Even Brett Favre came back to play for the Vikings...and the Jets, but let's ignore that part.
If you had any uncertainty as to what today's announcement would be about, let me offer the clarity that I am sure many of you would like to have.
Today, we are officially relaunching The Stride Report. We're back.
Now, I know what you're thinking.
"Gosh, you couldn't even make it six months without coming back to the site and producing content? What could have possibly changed since then? How will this time be any different?"
Great questions. Allow me to explain.
When I shut down The Stride Report back in June, I was completely exhausted. Working a full-time job, a freelance job and overseeing this website proved to be impossible. Coming into June, I had zero intention of continuing this site past the national meet.
Then, just a week after we ceased operations, I got a message on LinkedIn from Canadian Olympian Natalia Hawthorn. The message went something like this...
"Hi Garrett! My name is Natalia. I work for a data-driven high school-to-college recruiting platform called Streamline Athletes. I'd love to connect and propose an idea regarding The Stride Report."
Naturally, I was a little confused. I had no idea what value I could offer to anyone with a website that was decommissioned. Even so, I happily obliged and coordinated a meeting with Natalia as well as the two founders of Streamline Athletes, Brett Montrose and Alex Paré.
In our first meeting, Brett and Alex introduced themselves and explained what they (and Streamline Athletes as a whole) do. Then, from that point on, they simply wanted to know more about The Stride Report.
They asked the smartest questions that anyone has ever asked about the site. They wanted to know about the intangibles, the technology, my workflow, the financial aspect, my personal ambitions, my career situation and so much more.
I won't lie, I was super impressed.
Despite a productive first meeting, both Streamline and myself parted ways unsure as to what our next steps would be...but deep down, I think we both had an idea of what was to come.
After a second and equally as productive meeting, Alex and Brett proposed the following:
"So...what if we bought The Stride Report? And you did this full-time?"
From there, our conversations (and our number of meetings) began to avalanche.
Alex, Brett and myself went back and forth for months on end. We worked hard to figure out the logistics of a potential acquisition and we ironed out the small details that once seemed inconsequential, but were most certainly not.
Eventually, after six months of meetings and processing various business requirements, I signed on the dotted line and resigned from my job. Streamline Athletes had officially acquired The Stride Report.
I will fully admit, I was very hard headed and stubborn throughout this entire process. I certainly didn't make this deal easy on Alex and Brett. There were multiple instances where they could have walked away.
But they didn't.
Instead, they completely bought into TSR as a brand and into me as a writer. They volunteered their resources, acknowledged past obstacles, offered improved article bonuses for my writers and aimed to find ways to make this a partnership that benefits both sides.
Maybe that's why I believe in Alex, Brett and the rest of the Streamline Athletes family.
They aren't just talking the talk.
They're walking the walk, even when potential challenges are presented.
If you're happy that The Stride Report is coming back, then you can thank Streamline Athletes.
Without them, I would not have relaunched this website.
But as nice as that story was, I'm sure you all have a few more questions about TSR and this acquisition. Let me answer your questions and get this wrapped up...
Wow! This is so great! But when will the content come back?
The Stride Report will begin posting new content on December 16th (tomorrow). We will be posting our men's and women's Preseason D1 Top 25 Indoor Track Rankings first which will be broken into two parts. Part One will be tomorrow while Part Two will be on December 17th.
Then, barring any major / unexpected meet results, we will be posting our men's and women's Preseason D2 Top 25 Indoor Track Rankings. Those rankings will likely be broken into two parts as well and spread out over two days.
Finally, we'll have our men's and women's Preseason D3 Top 15 Indoor Track Rankings coming out shortly after our D2 rankings. Those rankings will likely be posted all at once, but we're still ironing out the logistics of that.
What about the pricing of your BOOST subscription plan? Will that be changing at all?
As far as the pricing is concerned, no. The monthly plan will still be $3.99/month while the annual plan will still be $35.88/year ($2.99/month). All subscription plans were cancelled back in June, so you will need to resubscribe in order to view future content.
However, all accounts are still active and can still be logged into.
As far as our free trial goes, all readers who sign up for a BOOST subscription plan from now and through December 29th will get a 60-day free trial instead of our standard 14-day free trial.
This is simply a "welcome back" nod to our readers.
Please note that we have temporarily disabled PayPal as a payment option. We do, however, expect to reenable PayPal functionality in the very near future. We will announce on our respective social media channels when that happens.
Now that Streamline Athletes has acquired the site, what should we expect? Are they going to change anything?
You should only expect good things from this acquisition! Brett and Alex have graciously given me and our writers the "green light" as far as content is concerned. They'll be giving me all of The Stride Report's content responsibilities (as per usual) while offering outstanding support on the side.
Eventually, we do hope to expand. We have yet to truly cover areas like NAIA, JUCO and U SPORTS. When the time comes, we could do some pretty special things with this website.
However, for now, we will be shaking off the rust, getting back into a groove and producing great content. There will still be the occasional (although certainly not consistent) Friday or Saturday where we take off from content while results are coming in, but for the most part, you should fully expect the same great consistency that we previously had.
As for expansion, that will certainly come, it just won't be right away. Remember, this is still a startup project.
Is the Blue Oval Podcast coming back?
Yup! Ben and myself will be back on the mic, potentially as soon as next week!
However, due to the movement of assets and a few other logistical items that you don't care about, the Blue Oval Podcast will be on a new Apple Podcasts feed. Our other platforms like Spotify and SoundCloud are still the same. Any reviews, follows, five-star ratings and listens on the new Apple Podcast feed would be appreciated.
You can also listen to all of our episodes on our site by going to our PODCASTS page.
I'm interested in contributing to The Stride Report. Is there a place where I can apply?
Absolutely. You can email us at contact@thestridereport.com in order to apply!
In the email, please provide a brief introduction, any background in the sport you may have, which division(s) you would like to write about (D1, D2, D3) and a writing sample related to distance running.
All writers are now paid $15 per article, although certain writing opportunities may be more limited than others. Please understand that writing for The Stride Report requires heavy detail, extensive research, sensitivity to our content deadlines and consistency.
Due to limited space within our writing group, we may unfortunately have to decline some applications for the time being. However, we encourage anyone to send us an email if they are interested or even if they just have questions.
All applicants must have graduated high school before applying.
So...who is Streamline Athletes and what do they do?
Founded and operated by former collegiate track and field student-athletes, Streamline Athletes is the only data-driven recruiting platform purpose-built for track and field/cross-country. The platform democratizes access to college education and sport for student-athletes, while also allowing college teams to recruit better athletes more seamlessly and affordably than ever before.
High school and transferring student-athletes use Streamline Athletes to create and update their athlete profile with verified athletic performances, browse and filter every college and university track and field/XC team in North America, shortlist schools, and contact coaches right from the platform.
Streamline Athletes is free for student-athletes to use; with a PLUS athlete membership ($7.99 or $11.99/month), athletes can access upgraded features like more outbound contact and hands-on support from the staff.
Collegiate coaches and their staffs use Streamline Athletes to save 80% of the time they dedicate to recruiting. The platform introduces coaches to student-athletes who meet their athletic and academic standards and have expressed interest in joining their team.
Anything else?
This website has never in any way, shape or form been about me.
However, this is a monumental turning point in The Stride Report's life cycle. This acquisition is everything that we have been working for over the past four plus years. As the person who founded this site back in 2017, I feel that it is only right to offer my appreciation to everyone who has helped us reach this point.
First off, I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge Streamline Athletes. Alex and Brett truly wanted to make this acquisition work. They believed in both the product and myself throughout the entirety of our negotiations.
I also want to offer major kudos to both Carlos and Gio at Streamline Athletes. They helped coordinate the marketing and financial logistics, respectively, that are associated with this website relaunch.
I also want to give a huge thank you to my family who consistently put up with my never-ending ramblings about the website and the occasional frustrations that came with balancing three jobs. In the midst of a challenging work schedule, they were always there to support me.
I want to give a massive shoutout to my writers, both past and present. These people don't get enough credit for what they do. They work HARD despite having jobs and life responsibilities that are just as intensive as mine.
And of course, to our readers, thank you. Without you all, there is no TSR. There is no acquisition. There isn't a new career path. There is no relaunch. There is no second chance.
Our readers are the best. They are so unbelievably passionate. They get genuinely excited for our content. They truly enjoy what we are doing and they are often nice enough to let us know. They have bought into our vision and have rallied behind us.
I question if any media outlet receives the same level of appreciation from their readers that we receive at The Stride Report.
But what we have accomplished so far will pale in comparison to what we will accomplish.
With renewed confidence and a strong support system now backing us, the second-half of this proverbial show is only going to get better.
After all, who doesn't like a good encore?
Your Loyal Admin,
Garrett Zatlin
P.S. -- Shoutout to my high school English teacher who told my mom that I'd never be a good writer. Crazy times we live in, huh?
TL;DR -- Streamline Athletes has acquired The Stride Report. This is now a full-time job for your admin and our writers have improved article bonuses. Everything will be the same as it was since January. If you sign up for our BOOST subscription service today, you get a 60-day free trial instead of our standard 14-day free trial. Offer lasts through December 29th. We want to do big and exciting things. We think we can, it just won't happen overnight. Also, we're looking for writers across all divisions. Send us an email if you're interested.