Getting Ready For Prime Time

No blog entry yesterday due to time constraints,after my easy 3 miler it was a quick shower,a quick bite to eat and off to Franklin Field for Distance Night,it,s become a tradition now to check out the distance races on Thursdays b4 returning on Saturday for the Masters 4x4 relay,I,d like to think I,ll continue doing both for a few more years to come.
Conditions were great last nite for both the runners and the fans,I got to witness first hand a new Penn Relays record in the 3,000m steeplechase as Anthony Famiglitti put on a clinic to win in 8.24.34 he just made it look effortless and then in the Olympic Development 5,000m I saw one of the top local runners Ryan Fennelly finish 7th in 14.16.57,slightly further back but no less impressive was a good friend of mine from CPTC John Roberts who ran a pr time of 14.54.75,it was neat to witness that first hand and rap w/ him post race.
Today saw me take it easy again,another easy 3 miler w/ a slight twist,mile warm up,mile of strides,mile cool down and post blog and post phone chat w/ GP it,ll be an easy nite for moi, a big arse bowl of Linguini w/ Casino Clams and Texas Toast,400m be damned I still carbo load b4 a race and then feet up and watch a new eppisode of Doctor Who on Sci Fi channel b4 calling it a nite.
Somebody asked me if running my 3rd Masters 4x4 Relay at Penn was any different than the previous two,it,s a simple question but I don,t have a simple answer to that,2006 my first was a dream come true,I never thought I,d ever run Penn Relays but there I was in front of 39.000 fans running a then and still 400m pr 54.10,I tried taking it all in that afternoon in case I never made it back there,but a year later this time the anchor leg I brought us home 4th out of 5 teams in a new club record 3.42.9 as I notched a 54.8,here I am again looking to anchor us home and very determined to get under 55 seconds again.
It,s still a thrill to see my name in the official Penn Relays programme,it,s still an honour to race at Penn Relays and this year we,ve got a red hot time slot,2.10pm right in between the 4x100m USA vs The World womens and mens relays......Prime Time baby!!!
I have to thank my team mate Rick for helping me keep things in perspective,last Thursday when we were doing sticks at a deserted Franklin Field I asked Rick how he felt about running his first ever Penn Relays,"I,ve waited 24 years for this" he told me"running Penn Relays for me is what running Millrose Games was for you"suddenly any thoughts that this was just "another Penn Relay" were gone,the hour is almost at hand,I for one can,t wait.