Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Next Stop Lisle



Ok, for those of you playing along at home here's my record at Outdoor Masters Nationals since my debut in 06 in Charlotte

06 Charlotte
400M 56.5 6th prelims
800M 2.04.7. 6th final
4x800M 8.30.4 1st final

07 Orono
800M 1.59.1. 1st final
1,500M 4.11.7. 3rd*final
4x800M 9.30.9 1st final
*3rd overall but awarded 2nd place as runner up was non US athlete

08 Spokane
800M 1.59.8. 2nd final
1,500M 4.10.7. 1st final
4x800M 8.44.6. 1st final

09 Oskosh
Did not compete due to achilles injury

10 Sacramento
800M 2.02.4. 2nd final
1,500M 4.14.4. 2nd final
5,000M 15.36.8.3rd final
4x800m 8.57.8. 1st final

11 Berea
5,000M 16.45.0. 3rd final
10,000M 35.27.4. 1st final
4x800M 8.41.8. 1st final

12 Lisle
?????????

Over the next few days I'll be looking to add to my tally of 8 gold,4 silver and 2 bronze National Championship medals,sadly it looks like there'll be no 4x800M relay this year.......I know the fuck you say!!! but w/ 2 of my teammates going after the M40 World Record in the 4x800M that depleated our ranks in the 4x800M and then after we put a foursome together Mark Carver dropped out so it'll be a 4x400M for myself,John G,Robert S and Bill Y in the club race,I haven't ruled out an Ad Hoc 4x800m but w/ 4 studs going after the World Record in the M40 already the best I could hope for would be silver unless I drop down to M30 and I doubt any of those guys are looking at an M45 2.08 guy on their relay.....but you never know.

Relays aside I have my sights very much set on the 800M and 1,500M a return to the 07 08 Nationals,it felt very strange to not run them last year in Berea but w/ the anemia issue I had to move up to 5,000M/10,000M but this year I'm back to my favoured distances and I look forward to toeing the starting line on Thursday in the 800M prelims,my first 800M prelim since Charlotte 06.....let's hope for a lot less drama this time out!!!!!

Monday, July 30, 2012

Bloody Good Show



No shame in my game,I'm still recovering from Friday's stunning London Olympic ceremony,I think Seb Coe{Lord Coe if we're being prim and proper thank you ever so much!} summed it up best when he said"never have I been so proud to be British"....and this is a former two time Olympic gold medalist!!!
Beijing was always going to be a tough act to follow,talk about setting the bar high but the organizers of London 2012 did a bang up job in my humble opinion and there were monents that had tears in my eyes and a lump in my throat,even though I'm very much "at home" here in America after a quarter of a century this October London will ALWAYS be home for me after being born and raised there for the best part of 24 years so it's no surprise this Olympics takes on a little more significence for yours truly.
When there's so much crap going on in the world the fact athletes of different colours,creeds,religions etc can come together for 17 days and compete as one is a beautiful thing and I make no apologies for my sentiment where the Olympic games or the Olympic movement are concerned,it is as I always say"The Greatest Show On Earth"

Hard as it was to pry myself off the recliner yesterday I completed my 14th set of 6x600m repeats in 16 weeks to wrap my training for Nationals.
Overall I was reasonably pleased w/ my performance it ranked #3 fastest of the 14 since my first tentative set back on April 14th and I feel I've done everything I can to be ready for the 800m prelims on Thursday and hopefully 800m final on Saturday afternoon,note to self download "Chariots Of Fire" to the ipod b4 leaving on Wednesday morning.....

Sunday, July 29, 2012

6x600M @ St Joe's


71-35-1.46.1
70-33-1.43.9
69-34-1.43.8
73-35-1.48.1
73-35-1.48.4
73-33-1.46.3

Friday, July 27, 2012

Y'all Ready For This!!!



Well folks it's here,"The Greatest Show On Earth" the Summer Olympics rolls into my former home town of London tonite for two weeks.
It seems hard to believe it's been seven years since the IOC{International Olympic Committee} voted for London over Paris to host the 2012 games and after much work we're hours away from in my opinion the greatest event in the world.

I love the Summer Olympics maybe it's because my running career began in the summer of 1976 as a high school freshman the same year as the Montreal games but since then every four years in Moscow,Los Angeles,Seoul,Barcelona,Atlanta,Sydney,Athens and Beijing everything grinds to a hault for two weeks especially the second week when the track and field kicks off,in 84,04,08 and again this year I will be taking the second week of the Olympics off work to fully observe the track and field events.

Of course w/ a five hour time difference again a la Athens I'll have to avoid the news,the internet and now social media to avoid finding out the resluts b4 hand......yes I take my Olympic coverage that seriously!!!
Props to British PM David Cameron and London mayor Boris Johnson for not allowing Mitt Romney to take liberties yesterday w/ his snide comments about London"not being ready to host the Olympics" who the fuck are you to come to our country and talk shit???you're a guest,remember that and behave like one pal,East London was a hot bed for mobsters back in the day,two words....The Krays.....nuff said!!!

Knocked out my easy 8 miler yesterday afternoon,the heat made a tempo run null and void and trust me my running gear was drenched in sweat by the time I was done,that puts me at 20 miles for the week,back to back rest days now b4 Sundays final repeat session the time honoured 6x600m repeats to close out the week at 25 miles and put me one step closer my "Olympics" next weekend in Lisle at Masters Nationals.

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Most Of What I Know I've Learnt From The Cat



The only drawback of going to NYC for races at either Ichan or the Armory is it's a long day{a valid arguement for moving to the Big Apple if ever there was one!!!} but I've grown used to it over the past few years.
Tuesday saw me get up at 5.30am for work,get home from Ichan at 12.30am and get back up at 5.30am{somehow!!}yesterday morning.....there were going to be a series of "cat naps" throughout the day trust me!!!

Of the past few months lunch hour has been replaced by "nap hour"there was a time I could get 20 mins of music off my ipod,20 mins of reading and 20 mins of writing my diary......more recently it's become 45/55 mins of me sleeping on one of the love seats in the lobby b4 coming back to my office for an hour b4 leaving for the day,there's not a lot to do in that final hour but I can do it quite well as I'm well rested!!!

Easy 4 mile recover run last nite,4 loops of Clark Park which suited moi,that'll be my distance du jour Monday and Tuesday b4 departing to Lisle Wednesday for Nationals.

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Next Stop Lisle



So my final pre Nationals race is in the books,a respectable 5th place finish in 4.21.4. last nite in Ichan Stadium in New York
Conditions turned out to be near faultless,a mild breeze coming off the East River on the back straight the heat from earlier in the day had subsided by gun time at 7.30pm as the 12 of us toed the line atop the back straight.

A good reaction to the gun as I made my way dow the back straight jockeying for postition moving into lane 2.
51 seconds at 300m on route to and opening 400m in 68 seconds and 9th just off the shoulder of 8th place.
2.02 at 700m and 2.20 at 800m a 72second lap as I moved up to 7th the leaders in cluding two sub 4 guys were well clear now but I fancied my chances of continuing to move up thro the field.

3.15 at the bell as I now moved into 6th w/ an almost identical time to Oregon from last week,3.32 at 1,200m{big shout out to Tom Fitzpatrick for taking my splits} I began to pick up speed down the back straight and set my sights on 5th place w/ 200m to go and caught and passed him 30 meters from the line for a 4.21.49. finish thanks to splits of 68,72,72,49 w/ a 66 second closing lap.

Getting down to 4.20 or below would've been nice,I'm sure it happen next Sunday in Lisle,it may have to if I want a podium place to go w/ 07's silver,08's gold, and 10's silver.

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

1,500M @ Icahn Stadium NYC



Seeded Heat
5/12
4.21.4
68
72
72
49
More details to follow.....

Casting Shadows On The Winter Sky As You Stood There Counting Crows


"One for sorrow,two for joy,three for a girl,four for a boy,five for silver,six for gold,seven for a secret never to be told
Eight for wishes,nine for treasure,ten for years of endless pleasure,eleven for a love so true,twelve to spend an eternity w/ you''

One For Sorrow

Alas,I didn't get to see Counting Crows in Camden on the riverfront on Sunday,more's the pity as I was quite psyched to catch Adam Duritz and co but truth be told I was still recovering from the trip to Eugene from last weekend,most of last week was spent yawning,feeling tired,napping and going to bed early and sleeping later than usual on the weekend,so the prospect of a few hours on my feet Sunday to see them at the XPN Festival didn't coax me off of my living room recliner Sunday evening,more's the pity as I really wanted to see them but w/ a final pre Nationals race on tap in New York tonite the prospect of a long evening/late nite two days b4 also put the kybosh on those thoughts,maybe next time?

Kicked the week off w/ an easy 4 miler around trusty and shadey Clark Park.....when I refer to Clark Park as shady I mean it's lined w/ trees....not the other kind of shady.....
Once again as my taper takes full effect I've cut another day off my weekly training regeim,dividing 25 miles between 5 days was easy enough,spreading it over 6 a little tougher but I've given myself a decent week to get a race,a tempo run and final repeat in b4 slowing things down prior to my departure for Chicago next Wednesday on route to Lisle.

Monday, July 23, 2012

Yeah! Now I'm Stokked!!!




Ok so I realize I could write whatever now in the text as probably NOBODY is actually reading the blog!!!!!!
Said "cutie" is University of California pole vaulter Allison Stokke who sadly no heighted at the Olympic trials and won't be in London for the upcoming Olympics......I know boo hiss right!!!
Add her to another "cutie" I recently discoverd Aussie 100M Hurdler Michelle Jenneke they would've made my Olympic track and field Top Ten cuties{google Michelle Jenneke and find her recent World Junior C'ships in Barcelona 100 Hurdle pre race routine.....and then take a cold shower.....trust me!!!}

Ok so when I wasn't trawling the internet for track and field honeys{I do it all for you dear readers.....trust me.....LMFAO!!!!}over the weekend I was busy running my fastest set of 6x600m repeats at St Joe's on Saturday and going semi long on Sunday to log 10 miles and finish the week at 30mpw.
As I said after the 5x1,000m on Wednesday at this stage of the game the hard work in training should've been put in so now it's time to go out and have fun w/ my final two 6x600m repeats and while I'm a little disappointed not to have held on to the early pace that had me on pace to go 6/6 at sub 1.45 pace it was a brisk workout and gives me another shot of confidence as I head to Lisle and Nationals in 9 days time.

The 10 miler on Sunday was gravy and come Sunday August 19th till September 16th will serve as my long run as I reestablish my 40mpw training.....then in October it gets real interesting in the off season but there'll be time to discuss that later it's still July.....plus I'm reasonably sure no one is reading a word of this.....!!!

On Yer Bike!



Mad props to Bradley Wiggins,Chris Froome,Marc Cavendish and the whole of Team Sky for their stunning Tour De France victory this weekend in Paris,somewhere former member of parliament Norman Tebbit must've been proud.......
In the early 80's when Britain suffered it's first major taste of unemployment,over 3 million peeps w/out work{just as I left high school too....gee thanks!!!}there were riots up and down the country,in an infamous speech Normo Tebbs got up in the houses of Parliament and said"when my grandfather couldn't find work back in the day,he didn't riot......he got on his bike and rode to the next village to look for work" from then on Norman Tebbit was forever known as Norman"On Your Bike"Tebbit!!!and of course long b4 then "on yer bike" was another way of telling folks to "sling their hook" or get lost and if you followed the tour you'll know Bradley Wiggins had no problem expressing himself,be it coating off people on Twitter or telling a over eager photographer to "see you next Tuesday".....I'm beeing cryptic there,let's just say the see began w/ a C......... Bradley Wiggins my new hero and a shoe in for Sports Personality Of The Year......and the London Olympics haven't gotten underway yet!!

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Friday, July 20, 2012

In A Previous Life........


I must've been a Romanian I'm convinced of it,add Ancuta Bobocel to an ever growing list of Romanian athletes to make my list of desirable females!!!
From as far back as the mid 70's when I discovered leggy tennis star Virginia Ruzici{who along w/ Yugoslavia's Mimi Jausovic formed the cutest women's doubles teams of the time} to as recently as my heroine Gabby Szabo I have to confess a weakness for Romanian athletes,maybe it's the gypsy blood in me who knows!!!

A change in temps yesterday allowed me not to sweat buckets on my out and back 6 miler along the Schuylkill Banks,I thought I was done w/ the Schuylkill for a while but hadn't factored in my travel day from Eugene on Monday which called for a rewrite of this weeks schedule,at 16 miles for the week and 4 on tap Saturday for my 6x600m repeats I'm looking at a slightly longer out and back on Sunday towards the St Joe's Boathouse along Kelly Drive for my 10 miler to give me 30mpw....at least the weather forcast is in the 80's.....

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Two To Go



Looking at the previous entrys photo of Seb Coe and Steve Ovett after the 84 Los Angeles 800m final I'm reminded of Seb's quote to the former Olympic 800m champion
"we're getting too old for playing w/ this kind of fire",they were in their mid to late 20's then at almost 49 I know how they feel!!!!
I had pushed back my final set of mile repeats a day to accomodate my flight back from Eugene and may've lucked out w/ the weather.....although that's a matter of opinion!

W/ the threat of a severe thunderstorm in the air I noticed a dip in the furnace like temprature but this was only to be replaced w/ a grey overcast cloud that hung over the Temple track like a sheet either way I was going to work up one hell of a sweat.
Things began well enough b4 taking a nose dive on #3 b4 recovering a modicum of respect on the finale.

A bad repeat always leaves a bad taste in the mouth especially so close to Nationals but the fact of the matter is frankly the hard work should have been done by now not in the final three repeats till Lisle and while back to back sub par mile repeats prior to Nationals isn't the way I'd like to head up to Lisle I can take solice from Sundays 1,500m in Eugene and hopefully run another solid 1,500m this coming Tuesday in New York to boost my confidence.
Two more weeks till Nationals and two more 6x600m repeats starting on Saturday.

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

4x1mile Repeats @ Temple


1.18-1.23-1.23-1.15-5.19.0
1.20-1.26-1.24-1.14-5.24.4
1.26-1.27-1.29-1.23-5.45.1
1.24-1.28-1.28-1.10-5.30.8

Back To The Old Routine



Following a whole day of traveling back east from Oregon{I got up at 7.30am to get to Haywards Field Sunday morning and didn't arrive home in Philly till 8am the following morning}it should come as no great surprize I didn't run Monday.
In the general scheme of things it seemed like the right thing to do....or not to do but w/ my taper also in full effect I can afford to sit a day and still hit my weekly total of 30mpw.

The brutal heat has returned,yesterday marked the 15th day of 90 degree plus temps this month,like the old Monty Python sketch"still I was getting used to it by then"!!!
I opted to switch things up more to combat the jet leg from flying home from Eugene and pushed my 4x1mile repeats back a day to Wednesday allowing me hopefully to fully recover and have a better crack at decent mile repeats so yesterday ended up being an easy 4 miler around Clark Park,which thankfully is mostly tree lined and hence shaded,I won't be as lucky on the track this afternoon!!

Every Picture Tells A Story

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Haywards,The Journey,The Story,The Victories



There's a sign post outside the main gate of Haywards Field that has all the locationls of the Olympic Games and the respective distances from those cities to Eugene......London is over 5,000 miles away and essentially that's where this journey began 36 years ago in the summer of 1976 when Haywards Field hosted the Olympic trials I was winning my freshman high school 400m and 800m titles,fast forward 36 years later and I was here at the mecca of American track and field hoping to run in the illustrious footsteps of those who had gone b4 me.

I arrived in Eugene at lunchtime on Friday following a flight from Philly to San Fran and then a connecting flight to Eugene,thanks to a ride to my hotel from a fellow masters runner I then walked the 40 mins from the Motel 6 to the track.
Ever the Boy Scout I had done the Google map directions from hotel to Haywards Field but need not have worried I passed at least three street signs for the University of Oregon on my way there.
Cutting through the campus I happened to look up and see the stand on the home straight ahead of me,the big green stand w/ Haywards Field Oregon in yellow on the side.....it was I will confess "a sharpe intake of breath" moment for yours truly.
Tempted as I was to jump on the track for an impromptu lap or two I opted to save it for my races over the next two days,as I sat in the stand I marveled at how on a warm day (85 degrees) I had goosebumps on my arms as I sat there trying to absorb the history all around me the legacy of Bill Bowerman,Pre and all those who'd competed here b4 me,I was in track nirvana for sure!

I returned to Haywards Field the following lunchtime for the first of my two races over the weekend the 800m,I was heartened by the sound of a race announcer as I made my way to the main gates along Agate St and also the sight of a few hundred spectators in the main stand I hadn't antisipated either so suddenly my Haywards Field experience had kicked it up a few notches.
After picking up my race packet I took my place in the main stand near the finish line and killed time till 1.15pm b4 heading over to the warm up track behind the main track to stretch and warm up w/ a mile and half jog.
Reporting to the clerking tent I waited patiently for the second heat of the masters 800m to be called
The 9 man field ran from 45-49 through 55-59,I wasn't the youngest runner in the field but I was given lane 1 w/ my biggest threat to a victory Thomas Kreupenintner just outside me in lane 2.
My reaction to the gun could've been better,I need to work on that but I quickly made up the stagger on Thomas and made my way to the front of the field b4 the brake lane atop the back straight.
I heard 31.24 at 200m and saw 62 seconds at the bell,pretty much where I was in both my recent 800s.
I didn't hear my 600m split but wasn't too concerned,my only concern was staying upright coming off the Bowerman turn and up the home straight to the finish.
Feeding off the appreciative crowd I won in a seasons best 2.08.8. a second faster than my win at Widener and also my Ichan 800m two weeks ago.
I would've prefered faster but I take solice from my opening 31/31 for a 62 second opening 400m,I'm convinced I can run faster at Nationals in three weeks time.
One down,one to go!

18 hours later I returned for the 1,500m on a slightly overcast grey Oregon morning,a far cry from the sunshine and heat of the pervious afternoon.
Ever the boy scout I'd thrown a long sleeve Villanova shirt and 3/4 length bottoms in my bag for the weekend in case of milder weather.
Following a 2 mile warm up on the practice track I reported to the clerking tent one last time b4 being lead out to the 1,500m start,seven of us to do battle Thomas Kreupenintner and his Oregon Track Club team mate Donnie Nelson{winner of the 5,000m in 16.16 yesterday} stood between me and a unique double.
From the gun I eased my way to the front of the field w/ the OTC boys right behind me,69 seconds at 400m I was aiming for 70 second splits so it was pretty much going to script.
2.21 at 800m a 71 second split a far more even 1,500m than the one I ran at Widener on June 9th.
Just over 600m to go and Thomas and Donnie both overtook me,stay calm I told myself as I tucked in around the bottom turn but made a point of moving off the rail and into the outside of lane one coming up the home straight to the bell.
3.16 at the bell I opted to go now rather than w/ 200m to go,if I was going to go down I should go down swinging.......
No such worries I dropped a 65 second closing lap and put daylight between myself and Thomas and Donnie on route to another Haywards Field victory,4.20.2.another seasons best improving on the 4.23.7. I ran at Widener five weeks earlier.

Post 2 mile cool down I collected my backpack from the clerking tent and began making my way home,in essence I'd flown across country for just under six and a half minutes worth of work......but HELL if it wasn't worth it!!!!!
I hope to return to Haywards Field in the near future,a future Masters Nationals MUST be on the cards.....hint hint,he said,wink wink!!!!!!!
There are several lasting memories from this visit,hearing my name being announced at Haywards Field,being proclaimed as the winner of both races period but also w/ two seasons bests,seeing my name on the famed Haywards Field scoreboard,hearing the crowd cheer for me up the home straight coming off the Bowerman turn will all live w/ me for the rest of my natural days but my final everlasting memory is one I didn't expect.

I don't see my self as a role model for anyone let alone the nations youth but as is my won't at Nationals I sought out a few race officials post event to shake their hands and thank them for their efforts over the weekend,I feel we as athletes overlook the role officials play in the event,we the athletes probably could do what we do at the events w/out the officials but we couldn't do it as well and as organized so it's something I've made a habit of in recent years,thanking one or two officials for all their help,it costs me nothing and hopefully makes the officials feel part of the whole process.
The woman in charge of the clerking area and getting the athletes their hip numbers and onto the track for their events told me some of the youth athletes were impressed quote" the older runner in the shamrock bandana is really fast".......
Like I said I'M NOT A ROLE MODEL but if at almost 49 I can inspire the next generation of track athletes that there's still life after high school and college in track and field I've done something positive,and on a final footnote while some questioned the decision to make the Haywards Classic a Masters and Youth meet I say this,the kids got to see that even after college they can still compete on a regular basis in track and field and also by adding the youth meet the crowd size swelled considerably, I'd have been happy to run at Haywards Field in front of "one man and his dog".....thanks to to the youth meet I didn't have to and the sound of the stand on the home straight cheering me to the finish line will stay w/ me for the rest of my life.

Monday, July 16, 2012

The Gypsy Returneth.....

800M
1/9
2.08.8

1,500M
1/7
4.21.2

More details to follow after I catch up on some sleep!!!

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Standing On The Shoulders Of Giants



One more day till leaving for Oregon,I'm sure 3.30am will come around pretty soon!
Easy 6 miler out and back along the river to Lloyd Hall,I didn't realize untill crossing South Street bridge on the in bound leg of the run this was my last 6 miler till post Nationals,from here on in I only have 4 and 3 mile easy/recovery runs so it's Clark Park untill the end of the month,after my week off after Nationals it'll be back to 40 miles per week so thats easy/recovery 6 milers on Mondays and Wednesdays.

Looked up the starting line ups for Eugene online,no names I recognize which means I can't underestimate anyone in either race,it'd be nice to come back from "the house that Pre built" w/ a victory on my resume,I'd also like to improve on my seasons pr's b4 Nationals so we'll see what transpires over the weekend.....

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Ramblin' Man



Reasonably pleased w/ my repeats,another slow start but I kept #2 thro #5 in the realms of respectability,clearly w/ two races this weekend there was no need to blow the barn doors off.....let's try and save that for the weekend eh?!!

Spent most of the day trying up travel plans,booked my flights to and from Chicago for Lisle and Nationals,secured a ride from Eugene airport to my hotel for this weekend and also secured my place in the third Greater Philadelphia Track Club Track Pentathlon,dubbed this year as "Still Alive After Five" the Sunday after Nationals.

Recovery six miler out and back along the banks and the river turning at Lloyd Hall,more of the same tomorrow,not only am I tapering for Eugene but also w/ Nationals now three weeks away from tomorrow it's time for the traditional three week taper,looking at 35 miles this week,a mild dip from the 40 mpw average I've been clocking since returning to full training in April after a little time off following Indoor Nationals which seems like so long ago now but was only mid March,give or take four months ago.

Tomorrow will see the time honoured what clothes to take for a road trip,what cds to download onto the ipod and if I can get to grips w/ the bells and whistles on the laptop I'll pack that also,looking at my trusty "cheat sheet" you'd never know I was only going away for three days!!!

5x1,000m @ Temple



1.18-1.18-36-3.12.4
1.17-1.16-35-3.08.5
1.15-1.18-35-3.08.3
1.18-1.18-34-3.10.2
1.18-1.20-32-3.10.0

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Snaping Back To Reality



At some point in time the merry go round stops,for me it was Monday after an enjoyable 9 days of having family in town my sister Lynn had flown back to the "motherland" and my brother in law Chris was heading down to DC for a week on bussiness.....but it sure was fun while it lasted!!!

Since Saturdays repeats I knocked out a final 14 mile long run to rack up my final 40 mile week till post Nationals,it was a lot less of a grind than the previous Sunday.....thankfully!!
Monday saw me begin my taper not only for Nationals but also this weekends eager antisipated Heywards Classic at famed Heywards Field.
I figured I'd get my long run for the week out of the way first,hence the 8 miler and ergo the "8 Mile" reference......see a method to my madness!!

Monday, July 9, 2012

Cum Feel The Illinois



Ah, D Day......D standing for Deadline for entries for Nationals which are only three weeks away.....time has flown since mid April when I began to get ready for Lisle.
As it stands right now it's looking good for prelims on Thursday in the 800m.....a first since my 06 Masters Nationals debut in Charlotte.
While it does means another race it should allow an 8 man final w/ 16 of us on the status of entries for the 800m,providing all 16 of us show on Thur Aug 2nd I'm guessing 2 semis w/ 8 runners in each first three in each semi advancing to the final plus the two fastest losers,w/ the 5th fastest seed time I should make Saturdays final,if I can improve on my seasons best of 2.09.5 this weekend in Oregon that will increase my chances also.

In the 1,500m we're looking at 21 runners,I've gotta believe a few no shows will reduce the field to somewhere between 16-18,I currently have the 4th fastest seed time....again I aim to reduce my seasons best 4.23.7 this weekend and by doing so improve my chances of making it onto the podium at Nationals......
Gentlemen,start your engines.....

Sunday, July 8, 2012

Just Say No To Lactic Acid Man


W/ the clock ticking now on Nationals{just under four weeks to go} it's imperative to get the most out of each and every upcoming race and repeat session.
I arrived at St Joe's by 10.45am to a near deserted track....and w/ good reason,by days end the temps would max out at 100 degrees and frankly at almost 11am it was no picnic.
When I opened in 76 seconds for the first 400m I had visions of a repeat of last weeks repeats which weren't great.....but to use a cooking term the first pancake is just a trial run and I was hell bent on not allowing another repeat to get away from me today.....

It's been a while since I ran a repeat where I ran each repeat faster than the one b4 but it was that kind of morning and while not the heights I hit two weeks ago let's not gloss over the conditions or the fact I've had to hit the track the morning after a gig two weeks in a row.....but frankly if this was what I can do after three hours of listening to Coldplay I may have to load all my Coldplay cd's onto my ipod prior to a race/repeat session!!!

W/ the heat about to brake....not b4 time 11 freakin' days of 90 degree heat!!! it'll be interesting to see what I can do over 5x1,000m on Tuesday

6X600m Repeats @ St Joe's


76-34-1.50.4
75-34-1.49.1
74-33-1.47.7
72-34-1.46.1
72-33-1.45.5
72-32-1.44.0

Friday, July 6, 2012

Flushed



I often talk about going out on an easy/recovery run to get any residual crap out of my legs from the day b4......having almost drowned in a pool of my own lactic acid on Wednesday yesterdays easy 8 miler was the ideal run to rid myself of any leftover gunk in my system.
Having switched from Tuesday to Wednesday for my repeats I nullified my 8 mile tempo run that I normally schedule for Thursday prior to the fact that it was a 96 degree day,a shade too hot for a tempo run but not too hot to run,perish the thought!!
Four days down,two to go time honoured 6x600m repeats on Saturday,14 mile long run on Sunday which will give me another 40 mile week and also my last 14 miler till post 5th Avenue Mile/Syracuse but that's for another time and another place.

Seems funny it was only 6.5 months ago I was bitching about standing in line freezing for Coldplay tickets and now it's July 6th and time for the gig!
It's been a long week even w/ two days off work,the heat coupled w/ being out each nite since Sunday w/ my sister and brother in law has taken a toll on me but in that great rock and roll tradition "the show must go on" and even if it means sinking a couple of Red Bull's b4 the show I'm psyched for the gig,Coldplay are awesome on cd and even better live so I'm looking forward to the show tonite,keeping in mind I have an appointment w/ the "death cage" tomorrow morning for 6x600m repeats.....it's like Thunderdome.....two go in,only one comes out....best believe it's gonna be me!!!

Thursday, July 5, 2012

No So Much W/ A Bang.....


BANG! the sound of July 4th fireworks to celebrate America's independence.....
CLUNK!! the sound of the wheels coming off my 4x1 mile repeats yesterday morning.....
Maybe,w/ hindsight I'd have done better to do my repeats on Tuesday afternoon like I normally do them,afterall it was the late great Jumbo Elliott who used to say"get up at the same time each day,go to bed at the same time each day,eat at the same time each day,train at the same time each day.....and god damn it go to the bathroom at the same time each day!!
Looking to combat the heat{Tuesday was day six of the present heat advisory that shows no sign of ending} I opted against "dancing on hot coals" at 3.30pm Tuesday in favour of a mid morning workout yesterday given I had the luxury of a week day day off and promptly arrived at St Joe's at 10.30am.

It was already hot and I pretty much knew after my mile warm up and first two mile repeats I'd be switching from my ultra thin flats to my running shoes,to futher compound my worries I'd left my trusty bandanna on the back of my recliner to dry off after Tuesdays easy 4 miler and while I can't prove the second half colapse of my mile repeats was down to no protection on my head the splits bare out the fact that after a steller workman like opening two repeats it all turned to shite and how!!
It's been a while since I've witnessed a build up of lactic acid like the one I felt in my legs on the opening lap of mile #3 yesterday......jaysus there was enough lactic acid to drown in.....or so it felt like!

So another below par repeat session, w/ five more left on tap I can ill afford to waste any more of my precious repeats.
Today marks 4 weeks till Nationals,Monday marks the first deadline for entries after next to no activity on the status of entry list for the past few weeks it was not surprising to see a marked improvement on the M45 800m and 1,500m lists today,w/ less than awesome times going in to Lisle it would seem pointless waiting to the last minute to add my name to the list so I may well throw my bandanna into the ring tomorrow and have one less thing to concern myself w/......lord knows I need to be concerning myself w/ the brutal heat that is rumoured to brake on Monday and also getting the maximum effort out of Saturdays 6x600m repeats b4 getting my head around next weekends historic trip to Oregon and the Haywards Classic.

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

4X1 Mile Repeats @ St Joe's


1.18-1.22-1.22-1.16-5.18.3
1.18-1.20-1.21-1.13-5.12.3
1.23-1.28-1.31-1.23-5.45.0
1.24-1.26-1.24-1.21-5.45.5

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Slow And Easy


Following the grind of my repeats on Saturday I had to grind out a long run Sunday,14 miles and while no stranger to the 14 mile out and back to and around the Art Museum Loop it had been 5 weeks since my last one{May 27th} and that coupled w/ day four of what feels like a never ending excessive heat warning the results was a pile or sweat soaked running clothes on the living room floor by 11.30am and yours truly stretched out on the bed for two hours b4 tackling the rigours of my day post run.

I opted to go back to back w/ easy days Monday and Tuesday, a four miler around Clark Park allowing full recovery from the weekend and the chance to be fresh for my 4x1 mile repeats on Independence Day not to mention get said repeats in early ie b4 11am as the prospect of hitting Temple post work today at 3pm and "dancing on hot coals" isn't one that grabs me.
I also have family in town this week,my sister and brother in law are in the City Of Brotherly Love for a week so I'm trying to cut my cloth accordingly w/ them and spend precious family time w/ those guys while also staying focused on the mattetr at hand which is Nationals,eye on the prize,it's only four weeks away from Thursday....

Heat+Fatigue=Slow



I was disappointed my repeats were slow,but not surprised.
At the risk of realing off a laundry list of excuses the fact was I was feeling the effects of a late nite from Tuesday going up to NYC for the Icahn meet,throw in staying up late,well late for me on Thursday till 11pm to cop the Olympic Trials and then a late nite on Friday to catch Alice Cooper w/ Iron Maiden over at Camden it was no wonder my butt was dragging to begin w/,throw in it being day three of an excessive heat warning and you had all the ingrediants of a slow repeat session.

That said I gave it my best shot,I knew which ever way I cut my cloth I was going to come up short,in order to get another 40 mile week in I had to go long on Sunday(14 miles) so there was no switching days and going long Saturday b4 returning to the track on Sunday and ditching the long run meant falling shy of the magical 40 mpw barrier,sometimes you just have to face the barriers in front of you and deal w/ them as best as you can.
I'm realistic enough to know I can't belt each repeat out of the park but I also know the "sands of time are running low"{sly Iron Maiden lyrical reference to Rime of The Ancient Mariner!!!} on repeats b4 Nationals six more after this one and I need to squeeze every ounce out of each one so a subpar performance cuts against the grain.

Some would dare to utter that prehaps I should've NOT gone to the Iron Maiden show the day b4 my repeat.......BOLLOCKS!!!!! it's bad enough Philly/Camden was left off the last Maiden tour but the fact is in the past twenty years two bands have shaped my musical landscape like no other,The Cure and Iron Maiden,so yes I went to the gig at the risk of it effecting my repeats and hell no I don't regret it,there will be other repeats{next scheduled repeat is for Wed July 4th}it could be two,three years b4 the next Iron Maiden tour.....nuff said!