Dave McGovern

Dave McGovern is not just an elite athlete, he's been running Dave’s World Class Race Walking. It's where you go if you want to attend a race walking clinic. Holding about 20 weekend clinics a year and one weeklong training camp, Dave McGovern is a traveling clinician.

Books, videos, and DVDs are a great way to learn about the sport, but there is no substitute for in-person hands-on assistance from a coach. McGovern’s clinics provide the intense reinforcement of race walking concepts that dramatically impacts a person’s race walking style and training philosophy.

"I learned more in two days at Dave's Dallas clinic than I did in nineteen years of race walking!"

--Fan Benno-Carris, Age 85, World Masters Race Walk Champion

Dave’s World Class clinics provide an action-filled weekend. After a brief introduction to the elements of fast, efficient race walking technique, McGovern starts you off with a videotaping session that is next used as a tool to demonstrate areas needing improvement. After he tweaks your form, McGovern tapes you again so that you can see improvements for yourself.

After a brief break for lunch, you head back to the track, where McGovern teaches you dynamic drills, similar to the ones explained in Chapter 3, to improve your walking-specific range of motion.

The end of the first day wraps up with a mock race to see how your technique holds up under semi-competitive conditions.

The second full day of the clinic starts with a lecture on training physiology, followed by a workout designed to approximate your lactate threshold. By approaching this threshold as well as your maximum heart rate, you can develop a solid training program.

The weekend ends with a lecture on how to put it all together. You leave with improved technique, a better understanding of race walking, and a new enthusiasm for our sport.

To obtain the latest clinic schedule from McGovern’s web site, visit www.racewalking.org .

Dave McGovern practices what he preaches. He walks fast—really fast. A member of the U.S. National Race Walking Team, he has won 13 U.S. National Championships and holds a 20K PR of 1:24:29, one of the all-time fastest 20Ks walked by an American.