An interview with Mike Melfi

At the time of his graduation in 1999, Mike Melfi was indisputably the greatest distance runner in school history. By every metric, despite his relatively diminutive frame, Mike stood head and shoulders above the history of our program to date. Among his accomplishments:

--He sat atop the all-time Van Cortlandt Park list, which at the time was THE metric to gauge all generations of Marist men’s cross country athletes.

--He set the school record for 5,000 meters on the outdoor track, paving the way for future distance runners by running a killer race at Penn Relays after I basically had to sell my soul to gain him acceptance into the world-renowned meet. I remember those back-and-forth phone calls with Penn Relays director Dave Johnson, pulling out every superlative I could muster from my vocabulary in an effort to convince him to let Mike run. He finally relented and we are forever grateful.

--He broke and re-broke the school record at 3,000 meters indoors, becoming the first-ever IC4A qualifier in that event. Back then, if you can believe it, there were trials and finals in that distance event indoors. Mike had barely qualified for the meet, but then he shocked everyone – including me and him – by qualifying for the Sunday final, and then scoring at that final, at Cornell University. It’s embarrassing to admit this, but we were so certain that Mike wouldn’t make finals that we didn’t even book hotel rooms for Saturday night in Ithaca; fortunately, we were able to get back in there for one more night. The achievement was so noteworthy that the legendary coach Frank “Gags” Gagliano (then at Georgetown) even took note of it, congratulating Mike after the race.

So yeah. Mike did a lot of things that no other Marist runners had done before. Equally important, he paved the way for future generations to go ahead and exceed those results and break those records. More than 20 years later, Mike remains a close friend and a towering figure in our sport. He had a great post-collegiate racing career and he still trains at a relatively high level. And now, he is a collegiate coach, at SUNY-ESF (College of Environmental Science and Forestry) in his hometown of Syracuse, NY -- where he has achieved instant success as a coach. We talk all the time, and he also remains in close communication with Coach Chuck, who was his roommate in college. Mike often turns to Chuck for advice on collegiate recruiting. So as we try to continue to toggle from one era to another in the Pandemic Papers, today we turn the page back to the late 1990s, to a runner who set the stage for all great things to follow in the men’s program. Thank you, Mike, for taking the time to answer these questions!    

You had a strong high school career at Henninger High School in Syracuse. How and why did you choose Marist? Tell us about the recruiting process and the other schools you considered. What sold you on Marist?

Two people come to mind when I think about why I went to Marist: Marist alum Bob Sweeney and my mom! I received the typical letters from many Northeast colleges -- D1, D2, D3. Just a few weeks ago, I was cleaning out some bins and noticed all my letters from colleges. I decided to show my 13-year-old son. I had a few handwritten letters from top programs … Indiana, South Florida and Syracuse … but I got a lot of interest from Plattsburgh, Canisius and Monmouth. I narrowed it down to Canisius and Monmouth and then late in the process, my high school coach asked me if I would be interested in Marist? Apparently, one of his former athletes, Bob Sweeney, went to Marist and graduated with Pete (Editor’s note: Not really, but close enough … Bob was a little younger than me, but we trained together post-collegiately and became close friends). I adored my high school coach and if he told me to go to Marist, I would have went there!! But, he always made it very clear he would not get involved with my college process (in case things did not work out)! However, he seemed to think Marist would be a good fit and said, "the coach down there is really good!”

I ended up going down on a Sunday in late winter. I stayed overnight with Matt Pool. Pete put my parents up in the Super 8 in Hyde Park. Prior to staying overnight with Pool, my parents and I had lunch with Pete across from campus at some bar! My parents, mainly my mom, just loved Pete! Pete was so personable but the fact that Pete was Italian made my mom like Pete even more. Pete ended up recruiting my mom, more than me. Pete told my parents to go to dinner at Coppola’s (across the street from the Super 8). My parents loved it at Coppola’s, which resulted in my parents liking Pete even more! The rest is history. I told Pete about a week later I was going to attend Marist (without my mom, of course)!

When did you start running and how did you get involved in the sport?

In my hometown, I attended a Syracuse City Parks and Recreation Track camp the summer of 5th grade. They got me into running and had me try out for Junior Olympics where I made it to the regionals in Red Hook, NY. Coincidently, I am now the director of that summer camp and I ended up attending college just south of Red Hook!

Talk about your time at Marist, academically and athletically. First, academically: How did your education at Marist prepare you for a career in education?

First, it should be known that I received my master’s degree in Literacy from Syracuse University. However, Marist, by far was a better fit for me than Syracuse. I did learn a lot at Syracuse … but the small tight “family like” atmosphere at Marist prepared me for a life of education beyond what I can write here. Pete and even his wife Heidi helped me SO much and I am so grateful for this. Pete, who was working part time at the Poughkeepsie Journal as well as being the part-time Marist coach, took time at night to re-read my academic papers. Heidi helped me with the creative part of getting a certification in elementary education. I remember going to Pete and Heidi’s house on a Friday night. Heidi helped me put together my teaching portfolio (something I would bring on job interviews). I recall principals telling me how awesome it was. Professors were amazing at Marist and always available. I was a low 80 student in high school and at Marist, the style of teaching was perfect for my learning style which resulted in some really great grades.

Athletically: To be honest, I was not happy with my freshman year. I actually wanted to transfer back home (to Lemoyne College). I had some class conflicts so I had to workouts on my own and I raced very poorly. I did not give up and Pete adjusted his training to fit my needs. Things took off from there. Pete actually set me up to peak as a runner the few years after college. My one regret: Pete wanted me to run a marathon soon after college. He knew I was ready to run sub 2:20 based on my 14:30 (5k), 30:30 (10k) and 67:17 (half marathon). I decided to wait until I was closer to 30 years old. I still ran a solid marathon time (2:29) but I should have listened to Pete and ran it right after college!  

You had a great running career here at Marist. At the time of your graduation, you were among the greatest student-athletes we've ever had here. What are some of your favorite highlights and memories of your time as a runner at Marist?

Without a doubt, my favorite memory was being the first Marist (distance) runner to compete at the Penn Relays. I remember when Pete tried to get me into the meet.  They initially denied me. The Poughkeepsie Journal did some article and it was on the front cover of the sports section! Finally, they let me race and I PRed (and ran a school record) and beat many good runners. I also remember my senior year, last XC race (they call it regionals now) to determine who goes to nationals. It was 10k at VCP. At mile 4, I was qualified and I'll never forget running by Chuck and Pete and them yelling at me to hold on, I am in! I did fall back a little to 25th place. I needed to be 15th to make it! 

However, Coach Chuck (and my former roommate) often reminds me about my fastest 8k time, 24:17. In 1998, we went to the National Catholic Invite at Notre Dame. I ran out of my mind out there finishing 3^rd overall and only getting beat by just one ND guy. At the time, ND was ranked in the NCAA top 20. My buddy, Tim Englehardt, ran for them. Tim was an All-American high school XC runner who was highly recruited. He could have went anywhere. I blew him away and a few days after the race, the ND guys were asking him who I was and trying to research my times, etc. Wearing that Marist uniform and running that time out there was beyond memorable.

For younger athletes on the team, tell them what it was like to be a student-athlete at Marist back then as opposed to now. What are some of the similarities and some of the differences? 

One major similarity... Pete and Chuck! These two are so loyal to the program, it's fascinating!!  I see a difference is the gear received, social media, busses to meets, the seriousness of the team.

How are you and your family managing the Covid-19 pandemic -- you and your wife as teachers with distance learning, and your children adapting to the same. How is it going?

I am sure my 13-year-old son, Dante and my 9-year-old daughter Gianna are enjoying having two parents as teachers!! Ha ha! It's going OK! We are all managing trying to support local as much as we can as well. My son Dante was ready to run modified track. He plays soccer too but has been running somewhat consistently since Thanksgiving to gain a base. Obviously, his track season got canceled but he is running consistently. We ran 4 miles the other day on a trail. By the end we were going low 7 pace and he said, "dad, this feels to good, I think I can run forever!" That's always a good to hear!

You are coach of the XC/track programs at SUNY ESF in Syracuse. Tell us how you got the job and how much the program has grown under your leadership.

Next year, I will be going into my 4^th year on the job there. I was coaching at high school and modified level for about 10 years before SUNY ESF. My brother saw the posting and then a mother of someone I used to coach in high school reached out to me and asked if I would be interested. She works at SUNY ESF. We are a young athletic program (XC has only been around 14 years, track, 5 years). Our national affiliation is the USCAA (small colleges across the country). However, each week we compete at NCAA D1, D2, D3 invites so we train like a NCAA Division 1! Two XC season ago, we won our first ever USCAA national women’s XC title. This was a monumental moment for the XC program. Our men have been national runner up for the last three seasons. Last season, we had the best XC men’s team in school history based on times. At our national meet in Virginia Beach, we had our top 5 guys under 28 minutes for (8k). One guy under 26, another under 27 and 3 guys under 28 minutes. Pete has always come up with team mottos. We do as well. Despite being a young program, underfunded, etc, we always “FIND A WAY!”

Regarding the pandemic, how are you and your staff managing that with your team and how do you envision this situation impacting your team in the short- and long-term future?

My staff and I are certainly worried about the future, especially XC. We are planning like it will happen. We text and email our student athletes all the time. I send out training plans as well. I hope my seniors can stay in shape and hit up a road race in the summer (assuming there will be road races). We had some big goals for this outdoor season based on what we did indoor.

Seniors in high school and seniors in college are missing out on the end of their senior years. What message can you give to Marist runners who are missing out on their final outdoor track season as well as their final few months as student-athletes at Marist?

The best thing about running is you always have another race. It’ doesn’t matter how old you are or if races are canceled for moment. You will have a chance to shine. Good runners are patient. Just like in your training … It takes time to develop and be a great runner and PR. Same thing with this situation. Be patient, get your training in and you will get through this and have your chance.

How are you managing that with the Mighty Oaks too? What message of hope or guidance can you give with regard to the future and the "new normals" we may have to adapt to?

We have to be prepared for anything. I know there will be budget issues that we will have to figure out a well as new normals. As of now, recruiting has taken over a lot of my time and that has changed. We are excited to start up life again while realizing it may look a bit different.

Anything else you’d like to add …  

One thing I forgot to write is that I still run very consistently, 12-15 mile long runs each week and about 40-50 miles a week. Never took a break from the days I left Marist in 1999.

Finally, thank you Pete for doing this. Pete does an amazing job keeping in touch with his alumni. It truly makes Marist XC/TRACK unique and amazing. He creates a family-like atmosphere for us Running Red Foxes in both the short- and long-term.