Tag: fitness

US Masters 10K Road Race

“Think you’re escaping and run into yourself. Longest way round is the shortest way home.” 

I took a long trip away to run the James Joyce Ramble, and then we sold our home. It was that kind of week.

We planned to sell our place in the Rocky Mountain foothills this year, or at least look into making a move, but I envisioned that we’d close the deal during the summer. Or maybe we’d make the move next year. However, events took a life of their own as soon as we returned from a weeklong trip to Spokane, WA where we were planning to move.

Life sometimes throws curves at you. Two factors changed our destination. We bought our mountain condo in 2016, and all seemed pretty good, but the monthly homeowners association fees increased 10-15% a year and by 2024 it had doubled, while the services and quality of maintenance at the site declined. In a few more years the fees would be greater than our mortgage, and that would be financially unsustainable for us. Not to mention the value of our property would decline. At the beginning of this year we decided that moving out in 2025 would be better than 2026. That would mean having the condo on the market by spring.

Things accelerated from there. Realtors, you know. We were on the market on March 7, with open houses the on the following two weekends. So much for a relaxing beginning of spring! Had we not been selling our place I would have stayed the World Masters Championships in Florida to run the 10K road race on March 30, but I needed to get home to help take care of things.

Meanwhile, other events prompted us to rethink whether we actually wanted to move to Spokane. It checked a lot of boxes, but one issue was that it was no closer to our family, in fact further. In mid-March, just a week after the condo went up for sale, we decided that a move to the Midwest might suit us better. Three factors gave the edge to the Midwest. Housing is even more affordable, it’s closer to our oldest son (his brother lives on the West Coast, but it was still a 2 hour flight from Spokane), and access to cross country skiing would be better. We have decided to move to the Twin Cities this July. It beat out Spokane in 10 of 12 categories that we considered. The only two that it was better were location and landscape and size.

Enough of the preamble, now to Dedham and the 10K.

Post WMA Training

I had five weeks after the 8K cross country championships. Recovery from that race took longer than expected. I was completely washed out that first week, and it felt more like following a half marathon, indicating some life stress no doubt but also that the race in Gainesville was an all-out effort.

My weeks in April, leading up to the 10K at the end of the month were 47, 43 (with some skiing and cycling), 56, 43, and 39 miles. For me that’s kind of in the lower end of moderate mileage. I usually like 60-65 miles a week. With so much going on and the slower than normal recovery it was adequate.

Workouts were nothing special in April but I got in a couple of double threshold days, and some single workouts focusing on threshold or CV effort (essentially race pace). I guess my capstone workout, 10 days before the race, was an asymmetrical ladder with 2,3,4,5,6,5,2 on rolling terrain. Starting at threshold and then working toward low 6 minute/mile effort (CV for me right now). That workout went well enough, and I felt I could run under 6:20/mile in Dedham.

Travel and Pre-Race

I flew into Boston on Friday afternoon and visited my cousin and her husband in Brookline that evening. Saturday was very chill, I ended up spending the day on my own at the hotel in Dedham, with my only activity being an easy run to pick up my race packet at the course venue.

Race Day

My friend Jim drove down from New Hampshire Sunday morning and we visited for a bit before taking the short drive to the race. It was cool, windy, and raining off and on. More like day for a cross country race, but it wasn’t terrible and everyone would be facing the same conditions so it didn’t phase me much. Got in a 2-mile warm up jog with some friends, did my strides and stretching and before I knew it, we were lined up and ready to go.

The first part of these races is always a little frenetic, and I’m always surprised at how fast some runners shoot off from the starting line. I focus on staying on my feet but also try to be aware of my pace-effort, next is to survey the scene and to keep an eye out for competitors. Two local guys from my age group strode by in the first 200 m, and then a guy in the 70s age group! I couldn’t even keep track of how many in the 60-64 group were ahead, but it seemed like a lot. Then another runner (a future teammate from the Twin Cities) ran by looking light and fresh.

I was hoping to win the age group, but figured that even if I had a bad day, I would be top 3 in the age group. However, you never know and I’m always full of doubt in the early stages of these masters running events.

By the first mile (a bit too fast in 6:03) I had pulled away from the two local runners and had my sights on my new friend/rival from the Twin Cities who was about 30 meters ahead, who had thrown in at least one surge and was and looking strong. A hell of a way to introduce ourselves, I thought.

I gained some ground in the second mile, but when I got within about 10 meters he surged again and the gap had quickly opened up to 30 meters. I knew I’d have to keep focused and have good middle and latter part of the race to keep in contact. At about 2 miles we made a sharp turn to the right, and I could see him easing up some. I was in a good pack of about six or seven other runners and I went with their tempo. We crossed 2 miles in 12:12. This was faster than the 6:15/mile I had anticipated, but I felt it was important to keep in contact.

Just after mile 2, pulled along by the pack of runners, I eased past my competitor. This was mostly a flat mile, with a net downhill and I think the wind was in our favor. That split of 5:56 was my fastest of the day, as I crossed 3 miles in 18:08.

Then things got harder. The 4th mile is through a campus and it features two solid hills. The first one was 25 feet, not too bad, but after a short downhill the second hill climbs at 6% with a net gain of 40 feet. I really slowed on that one. My mile split was 6:22, the slowest of the day. The 5th and 6th miles were a grind, with lightly rolling terrain, the splits were 6:07 and 6:13. I was running out of gas during mile 6 and on the final turn, with about 1200 m to go, did a head check to see where my competitors were. I had about 20 seconds and although I was feeling uncomfortable I felt that I could hold the effort for a few more minutes. He’d have to have a blazing kick to run me down.

Course map with Garmin splits (probably about a second per mile faster than actual).

The last 500 m have a slight net uphill, with a final hill with about 350 to go. I threw it all down and closed in about 5:50 pace to hang onto a 38:17, good enough for 48th overall and 1st in my age class.

A final surge at the finish was enough to put me on the age grade podium, 3rd out of all runners/ages in the race.

That was a hard fought race–it’s going to be interesting once I get to the Twin Cities, with such strong and competitive teammates! Meanwhile, although we did not field a 60s team, the 70s team showed up strong and took 2nd place to a surging Shore Athletic Club from New Jersey. They rarely lose, but Shore is strong this year.

With BRR 70s team.

And speaking of future teammates, in the age grading category I edged another Twin Cities runner (early 60s) by 0.05% to score a 90.6% age grade, and 3rd place overall. That was probably the biggest achievement of the day.

I was really happy with this race. Although I felt rough in that 6th mile in particular, I held on and didn’t lose much ground. Had I put my head down and stayed with the leaders of that pack I might have eked out 8 or 10 more seconds and been at the 91% range or age grading (and moved up a spot), but other than that I don’t think I could have gone much faster.

Bling!

St. Patty’s 5K

I lined up for Saturday’s Sharin’ O’ The Green 5K hoping not to have a blow out. Not my shoes, and not folding in the stretch, I was concerned about holding my breakfast and yesterday’s meals in my intestine. This was my first bicarb (sodium bicarbonate) race experiment and I lived to tell the tale.

Other than some casual ski races in January and February, on the schedule for fitness more than competition, I had only raced once since November and that was 9 weeks ago. However, I needed a rust buster and test effort for the upcoming WMA cross country event this month. I also got my hands on some Maurten bicarb, which is all the rage this year, but like anything new in running that shows success it’s hard to get. Fortunately, one of my friends knows people in the company and was able to get package with four treatments.

Last week I listened to the Physiology of Endurance Running Podcast (they’re nerdy but it’s really good), and their recent interview with Dr. Andy Sparks a researcher who did much of the work on sodium bicarbonate in sport over the past decade. He’s now a research manager with Maurten. In that interview he told tales of their earlier research where athletes had massive diarrheal outbursts or upset stomachs after taking bicarb. But that was before they developed an encapsulated formula that releases the bicarbonate in your intestine, and at a slower rate, rather than your stomach. The issue is the acids in the stomach don’t mix well with the base in the bicarbonate, and that often leads to an upset digestive system.

For years researchers athletes and coaches have recognized the sodium bicarbonate can buffer the exercise induced acidosis in blood and muscles, but the trick was to find a way to get enough into an athlete’s system while not causing digestive upset. However, recently Dr. Sparks and others have shown that encapsulating the bicarbonate and taking it with a carbohydrate gel product, it can be consumed by athletes while not resulting in digestive issues. Indeed it appears to allow greater endurance by buffering the blood.

The trick is that you need to follow the protocol. It’s pretty simple. Eat a light meal a few hours ahead of your exercise (or race), two hours before mix the gel caplets into 200 ml of water, and then a couple of minutes later add in the encapsulated bicarb, mix and then slurp down the tasteless gel in one bout but without chewing the bicarb.

How did it go?

Saturday’s Race

We decided to drive the 80-90 minutes to Fort Collins on Saturday morning, rather than stay in a hotel overnight. I was a little nervous about the bicarb protocol and timing it right while we were enroute, but decided to go ahead with the idea that we would stop about half way there, 2 hours ahead of the race.

After 45 minutes of driving we pulled off and stopped at a service station where I mixed the goop, waited 5 minutes and gulped it down without gagging anything and spilling only a half teaspoon. Two hours to race time.

We arrived in Fort Collins about an hour ahead of the race where I picked up my bib and set about with the warm up. I had planned on 3 miles, but with porta john lines (especially important on this day!) I got in 2 miles with some drills, a short tempo, and some strides. We lined up and everyone one seemed to converge at once, and I could only get as far up as the 4th row, with 30 or 40 people ahead of me in a field that did not look deep.

The plan was to run about 6:08-6:10 over the first mile and then see how it would go on the bike path over the final two miles. My goal was run about 19:00 for the 5K, which age grades to about 88 %.

20 meters into the race, and slightly boxed, in you can see my hat and sunglasses between numbers 288 and 694.

We blasted out of the start and some from behind shot ahead. The pace over the first few hundred meters was faster than I had wanted (sub 6) so I eased up a little. I split the mile in about 6:02, which was a little fast. My breathing was okay.

We had a bit of a headwind as we turned onto the bike path just after one mile. I tucked into a large pack of about 10 runners and found myself near the front of the group. It was a little unnerving to hear so many footsteps right on my heals. I braked a few times because the leaders of the group slowed a bit, and also eased up once, at about half way because a guy was breathing so heavily, practically in my ear. That was a distraction and either I could pick it up and get a gap or slow a bit and run behind him for a bit.

On the bike path, about 2 km into the race.

I fell back to about 4th or 5th in that pack, trying to keep focused and in contact. By 2 miles I had moved back up some and the pack was dissipating by then. We split in about 12:10, so a 6:08 second mile. That felt about right and it felt like I could run about 19-flat or under if I could hang on.

However, I started to get the feeling that I might need to go to the bathroom. Hold on! Less than a mile to go. I got gassed (tired) at 2.5 and slowed down for a few hundred meters. Two runners went by quickly. They were younger and closed under 6:00 for the last mile. Then two more went by, but they were not moving as fast and I was able to maintain a better pace, about 5 meters behind them. We popped off the river and over a bridge at about 2.8 miles, and I was back onto 6:00-6:10 pace for the stretch. Over the last 200 or 250 m, just before the 3 mile marker (3 miles in 18:28), I threw down all I could and had a strong kick (5:40 pace). I passed those two and pulled away by 4 or 5 seconds. Officially finishing 19:17, but I think that was a little long. And my watch had me closer to 19:05+/-.

Finishing kick!

My intestines were okay, but I did seek the nearest bathroom within 2-3 minutes after crossing the line. No upsets or accidents. All was good.

Post-Hoc

This is why we do rust busters. I think my fitness is there, but the pacing was not perfect (see pace chart). The finish was crazy fast, however, and that’s encouraging.

Pace chart from Saturday’s 5K. Note the quick start. The big dip at 2.1 miles was actually going under a double bridge. Ideally I would have liked to hold about 6:10 pace from 2.3 to 3 miles, and hopefully can find that gear when we have the bigger races.

I finished top 20 and won my age group, and pretty much achieved my pre-race goals.

Age grade was 87% for the full time for 5K, if you consider that the course seemed long (3.16 miles) it was over 88%. I probably hit that first mile a bit too fast, maybe 5 or 6 seconds, and that’s why struggled some over the 3rd mile.

Age group winners at Saturday’s 5K in Fort Collins.

What about the bicarb? I think there is something there, that was my best kick in a 5K in a long time. Usually I drop a few seconds in pace, maybe 10-15 seconds per mile under the overall pace, but this was 30+ seconds, and I felt I could have gone another 100-150 meters at this sprint effort, instead of feeling utterly spent when crossing the line. So I am encouraged.

Return to Indy Monumental Marathon

November 9

Background and Training

This was my fifth attempt to get on the five decades sub-3 marathons (aka 5D/S3) list. In my past I ran 2:34 in the 1980s, 2:44 during 1990s, 2:54 in the 00s, and 2:58 in 2018. The attempts the 2020s have been 3:02, 3:00, 3:01, 3:05.

Otherwise, this was a big year of racing with a 25K and two half marathons on the docket. I knew going in, that it would be a big ask to fit in a late year marathon.

In August I ran the world masters half marathon in Europe, got sick on the return, and it took a couple of weeks to get my legs back. Going back to the first week of September mileage was 50, 57, 70, 70, 61, 70, 64, 70, 68, and taper weeks of 36 and 31 miles. I got in four decent long runs of 19, 20, 22, and 20 miles, and a mid-long run of 11-13 on most of those weeks.  The long runs included progression efforts to marathon pace or just a little over, and most of the mid-long runs had tempo or threshold workouts.

The Race, How Did it Go?

I carbo-loaded a bit more than usual on Friday, but not too extreme. And for the race I had Maurten 160 in a handheld for the first 50 minutes and after that used Maurten gel every 30 minutes (so 480 calories for the race). That was about all I could take in.

After some delays I cut it close and got into the starting corral just minutes before the start.

The first 4-5 miles of this race are very crowded. We hit the first few miles a bit slower than race pace and the 5 mile split was in the 34:30s. Through 10 miles I felt heavy from the carbo loading, but not terrible. I kept clicking off 6:55s or so and was 68:40s for 10 miles. Then I fell into a funk, and was questioning whether I should continue with this return to sub 3 quest, and also wondering if I could maintain or increase pace, to keep o the sub 3 quest. That was not a good headspace.

We passed the half, a bit off pace and then 15 miles n 1:44, and knew that sub 3 was no longer on the table. I just resolved to keep on the pace for as long as I could.

My mantra for the day was to live in the mile, and that’s what I tried to re-focus on. And I also thought about resilience. The mostly the downhill 19th mile felt great! And I held the momentum for another mile. But then my pace fell off 7:05 -7:10s and the battle became less about time and more about just finishing. Came through 20 miles in 2:18. 10K to go. Once we got back onto the city streets after about 21 miles I focused by making it from stoplight to stoplight and that helped keep my head in the game.

The last few miles weren’t terrible, nor were they great. I could not ratchet my pace down to sub 6:50, that just wasn’t in the tank. But 7:05-7:10 was sustainable.

My wife and son (he’d just finished the half) were on the side of the course with about a half km to go, before the last couple of turns. With less than a quarter go however, my little toe blew up (ended up being a popped blister, and I’m certain to lose another toenail), so I had sort of a sprint-hobble over the last bit of the course, crossing in 3:03.

Post-race

I grabbed some food and got my medal and made my way to the gear tents, but soon after getting my bag I got nauseous and started throwing up. That only lasted for a minute or so, but it felt longer. Then I felt better. Lolled around the area for an hour or so until we all reconvened. Enjoyed some good meals later in the day a couple of beers in the evening.

With family, M&M who both set PBs in Indy!

Relaxing after the race.

Post Hoc, What worked and What Didn’t?

I’ll give the training block a mixed review. I did get an adequate amount of mileage, with long runs and workouts, but an 8-week marathon-specific build may not have been enough. However, I did have solid a summer HM block preceding that but it was hard to come back from a peak week (in August) in just a couple of months.

Fueling and hydration went okay. I did not bonk or cramp. That was more gels than I’m used to, but still it was less than some are now recommending.

My mental prep and attitude? Also mixed. I was probably less nervous for this race than any marathon I have done, going back 40+ years. That’s good. But I have never felt so off in the middle of a race—that time between 10 and 15 or so miles, I when I was questioning whether I should do any more of these, in particular another sub 3 attempt. Fortunately, I was able to pull out of that and get back into the mindset of just being in the mile.

The Future?

I don’t know. No doubt I enjoy distances, say 25K and under (down to about 5K) more than I do the marathon. What does that tell you? I would at least like to get NYC done to complete the North American WMM tour. And my son and daughter-in-law are already talking about doing Berlin someday. But breaking 3 again? Has that ship sailed?

Taper and Masters Cross Country

I finished my eight week marathon-specific block the other week without too much travail. Most importantly I got in the long runs, including three 20+ milers, and averaged 60-70 mile weeks mostly on single workouts. That’s one difference between this block and those in recent years where I did a fair amount of doubling on non-long run days. Then it was easier to do some doubles due to my work schedule. Now I don’t have to be concerned with that.

I would have liked to have had some extra weeks to prepare following the WMAs, but that would have meant running a different marathon (Philadelphia or CIM). I think/hope Indianapolis will be a good choice for 2024.

I didn’t get in any marquee workouts, but think that’s okay. Although most workouts were B or B- the 1:24 half marathon last month was perfect for preparation and as a fitness test. I’ll go with it.

That’s the good part. The first week of taper wasn’t so great, although the week did end okay.

I did my last long run a week ago Friday, 20 miles with a progression after about 8 miles, closing the last 3 in the mid-low 7s (approaching marathon effort on tired legs). However, the next week of mostly easy running, with one day off for recovery, were just blah. It was the worst I had felt all year. Every run started at 9:30 to 10+ minute pace and I was never able to shake out of feeling overtired, and slow, like 20 seconds per mile slower for easy pace (8:30s-50s), although my heart rate was kind of high (small caveat, dog ate my chest strap so using the watch band). I even cut back miles on some days, which didn’t seem to help.

I went into Saturday’s race feeling rather bleak. Home races are actually harder mentally than traveling, because here you have a target on your back and you don’t know who is going to come out of the woodwork.

Plus, there were some bigger implications for the Masters Grand Prix Standings. I was in 4th place overall, needed a finish to move into third (that’d be easy enough, just 5K), to win I would need an all out victory. Not likely with the hottest masters runner on the circuit now (named USATF Athlete of the Week recently, for setting the national record in the 1500 m and 1 mile). A second place would put me in a three-way tie for first, with final standings to be decided by tie-breakers (specifically head to head competition during the year and number of victories on the eight race circuit).

So yeah, I was feeling some pressure.

USATF Masters 5K XC Championships

My last two outings on this course were a disaster, including the 2022 championships, where came into the race with a head cold and faded to 6th place (healthy I think I would have been 2nd). And last year’s regional championship was even worse, coming off of the marathon four weeks earlier I just wasn’t ready to run hard. So that made me a little nervous.

Boulder Flatirons from the race venue, Harlow Platts Park.

Competition would be good, with four of the top five runners in my age group competing. However, at the last minute one of the runners had to scratch because his flight was cancelled. That was a bummer–although he had been saying that he was gunning for me (gulp!) I was also looking forward to a showdown on home turf. So make that three of the top five.

I drove the half hour to the park in Boulder, feeling a little nervous. 5Ks at altitude are always tough, and cross country 5Ks are all the more difficult. Add in the competition, the standings, and team bragging rights. I didn’t quite get butterflies (like I did in Sweden over the summer) but my chest was tight on the drive up.

Warm up was so-so. Just a slow jog for about 20 minutes and by the time I got my spikes on and found my teammates for a last minute check-in (we cut it close!), we were lined up. I only got in one 50 meter stride out, and maybe 30 meters on the way back.

Gentlemen check your watches.

The Race

After the last minute check in scramble we lined up, the starter gave a couple of quick instructions and without even a ready (or to your marks), the gun fired!

And we’re off!

My goal on Saturday was to to hold steady throughout and not blow up as I had in 2022 and 2023. We were quickly off the line and I was actually near the front for 50 or 60 meters before settling in. My teammate Mark shot ahead and Adam passed me. The pace felt fast on the slight downhill and I did not want to blow it in the first kilometer. I just relaxed. And that my mantra through the first lap. Dan, the age group juggernaut had 50 meters on me within the first half km. So I’d be fighting for 2nd in the age group. The field wasn’t huge (80 runners, compared to 150 or so in 2022) so I was able to find a spot with breathing room early on.

The two lap course at Harlow Platts Park in Boulder.

I decided not to look at my watch, or to minimize it, in this race and run by feel. After the hectic first km we circled back along the lake. I could hear at least one runner close on my heels, breathing heavily. Mark and a half dozen runners were about 30 meters ahead and I sort of sensed that there were a fair number of runners just behind me, so I was leading what the third or fourth chase pack.

We approached the hill at about 1.4 km, and my goal was not to charge up it, to stay relaxed. Those ahead gained some ground and the runner behind pulled up alongside me momentarily. It was Ken, who I had to beat today in order to get that tie in the overall standings. He’s from sea level and I figured I could outrun him over the stretch, but at the same time he’s a very tough competitor and I did not want to leave it to the end. So the crest of the hill (it’s about 10 meters of climb over 130 meters) I made the sharp left and threw in a surge (not in energy so much as just letting gravity do its work), and with 50 or 60 meters I could tell that I had dropped him.

No more footsteps from behind on this day. It was just a matter of hanging on and keeping that pack in sight.

At half way I was tempted to look at my watch but decided otherwise, and for the last time told myself to relax. I soon caught Mark and that pack and figured this would be a good spot. Don’t let them go! I led a few of them for a bit, but dropped back a little by about 2 miles (circling back by the lake again). My breathing was decent, turnover, okay and I felt I could hold this. And did just that.

Mark pulled away on the final hill but I was able to regain it on the downhill. We ran alongside into the soccer field area (0.5K to go) and I was able to get a few steps as we routed around the fields, and had enough to throw down a strong kick to finish in just under 19:30.

Final meters USATF Masters National 5k XC Championship.

I ended up 2nd in the age group, a full minute behind Dan, who is on a record breaking spree. Our team won, fairly handily against our cross-town/cross-state rivals. This was our first team win in two years and first time actually fielding a team since June of 2023. That was all good.

Post hoc analysis. It all worked out. My splits were fairly even (accounting for hills) and I managed my output just about right.

Next up, the marathon this weekend.

Masters Track and Field Championships

Short version, 2,500 mile road trip (minus side trips in California), nine days, two gold medals.

I think next time we’ll fly. A week ago Sunday we had a flat tire before even starting the trip, which cost us five hours and had to stay in a motel in Salt Lake City instead of camping in Nevada. And in the middle of the week our car battery died, thinking it was a starter or alternator we took the car into the shop. That cost $300. Driving all those miles in 100 degree temps wasn’t pleasant either.

Road Trip

I do appreciate the scenery, however, so here’s a few thousand words in pictures.

Utah canyon country.

Rainbow over Provo, Utah.

Egan Range, eastern Nevada.

Mt Wheeler National Park, Nevada.

Campsite sunrise near Truckee, California.

The Agony of Setting up the 4 X 800 Relay

Ahh the relay. For the past year almost, our team has talked about putting together an age group team that could challenge for the American club record of 11:22. That only requires a 2:50 per leg and on paper we had the runners to do it. Months ago we sent out signals, and I was appointed the de facto coordinator. I don’t think I did a great job at that for this event. However, our “team” ages 60-69 is more a confederation of runners without a lot of cohesion. And less so post 2020-21 pandemic. Just say that there are some personal and political differences in this team, and some aren’t afraid to verbally smash you in the mouth if you happen to disagree.

Not to mention, injuries and health. It’s hard to get four guys in our age group healthy enough to line up, and a track race is all the more risky.

I spent months encouraging an cajoling potential relay members and typically got mixed responses. Two of us were committed, one seemed to be ready if we had a team, a couple were injured or not interested, and one had been battling off and on injuries over the past year and had the attitude that if we are not going to set a record then the travel is not worth it. I even offered space at my brother-in-law’s place in Sacramento as a incentive. In the weeks leading up to the championships we seemed to have settled into a quartet of four capable runners who on paper could pull it off.

Creating a mental form chart, I figured I could run under 2:35 on a good day, Dan capable of matching that, maybe faster maybe a bit slower. Jack was hoping for 2:40-2:45 or so, and Bob sub 3. Adding those up our best case indicated maybe 10:50 for the four of us. Reasonable expectation without a blow up by one of us certainly put us comfortably in a sub 11:20 (for example, a more conservative estimate would put us at about 2:35, 2:40, 2:50, 3:00 for a 11:05, still well under the record).

We had a handoff practice a little over a week before the race and all seemed well. Shots were fired on the weekend, however, as one of our guys complained of a bad foot. He’d said he would run, but it would be some risk. We really needed a back up, but had none. Nevertheless, Tamara and left town on Sunday thinking we’d all be good.

I was looking forward to racing the relay on Thursday.

On Monday morning we had just driven into Nevada and I got a text. One of our guys was out. No explanation. Just that he wouldn’t make the trip. Cold feet or injured? I spent the morning texting, to see if we could pull together a make up team. It was so frustrating. I just don’t like the attitude that either you must set a record or forget about, especially at such a late hour. That is just poor etiquette.

I told our teammate with the bad foot to stay home and heal up. Wasn’t worth it for him to travel that far and risk further injury for a make up team.

Fortunately, we had other teammates in the 60-64 category and rest of us came together and made a team of our own teammates, with four guys in the 60-69 range, with a couple in their 70s as back ups. We wouldn’t get a record but we could score points and medal in the event.

By the time we arrived in Sacramento on Monday evening the on again off again relay was back on, although not the age group line up that we had spent months trying to put together. Come on guys, it should not be this difficult!

Brutally Hot Sacramento

The temperatures rose into the 100s each day that we were in Sacramento, which made for some challenging race conditions. The mornings were actually reasonable, 60-70s until about 9 or 10 AM most days. But the afternoons and evenings were brutal.

We arrived on Monday evening so I had two full days to rest from the long drive and to get in a couple final runs. On Tuesday I did a light workout on the track, 4X 1000 at 10K goal pace, followed by a couple of quick 200s to prime for Thursday’s relay, which would be held at about 3:30 or 4 PM on one of the hottest days of the year.

Relay Race Day

I got us signed up in the morning, and our main competition were two teams from the same club in California. I didn’t expect much because our replacements were doubling that day, and had other races in subsequent days and they said they wouldn’t be going all out. I figured that maybe we’d get a gentleman’s Silver Medal.

Other than actually figuring out who would run and our order, the biggest question was what time we’d go. We actually expected to race after 4 or 5 PM, because there would be some men’s and women’s heats before ours. I got to the venue just before 3 and my teammates were already heading toward the staging area! There would only be two heats, each with about a dozen teams.

We lined up at 3:30, and I would go first. Although this was just a make-up team and we were running for points I decided to go all out because, (A) I had some pent up energy from the team falling apart earlier in the week, and (B) for some redemption from the previous week’s disastrous 2:44. I felt I could run under 2:35 and the question was by how much.

It was 102 degrees at race time with a light wind on the homestretch.

At the gun I cut in a little too quickly and slowly into the curve, and found myself at second to last place. In the backstretch I moved into 5th place and the pace felt easy. One guy from SoCal was a few meters up and I tucked in behind him, planning to pass him after a lap. But he slowed more on the home stretch so I passed him at about 350 meters, crossing the lap in 79. It felt a lot easier than the 77 second first lap at altitude earlier in the month!

At the gun.

From there I just wound it up, picking up my pace as I took the second lap.

Saving my final kick for the last 80 or 90 meters. I did feel some tightness with about 20 meters to go, but handed it off to Bob with a nifty negative split of 79-74. I am more than happy with a 2:33!

15 meters to go!

Bob kept it rolling with a 2:55 and the other Bob (who had already run some sprint prelims on Thursday and had the finals on Friday) cruised in a 3:00, and Adam took the final leg in 3:14, holding off a late charge from SoCal, and ensuring a surprise age group win for us in 11:41!

On the screen.

The relay was a big success! The aftermath less so.

After we crossed the line, I milled around the finish area for a few minutes and enjoyed the moment with my teammates and competitors. Soon after Adam had finished however, I started coughing and gagging. It wouldn’t stop. This went on for about 10 minutes and I realized I wasn’t going to make it back to the car, let alone back to the house to get my inhaler, which I had left behind. I usually bring it, but forgot on Thursday. So some officials pointed me toward the medical tent at the end of the straightaway and I asked for some assistance.

It was a little embarrassing to have the EMTs drive in, take my pulse and O2 readings, check my breathing. But it was a relief to get a mist of albuterol and oxygen to calm the attack. This took about 20 or 30 minutes and I missed the celebration with my teammates.

My chest and throat were tight for the rest of the evening and overnight but I was otherwise okay. I ordered a new inhaler as soon as I got home this week.

Saturday the 10000 Meters

The 10K is more in my wheelhouse as a race distance, but I have only run two of these ever on the track (both in 1991, when I ran a 32:11). You don’t have hills and turns on the track, and the going is more smooth but it’s more mental than on the roads or in cross country.

I felt fine for the warm up but was concerned about the heat. It was already in the upper 70s when we lined up at about 8:40 (79 degrees according to Garmin) and it had to be 5 degrees warmer on the track, with the radiant heat from the previous day.

My plan was to run about 3:50-55 per km/6:10 per mile to finish under 38:30 and if I was having a good day under 38. Seemed fair enough based on recent workouts and races, and because I usually perform a little better at 10K than 5K. That was probably a little over-optimistic. My pacing was supposed to be over 6:10 for the first 1600, maybe as slow as 6:20s, and in hindsight I should have stuck with that.

Two guys in their 60s went out quickly in about 90 for their first lap and I held back some and was about 96. An age group rival was right on my heels, almost clipping them. That made me uncomfortable, and run a second or so per lap faster than I would have.

The two 60-64 guys already had a gap in the first kilometer.

I ended up running a string of 91s and 92s, and for 2 kilometers, my California shadow was right there. If I slowed he’d slow. So rather than stepping aside into lane 2 and letting him pass I just kept going. I think in a normal temperature (say 50s or low 60s instead of 80 or more) I would have been fine with the pace. Finally, after five laps he fell off the pace. The leader was running steady 90-91s, and had built about a 20 second lead, and second was less than 10 seconds up. I also tried to maintain my effort but started to worked to reel them in. I crossed 3200 in about 12:20, so effectively right on pace, although I was running by feel then and not focused on times and splits.

The sprayed us each lap at the beginning of the back stretch the cooling water felt nice but it was a brief respite from the heat because the water would mostly dry off by the time you rounded the track again.

Although the two leaders were not in my age group, I treated it like a race that I wanted to win outright. I caught the second runner at 5K. He fell back about 10 or 15 meters and it seemed like I was gaining on first. And so it went. The 1600 splits in the middle of the race were both at about 6:15.

There was a water table on the backstretch but it was in lane 4 and you had to veer out and slow down a little to get your drink. I went for my second drink at about 7000 meters and my competitor seized the moment and scooted past–quickly. By the time we came around for the next lap (I went to the table again to grab a cup to throw some water on my head and shoulders) he already had put on 15 meters.

With less than 3K to go, I had my own race wrapped up as I was coming up to lap the second and third place runners from my division–that was good, but they were not coming back as quickly as I would like, which meant that I was slowing up. The 5th 1600 would be the slowest of my day, I only ran about 6:27. Although I fell back some against the younger competitors, I lapped my age group rivals on the 21st lap–I had it in the bag and all I had to do was hold on.

Sweating it out over the final laps in Sacramento.

I maintained for a few more laps and then picked it up over the final two, crossing the line in a very hot 39:16, nearly 30 seconds slower than the younger runners. But I had lapped the rest of the field. So perhaps not as fast as I’d like, but I’ll take the win, but I am with winning my age division by more than two minutes.

Age group winners! Javier caught the leader Scott with just a couple meters to go to win the 60-64 age group and I came out ahead in the 65-69 category.

Indoor Track at High Altitude: Out of the Comfort Zone

I never really loved indoor track, although when I ran in college there were some exciting moments. As a freshman I won my heat in the 600 yard dash at our conference meet, after two guys got tangled and fell and I hurdled one of them as he was sprawled on the track. The next year I ran my first ever 2 mile and won! I only ran three seasons as an undergrad maybe 15 meets total. And only race twice since then, in 1981 just after graduating and in 1991.

In other words, I’d rather be skiing!

My 2024 ski endeavors have been a wash with bad snow or bad weather, getting sick, a winter race schedule, and other things popping up. I think in the future I’ll get into more skiing.

I will be racing the USATF masters 5K on the roads next week, and at last month’s cross country championship I really felt my lack of speed, 6:20 pace felt like a sprint and my competitors just pulled away easily on that 8K course. So I have added a bit of speedwork to prepare for that 5K and decided to cap it off by running a double at the USATF Mid-America regional championship in Colorado Springs. The meet was slated for the relatively new indoor facility at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs (UCCS) on Sunday (elevation 6250 feet). I figured that would have some effect on the my speed but I live at over 7000 feet and train mostly at about 5500-6000 feet, so figured that wouldn’t be too much of a stretch.

However, on Friday there was a shooting on the campus, two people were killed, and the university cancelled all activities for the weekend, including the race. That’s a terrible thing. Not the cancellation, but the shooting.

The USATF organizers moved quickly and the near Air Force Academy (AFA) agreed to host the meet at their venerable track, set at 7075 feet on the beautiful campus situated next to the foothills. That’s amazing that USATF was able to make that happen in just a matter of ours. The only real downside was the elevation difference and the Academy’s notedly old track. So I knew each race would be a grind.

First up, the 3000. My goal for the UCCS track was to run around 11:00-11:10, although I figured that might be a stretch, my last 3000 (outdoors in Boulder at 5300 feet) in 2021, was only an 11:09. But I’m an optimist and felt I could click off 44-45 second laps and make it happen with a good kick at the end. That would put me near the top fastest age group times in the world for the 2023-24 season even at altitude.

My friend David Westenberg ran 10:32 in December and while I wouldn’t be close to that, an 11:00 would compare favorably with a conversion factor to 10:36. Close at least.

3000 Meters 11.2 laps

Seventeen runners were entered and with a couple scratches 15 lined up, five women and ten men. They lined the women up on the inside lanes. With a seed off 11, I was on the far outside, so rather than that I lined up behind the two fastest looking guys.

The AFA track is an odd 268 meters, with long straights and tight curves, exactly 6 laps per mile. With the higher elevation I figured 60-61 per lap would keep me in the 11:15 range, so not too far off my original goal.

The gun fired and I immediately dropped to about 12th place. We strung out and I tried to relax, although I had the thought of just sprinting out to run with the leaders for a couple laps. I knew that would end up being rather painful so kept my head.

Off the line, near the back (Lane 1 Photos)

2nd lap pondering my sanity to run an indoor meet at 7000′

The first lap was right at 60, so not bad, then 2:02, 3:02, 4:03. I picked off a few runners in the early laps and there was a big gap (80 meters up to the next two). Split the mile at about 6:05-06 and was actually feeling pretty good. But on the 7th and 8th laps I could feel the effort increasing and I slowed to 62s-63s through lap 10. I did through down my best kick over the last lap and was under 60. And crossed in 11:27. It was a positive split, but I’m not disappointed to finish in 6:08.9/mile pace, which would be 5K goal pace at 5280 feet in Denver or Boulder.

Dead Last in the Last Mile

Not as ominous it sounds, but this was the last race on the old track at the AFA Field House. They are going to shut it down next year and build a new track, no doubt a banked 200 m oval that will have a state-of-the-art surface. It will certainly be faster than the current version. Maybe I’ll give it a shot in another 30 or 40 years. Maybe not!

After a 10 minute cool down I relaxed for a couple hours in the infield and tried to track some cross country ski World Cup results online, from races taking place in Minneapolis.

In the afternoon I warmed up outside for another 10-12 minutes and did a few pick ups. Eleven runners had signed up for the mile, but the attrition rate was pretty high and only six of us lined up. I was the oldest by 15 years and it showed. The other five runners gapped me immediately and I ran the entire race far off the pace. For this one I just wanted to run relaxed for the first couple of laps and then bring the pace down. I was hoping for 5:45 or so, but would be happy with a 5:50 considering the double and the elevation.

It pretty much went according to plan, as I was just under 2:00 after two laps, 3:57 at four laps, and with about 300 meters to go I started my version of a kick, covering the last lap in about 56 to finish dead last in 5:51.4. My slowest track mile on record (by 16 seconds, I ran a 5:35 at the Mile High Mile in 2021, 5:42 on the road at the Carnation Mile in 2022). That’s okay, I got what I wanted out of it.