Brian Burns on Chasing 3:57 at Festival of Miles: the Training Behind the Breakthrough, the Nerves of One Final High School Mile, and a Shot at History

About this episode

Brian Burns discusses his journey and training leading up to the HOKA Festival of Miles as he aims to break the four-minute mile barrier.

The clock has beaten Brian Burns twice. June 4th at the HOKA Festival of Miles, he plans to return the favor. Burns, a senior at Bentonville High School and committed to UNC Chapel Hill, joins the show eight days out from Festival of Miles—fresh off a ladder workout that confirmed what his coaches have been telling him all spring: he is in 3:57 shape. The gap between where he is and where he needs to be is not fitness, it's a finish line. The episode traces the full arc of how Burns got here. Growing up in Missouri, watching his older brother Connor run 3:50 at Festival of Miles as a junior. A DNF at the Midwest XC regionals that humbled him and quietly redirected him. The mid-year transfer to Bentonville and what it meant to walk into a program run by Coach Mike Power, a former Olympian who has since become one of his most important influences alongside his father, Marc, who coaches the University of Arkansas women's cross country program. Underneath all of it runs one goal: becoming the first pair of brothers in high school history to both break four minutes in the mile. Connor did it in 2023 at this exact meet. Brian was there. He watched their dad sprint toward the finish…

People in this episode

Host: Dominic Schlueter

Guest: Brian Burns

Topics covered

• high school running
• mile race
• athlete training
• family legacy
• personal growth
• competition

Keywords

• Brian Burns
• Festival of Miles
• 3:57 mile
• high school athlete
• running training
• family legacy
• Mike Power
• Connor Burns
• Bentonville High School
• UNC Chapel Hill

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: UNC Chapel Hill, University of Arkansas

Places: Bentonville High School, Missouri

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