Coaches
Joe Johnson - Head Coach
Cross Country, Track
Joe has coached with the Striders since 2007, and has been an avid distance runner since elementary school. In high school, he won an individual state championship and led his team to two back-to-back state titles. He credits distance running as a key to his admission to Harvard University, where he ran 10 varsity seasons at the Division I level. His primary goal is to provide to motivated athletes the same guidance and opportunities that he received, to afford them the same academic possibilities. His emphasis first is on the love of running, and then on the love of pushing one’s self to new limits. Everything else, he says, seems to take care of itself.
Jon Dreher
Winter Conditioning, Middle Distance, Cross Country
Jon has coached with Cascade Striders since the beginning of 2024. He started running competitively as a cross-country and track athlete in high school, finishing second in the 800m at the Illinois state track meet, then continuing to run in college at West Point, serving as a captain of the track team his senior year and earning "all-east" honors in the 1000m. He still enjoys competing and placed second in the 2024 USATF Masters National Championships in the 1500m and will compete in the 1500m at the 2025 World Masters Indoor Track Championships. Coaching and passing his love of running on to up-and-coming young runners is currently his primary focus, however, and he embraces the Strider's approach to challenge and motivate athletes at every level.
Stephanie Brunner
Lead Coach, Long Distance, Cross Country
Stephanie has coached with the Cascade Striders since 2009, herself having competed in high school and at the University of Washington. While an accomplished and avid runner, her love of coaching shines through at every practice, supporting and challenging athletes to find their best efforts every time.
Andy Leonard
Lead Coach, Long Distance, Cross Country
Andy began coaching with the Striders in 2018, having encountered the team as a parent of an athlete two years prior. A competitive runner since elementary school, he also competed in cross-country skiing and rowing during and after college. These days, Andy enjoys challenging himself in masters cross-country, track, and road races. As a coach, he wants to see his athletes feel like part of a community, pursue difficult but realistic challenges, and feel successful as they grow both in the sport and as individuals.