By Jon Gugala, Outdoor

Six days a week for five years, pro runner Brett Gotcher would meet with his McMillan Elite teammates to run. During the snowy, windy winters in Flagstaff, Ariz., they would huddle together between 8:30 and 9am; in summer, when the high desert heat is at its worst, they’d meet between 7 and 8 a.m. Under this rigid program, Gotcher ran his personal best in the marathon—2:10:36, which stands as the fourth-fastest debut ever by an American.

“Just having people out there is huge,” says the 30-year-old Adidas-sponsored athlete.

But there was a downside: Not everyone improved at the same pace.

Finally, not long after he placed fifth in the U.S. Olympic Team Trials marathon in 2012, Gotcher decided to leave Flagstaff, return to California, and train alone.

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