Heroes From My Past

I sat alone w/ the dreams of children weeping willows and tall dark buildings
I've caught a fashion from the dreams of children but woke up sweating from this modern nightmare,and I was alone no one was there I was alone no one was there
I caught a glimpse from the dreams of children,I got a feeling of optimism

Dreams Of Children-The Jam

My love of all things track and field both as a runner and a fan began 35 years ago in the summer of 76,as a freshman in high school I set freshman records in the 400m and 800m finals winning both and for good measure won a silver in the high jump,it was around the same time I began watching track and field not just on tv but at nearby Crystal Palace the national running center in London.

I went to the British Olympic trials on two consecutive Saturdays and remember seeing Brenden Foster win either the 5,000m or 10,000m final,later that summer in Montreal"Big Bren"as he was affectionately known won a bronze in the 10,000m final behind Viren and Lopes it was one of the few medals the brits won on the track in 76 and it made the likable Geordie an early hero in my book,Foster was the flag bearer of british distance running on the track after the likes of David Bedford and along w/ the likes of Mike McLeod,Tony Simmons,Dave Black,Nick Rose,Tony Staines etc.

I have 6 quality 6 milers left between now and Nationals as I try to hone my speed,strength and stamina today saw me attack it early on as my unofficial splits of 3.56,9.04 and 14.04 lead me to believe something brisk was on tap,I wasn't wrong 21.40,the question was could I hold on to that pace?

Sadly no,I didn't falter by much but my inbound 3 mile split was 22.17 for a combined 43.57.3. still my third best time over the out and back course and will mean going out a little more conservatively on Wednesday and seeing if I can deliver the goods in the second half to try and better today.

As a music fan it would be remiss of me not to say something about the passing of Clarence Clemons aka "The Big Man" in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band,the first time I saw The Boss at the old Wembley stadium on July 4th 1985 on the Born In The USA Tour the thing I came away w/ was the interaction between Bruce and the band,especially Clarence,it wasn't just Bruce Springsteen it was Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band,"Jungleland"will never sound the same again w/out "The Big Man",there is a darkness on the edge of town tonite.....