How "two regular guys" qualified for Elite 15 Doubles
A former Division III national champion in the steeplechase, Dawson Miller stepped away from running for nearly five years after a brutal Achilles injury derailed his Olympic Trials ambitions. Now, he balances a full-time corporate finance job in Milwaukee with elite-level Hyrox racing, where his mix of endurance, power, and race-day instincts have made him a rising force.
Teaming up with training partner Marcus Wallace, Miller recently took second in the Elite 15 Doubles qualifier in Houston, punching his ticket for the Hyrox World Championships in June.
The Hybrid Letter caught up with him to talk about overcoming injury, racing on instinct, and why success doesn’t necessarily require going all in.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
The Hybrid Letter: Can you tell us a bit about your athletic background?
Dawson Miller: I grew up in Whitewater, Wisconsin, and have lived in Milwaukee for the last eight years. As a kid, I played every sport imaginable, but in high school I focused on soccer, basketball, and track. My senior year is when I started seeing some success, especially in track, which carried over into college at UW-Whitewater.
I was more of a track guy than a cross-country guy and ended up becoming the Division III national champion in the steeplechase my senior year. At the time, I ran the fourth-fastest steeple time in D3 history. My dad now coaches at UW-Whitewater and has since coached someone faster than me, which is a little unfortunate—but good for him. I’ve almost dropped off the top-ten list entirely now with the rise of super shoes and athletes just generally getting faster.
After college, I tried to qualify for the Olympic Trials in the steeplechase but ended up with Achilles tendinopathy—a tear right at the insertion point of the heel. It’s a tricky spot to repair. I had surgery and stopped running altogether for about four to five years. I didn’t get back into serious training until I discovered Hyrox.
THL: Has that injury continued to affect you?
DM: Not really. It was an overuse injury—basically a microtear that worsened until my heel bone was actually rubbing against the Achilles. They shaved off part of the bone during surgery so it wouldn’t rub anymore. I don’t train at the same volume now, which helps, and since I took four years off, it had plenty of time to heal. Thankfully, no lingering issues.
THL: And what do you do for work now?
DM: I have a finance degree from UW-Whitewater and later got my MBA with an emphasis in data analytics. I work full-time in corporate finance at a Fortune 500 company in Milwaukee. It's a standard 9-to-5, and I train on the side. During those years I wasn’t running, I was lifting maybe three times a week—nothing too serious. I did coach with my dad for a while a couple years ago and had some athletes see success, but I’m not coaching currently.
THL: How did Hyrox first get on your radar?
DM: I was working out at a local group fitness gym, and the head coach there had just qualified for Worlds in Manchester. He had raced in Chicago, then Miami—back when the course ran through sand—and ended up winning the Pro race. Since I had a running background, he reached out to me for help with his running workouts. I jumped into a few track sessions with him, and even though I hadn’t been training seriously, I was still able to keep up.
That made me think: if he’s doing well, maybe I could too. About six months later, I ran my first Hyrox race in Chicago—an Open race. I've done only Pro races since then.
THL: What was it about Hyrox that hooked you?
DM: It reminded me a lot of college track. I’m 6'3", which is tall for a distance runner. In college, I was always the bigger guy—175 pounds compared to competitors who were 140 or 150. The steeplechase rewards stronger distance runners, and that’s where I thrived. Similarly, in Hyrox, I could keep pace with the lighter guys on the runs, but then had an advantage at the stations. I broke 60 minutes in my first Open race, which was a strong debut. That immediate success got me hooked.
THL: What kind of changes have you made to your training since then?
DM: The biggest advantage I had was my running background. My times aren’t where they used to be, but running is still where I have the most room to improve. I can chip away at my old benchmarks, even while carrying 25 more pounds. And I've made steady gains in the station work—wall balls are a good example. That’s been a big gauge of my progress.
THL: Do you work with a coach?
DM: I’ve been lucky to have great coaches my whole life. My high school coach is in the Wisconsin Track & Field Hall of Fame. My dad is too. His coach growing up was as well. So I’ve grown up immersed in training culture—planning a season, structuring workouts, periodization. It’s second nature to me.
That said, I don’t have a coach right now. I bounce ideas off friends, just like I did in college. But I’ve learned that no one knows your body better than you do. You know how you’re feeling, what your recovery looks like, and how hard you're pushing. A coach is great, but at this point I feel like I can handle it myself—and I don’t want to pay for one.
THL: Morning or evening workouts?
DM: Always evening. I hate feeling rushed. If I have to train in the morning and then go into the office, I’m constantly watching the clock. Evening sessions give me more control.
It actually works in my favor—Pro Men race in the evening, so I’m training at the same time I compete. A lot of athletes struggle with that. They’re used to racing in the morning and have trouble sitting around all day. I’m good with it. Timing your race-day routine around when you run is a bigger factor than people realize.
THL: How has your race strategy evolved over time?
DM: Early on—especially my first three races—I was laser-focused on improving my runs. I figured if my run got better, the whole race would. But in Toronto this year, racing against Marcus, I realized the whole picture matters more.
That race really clicked for me. I deliberately slowed my run pace and ended up with a faster overall time. I was able to recover better for the stations and didn’t have to fight through them to get back to the runs. That taught me to manage intensity evenly across the race rather than redlining the runs and suffering through the rest. I try to keep my effort level steady now, avoid those big spikes in heart rate and energy.
THL: How did you and Marcus end up teaming up for doubles?
DM: It was through Brakken Kraker. He knew Marcus from hybrid racing, and he actually coached against me in high school—my dad coached him in college. Brakken later coached at Bigfoot High School, which was in the same conference as my school. He went Pro in Spartan and OCR racing a year or two after that.
When I was getting into Hyrox, I reached out to Brakken for advice. He introduced me to Marcus, and I watched him race at the Last Chance Qualifier in Anaheim. That’s when I saw we had similar ability levels. Around that same time, the Elite 15 Doubles division was announced, and it just made sense. We live near each other, had mutual connections, and could train together.
THL: How do you approach the doubles race together?
DM: We’ve each got our strengths. Marcus is really dialed into his pacing and volume—he’s a Hybrid Engine guy. I’m more of a race-day gamer. I thrive in competition.
We complement each other. I handle the runs and monitor where we are relative to other teams. Marcus takes charge of the stations—who starts, when to switch, and any real-time changes. When it comes to strength or station work, I’m just trying to hang on for dear life.
THL: How did things go in Houston during the Elite 15 qualifier?
DM: We stuck to our plan through the first half of the race. After the rower, it was about making real-time decisions based on where we stood. That was my role—reading the field and adjusting as we went.
Being bigger athletes, we knew the sled would be our edge. We came into the burpee broad jumps in first place, and all three top teams hit the rower together. Marcus had me go first there because he was feeling the run. I actually fell out of the rower—my foot got stuck—but we recovered quickly.
We eased up on the farmers carry since we had a solid lead on fourth and wanted to finish strong. It was all about making smart choices as the race unfolded. We ended up second after passing a team on the wall balls.
THL: How are you both preparing for the Elite 15 Doubles in Chicago?
DM: What we’ve learned is that being good at singles doesn’t guarantee success in doubles. The intensity is different, the margin for error is smaller, and communication has to be spot-on.
We’re working on output and efficiency at the stations, but the biggest thing is maintaining high intensity while still running fast. That’s where you can gain the most time in doubles.
THL: What’s next on the race calendar for you both?
DM: Once we qualified in Houston, we shifted our focus entirely to doubles. We had considered racing singles again—maybe Barcelona—but decided against it. I haven’t done singles since Vegas. Marcus raced Elite 15 there, but since we’re both kind of on the bubble, we decided to put everything into Chicago.
THL: What do you both hope to show as two non-Elite 15 athletes stepping onto the big stage?
DM: Marcus and I are just two regular guys with full-time jobs. We’re not trying to be the face of the sport, but we do hope people see that you don’t have to go all-in or make extreme sacrifices to do well in Hyrox. It can be a part of your life without consuming it.
Back when I was chasing the Olympic Trials, I put everything into it—so when I got hurt, it crushed me. Now, Hyrox is just one part of my life. It doesn’t define me. That balance makes it more sustainable. I rest a lot. I don’t beat myself up with every session. Some people go hard every day, but I think there's a lot of value in intensity paired with rest and perspective. Lower stress, better mood, better performance.
Finding that balance matters more than going all in.
You can follow Dawson on Instagram.
Data Corner: How fast is doubles?
How much faster can you run in a Hyrox doubles race than when you are running solo? The answer, of course, depends on your partner. Hyrox doubles partners have to run together, so you are only as fast as your slowest link.
But what if you've managed to find someone who runs at a similar speed to you in an individual race? Our friends at RoxOpt have crunched the numbers and found that, on average, runners of similar abilities can run 7.5% faster in a doubles race. This includes both the runs and the Roxzone (which is also running).
This is an average, so your mileage may vary. Some teams can speed up their running by 15% or more, and some see very little improvement. But 7.5% is a useful benchmark to keep in mind for anyone looking to jump into doubles. Although it's not specifically what RoxOpt looked at, it also stands to reason that people jumping from doubles to singles should expect to run about 7.5% slower, assuming they had a doubles partner of similar running ability.
Video: How Maria Fecik Competes—and Coaches—at the Highest Level
Maria Fecik, who recently qualified for Worlds in Elite 15 Doubles, talks with our special correspondent Lauren Smith about what it takes to be a successful competitor and coach.
Athlete of the Week: Stephen Carter
Name: Stephen Carter
Age: 29
Hometown: Drogheda, Ireland
When did you start hybrid training? I started hybrid training around September 2023, shortly after moving to Australia. Back in Ireland, I’d played soccer since I was five and absolutely loved it. During the off-season, I would dabble at my local CrossFit gym, SKF, where I did Hyrox-style classes before Hyrox had really taken off. The class was called “Move,” and I distinctly remember how much I looked forward to it each week. That style of training just clicked with me.
Years of soccer had already built a solid base of endurance and running, which really helped when I transitioned into Hyrox. These days, I’m fully focused on following a structured running program—something I’d never done before—and training daily in a community setting at UN1T Sydney.
Favorite race to date? That would probably be my first race, in June 2024 in Melbourne. I competed in the Men’s Open Doubles with my good pal, Sean Hannon. We came in relatively well-prepared and took a very data-driven approach, setting clear targets to break the hour mark. That first race is always a learning curve, but we smashed our goal, finishing in 57:35 and taking second in our age category.
The elation I felt was like nothing I’d experienced before. In soccer, success is always a team effort involving a lot of moving parts. But this felt more personal—just the two of us executing something we worked toward together.
Race goal? My next big goal is to crack the one-hour mark in the Pro Solo division next season. I’ve already gone sub-60 in Open, and now I’ll compete in my first Pro Solo at the World Championships. That race will serve as a benchmark to show me exactly where I need to improve over the next year to achieve that goal.
Favorite station? Sled Pull. It definitely didn’t start that way—in fact, it was my least favorite when I began. But with practice and time spent drilling the technique, it’s become the station I enjoy the most. I like the feel of the movement and the satisfaction of executing it well. And I take pride in being able to move the sled faster than competitors who are heavier or lift more than I do, simply because of better form and efficiency.
Least favorite station? Lunges. Every time, it turns into a mental battle. I start questioning whether I’m pushing too hard and if I’ll blow up on the last run or wall balls. It’s one of those stations where you just have to grit your teeth, get through it, dump the bag, and get back into your run. You’re almost home at that point.
Something you wish you knew when you started racing? Nobody cares about your results more than you do. Be present during every race—they become memories you’ll carry with you. Focus on the process of improving and becoming, not just the outcome. Listen to your body. Prioritize rest and recovery. Find a training load that fits your body and lifestyle. And don’t get caught up in what people post on Instagram. Most of it doesn’t reflect reality.
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