By Maggie Overfelt

NORTH HAMPTON, N.H. (CNNMoney.com) — The office of Ashley Brown and T.J. Gray is littered with what could be relics from some eclectic sporting-goods museum.

There’s the pair of lightweight Puma cleats the duo designed for Johnny Damon when he played outfield for the Boston Red Sox; the award-winning $15 basketball shoes they created for New York Knicks point guard Stephon Marbury; the lacrosse sticks they crafted for Brine, the nation’s largest seller of lacrosse and hockey equipment.

For the past 15 years, Brown, 37, and Gray, 40, have designed top-of-the line gear for almost every major athletic company. They started as staffers for Nike (NKE, Fortune 500) in the late 1990s and most recently were independent contractors assisting Under Armour launch a line of football cleats.

But late last year the two launched their own company, 20 Degrees North, and started seeking their own piece of the $46 billion outdoor-recreation market.

“It’s probably not the best time to start a shoe company,” Brown says. “But we’ve been designing for everyone else for years, so why not do it ourselves? How hard can it really be?”

Last month the duo launched their first product, a line of bright-colored running shoes for the 40 million American joggers who run on off-road trails, where the uneven terrain of mountain passes, beaches, and forests necessitates a wider, more stable running shoe than those worn by track-and-field athletes.

About a dozen companies, including Adidas and Asics, already sell trail-running shoes, but 20 Degrees’ founders say the market lacks a clear leader.

“Standing at the finish lines of these races, we watched as about 90% of the 500 racers coming through were wearing regular running shoes – today’s running shoes are too heavy and overbuilt,” Gray says. “It’s a perfect niche for us to build on, a place where we can come in and be the first true, authentic brand.”

Brown and Gray, who run in three to four triathlons annually, have spent nearly a year perfecting their new shoe. For research, they examined photos and Internet footage of big cats’ paws, discovering that their pads – not claws – wrapped around rocks and uneven terrain to give them better stability.

“Other companies look at putting hard teeth and large pieces on the bottom of shoes to give them stability – that adds weight,” Brown explains.

Instead, 20 Degrees fitted the bottom of its shoes with lightweight, blown-rubber traction pads and grooves to make them work more like paws. The company also used an injection-molded manufacturing process that is generally associated with Crocs (CROX), not high-performance sneakers. And although that makes the shoes almost twice as expensive to make, it resulted in a trainer that is almost two ounces lighter than competitors’.

But no matter how light and agile their shoes are, it’s hard to break into the shoe market, especially in such a niche.

Mass exposure

“Die-hard trail runners tend to find a brand they love and stick with it,” says Elinor Fish, managing editor of Trail Running Magazine. “Then this company faces the challenge of convincing specialty running stores – who have limited wall space – to stock a brand they’ve never heard of.”

To build credibility among die-hard athletes, 20 Degrees is targeting the some 28,000 runners that participate each year in Xterra races, a series of triathlons held all over the world. (The Xterra athletic brand is not related to the Nissan SUV of the same name.) In 2007, 20 Degrees inked a deal with Team Unlimited, the Maui firm that runs the Xterra races, and is selling its shoe under the Xterra name. The Maui location is also the inspiration for 20 Degrees’ name: Hawaii is found at 20 degrees latitude.

As a result, the Xterra shoe will get exposure at races and on Xterra Planet TV, a sports cable network that, according to Team Unlimited CEO Tom Kiely, gets about 50 million viewers a year. The company also has access to five Xterra-sponsored athletes, competitive runners who have been testing 20 Degrees’ shoes since spring.

“I started wearing the shoes in May and now wear them almost exclusively,” says Cindi Toepel, a software developer manager based in Littleton, Colo., who has competed in Xterra races for five years. “I have a tendency to roll my ankles when I run, but since wearing these shoes I haven’t done that. And they’re lighter than they look.”

So far 20 Degrees has financed itself with $500,000 of personal savings and the extra income Brown and Gray make from consulting jobs. They’re hoping it’s enough to manufacture and market about 10,000 pairs of trail-running shoes. If all goes well with the first batch, 20 Degrees will break even in 2008 and 2009, and then turn its first profit in 2010.

To help make that happen, Brown and Gray recruited two shoe industry veterans to service as senior management. They appointed Greg Niel, a former sales executive at Adidas, as CEO, and Mark Kilgore, an ex-product developer at Nike, as COO. While Niel will help sell and market the brand into stores across the country, Kilgore will handle the manufacturing and sourcing end, something he was responsible for at Nike.

“It’s probably not the best time to be developing new shoes,” says Kilgore, 43, noting that the cost to manufacture goods in China has gone up about 5% to 8% due to rising raw material costs and the country’s new labor wage rules. “But I wanted the chance to own something, and TJ and Ash – those guys are really good at doing footwear.”

Brown and Gray have already started designing Xterra hiking sandals and slides, and later next year they hope to introduce more running shoes. “Today’s athletes don’t want to be indoors at the gym – they’re migrating outdoors,” says Niel. “Once we’ve established ourselves as the leading brand in trail-running, we believe the rest of the outdoor market will come right at us.”

But what happens if Nike decides to launch a new trail-running shoe to snag its lost market share?

“If they wanted to, they could crush us,” says Kilgore. “But I just don’t see it happening right away. Our market is insignificant to them in the big scheme of things. They won’t notice us until we become something huge.”

Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 2 1/2 – 3 hours.

Add onions, tomatoes, chili powder, lemon and garlic. Simmer for another 30 minutes.

Makes 3-4 quarts, serves 14-16.

Alternative cooking: Place all ingredients in an automatic pressure cooker and cook for 45-50 minutes.

Serve with fresh, crusty, French or Italian bread.

Universal NO HEADPHONES Icon Unveiled

Posted Friday, 8 February, 2008

Arlington, VA – As race directors struggle with the RRCA guideline against the use of headphones in RRCA insured events along with the USATF ban on headphones at sanctioned events, the RRCA is encouraging race directors to adopt the new universal NO HEADPHONES symbol on race entry forms and race materials. Created by veteran race director, Jim Gerweck, the goal of this universal symbol is to send the message that event directors are serious about the headphone ban at the events they manage.

“Race officials don’t ban headphones to be mean to runners — it’s for their own safety and that of everyone else in the race,” says Gerweck, a member of the USATF Long Distance Running sub-committee studying enforcement of the ban. “It’s an education effort more than an enforcement issue, as events such as Grandma’s and Twin Cities Marathons have successfully proven. This logo is a simple way to send runners the message that headphones aren’t permitted in sanctioned events.”

The RRCA has promoted a guideline against the use of headphones in running events that dates back to the mid-1980′s and this guideline has been re-affirmed several times by the RRCA membership since then.

“Banning headphones or advising participants to leave them at home or in the car is part of the risk management responsibility of a race director. Many participants do not understand or respect the awesome responsibility a race director shoulders to ensure the safety of every single participant in an event,” explains Jean Knaack, RRCA executive director. “Respecting an event director’s choice to ban headphones is the shared responsibility of every participant to ensure the safety of all runners and the future success of the event and the sport as a whole.”

Join in on the discussion, see No iPod Enforcement

Tuesday, September 11, 2007 10:53 PM EDT (exerpt) Labor Day has come and gone, but, it’s still considered summer until Sept. 21, which means it’s not too late to hand out the annual Honors for Extraordinary Achievements in the Summer or HEATS awards for 2007. Recipients are:

The Runaways Runaround 5-Miler: This annual benefit run for Community VNA Hospice, turned 5 on a gorgeous Sunday morning, Aug. 19, and is proving itself to be a staple of the summer road-running circuit. Offering a nice course through downtown North Attleboro and on some of the rural roads that border some of the town’s remaining farms, it’s a nice way to get some exercise on a summer Sunday, and to help an excellent cause in the process. Special HEAT awards to Olympians Amy Rudolph and Mark Coogan, whose participation this year greatly enhanced the race.  

LARRY KESSLER is a Sun Chronicle local news editor. Reach him at 508-236-0330 or at lkessler@thesunchronicle.com.

August 24, 2006

SMITHFIELD, RI –    The Bryant University Department of Athletics & Recreation is pleased to announce the hiring of TRISH HILLERY as its new men’s and women’s cross country / track & field coach.  The announcement was made today by  Director of Athletics Bill Smith.  

A 1989 graduate of Providence College, Hillery was a four-year standout member of the Friars’ cross country and track & field teams for coach Ray Treacy.  During her career, Hillery placed in the top 10 in all four BIG EAST Conference Cross Country Championships and captained the Friars’ cross country team to the 1989 conference championship. 

An all-conference academic selection in 1988, Hillery placed second in the 10,000 meters at BIG EAST Conference Outdoor Championships. 

A native of Limerick, Ireland, Hillery was the Irish High School Cross Country Champion from 1982 to 1985 and currently holds the Irish High School 3,000 meter record of nine minutes, 51.0 seconds. 

A resident of Greenville, R.I., Hillery has been an active competitor on the local racing circuit.  In 2003, she placed third in the 3,000 meters at the U.S.A. Track & Field Indoor Sub-Master’s and captured the 2004 New England Runner Magazine Pub Race Series title. 

Olympian glad to join NA race

BY JANETTE SEARS SUN CHRONICLE STAFF
Sunday, August 19, 2007 1:56 AM EDT
NORTH ATTLEBORO – When the fifth annual Runaways Runaround 5 Miler gets under way at 9 a.m. today at the Community School in downtown North Attleboro, it will do so with support from the cream of the crop.

World-class runner and two-time Olympian Amy Rudolph will be there to support it all the way.

Proceeds from the race benefit the Community VNA Hospice, and that’s a good enough reason for Rudolph to take time out to support it.

Rudolph, who lives in Providence with her husband, Mark Carroll, also a professional runner, says she initially agreed to support the event based on an e-mail request from race committee member Bill Beardsworth.

“Bill just sent me a great e-mail, and gave me information about what it was for, and I just was really drawn to it, so that’s actually why I’m doing it,” Rudolph said.

In addition, she says she is always looking for ways to give back to the community, and can relate through a college work experience to the people who need support, much in the way that hospice provides support.

“My major in college was health policy management, and I actually did my internship at a nursing home,” she said.

“I know it’s a little bit different, the hospice, but it’s along the same lines, so my heart always goes out to people who don’t have the support, and they just need to know that someone is out there and caring about them – someone that they can lean on when they need to.”

While at the race, Rudolph will truly be there only to support it, as she says due to a stress fracture for which she has taken the past six weeks off from running, she will not be there to try to win the race.

“I had told Bill I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to run because of this injury, but I’ve been able to get some runs in, and I think I should be fine,” Rudolph said.

“I won’t be able to race it as hard as I would normally race because I’m only just coming back from injury. I’m just really excited to be a part of it, and hopefully I can help in the future.”

Organizers of the race will be only too happy to have Rudolph participate in whatever manner she is able to, according to Karole Nicholson, marketing manager for Community VNA.

“This is my fourth year being associated with this spirit-filled race, and having a runner the caliber of Amy Rudolph participating has surely brought the energy level up a notch,” Nicholson said.

The course is a USATF-NE certified five-mile course that is slightly rolling and runs along a loop through North Attleboro after starting in front of the school.

Prizes will go to the first male, female and walker overall winners, as well as to the first three male and female runners in several age divisions.

Registration is available online at runawaysclub.org/rtm.html. Entry fee is $20. Race-day registration will begin at 7:30 a.m., and the race will be held rain or shine.

Janette Sears can be reached by phone or fax at 508-222-2442 or by e-mail at janette@janettesears.com.

CUMBERLAND, RI – You can’t beat it for ‘Good Old Days’ picture postcard Fourth of July Americana.
Since 1927, the villagers of Arnold Mills have gathered along Sneech Pond Road – today’s Nate Whipple Highway – to mark the Fourth of July with a parade, followed by good summer eats and a concert of patriotic songs.
And for the past 39 years, the day has started with a village road race.
The four-mile run, which starts at 9 a.m. at the Lafayette Masonic Lodge and ends at the North Cumberland Fire Station, typically draws 450 athletes. Last year, Chris Magill of Cumberland was a five-time winner clocking 20 minutes and 19 seconds.

For more club info, to join, or signup for our newsletter go to: http://runawaysclub.org