Rollin', Rollin', Rollin'

The title is a reference to the theme song of the old Rawhide TV series. The reason for the post was a chance meeting yesterday with a guy who had no legs. I was in a store, and I see this guy in a wheelchair checking out as I went through a nearby line. As I went out, he had headed our before me. I gave him a hand holding his cart while he unladed groceries from it. He was fairly young, I guessing 30ish. We talked a bit about wheelchairs, and he had one of the hand-cranked jobs, I think they call handbikes in the back of his van. He told me he's been called a wimp on occasion by some of the push-rim guys. He also told me that he hopes to compete in the NYC Marathon. Before we parted, I asked if he minded telling me what had happened. He told me he'd lost his legs in the crash of the Staten Island Ferry. I'm always impressed by some of these guys who when life deals them a lousy hand just keep moving forward and do what they can with a good attitude.

Wearing The Coaching Hat

Four kids from the group I coach raced yesterday. One boy, the youngest who raced, finished last. He just doesn't seem to "get" racing. At 8, it's really no big deal, but I know his Mom and Dad want to see him having some success. So, it becomes a matter of trying to get him to look at racing as something to aspire to, and modifying his running style to make it a bit more efficient.
The other three kids ran the 3K race. Among them, my son was the first to finish. The two others, both girls, finished right after each other. The one who finished first raced worse than I expected, the one who finished second was in tears. I have a feeling that the one who raced worse than I expected was running with the other to support her. It's my job to try to tease out that piece of information, if that's, in fact, true. The tears of the one in back were due to a severe stitch.
My son raced pretty well, but in analyzing his race, thinks there were a few things he could have improved on.
Now, I have my job cut out for me. We'll have to see what happens.

Passing The Knowledge

Tonight, my son and I went to my club's weekly summer race, part of a series held annually for 44 seasons (since 1964). It's a four-lap course around a lake, that was the home course of Dr. George Sheehan, and has had some superb competitors run there over its long and storied history. (Read that as the records aren't soft.)

Anyway, tonight, my son, who's about to turn nine ran the 5K by himself. There was a man by him, and he pointed out the importance of running tangents to him. It's a lesson I've tried to tell him at times, but hearing from another source means: a)other words, b)it's not Dad, and c)the lesson is delivered in a different style. The result is a lesson that may get absorbed a bit more readily.

I was pleased that someone took the time to try to impart the understanding to him. Sharing important lessons with the next generation makes a world of difference. I spent a few minutes tonight talking to a high school coach who brings her team (well, they come voluntarily) and the race is a measuring stick. This year, she expects to be rebuilding, as she had only one occasional scorer from her cross-country team returning. I commented that the sharing of wisdom is key the year prior to this one. Simply put, if her team from last year could impart their hard-earned wisdom to this year's team, then it would be reasonable to expect big advances from this year's team. We'll see.

By the way, I racewalked and took fourth, garnering me 1st masters honors. Before you are impressed, I was fourth masters, but the guys who beat me took the overall awards, so I got the leftovers. Oh, and I am younger than all of them.

Finally, one of our stalwarts was there tonight. At 94, and with a case of macular degeneration, he's no longer able to compete, but he was in good spirits and moves like an 80 year-old. He walks about two miles a day.

Thank You, Sensei

My last post garnered a very positive comment from a photographer whose work I've long admired, Leo Kulinski, Jr. While he's not a household name, he took some wonderful running photos "back in the day."

Any of you who are interested in the history of running should pay his site a visit, you'll find it here. He also has some wonderful wildlife shots.

When you receive a compliment from the master, you thank them. And so, "Thank You, Mr. Kulinski."

Kelley Ocean Beach Race

For the last few years, I've made a pilgrimage to Connecticut to run in the Johnny Kelley Ocean Beach Race. This year, I felt the physical price of running it would be too great (yeah, I wussed out!), so I worked at two water stops with my friend, Patti Dillon, her daughter, Raven, and Dr. Bob Chasen and his son, Ben, and my son, Matthew.
Here we were at the water stop near the two-mile mark.
The men's winner, Eric Blake, passes the water stop at nine miles.
The women's winner, Melissa Perkins-Banas takes water at nine miles.
Race Director Way Hedding provided the funniest line of the day, when he said, "People will go to great lengths to avoid running in this race."
The New London Fire Department provides a welcome shower at the end of the race. Eleven miles in the broiling sun tends to cake you with dried sweat and this will help remove it.
Patti Dillon poses after the race with Steven DePolito, who has produced a video interview with Johnny Kelley the Younger. It focuses heavily on the years 1953-1957, when Kelley was working with his friends, George Terry and Nick Costes. Mr. Kelley, though best known as the winner of the 1957 Boston Marathon, probably did something more remarkable, winning the USA National Championship Marathon eight consecutive years - 1956 through 1963, then getting beaten in only by 1964 by Leonard "Buddy" Edelen, who had run the fastest marathon ever shortly prior.
Amby Burfoot, John J. Kelley and Patti Dillon at a post-race party.

Answering the Challenge

Wednesday evening, the big 5K in my town took place. Those of you who are regular readers remember that my son beat me back at the end of May, so this race was to be a rematch of sorts. The weather was good, humid, but not too hot.
Prior to the race, I said to my son, "If I can see you at the finish, I'm coming after you." He told me that "if you're close, I won't be letting you by."
I struggled a bit, and walked a few segments, then, at about 2.5 miles, I saw him sneaking by on the left. The gauntlet was thrown down. I went after him, sitting just off his shoulder as we climbed the last grade. We had talked about tactics, and he knew to use the downgrade to accelerate. Dutifully, he did his work, his only mistake, glancing around to check on competition. He kept his effort high as the course flattened out, passing perhaps a score of competitors, and only being passed by a few, all bigger and stronger. Still, I was locked onto him, perhaps 5 meters back. I couldn't gain ground, but neither was I losing. I had to hope he weakened.
As we came into the final 100, he turned on the juice - there wasn't much left, but it was enough. I tried to answer, thinking my greater strength and size would make the difference. It just wasn't enough. My son crossed the line with a two second advantage.
Bragging rights in the family stay with my son. I was proud of his effort. He did what was needed to hold me off. If I can keep moving with my comeback, it'll be him chasing me, but if in the chase, his effort and commitment rises, that will be a good thing.
After the race, I asked him, "Do you think you could run a whole race like you ran the end of the 5K?" His reply was, "Maybe, in a 1500, but not longer." I think he's beginning to transition to being a genuine racer.

DIRTY! I Guess!

It appears that Alexandre Vinokourov has failed a doping test for homologous blood doping. (Another person's blood being transfused to increase red cell count.) See this:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/cycling/6914301.stm

Basking in Reflected Glory

On Sunday, my club, the Shore Athletic Club of New Jersey, won the USATF National Club Championship, capturing the men's and women's titles, and as a result, the combined title as well.
I continue to bludgeon my body, trying to get it to run in something approximating the style that I want. Yesterday, I spent about 20 minutes running away from my home, then pulled a U-turn and ran back home. That 40 minutes felt pretty comfortable.
I have a 5K race on Wednesday evening. This will be a rematch with my 8 year-old son, who beat me on Mmemorial Day. I think we are almost evenly matched right now, so it will be interesting to see the outcome. Meantime, my son has announced his desire to try a 10K, so in mid-September we'll run one in the town I grew up in. It will be an effort of almost an hour for him. A big milestone for him. We'll see how ready he is. I think he'll be surprised, but will do OK.

Sore Shoulder

On Sunday, my right shoulder was sore and a little stiff. At first, I couldn't figure out why. Then I realized that after driving 90+ miles and missing one of my athlete's race at the USATF regional meet, I had made myself available to the meet director as a volunteer. I spent the rest of my morning rolling shots back towards the putters and pulling tape measures taut.
I think my favorite thing was seeing the smallest girl in the youngest age group win. Why? She'd obviously been coached well, and her form was superb. She threw well, and seemed very focused and disciplined. It was nice to see.
Meantime, my athlete had set a PR. Having others around you tends to help keep you focused. He ran well, and his time was about 15 seconds faster than any previous race. His 3000 meters time was just under 12:15. I was proud of him, as was his family.

Jumbo Shrimp

Recently, Bruce "Vegas Runner" Robison referred to my Boilermaker as a training race. It struck me that that term is every bit as much of an oxymoron as jumbo shrimp. To be a race, a hard effort is required, and you must be trained well enough to run a personal best, whether for a time period, or your lifetime. I was not prepared, and as a result, my Boilermaker was a training run, albeit a very social one.

I find myself in the heart of the summer racing season in awful aerobic condition and without much toughness. Regardless, I'm hitting many of my usual races. So, are these training races? I guess the term "training race" is pretty accurate.

Chalk one up for Bruce.

Struggling

I've run twice since Boilermaker, on Tuesday and this morning. I find myself often needing to run in the warmer parts of the day, and don't seem to be handling heat, especially sun, very well.

This morning, I ran only two miles, and walked another one+. Perhaps more significantly, my hams feel really tight, along with the whole back of my legs.

I think I may need to look at doubles and/or evening runs to try to build mileage.

A word about Boilermaker recovery - although I felt pretty badly late on Sunday and on Monday, there was very little soreness.

Utica Boilermaker

I ran 15K this morning, or more precisely, I ran most of 15K. My predicted time of 1:22 proved to be a bit ambitious. The big crowd and my slow time put me in the last, huge corral. One thing about the crowd management really dissappointed me. The race let people who hadn't moved into the corral start ahead of me. The result was that it took me more than 11½ minutes to get across the starting line.

Before the race, two things happened while in the corral. First, it was announced that New York Governor Elliott Spitzer was running in the 5K. When this announcement was completed, some wag near me bellowed, "Wuss!" A second thing that was going on was that the audio was cutting out pretty regularly during the announcements. As the trumpeter, David D??? was playing The Star-Spangled Banner, it kept cutting out. I was quietly singing along. As the music cut out, several of us started to sing a bit louder. The music probably went out five or six times during the anthem, and each time, the voices singing ratcheted up until by the end, the trumpet was just a tad louder than the voices. There was something nice about the way the runners honored the nation in light of the technical problems.

I ran the race pretty comfortably, posting times right around 10 minutes per mile pretty much throughout. Around mile two, there was a guy with something like "Milk was a bad choice" written on his back in marker. I asked what it was about, his initial response was, "It's from a movie." On further questioning, he revealed it was from Anchorman. Can anyone give the the set up? In the fifth mile, we passed the Utica Zoo, and a guy near me pulled out his camera to take a picture of the llama. I shout, get up there, I'll take your picture, and he handed me the camera. I took his picture, handed him the camera, and we were both on our way.

Around 10K, I was struggling a bit, but once I got some sugar (one of those freeze pops - the Kool-Aid in a baggie), I seemed to get back on track. I remember being startled as I passed 7 and 8 respectively. I was spending a lot of those miles trying to find kids to high-five me, but with surprisingly little success.

My final time was somewhere around 1:44:45, and with the delay at the start, I think my time was about 1:33.

Monday A.M. update: My times were pretty much on the mark. My chip time was 1:33:12 and my pace was 10:00/mile (exactly!).

Consistency, Finally!

As I am trying to hammer this pudgy, pasty body back into shape, I've been pretty consistent about putting some mileage into my legs each day. Sunday will be a real test as I attempt a hilly 15K "race" (in quotes because while it's a race, I'm not racing). The longest I've run since starting my comeback is about 5 miles (Wednesday's four-miler with an additional mile of cool-down), so along with the work of the hills, the distance will be challenging. I found out that my time on Wednesday is listed as 34:06, a tad better than I thought.

So, will I be able to make it? I heard the medical director at the Runner's World Half-Marathon posit to Amby Burfoot that a runner could finish a distance equal to their weekly mileage. If that holds true and I don't get stupid, the 15K should be fairly easy. My challenge will be avoiding oxygen debt during the big hill.

Oh, and one other thing, I'm giving some thought to a fall marathon. It'll be slow, but having it looming will keep me focused.

Survival

Yesterday, July Fourth, I ran in the local four-mile race. My first mile was a bit fast for current condition, coming in at about 7:45. I was particularly fast for the first half-mile or so, being pulled by a friend. This race is virtually dead flat, and has a number of tight portions after halfway. I crossed the two at about 17:15 (at least that's what memory tells me), which would give me a 9:30, which sounds wrong, though perhaps I was undoing the earlier damage. I missed the clock at 3, but asked, and a guy volunteered 25:30. I finished about 34:15. It was no prize, but at least I held together. Around 3, keeping moving was a bit of a struggle. My head was just weak. I had walked a little as I took water at two, otherwise I ran throughout.

This race gave me hope of getting through the Utica Boilermaker in something in the low 1:20's. That will be a far cry from the 1:04 and change from a few years ago, but I feel good about making progress on the road back.

The thigh chafing continues, so I will be wearing bike shorts on Sunday. I am trying to figure strategy. For me, the key will be keeping myself moving slow enough early. I am debating walking the golf course, where going into oxygen debt is an easy thing to do.

My weight yesterday was 175.5, up 3 from earlier. I am not concerned. I've been eating mostly right, and attribute the added weight to water binding glycoen in my systen due to the increased activity.

Training Log / Looking Ahead

A quick recap of the last 4 days:
Tue - 6 miles - racewalk - minor arm chafing
Wed - 3 miles/run, 1 racewalk - serious thigh chafing, very high heat and humidity,
Thu - 2 miles/run, 1 walk, 1 run - serious thigh chafing, very hot and humid
Fri - 5 miles racewalk, legs felt very beat up

I have a four mile race on July 4th and a 15K on July 8th. The four should be fairly comfortable, but I'll be paying for the 15K. Both are really just "racing myself into shape" efforts, rather than real races, but at least I will be moving forward with returning myself to condition.

E-mail From Another Running Fan

My friend, Tom, had sent me this e-mail: (I changed my name, but all else is as sent.)

Scooter,

The "Footsie" is finished for the year! Still looking for details but Craig apparently let it get away, slipping back to 8th or worse before a furious finish fell just short of the winner. Eager to see a video.

Big suprise with the girls. I saw the southern duo who smoked the field when I was in Charlotte visiting my daughter for Thanksgiving. Kroeger is a really lean little blonde; skitters along like a bug. After running neck and neck with Scott through most of that race, she gave way to her. Kroeger said she was saving herself for San Diego. She has now proven herself big time. I wonder how Ashley did; no better than 8th behind the big favorite, Hasay.

The preview video showed the course to be very dusty. Would hate to eat that while running back in the pack.

Did you watch any the Iron Man today? The greatest sports story I have ever seen: Dick Hoyt and son. Maybe you know of them since they have been competing for 30 years together. The son is severely crippled with CP but loved being pushed by his father in a wheelcair 5 km so much it inspired Dick to go big time. Dick is now 66 years old, son is 44 and they do the triathlon! Dick tows him in a raft for the swim, carries him on the handle bars in the bike and the final pushchair marathon must be the easiest leg! They should make this story of great love and determination better known to the world.

Tom

I love this stuff! Craig Forys ran well, and his blazing finish is testimony to his great strength as a runner. I have a suspicion that he's going to take a serious crack at becoming the fifth high school four-minute miler. He is an absolute monster runner. While he may have misjudged how much room he needed to close, I have little doubt that a bit more distance and he'd have been banging heads with Chad Hall for the win. It didn't happen, and it can't be changed, but misjudgements are a part of racing. In today's Star-Ledger, Jim Lambert had an article, in it, he quoted Forys saying, "I have nothing to be disappointed about. At the top of the last hill, even though I was 40 meters behind (Hall and Murdock) and felt that winning was a long shot, I told myself that this is the last 800 meters of my high school cross-country career and it was time to man up. I left it all out there. Hall ran great and deserved to win." I think that quote describes the best thing about running, respect for your competitor. Not that trash-talk never happens, but it's usually pretty rare, especially among top level athletes, simply because they know how much work it takes to get to that level.

The Ironman (and I apologize to people who do Ironmans) is THE one that matters. I remember years ago seeing a short (about 3 paragraphs) on the first (I think) Ironman in Sports Illustrated while I was in a doctor's office. There are several events in Ironman history that I distinctly recall. The Hoyts are pretty much a fixture at the Ironman. I had the pleasure of meeting the Hoyts in Boston last year, and it was a highlight of my visit. Dick's a real gentleman, but I can't really say the same about Rick. His limitations make it tough to really know. They are inspiring to watch, and seeing Dick care for Rick is seeing true love in action. Maybe it will be rerun over the winter.

Finding people who share the same interests is always a pleasure. For this, I'm glad to have found Tom.

Torn

Sunday morning is the Footlocker Finals, but it's also the Honolulu Marathon. I love watching the kids, but I have a friend running Honolulu.

I grew up in Colts Neck, NJ, where the school for whom both Craig Forys and Ashley Higginson run is located. Needless to say, I have some interest in the outcome of this race. Forys won both the NJ State Meet (aka Meet of Champions or officially the All-Group Meet), and the Footlocker Northeast Meet. Higginson is in an interesting position, as she's spent much of her running career in the shadows, behind Southern Regional's Danielle Tauro and sometimes behind schoolmate and child running star Briana Jackucewicz. The result has been that while she's a fine runner and multi-time state champ, Tauro has often kept her off the radar screens. This is likely a blessing AND a curse, as it means she's able to prepare for races without the interruptions of reporters and fans, but she also doesn't get the level of respect and recognition that she deserves. In the last few weeks, she's popped out of the shadows, finishing fourth at Footlocker NE, and finishing first at Nike Team Nationals.

Part of Higginson's popping out of the shadows is because at Footlocker Northeast, Tauro collapsed twice during the race, dropping from fourth to tenth in the final 60 meters. She and her coach decided to end her season after a diagnosis of rhabdomyolysis. (My speculation is that after some time off in the early season due to summer racing, Tauro rushed her preparation for the late season races and wasn't as muscularly strong as was needed. Her drive permitted her to keep racing, but at the NE race, the damage was severe enough that her body shut down.) When you look at some of the effects of this condition, things like kidney damage, no race is worth that, so I agree with their decision, even though it took away someone I love to root for.

Meanwhile, at the Honolulu Marathon, Dan Dillon, whom I count as a friend, will be running his first marathon since his eighth place finish at Boston in 1985. Having run with Dan a bit this summer, I'm confident he's ready. Dan is strong, he's fast, and his recent training leads me to believe he's again durable. Dillon's recent 26:07 at the Manchester Road Race won him the 50+ age-group, until Dan corrected race organizers that he's only 49! (AARP must wait!) So, I'll try to watch both as the morning progresses. Hawaii's 5:00AM start means that he'll finish sometime before 1:00PM my time (if my math was right and his plan holds together). Footlocker's starts are at 9:15 (girls) and 10:00 (boys). Results from both should come available at about the same time, thus, I'm torn by needing to try to watch for both more or less at once.

Edit: OOPS! Footlocker is Saturday! In the words of Emily Latella, "Never Mind!"

Congratulations, Coach!

I continue to be impressed by the coaching job that Jim Schlentz does with the boys and girls running teams at Colts Neck High School (NJ). This weekend, his girls took fourth place at the Nike Team Nationals in Portland, OR. The top girl on his team, Ashley Higginson, won the race outright. Conditions out there were less than ideal, and it played a part in some confusion, with his girls getting third place in the awards ceremony, then having it adjusted to fourth when some scoring problems related to lost shoes and non-working (or missing) chips was discovered.

Higginson's win may have been possible in part due to Betsy Bies, last year's overall winner, losing a shoe. Those of us who have been around running for a while know that unless you're with the leaders, the opportunity for a win won't happen at all, so, you have to be there. Putting it simply, Higginson couldn't have won if she wasn't running with the leaders (and by implication, trained and mentally prepared to take advantage of situations as they develop). Schlentz seems to do an extraordinary job of preparing his athletes, and with two Footlocker finalists this year, it's paying off.

Yesterday, I received an e-mail pointing out that the Northeast seems to be the best region right now in terms of competitiveness, at least among the girls. On the girls side at NTN, the #1, #2, & #4 teams were from the northeast. On the boys side, the top team was also from the northeast, but then it was 6th until the next team I recognized as northeastern appears.

Paying The Price

One race that I like to run is the Ashenfelter 8K on Thanksgiving Day. I hadn't been training, because I was trying to get my feet in shape. The result was that I ran this race untrained. I posted a time around a 40:15, but the more significant thing was that my legs were sore afterwards, and not by just a little bit. I went to the race in part out of respect for the only American man to have held the world record in the steeplechase.

Yesterday, I went with my son to the Footlocker Northeast race. This race was something of a "How good are they really?" race. State champs come and go, but if you win a Footlocker race, you're the real deal. Yesterday, the NJ boys champ managed a victory. The girls champ had looked good going into the back wooods. When I saw her again, she looked like she was struggling just to hold it together. This morning when I read press reports, I saw that she'd collapsed, gotten up and still finished tenth. Whatever happened, I'd thought she'd have won the race more reliably than the boys champ. I saw her after the race and she looked fine, though perhaps shaken by the experience. Regardless, she survived, and did so well enough to make the national race in two weeks.

I had to run from near the start to the bridge at the 1.5 mile mark, then back towards the finish several times yesterday. I'm pretty sure that the running, easy, though with a pack on my back, done with my son, who seemed to like the experience, helped my legs to recover.

NJ MOC

Yesterday, I went with my son to watch the NJ High School Cross-Country Championships. Technically, it's the all-group meet, but it it commonly referred to as the Meet of Champions. It's the meet that is considered the state meet in other states, but in NJ, for whatever reason, it's MOC.

On the girls, side, the meet was expected to be a foregone conclusion, with Southern Regional's Danielle Tauro winning another big meet. She may be the most dominant runner to come out of NJ in fifteen years or so. The boys side was a bit more of a wild card, with a sophomore, Doug Smith, from Gill Saint Bernard's expected to challenge last year's winner, Craig Forys of Colts Neck.

The course at Holmdel is tough to see at multiple points, you can watch the runners at the start and the finish, or you can go up the hill and see them twice (at least the leaders), then scramble down the hill and catch the finish. It doesn't make for easy spectating, and thus far, nobody has done the work to bring video to the course. The result is that until the runners come out of the woods, most spectators have no idea what they'll see.

Past times predicted that we'd see a 15:30ish finish, and that Jason DiJoseph's 1988 record, 15:16, would be safe for another year or several. We were watching the finish, and checking the clock, and around 14:40, the judge's flag started waving. One head crested the final hill, rising briskly. Many heads cranked around, wondering if their understanding of timing was right. We all knew that yesterday was special, the singlet rising over the hill was green, Colts Neck's color, Forys was going after the record. Down the final straight he came, absolutely flying. Very quickly, the talk was of the record. Forys got the record, but due to regulations, it goes into the book as a 15:16. (If scuttlebutt was right, Forys ran a 15:15.5, and DiJoseph's mark was 15:16.2, and Forys is credited with the record, even if it shows the same time.)

As expected, Tauro won the girls race, though not crushing the field. She ran slightly ahead of Colts Neck's Ashley Higginson. Tauro was just running her third race of the season. She'd raced through the summer, finishing with the World Juniors in Beijing, China.

Interestingly enough, both of yesterday's winners are heading to the University of Michigan. The other big news of yesterday's meet was that Jackson won the team boys title, unseating Christian Brothers Academy, who'd won it for several years, the school with the longest dual-meet winning streak in history. (This result doesn't affect that streak.)