEAWAY WIN - Thank you, Sean Brosnan and Atria Books
Narratives from individual team members inserted into the book added interest to the text. Despite this, I simply could not read every word of this memoir -too wordy, too dry. That earned only a two-star rating. Brosnan's enthusiasm, expertise, drive, and resilience helped raise the final evaluation to three stars.
My 11-year-old great niece motivated me to enter this giveaway. She began cross-country training and racing this past summer. Despite competing against 12, 13, and 14-year-olds, she has managed to place in events. She ran at State this past fall. With Brosnan's understanding of coaching and training, his next published effort could be a small handbook for cross-country running young people. Inspirational quotes and stories from Nico, Collin, Jace, and others could be included. This project could be digital and/or a paperback. Either way, Brosnan would continue to help present and future runners. My great-niece and her cross-country buddies would love it!
Narratives from individual team members inserted into the book added interest to the text. Despite this, I simply could not read every word of this memoir -too wordy, too dry. That earned only a two-star rating. Brosnan's enthusiasm, expertise, drive, and resilience helped raise the final evaluation to three stars.
My 11-year-old great niece motivated me to enter this giveaway. She began cross-country training and racing this past summer. Despite competing against 12, 13, and 14-year-olds, she has managed to place in events. She ran at State this past fall. With Brosnan's understanding of coaching and training, his next published effort could be a small handbook for cross-country running young people. Inspirational quotes and stories from Nico, Collin, Jace, and others could be included. This project could be digital and/or a paperback. Either way, Brosnan would continue to help present and future runners. My great-niece and her cross-country buddies would love it!
October 27, 2025
I received a copy of this book in a Goodreads giveaway.
4.5 stars
Although I am not a runner myself, I have a grandson who has been running cross country for his middle school for the last few years, so I found this book to be very interesting. The setting was familiar to me; my grandson has run at Mt Sac. I enjoyed seeing the progressive development of the Newbury Park High School team which eventually set multiple national records. Probably more impressive than the individual records were the overall results for the team. I think that's what most appealed to me: the interactions between the runners, their willingness to sacrifice personal achievements for the benefit of the team when necessary as well as to follow the innovative (and sometimes unusual) training methods of their coach. I also appreciated the comments from individual runners that were interspersed throughout the narrative. Great read!
4.5 stars
Although I am not a runner myself, I have a grandson who has been running cross country for his middle school for the last few years, so I found this book to be very interesting. The setting was familiar to me; my grandson has run at Mt Sac. I enjoyed seeing the progressive development of the Newbury Park High School team which eventually set multiple national records. Probably more impressive than the individual records were the overall results for the team. I think that's what most appealed to me: the interactions between the runners, their willingness to sacrifice personal achievements for the benefit of the team when necessary as well as to follow the innovative (and sometimes unusual) training methods of their coach. I also appreciated the comments from individual runners that were interspersed throughout the narrative. Great read!
September 28, 2025
Loved reading this so much! As a later in life distance runner who lives in Newbury Park, this was a highly anticipated book (even if I graduated from nearby Westlake High)! I've followed the team's success via social media, and have cheered Nico on with his televised races over the past few years.
I'm also an educator, and understand the passion that comes with guiding students to success. It's truly a calling, and Sean has that. If you're successful in that role, you're all in. He exemplifies that and the love that he has for his runners shines through in every word that is written.
THANK YOU for this deep backstory of the team, from the beginnings to where they are currently. I continue to be in awe of the hard working athletes that came out of not only NPHS, but of the others that were and will be motivated by their success!
Highly recommended!
I'm also an educator, and understand the passion that comes with guiding students to success. It's truly a calling, and Sean has that. If you're successful in that role, you're all in. He exemplifies that and the love that he has for his runners shines through in every word that is written.
THANK YOU for this deep backstory of the team, from the beginnings to where they are currently. I continue to be in awe of the hard working athletes that came out of not only NPHS, but of the others that were and will be motivated by their success!
Highly recommended!
October 17, 2025
I followed NPHS when Nico first came on the scene and enjoyed watching this public school team’s meteoric rise over the years. I believe Brosnan did a great job with this team as the book indicates with the main theme of self-belief and removing limits. It’s acknowledged briefly, but his counter argument to having the most talented running families (arguably ever) falls flat. The fact that his whole team was able to run sub-15 minute 5ks is INCREDIBLE, but you cannot take a random public school and have that happen. That being said, I enjoyed the students’ inserts in the book and, overall, related to the coaching philosophies that Brosnan preaches. 3.5
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