It Must Be Something In The Water

Don't ask me what it is about me running in New York City that just seems to raise the level of my game but since 2006 I've turned in some heroic performances either here at The Armory,along 5th Avenue in the 5th Avenue Mile and also at Icahn Stadium on Randall's Island,I often joke about being an "adopted New Yorker" this city has taken to me and my running in a way words cannot describe,I frequently talk about tapping into the great Irish spirit that runs thro New York City as a rich source of energy,whatever it is that allows me to invoke the traditions of the "the big three"Ronnie Delaney,Marcus O Sullivan and of course "the guv'nor" Eamon Coghlan long may it continue.

It's been a strange year for me not just w/ the whole anemia issue but no Indoor Nationals as I opted against going all the way to Albuquerque,the bad winter meant it was mid February b4 I was able to get a track workout in on top the fact last fall I opted to build base mileage in favour of speed which then coupled w/ the bad winter meant I lacking serious speed work for my handful of indoor races,hard to swallow as a miler that Dec 26th was my first 1,500m race of the year......like I said it's been that sort of a year!

I went into the traditional Armory Holiday meet w/ duel purpose,to bring down the curtain on a at times frustrating 2011 season but also get a jump start on the upcoming 2012 season,my focus on Indoor Nationals which are only 11 weeks away is the 3,000m and the mile so what better way to see where I'm at than a 1,500m b4 returning next Thursday for the mile,tonite would give me a firm indication of where I'm at and how I should seed myself.
Based on a pair of indoor miles in January and February of 4.33 I felt 4.15 was a reasonable expectation for the race and it earnt me a berth in heat 2,I may need to readjust my thinking this season and not jump into the seeded heats as has been my won't for the past several years,I need to keep the fact I'm now 48 very much front and center!!!!

So heat 2 it was,16 of us in total,three masters runners myself,Francis Burdett and Tom Fitzpatrick and threeteen high school/college runners,I may not know their ages until the official results are public but it was a safe bet I was the old man in the line up.
Certainly my reaction to the gun was that of an old codger and I was probably last coming off the starting line,unlike an outdoor 1,500m where you have the length of the straightaway to position yourself indoors it's straight into the turn but one advantage of being an old fart and entering my 36th season running is that I've been around the block enough times to have one thing the younger guys lack.......experience!!
Never wavering from lane 2 I quickly found my stride and w/out having to swing wide out into lane 3 I carefully maneuvered my way from the rear of the field w/ a pair of 33 second laps(props to my good friend Lt David Stein from the NYPD for taking my splits) to move up to mid pack.

After that I couldn't tell you who I passed or when,but I kept passing runners which is always a plus,35 and 34 seconds on laps #3 and #4 put me at 800m in 2.14.
The leader was way out ahead of me but I kept picking off runners between he and I never once feeling out of my comfort zone,34,35,34 for the next three laps as I eventually moved into second and closed the deal in 18 seconds to finish a distant second but in 4.15.86.
I said 4.15 was in my wheelhouse and I wasn't wrong,I know based off of this performance there are faster times to come,it's ironic my last scheduled race b4 Indoor Nationals is also a 1,500m here at The Armory on Feb 23rd in 8 weeks time,it'll be interesting to see where I'm at then w/ a potential for three mile races between now and then.

Post race I cooled down w/ Francis and James Harrison,James and I have been Facebook friends for a while now and James is an avid follower of Runningfree so when he mentioned being in New York from his native Australia it seemed too good an opportunity to pass up to meet one another,I was grateful for the chance to chat w/ him and warm up and cool down w/ him if not a tad guilty he'd brought his wife and son and daughter along to The Armory to watch,hopefully my performance was worth it!!!!
I can and will take great heart from this performance,there is still work to be done,off a 4.15 1,500m I should have a 4.33 mile in me next Thursday,4.35 is the cut off for the Masters Mile in Boston in early Feb where I ran an ok 4.33.0. off of next to no speed work this year,it'd be nice to go back and show a packed Reggie Lewis Arena what I'm really capable of,afterall I have some good Boston race in my resume......and Boston is a big Irish city also.........