The Massachusetts All-State meet will be held Saturday at Holyoke, with field events getting underway at 10:00 and running events at 11:00. Here are directions to the meet:
Take Mass pike West to Rte 91N. Take exit 16 and take a right off the ramp, continue straight (you will go by the Yankee Pedlar on you left, Holyoke Medical Center on left...) through 3 sets of lights, take a right into the front of HHS to enter the building...you can park along the side of the field or go straight thru 4 sets of lights at 5th set take a right by the softball field (you will see a gas station on your left) and then your next right into the back parking lot of HHS...Roberts' Complex is up near the building.
Here is the schedule of events:
State Meet Schedule of Events:
10:00 AM - FIELD EVENTS
TRIPLE JUMP (G-B)
HIGH JUMP (B-G)
SHOT PUT (B-G)
DISCUS (G-B)
JAVELIN (G-B)
LONG JUMP (B-G)
POLE VAULT (G-B)
11:00 AM - RUNNING EVENTS GIRLS FOLLOWED BY BOYS
TWO MILE RUN FINAL ON TIME
800 METER RUN FINAL ON TIME
300 METER HURDLES FINAL ON TIME
400 METER RUN FINAL ON TIME
*200 METER DASH TRIALS
ONE MILE RUN FINAL ON TIME
*100 METER DASH TRIALS
*100 METER HURDLES TRIALS
*110 METER HURDLES TRIALS
200 METER DASH FINALS
100 METER DASH FINALS
110 METER HURDLES FINAL
100 METER HURDLES FINAL
**3200 METER RELAY FINAL ON TIME
400 METER RELAY FINAL ON TIME
1600 METER RELAY FINAL ON TIME
** The 3200M Relay will not start until at least 30 minutes after the last runner has finished the One Mile Run.
Newton North will be sending quite a few athletes to the meet.
For the girls, Carolyn Ranti is seeded 3rd in the 1M, Jess Barton is seeded 4th in the 2M, Michelle Kaufman is seeded 14th in the high hurdles, and Hester Breen is seeded 15th in the discus. In addition, the girls 4x800 team is seeded first after running 9:29 in last week's Div I meet.
For the boys, David Smith is seeded first in the shot and 6th in the discus. Marvin Chan also qualified in the discus and is seeded 17th. Avery Mitchell is seeded 2nd in the 400, Cailean Robinson is seeded 3rd in the 100, and Sam Arsenault is seeded 7th in the HJ. The boys 4x100 team is the top seed, after running a school record 42.37 to win the Div I meet last week.
Here's a link to the complete performance lists
May 31, 2007
May 29, 2007
Results from Everest Marathon
A few days ago, I wrote about my friend Tom Dmukauskus who was preparing to run the enzing Hillary Everest Marathon today (well, it was yesterday our time). He finished the race (and was the third foreigner).
Here's a news story reporting some race results.
Tom also emailed his quick summary:
"- First place overall: Deepak Rai in 3:59+ -- he won the race last year in 3:28,
but we learned that the course in '06 was 39k only...and they added a couple of
more substantial climbs this year, and made it 43k instead of just 42.2k for
good measure"
"- First foreigner: Antoine LePoint in 4:51 (I think). He is a professional
runner for France (competed in the World XC championships this year, and has a
1:06 half-marathon to his credit).
- Second foreigner: Alan ??? from the UK in his first marathon in 6:06:15. He
passed me 1k into the race, and was the only person I never passed back.
- Third foreigner: Me in 6:06:47. Having lost contact with Alan for the middle
41k of the race, I saw him in the last 800m of switchbacks down to Namche
Bazaar, but had syncopated spasms of calves and quads that prevented me from
erasing the gaps."
"Unbelievable stat: My final 10k was in ~2:07, and I was able to reel in people
that were an hour ahead of me! For those of you in the Northeast -- consider
what Boston marathon would be like if Heartbreak hill were Mt. Washington (well,
maybe 60% of the elevation gain in 1/3 the distance), and you had to start
climbing from an elevation of 11000ft."
Here's a news story reporting some race results.
Tom also emailed his quick summary:
"- First place overall: Deepak Rai in 3:59+ -- he won the race last year in 3:28,
but we learned that the course in '06 was 39k only...and they added a couple of
more substantial climbs this year, and made it 43k instead of just 42.2k for
good measure"
"- First foreigner: Antoine LePoint in 4:51 (I think). He is a professional
runner for France (competed in the World XC championships this year, and has a
1:06 half-marathon to his credit).
- Second foreigner: Alan ??? from the UK in his first marathon in 6:06:15. He
passed me 1k into the race, and was the only person I never passed back.
- Third foreigner: Me in 6:06:47. Having lost contact with Alan for the middle
41k of the race, I saw him in the last 800m of switchbacks down to Namche
Bazaar, but had syncopated spasms of calves and quads that prevented me from
erasing the gaps."
"Unbelievable stat: My final 10k was in ~2:07, and I was able to reel in people
that were an hour ahead of me! For those of you in the Northeast -- consider
what Boston marathon would be like if Heartbreak hill were Mt. Washington (well,
maybe 60% of the elevation gain in 1/3 the distance), and you had to start
climbing from an elevation of 11000ft."
May 27, 2007
EMass Division I Meet Results
On Saturday night I drove into Southwest Harbor on Mt. Desert Island in Maine, and parked in back of the Southwest Harbor Public Library. I turned on my laptop, and - sure enough - I am able to connect to the Library's Internet account. My first instinct is to check coolrunning.com, but results from the Emass Div I meet aren't posted yet. So I turn to dyestat, where I read the good news - that the NN boys have finished second to Lexington, that David Smith has won the shot AND the discus, that Cailean Robinson has finished second to Darius Walker in the 100, and that North's 4x100 team has run some ungodly fast time to win the relay.
Exciting stuff! But not a word about the girls...
So on Sunday, I drive over to Bar Harbor where my nephew lives in an off-campus apartment, log on via his Internet connection and get the full story. And here it is:
Emass Div I Meet Results
Very impressive results from the NN boys. The 4x100 team has really been something special this year, and I'm looking forward to watching them compete at the state meet next weekend.
David Smith proves once again that he is a big-meet competitor, winning the shot (56-2) and the discus (151-11). Congratulations to Marvin Chan (3rd in the discus at 138-6, with a tie breaker of 136-11). Mike Bower deserves a ton of credit, as NN throwers go 1-3-9.
Great job by Cailean Robinson to take 2nd in the 100 (11.02), and congratulations to Avery Mitchell, who finished second in the 400 with a season's best (PR?) 49.53. Also, Sam Arsenault came up huge in the HJ, placing 3rd with an all-time best 6-4!
For the girls, congratulations to Jess Barton for winning the 2M in 11:16. Carolyn Ranti ran a PR in the mile to place second in 5:12.41. The girls 4x800 team dominated, winning by over 10 seconds in 9:29.65.
Michelle Kaufman placed in two events, the 100 hurdles and the long jump. Hester Breen placed 4th in the discus, and Sarah Berkland tied for 5th in the HJ.
Here are all the Newton North results:
Exciting stuff! But not a word about the girls...
So on Sunday, I drive over to Bar Harbor where my nephew lives in an off-campus apartment, log on via his Internet connection and get the full story. And here it is:
Emass Div I Meet Results
Very impressive results from the NN boys. The 4x100 team has really been something special this year, and I'm looking forward to watching them compete at the state meet next weekend.
David Smith proves once again that he is a big-meet competitor, winning the shot (56-2) and the discus (151-11). Congratulations to Marvin Chan (3rd in the discus at 138-6, with a tie breaker of 136-11). Mike Bower deserves a ton of credit, as NN throwers go 1-3-9.
Great job by Cailean Robinson to take 2nd in the 100 (11.02), and congratulations to Avery Mitchell, who finished second in the 400 with a season's best (PR?) 49.53. Also, Sam Arsenault came up huge in the HJ, placing 3rd with an all-time best 6-4!
For the girls, congratulations to Jess Barton for winning the 2M in 11:16. Carolyn Ranti ran a PR in the mile to place second in 5:12.41. The girls 4x800 team dominated, winning by over 10 seconds in 9:29.65.
Michelle Kaufman placed in two events, the 100 hurdles and the long jump. Hester Breen placed 4th in the discus, and Sarah Berkland tied for 5th in the HJ.
Here are all the Newton North results:
Girls 400 Meter Dash
20 Tabatabaie, Ariana FR NEWTON NORTH 1:04.90
Girls 1 Mile Run
2 Ranti, Carolyn SO NEWTON NORTH 5:12.41
14 Hamley-Bronstein, Adina SO NEWTON NORTH 5:34.29
29 Barnicle, Nora SO NEWTON NORTH 5:46.05
Girls 2 Mile Run
1 Barton, Jess SR NEWTON NORTH 11:16.33
23 Godenzi, Franca SO NEWTON NORTH 12:33.95
Girls 100 Meter Hurdles
Prelims
6 Kaufman, Michele SO NEWTON NORTH 16.45q 2
10 Faer, Morgan SR NEWTON NORTH 17.05 1
12 Mongo, Paris SO NEWTON NORTH 17.10 2
16 Marone, Vicki JR NEWTON NORTH 17.36 2
Girls 100 Meter Hurdles
Finals
6 Kaufman, Michele SO NEWTON NORTH 16.10
Girls 300 Meter Hurdles
24 Varadian, Nevart SO NEWTON NORTH 52.40 1
28 Gluck, Sam FR NEWTON NORTH 53.33 3
Girls 4x100 Meter Relay
10 NEWTON NORTH HS 'A' 52.03 4
Girls 4x400 Meter Relay
12 NEWTON NORTH HS 'A' 4:22.77 2
Girls 4x800 Meter Relay
1 NEWTON NORTH HS 'A' 9:29.65
Girls High Jump
5 Berkland, Sarah SR NEWTON NORTH 5-00.00
Girls Long Jump
6 Kaufman, Michele SO NEWTON NORTH 15-05.50
11 Manigat, Laryssa SR NEWTON NORTH 15-01.50
Girls Triple Jump
13 Manigat, Laryssa SR NEWTON NORTH 32-03.75
14 Berkland, Sarah SR NEWTON NORTH 31-11.00
30 Marone, Vicki JR NEWTON NORTH 29-05.25
Girls Discus Throw
4 Breen, Hester SR NEWTON NORTH 105-06
8 Brown, Lily SR NEWTON NORTH 91-03
12 Faer, Morgan SR NEWTON NORTH 83-11
13 Mongo, Paris SO NEWTON NORTH 83-03
Boys 100 Meter Dash
Preliminaries
2 Robinson, Cailean SR NEWTON NORTH 11.14q 2
11 Lamisere, Hymlaire JR NEWTON NORTH 11.60 3
Boys 100 Meter Dash
Finals
2 Robinson, Cailean SR NEWTON NORTH 11.02
Boys 400 Meter Dash
2 Mitchell, Avery SR NEWTON NORTH 49.53 5
Boys 800 Meter Run
15 Sun, Peter SR NEWTON NORTH 2:01.44
Boys 1 Mile Run
19 Putzeys, Seb JR NEWTON NORTH 4:39.51
Boys 110 Meter Hurdles
Preliminaries
8 Forbes, Gordan SR NEWTON NORTH 15.90 7
Boys 300 Meter Hurdles
20 Wagner, Rojay JR NEWTON NORTH 43.26 1
Boys 4x100 Meter Relay
1 NEWTON NORTH HS 'A' 42.37 5
Boys High Jump
3 Arsenault, Sam SO NEWTON NORTH 6-04.00
Boys Long Jump
8 Kostadinov, Ivan JR NEWTON NORTH 19-08.50
25 Arsenault, Sam SO NEWTON NORTH 16-11.25
Boys Triple Jump
12 Bao, Sam JR NEWTON NORTH 40-02.25
20 Lamisere, Hymlaire JR NEWTON NORTH 37-06.50
Boys Discus Throw
1 Smith, David SR NEWTON NORTH 151-11
3 Chan, Marvin SR NEWTON NORTH 138-06 136-11
9 Chang, Marcus SR NEWTON NORTH 127-05
Boys Shot Put
1 Smith, David SR NEWTON NORTH 56-02.00
Barnicle 7th at NCAA Mideast Regionals
Chris Barnicle placed 7th in the 5000m at the NCAA Div I Mideast Regionals with a time of 14:06.01.
Results
Results
May 24, 2007
EMass Division I Meet Preview
As I'm sure everyone knows, Saturday is the day of the Western Mass, Central Mass, and Eastern Mass Divisional Meets, also known as the "Class Meets." The EMass Division I meet (or "Class A" meet) will be held at Cawley Stadium in Lowell. The filed evens get underway at 9:30, and the running events start at 10:00 with the Girls 2-Mile. The schedule of running events is:
The complete info can be found here.
The Division I Performance Lists contain a few surprises:
For the girls, the biggest shocker is that Carolyn Ranti, owner of one of the fastest girls' 800 times in the state this year is not entered in the 800, but in the mile, where she will have to contend with Bridget Dahlberg, among others.
Jess Barton is in the 2M, where she will be the favorite in Div I. In Central Mass, Emily Jones is entered in the 2M, so the odds are in favor of a rematch of the tremendous duel between the two runners earlier this month at the Weston Invite.
Emma Kornetsky and Kat Chiong are both entered in the 400, but it will be interesting to see whether they run, given that they are both valuable for either or both of North's 4x400 and 4x800 relays.
The girls 4x800 team should be very strong. With a likely line-up of Ranti, Kornetsky, Chiong, and Barton, the team could run sub 9:30.
Hester Breen is seeded first in the Discus, where North has four competitors.
For the boys, there are no real surprises. Avery Mitchell is seeded third in the 400m, where he will get a rematch with L-S's Nick Colontuono and Lexington's Meikle Paschal. Cailean Robinson is seeded third in the 100m. Gordon Forbes will be running the 110 hurdles, where he is seeded fifth.
David Smith is seeded first in both the shot put and discus, with Marvin Chan seeded fourth in the shot.
Seb Putzys will have his hands full in the mile, which is the deepest event on the track. Seb will be facing no fewer than THREE all-state title holders at the 1M distance (Mark Amirault - 2006 indoor, Kevin Gill - 2006 outdoor, Robert Gibson - 2007 indoor).
The boys 4x100 team is seeded first based on their meet record 43.09 at the State Coaches meet.
Unfortunately, I will be out of town for the Class meet, so I am hoping that EVERYONE from North qualifies for the state meet, so I can see them compete one more time before the season ends.
TWO MILE RUN
800 METER RUN
300 METER HURDLES
400 METER RUN
100 METER DASH TRIALS
100 METER HURDLES TRIALS
110 METER HURDLES TRIALS
200 METER DASH TRIALS
ONE MILE RUN
100 METER DASH SEMI FINALS IF NECESSARY
110 METER HIGH HURDLES SEMI FINAL IF NECESSARY
100 METER HURDLES SEMI FINAL IF NECESSARY
200 METER DASH FINALS
100 METER DASH FINALS
100 METER HURDLES FINAL
110 METER HIGH HURDLES FINAL
4x800 METER RELAY
4x100 METER RELAY
4x400 METER RELAY
The complete info can be found here.
The Division I Performance Lists contain a few surprises:
For the girls, the biggest shocker is that Carolyn Ranti, owner of one of the fastest girls' 800 times in the state this year is not entered in the 800, but in the mile, where she will have to contend with Bridget Dahlberg, among others.
Jess Barton is in the 2M, where she will be the favorite in Div I. In Central Mass, Emily Jones is entered in the 2M, so the odds are in favor of a rematch of the tremendous duel between the two runners earlier this month at the Weston Invite.
Emma Kornetsky and Kat Chiong are both entered in the 400, but it will be interesting to see whether they run, given that they are both valuable for either or both of North's 4x400 and 4x800 relays.
The girls 4x800 team should be very strong. With a likely line-up of Ranti, Kornetsky, Chiong, and Barton, the team could run sub 9:30.
Hester Breen is seeded first in the Discus, where North has four competitors.
For the boys, there are no real surprises. Avery Mitchell is seeded third in the 400m, where he will get a rematch with L-S's Nick Colontuono and Lexington's Meikle Paschal. Cailean Robinson is seeded third in the 100m. Gordon Forbes will be running the 110 hurdles, where he is seeded fifth.
David Smith is seeded first in both the shot put and discus, with Marvin Chan seeded fourth in the shot.
Seb Putzys will have his hands full in the mile, which is the deepest event on the track. Seb will be facing no fewer than THREE all-state title holders at the 1M distance (Mark Amirault - 2006 indoor, Kevin Gill - 2006 outdoor, Robert Gibson - 2007 indoor).
The boys 4x100 team is seeded first based on their meet record 43.09 at the State Coaches meet.
Unfortunately, I will be out of town for the Class meet, so I am hoping that EVERYONE from North qualifies for the state meet, so I can see them compete one more time before the season ends.
May 23, 2007
Good to Great
How can you tell that an athlete with great promise will become a great runner?
At the 2003 Mass All-State outdoor state championships, there was a lot of promise on display in the distance events. For the girls, there was Ari Lambie running 4:37 to win the girls mile (with Lindsay Donaldson second). Both have had highly successful college careers, Lambie at Stanford and Donaldson at Yale.
For the boys in 2003, Victor Gras (a junior), ran 4:09 to win the boys mile and qualify for the seeded heat at the Nike Outdoor Nationals. Behind him, Andrew Pitts ran 4:13, and Nick Krouse, 4:16, and Keith Gill 4:20. In the 2-Mile, Chris Barnicle (a sophomore) ran 9:04, which was one of the top soph times in the country and only four seconds off the meet record. Mike Banks (a junior) was injured that Spring, but he would get healthy over the summer and go on to run 4:11 in the mile and 9:06 in the 2-mile in his senior year. It was a year of great promise!
And yet, a case could be made that among the boys running that day, the runner who has had the most successful and impressive college career would be Sean Quigley, who, as a HS senior in 2003, finished a distant second to Barnicle in the 2M. Quigley went on to La Salle University and has been a monster in the distance events there.
For example, among Gras, Barnicle, Banks, Pitts, and all the rest of the Mass runners in 2003, Quigley has the best time at 1M, 3K, and 5K. Quigley was good enough in high school to win a Div II State XC title, a New England track title in the 2M, and the NSIC 5000m title. But he was overshadowed by Gras and Barnicle. I don't know how many people tagged him as "great" in H.S., but look at his PR's now:
1M 4:02.04
3K 8:04.25
5K 13:49.62
10K 28:29.61
Yikes! In fact, his most impressive PR might be his 10K on the track, which he set this season. His time of 28:29 is good enough to qualify him for the NCAA Div I finals in that event and for the next U.S. Olympic Trials.
This Friday, Quigley is scheduled to run the 5000m at the NCAA Div I East Regionals.
For further reading, here's a recent Boston Globe article about Quigley.
Postscript: In that same 2003 meet, Dan Vassallo also ran the 2-Mile. he was in the slow heat and recorded a time of 10:01.29, finishing 19th overall. I'm pretty sure no one tagged him as a likely college star. Vassallo went to Colby where he blossomed as a distance runner. This season he has run 31:05 for 10K and recently finished 2nd in the 5000 at the NE Div III Championships. So hang in there, all you 10:00 2-Milers; you, too, can go from good to great.
At the 2003 Mass All-State outdoor state championships, there was a lot of promise on display in the distance events. For the girls, there was Ari Lambie running 4:37 to win the girls mile (with Lindsay Donaldson second). Both have had highly successful college careers, Lambie at Stanford and Donaldson at Yale.
For the boys in 2003, Victor Gras (a junior), ran 4:09 to win the boys mile and qualify for the seeded heat at the Nike Outdoor Nationals. Behind him, Andrew Pitts ran 4:13, and Nick Krouse, 4:16, and Keith Gill 4:20. In the 2-Mile, Chris Barnicle (a sophomore) ran 9:04, which was one of the top soph times in the country and only four seconds off the meet record. Mike Banks (a junior) was injured that Spring, but he would get healthy over the summer and go on to run 4:11 in the mile and 9:06 in the 2-mile in his senior year. It was a year of great promise!
And yet, a case could be made that among the boys running that day, the runner who has had the most successful and impressive college career would be Sean Quigley, who, as a HS senior in 2003, finished a distant second to Barnicle in the 2M. Quigley went on to La Salle University and has been a monster in the distance events there.
For example, among Gras, Barnicle, Banks, Pitts, and all the rest of the Mass runners in 2003, Quigley has the best time at 1M, 3K, and 5K. Quigley was good enough in high school to win a Div II State XC title, a New England track title in the 2M, and the NSIC 5000m title. But he was overshadowed by Gras and Barnicle. I don't know how many people tagged him as "great" in H.S., but look at his PR's now:
1M 4:02.04
3K 8:04.25
5K 13:49.62
10K 28:29.61
Yikes! In fact, his most impressive PR might be his 10K on the track, which he set this season. His time of 28:29 is good enough to qualify him for the NCAA Div I finals in that event and for the next U.S. Olympic Trials.
This Friday, Quigley is scheduled to run the 5000m at the NCAA Div I East Regionals.
For further reading, here's a recent Boston Globe article about Quigley.
Postscript: In that same 2003 meet, Dan Vassallo also ran the 2-Mile. he was in the slow heat and recorded a time of 10:01.29, finishing 19th overall. I'm pretty sure no one tagged him as a likely college star. Vassallo went to Colby where he blossomed as a distance runner. This season he has run 31:05 for 10K and recently finished 2nd in the 5000 at the NE Div III Championships. So hang in there, all you 10:00 2-Milers; you, too, can go from good to great.
May 21, 2007
Letter from Nepal
I received an email the other day from my friend and occasional running buddy, Tom Dmukauskus. In his professional life, Tom designs microchips for Intel; in his free time, he is a seasoned adventure-seeker. Tom's approach to life is to work until he has saved up 4-5 weeks of vacation time, and then take trips that involve trekking around the globe through some pretty rugged environments. In 2006, he spent a month hiking through remote Greenland. This year he is in Nepal for the Tenzing-Hillary Everest Marathon
It's good to have friends like Tom who can help put the normal vicissitudes of training into perspective. Let's just say that whenever I'm tempted to think of how tough my training is, contemplating running down Everest makes it seem pretty tame.
Anyway, I thought I would share some of Tom's email, partly because the event in which he is participating sounds interesting and partly because it sounds insane. Here's Tom:
"...we took off on a 16-passenger plane of Yeti Airways, able to see the
enormity of the Himalayas for the first time. The arrival in Lukla is quite
harrowing, with the runway basically going all the way to the edge of cliff.
Getting out of the plane, every single person's jaw dropped. We hung out there
for the morning, enjoying the feeling of suspense of planes taking off and landing. A relatively easy trek (3 hours) to the town of Phakding followed. It was along this trek that I first comprehend the unbelievable strength of the Nepali porters -- commonly carrying 90-120 kg (not pounds, kilograms) of sundry items (several rucksacks, cookware, groceries/supplies to upvalley villages, meat, 15 sheets of plywood to be used as tables, etc.) In general, they lean forward quite a bit and actually use a cloth strap around their forehead to counterbalance their load -- their neck muscles have to be absolutely ridiculous."
"After arriving in camp, I went for a 25-minute run, and even at the modest 2600m altitude, breath does not come easy when going uphill. As I returned toward camp, 4 Nepali schoolgirls, I'd guess around 8-12 years old starting running with me, through a little village, up and down a hill and onto a suspension bridge. There was no age reported in the results of previous marathons. I now wonder if I will get my clock cleaned by a 7-year old or something. On Friday, we got our first taste of uphill, climbing reasonably steeply (but nothing worse than the Alps for instance) to Namche Bazaar. This is a major town and the gateway to Everest...."
"Saturday was a rest day for the trek, and boy did I rest. After breakfast, it would appear that I was hit hard with AMS (Altitude Mountain Sickness)-- I wanted to do nothing other than lie down. In addition to being incredibly sleepy, my resting heart rate was 50% faster than normal, my breathing erratic, and I briefly had a headache. I was just shy of fainting at dinner, and had the doctor examine me where he gave me rehydration powder, which really seemed to do an amazing job -- by this (Sunday) morning, I had bounced back up and was able to tackle a 4+ hour hike that gave us a preview of the finish of the marathon."
"It is absolutely, positively, brutal -- at about the 21-mile mark, there is a
~1700ft elevation gain in the next ~2 miles. I suppose I should take solace in the fact that much of the route is up stairs, so all of the training I did in the Harvard football stadium should pay off. The downhill section we covered was also somewhat narrow with a bit of loose rock sitting in the trail as well. It seems that the runner will not be able to take away his focus for even a second, or he will be plummeting to the ground. I can't imagine how incredible it will feel to cross the finish line 9 days from today."
"A little more on a couple of the other folks I've met here -- Gunter: A German fellow who made it his goal to run 100 marathons before his 50th birthday...he made this resolution when he was 43. Everest will be his 104th. His 50th birthday is May
31st. This means that he has run 104 marathons all in the time since I have run
my last one (October 2000). Nick & Phil: A couple of running buddies from the UK who are trying to do the highest (Everest), lowest (Dead Sea), coldest (North Pole) and hottest (Marathon du Sable) in a calendar year. As Nick parenthetically mentions, Badwater (the 135 mile ultra from Death Valley to Mount Whitney is technically the hottest, but a little too ridiculous even for him.)Alright, that's an earful out of me for now. If I survive the marathon, you will hear from me on the 29th. Cheers, - Tom"
May 20, 2007
Imagine My Surprise
After running in the NE 12K Championship yesterday morning in Bedford NH, I hopped into my car and drove approximately 60 miles to Natick High School, arriving at around 11:30, only to find a deserted track where there should have been a league meet going on. Oops. I guess I didn't get the memo that the meet had been canceled.
I was a little surprised, to say the least, that the meet wasn't taking place. The race in New Hampshire had gone off without a hitch, and no one complained about the weather -- actually most runners I talked to admitted that the conditions were perfect for a road race. It was warmer than it seemed at first, and other than a few periods of heavier rain, it was mostly just mist. At Natick, with nothing better to do, I walked around the "all-weather" track and didn't see any sign of puddles.
Well, I could understand that the field events might be more of a challenge, and potentially dangerous, so perhaps it made sense to cancel the meet. It was a shame, though, because I knew that the deadline for obtaining qualifying marks for the Class Meets was this weekend, and I knew there would be some kids who wouldn't get a chance to get those marks. Anyway, what could I do? So I drove home and spent the afternoon doing chores around the house instead of cheering on runners.
Imagine my surprise when checking results last night to see that the Newton North girls, at least, participated in a full slate of events (including jumping and throwing events) at the South Shore Principals Meet in Norwell. The Tigers dominated the meet and won the team title easily, scoring more than twice as many points as the runner-up team. So was the weather any worse in Natick than in Norwell? Why was the Bay State league meet canceled when other meets (including the MVC league meet) went off without a hitch? Having a) run a race myself in the morning when the rain was heaviest, and b) visited the very track where the meet was to have taken place, I'm confused. Not only that, the Red Sox managed to play two games yesterday! I think if the weather is good enough for baseball, it's good enough for track and field.
Among the many strong performances yesterday, a few stand out. The Tigers won all of the distance events as Emma Kornetsky (2:22.96), Carolyn Ranti (5:18.48), and Jess Barton (11:56.52) swept the 800, 1M, and 2M, respectively. In the 1M, North had four of the top eight finishers, as Adina Hemley-Bronstein (5:34.48) and Camilla Jackson (5:45.64) ran PRs.
Michelle Kaufman ran an outstanding time of 16.30 in the high hurdles, leading North to four of the top seven spots.
North went 1-2-4 in the long jump, as Laryssa Manigat (15-10.5) won the event, with Kaufman (15-9.75) second and Ari Sanchez (15-08.50) fourth.
Sarah Berkland won the high jump at 4-11.
The Tigers also won the 4x100 and 4x800 relays, finished second in the 4x400, and took a host of other places. See the link below for complete results.
Results of South Shore Principals Meet
I was a little surprised, to say the least, that the meet wasn't taking place. The race in New Hampshire had gone off without a hitch, and no one complained about the weather -- actually most runners I talked to admitted that the conditions were perfect for a road race. It was warmer than it seemed at first, and other than a few periods of heavier rain, it was mostly just mist. At Natick, with nothing better to do, I walked around the "all-weather" track and didn't see any sign of puddles.
Well, I could understand that the field events might be more of a challenge, and potentially dangerous, so perhaps it made sense to cancel the meet. It was a shame, though, because I knew that the deadline for obtaining qualifying marks for the Class Meets was this weekend, and I knew there would be some kids who wouldn't get a chance to get those marks. Anyway, what could I do? So I drove home and spent the afternoon doing chores around the house instead of cheering on runners.
Imagine my surprise when checking results last night to see that the Newton North girls, at least, participated in a full slate of events (including jumping and throwing events) at the South Shore Principals Meet in Norwell. The Tigers dominated the meet and won the team title easily, scoring more than twice as many points as the runner-up team. So was the weather any worse in Natick than in Norwell? Why was the Bay State league meet canceled when other meets (including the MVC league meet) went off without a hitch? Having a) run a race myself in the morning when the rain was heaviest, and b) visited the very track where the meet was to have taken place, I'm confused. Not only that, the Red Sox managed to play two games yesterday! I think if the weather is good enough for baseball, it's good enough for track and field.
Among the many strong performances yesterday, a few stand out. The Tigers won all of the distance events as Emma Kornetsky (2:22.96), Carolyn Ranti (5:18.48), and Jess Barton (11:56.52) swept the 800, 1M, and 2M, respectively. In the 1M, North had four of the top eight finishers, as Adina Hemley-Bronstein (5:34.48) and Camilla Jackson (5:45.64) ran PRs.
Michelle Kaufman ran an outstanding time of 16.30 in the high hurdles, leading North to four of the top seven spots.
North went 1-2-4 in the long jump, as Laryssa Manigat (15-10.5) won the event, with Kaufman (15-9.75) second and Ari Sanchez (15-08.50) fourth.
Sarah Berkland won the high jump at 4-11.
The Tigers also won the 4x100 and 4x800 relays, finished second in the 4x400, and took a host of other places. See the link below for complete results.
Results of South Shore Principals Meet
May 18, 2007
League Meet Preview
It looks like a cold, rainy weekend for the Bay State League meet, scheduled to begin at 10:00 a.m. Saturday, May 19th at Natick High School.
It's unfortunate that the weather threatens to dampen the competition, since otherwise this could be one of the best league meets I've ever seen. There are, potentially, some fine match-ups with some of the state's best athletes. I ami n favor of having the meet on a Saturday, rather than on a weekday afternoon -- it makes it feel like an elite meet, which it is.
Unlike indoor where everyone sees everyone else for two solid months, the league meet can be a revelation. For example, this will be the first time this spring that Newton North athletes see Dedham, Milton, Norwood, Walpole, and Wellesley.
As always, no one knows exactly who is running what, but let's take a look at events that have the potential to produce great battles.
Girls Distance Events
I'm hoping that we'll see a race in the 800m between Carolyn Ranti and Braintree's Amy Caldwell. Ranti has had an absolutely breakout season, and clocked 2:15.9 at the Weston Invitational two weeks ago. Caldwell, a soccer superstar has recorded superlative times at every distance from 200m on up, including a 2:17 800m. There are other talented runners in the league (including Weymouth's Carolyn Connolly, who has a 2:22 to her credit, but I think those top two are at another level right now.
If Jess Barton runs the mile, she's clearly the favorite, although it wouldn't be too surprising to see Caldwell take another shot at Barton, as the two were separated by only tenths of a second in North's meet against Braintree. Natick's Rebecca White ran 5:13 recently, and would certainly make a race out of it.
More likely White runs the 2M, and I think she is ready to run a great time -- under 11:10. Her teammate Anya Price has run under 11:20 indoors, but hasn't yet shown the same form outdoors. Could this be the day? Walpole's Olivia Perry and Weymouth's Kristen Mahoney are also solid 2-Milers and could be in the mix.
Boys Distance Events
A month and a half ago, I would have said this would be a romp for the talented distance crew from Brookline, but we've seen the emergence of several strong challengers in recent weeks. I think state indoor 1M champ Robert Gibson is close to unbeatable in the 1M or 2M, whichever he chooses to run (most likely the 1M... or even the 800), but Wellesley's Tom Mayell has run 4:24, NN's Seb Putzys has run 4:27, and Braintree's Kyle Higgins has run 4:31. Solid talent in the league this year!
In the 800, there's Matt Stewart (if he runs the 800, not the 400) and Braintree's Kieran (?) Stack, who ran 1:59 at the State Coaches meet last week.
There are plenty of solid runners in the 2-Mile, which might be the deepest in years. Assuming Gibson is in the 1M, Brookline still has David Wilson, Mike Burnstein, and Jerzy Eisenberg-Guyot, then there's Higgins (if not in the 1M), Weymouth's Craig Myers and Wellesley's Will Volkman -- all having run or capable of running under 10:00.
Boys Sprints
There is a wealth of talent in the boys 100, 110H, 200, and 400 this year. Milton's eric Wornum is an all-state threat in the 200, but could drop down to the 100 where he would face North's Cailean Robinson and Brookline's Michael Bennett. Dedham's Phil Weltman is a strong contender in the 200. In the high hurdles, the league has three excellent hurdles in Braintree's Nate Starling, Brookline's Joel Parent, and North's Gordon Forbes. Avery Mitchell is a on a roll in the 400, although if Stewart runs, it will be a heck of a race.
Girls Sprints
I have a blind spot for the the 100 and 200, although I have been told that Brookline's freshman Amhodi Weerisinghe (?) is very good in both events. Johnson (Framingham), and Hull (Braintree) own the league bests. in the high and low hurdles, Wellesley's Lucy (?) Laffitte is the best. Michelle Kaufman and Morgan Faer will finalists, as will Braintree's Adrienne Lutz. The race to watch might be the girls 400, where Emma Kornetsky and Sam (?) Bennett will stage a rematch of their epic race from the Newton-Weymouth meet, which was decided by an eyelash.
Boys Field events
Will it be the David Smith show, or will Dedham's Dan Withrow spoil the party? It seems unlikely that anyone will top Smith in the shot put, but Withrow holds the edge in the discus -- so far, with Smith and Marvin Chan in contention.
In the HJ, it's good to see state indoor champ Framingham's Jordan Maddocks recovering from a leg injury that has hampered him for a few weeks. if he is healthy, he is the favorie, with his teammate Aaron Everett very much in contention. In the long jump, Weymouth's James Endres is the favorite. I believe he also has the league's best throw in the Javelin. In the TJ, I wonder if North's Adam Bao or Ivan Kostadinov could win? I'm not very familiar with the marks from the rest of the league, but Phil Weltman has also leaped 42' so he must be considered one of the favorites.
Girls Field Events
I'm really starting to show my ignorance, but I know that Kaufman has an excellent chance in the long jump against Laffitte. Wellesley's Muschetta has a league leading 34-5 in the TJ. Milton's Driscol has a 94' throw in the Jav (but watch out for Barton!). Hester Breen and Lily Brown could go 1-2 in the discus. Walpole's Bethony has thrown 33' in the shot put, but Brown is right behind, depending on whcih event she chooses to do.
Relays
The boys 4x100 will be a great race between Newton, Milton, and Wellesley, although I think Newton will take it.
I expect Brookline to win the boys 4x400, although Wellesley is very strong, and one should never count out North.
In the girls 4x100, Wellesley and Weymouth are very good.
In the girls 4x400, Wellesley, Weymouth, North, Brookline... there are a lot of good teams!
It's unfortunate that the weather threatens to dampen the competition, since otherwise this could be one of the best league meets I've ever seen. There are, potentially, some fine match-ups with some of the state's best athletes. I ami n favor of having the meet on a Saturday, rather than on a weekday afternoon -- it makes it feel like an elite meet, which it is.
Unlike indoor where everyone sees everyone else for two solid months, the league meet can be a revelation. For example, this will be the first time this spring that Newton North athletes see Dedham, Milton, Norwood, Walpole, and Wellesley.
As always, no one knows exactly who is running what, but let's take a look at events that have the potential to produce great battles.
Girls Distance Events
I'm hoping that we'll see a race in the 800m between Carolyn Ranti and Braintree's Amy Caldwell. Ranti has had an absolutely breakout season, and clocked 2:15.9 at the Weston Invitational two weeks ago. Caldwell, a soccer superstar has recorded superlative times at every distance from 200m on up, including a 2:17 800m. There are other talented runners in the league (including Weymouth's Carolyn Connolly, who has a 2:22 to her credit, but I think those top two are at another level right now.
If Jess Barton runs the mile, she's clearly the favorite, although it wouldn't be too surprising to see Caldwell take another shot at Barton, as the two were separated by only tenths of a second in North's meet against Braintree. Natick's Rebecca White ran 5:13 recently, and would certainly make a race out of it.
More likely White runs the 2M, and I think she is ready to run a great time -- under 11:10. Her teammate Anya Price has run under 11:20 indoors, but hasn't yet shown the same form outdoors. Could this be the day? Walpole's Olivia Perry and Weymouth's Kristen Mahoney are also solid 2-Milers and could be in the mix.
Boys Distance Events
A month and a half ago, I would have said this would be a romp for the talented distance crew from Brookline, but we've seen the emergence of several strong challengers in recent weeks. I think state indoor 1M champ Robert Gibson is close to unbeatable in the 1M or 2M, whichever he chooses to run (most likely the 1M... or even the 800), but Wellesley's Tom Mayell has run 4:24, NN's Seb Putzys has run 4:27, and Braintree's Kyle Higgins has run 4:31. Solid talent in the league this year!
In the 800, there's Matt Stewart (if he runs the 800, not the 400) and Braintree's Kieran (?) Stack, who ran 1:59 at the State Coaches meet last week.
There are plenty of solid runners in the 2-Mile, which might be the deepest in years. Assuming Gibson is in the 1M, Brookline still has David Wilson, Mike Burnstein, and Jerzy Eisenberg-Guyot, then there's Higgins (if not in the 1M), Weymouth's Craig Myers and Wellesley's Will Volkman -- all having run or capable of running under 10:00.
Boys Sprints
There is a wealth of talent in the boys 100, 110H, 200, and 400 this year. Milton's eric Wornum is an all-state threat in the 200, but could drop down to the 100 where he would face North's Cailean Robinson and Brookline's Michael Bennett. Dedham's Phil Weltman is a strong contender in the 200. In the high hurdles, the league has three excellent hurdles in Braintree's Nate Starling, Brookline's Joel Parent, and North's Gordon Forbes. Avery Mitchell is a on a roll in the 400, although if Stewart runs, it will be a heck of a race.
Girls Sprints
I have a blind spot for the the 100 and 200, although I have been told that Brookline's freshman Amhodi Weerisinghe (?) is very good in both events. Johnson (Framingham), and Hull (Braintree) own the league bests. in the high and low hurdles, Wellesley's Lucy (?) Laffitte is the best. Michelle Kaufman and Morgan Faer will finalists, as will Braintree's Adrienne Lutz. The race to watch might be the girls 400, where Emma Kornetsky and Sam (?) Bennett will stage a rematch of their epic race from the Newton-Weymouth meet, which was decided by an eyelash.
Boys Field events
Will it be the David Smith show, or will Dedham's Dan Withrow spoil the party? It seems unlikely that anyone will top Smith in the shot put, but Withrow holds the edge in the discus -- so far, with Smith and Marvin Chan in contention.
In the HJ, it's good to see state indoor champ Framingham's Jordan Maddocks recovering from a leg injury that has hampered him for a few weeks. if he is healthy, he is the favorie, with his teammate Aaron Everett very much in contention. In the long jump, Weymouth's James Endres is the favorite. I believe he also has the league's best throw in the Javelin. In the TJ, I wonder if North's Adam Bao or Ivan Kostadinov could win? I'm not very familiar with the marks from the rest of the league, but Phil Weltman has also leaped 42' so he must be considered one of the favorites.
Girls Field Events
I'm really starting to show my ignorance, but I know that Kaufman has an excellent chance in the long jump against Laffitte. Wellesley's Muschetta has a league leading 34-5 in the TJ. Milton's Driscol has a 94' throw in the Jav (but watch out for Barton!). Hester Breen and Lily Brown could go 1-2 in the discus. Walpole's Bethony has thrown 33' in the shot put, but Brown is right behind, depending on whcih event she chooses to do.
Relays
The boys 4x100 will be a great race between Newton, Milton, and Wellesley, although I think Newton will take it.
I expect Brookline to win the boys 4x400, although Wellesley is very strong, and one should never count out North.
In the girls 4x100, Wellesley and Weymouth are very good.
In the girls 4x400, Wellesley, Weymouth, North, Brookline... there are a lot of good teams!
May 17, 2007
Dan Chebot: 32:45 at ECACs!
NNHS Alum Dan Chebot finished 11th in the 10K at the ECAC meet in Oneonta, NY. Dan's time of 32:45.93 is a 14-second PR in his second attempt at the distance.
Results Page
Perhaps Dan will check in to tell us how the race developed!
Results Page
Perhaps Dan will check in to tell us how the race developed!
The Fastest Man on No Legs
Oscar Pistorius was born without the bones in his lower legs and with other serious defects in his feet. At 11 months old, he had both legs amputated below the knee. Now he is training with the dream of competing in the Beijing Olympics -- in track and field.
According to an article in Tuesday's New York Times, Pistorius, a native of South Africa, recently won gold medals at 100m and 200m at the Paralympic World Cup, and has run 46.34 for 400m, a time that is good enough to make him a candidate to run for his country's 4x400m relay team at Beijing.
But the IAAF, the governing body of international track and field, is faced with the dilemma of trying to determine whether the prosthetics that Pistorius wears attached to his legs constitute an unfair advantage over "able-bodied" sprinters.
My first reaction when I started reading the story was to believe that it would be a mistake to allow such devices, but the more I read, the more i began to question my first reaction. I don't know enough about the science of prosthetics to know whether there might be a technology race to develop better and better (i.e., more efficient) devices for amputees. But I am convinced that Pistorius is a tremendous athlete who works every bit as hard for his success as any other champion. Should he be allowed to compete with prosthetics against runners with normal leg bones and feet? Where is the line that separates normal from abnormal, and when should that line be used to exclude an athlete from competition?
Our first reaction is to assume that the prosthetic constitutes an unfair advantage, but how can one weigh that advantage against the many disadvantages of running without feet and without the muscles of the lower leg. These range from the obvious -- slow starts as Pistorius shifts from a crouch to an upright position -- to the less obvious -- keeping the blades of the prosthetic from twisting in windy conditions. It's easy to think that success is the result of some inherent advantage. How often do we assume that someone who stands above his or her competitors has some inherent advantage. For example, we assume the Kenyans are great distance runners because, well, because they are Kenyans. It is sometimes hard to accept that excellence is the result of work and character.
But what if the best athlete for the job -- the one who works hardest, who perseveres through the ups and downs of training, who rises to the competitive occasion -- just happens to have no lower legs? What then?
Watch a video of Pistorius winning the 200m at the Paralympic World Cup and decide for yourself.
According to an article in Tuesday's New York Times, Pistorius, a native of South Africa, recently won gold medals at 100m and 200m at the Paralympic World Cup, and has run 46.34 for 400m, a time that is good enough to make him a candidate to run for his country's 4x400m relay team at Beijing.
But the IAAF, the governing body of international track and field, is faced with the dilemma of trying to determine whether the prosthetics that Pistorius wears attached to his legs constitute an unfair advantage over "able-bodied" sprinters.
My first reaction when I started reading the story was to believe that it would be a mistake to allow such devices, but the more I read, the more i began to question my first reaction. I don't know enough about the science of prosthetics to know whether there might be a technology race to develop better and better (i.e., more efficient) devices for amputees. But I am convinced that Pistorius is a tremendous athlete who works every bit as hard for his success as any other champion. Should he be allowed to compete with prosthetics against runners with normal leg bones and feet? Where is the line that separates normal from abnormal, and when should that line be used to exclude an athlete from competition?
Our first reaction is to assume that the prosthetic constitutes an unfair advantage, but how can one weigh that advantage against the many disadvantages of running without feet and without the muscles of the lower leg. These range from the obvious -- slow starts as Pistorius shifts from a crouch to an upright position -- to the less obvious -- keeping the blades of the prosthetic from twisting in windy conditions. It's easy to think that success is the result of some inherent advantage. How often do we assume that someone who stands above his or her competitors has some inherent advantage. For example, we assume the Kenyans are great distance runners because, well, because they are Kenyans. It is sometimes hard to accept that excellence is the result of work and character.
But what if the best athlete for the job -- the one who works hardest, who perseveres through the ups and downs of training, who rises to the competitive occasion -- just happens to have no lower legs? What then?
Watch a video of Pistorius winning the 200m at the Paralympic World Cup and decide for yourself.
May 16, 2007
Tiger Fans Bid Track Adieu
The oval at Dickinson Stadium, in Newton, is a lyric little bandbox of a track facility. It is surrounded by the gray concrete steps of the stadium rising up to the unseen Hull Street, above, and by the red brick of the dark, leaky, and prematurely aged Newton North to the West. Surprisingly, the landscape does little to block the wind which inevitably swoops down from West Newton Hill and over the school, and makes the backstraight seem 150 meters long. The track was built in 1972 and is scheduled for demolition in June. It offers, as do most Newton public projects, an example of a fine facility in its time left to decay untended while new, fancier facilities are being contemplated.
Well, enough of that, and sincere apologies to John Updike.
Yesterday, Newton North teams bade farewell to the old track in the usual way, by running, jumping, and throwing better than their rivals. The Tiger girls won all the events against the Needham team and walked away with a 119-17 win. The boys were just about as dominant, as they scored a 114-22 win over the Rockets. There's a good article in the Daily Tribune that gives details
Victory Lap: North teams land BSC titles
By the way, one of the things I'm going to miss is the quirky way that the boys team reports performances to the newspaper, i.e., from memory. As a result, times, distances, and heights sometimes go through a transformation process on their way from the score sheets to the press. Future historians will have to sort it all out.
One highlight of yesterday's meet was seeing senior Alex Polizzotti break 5:00 for the mile for the first time. Polizzotti ran like a man on a mission, pressing the pace on the third lap and then giving it his all in the final lap. It paid off, as he finished third in 4:57.6. Alex will probably get one more chance, as his performance yesterday means he will compete in the league meet Saturday.
For the record, when Kat Chiong took the baton on the anchor leg of the 4x400 relay, she became the final Newton North runner to compete in a varsity race on the old track.
Well, enough of that, and sincere apologies to John Updike.
Yesterday, Newton North teams bade farewell to the old track in the usual way, by running, jumping, and throwing better than their rivals. The Tiger girls won all the events against the Needham team and walked away with a 119-17 win. The boys were just about as dominant, as they scored a 114-22 win over the Rockets. There's a good article in the Daily Tribune that gives details
Victory Lap: North teams land BSC titles
By the way, one of the things I'm going to miss is the quirky way that the boys team reports performances to the newspaper, i.e., from memory. As a result, times, distances, and heights sometimes go through a transformation process on their way from the score sheets to the press. Future historians will have to sort it all out.
One highlight of yesterday's meet was seeing senior Alex Polizzotti break 5:00 for the mile for the first time. Polizzotti ran like a man on a mission, pressing the pace on the third lap and then giving it his all in the final lap. It paid off, as he finished third in 4:57.6. Alex will probably get one more chance, as his performance yesterday means he will compete in the league meet Saturday.
For the record, when Kat Chiong took the baton on the anchor leg of the 4x400 relay, she became the final Newton North runner to compete in a varsity race on the old track.
May 15, 2007
End of an Era?
It has snuck up on us again, the final dual meet of the outdoor track season.
Today Newton North hosts Needham. It will be the final home meet for seniors, which means it will be the final high school meet for many. Of course, for others, there are still big meets to come -- the league meet, the Class meet, and the State meet.
The meet itself -- that is, the competition -- might not be anything special, as Newton looks to be too strong for Needham, but the atmosphere will be festive. Knowing JT, there will be cake or chocolate or something else good to eat at the conclusion.
This will also be the final meet at Dickinson stadium. The facility is crumbling, and the track is disintegrating. By summer, work crews are supposed to break ground on the construction of the new high school. I don't know if runners today will be nostalgic for the track, since it has been obvious for several years that it is in terrible shape. On the other hand, it's very strange to think that Newton North will be without a track of any kind for at least two years! And I've been told that the Newton South track isn't in great shape, either.
It seems that winds of change are blowing. Who knows what other changes are in store?
Today Newton North hosts Needham. It will be the final home meet for seniors, which means it will be the final high school meet for many. Of course, for others, there are still big meets to come -- the league meet, the Class meet, and the State meet.
The meet itself -- that is, the competition -- might not be anything special, as Newton looks to be too strong for Needham, but the atmosphere will be festive. Knowing JT, there will be cake or chocolate or something else good to eat at the conclusion.
This will also be the final meet at Dickinson stadium. The facility is crumbling, and the track is disintegrating. By summer, work crews are supposed to break ground on the construction of the new high school. I don't know if runners today will be nostalgic for the track, since it has been obvious for several years that it is in terrible shape. On the other hand, it's very strange to think that Newton North will be without a track of any kind for at least two years! And I've been told that the Newton South track isn't in great shape, either.
It seems that winds of change are blowing. Who knows what other changes are in store?
May 14, 2007
Robinson (100), Smith (SP) Earn MSTCA Titles
Cailean Robinson won the 100 meters, and helped Newton North win the 4x100 at the MSTCA Coaches Meet at Wilmington on Saturday, while David Smith won the shot put by four and a half feet, throwing an outdoor best of 57-2. Smith was selected the outstanding field event athlete of the meet.
Robinson's time of 11.44 into a headwind placed him 8/100 of a second ahead of Woburn's Mike Pereira.
Newton's 4x400 team (Avery Mitchell, Hymlaire Lamisere, Robinson, and Gordan Forbes) ran 43.09 for a new meet record, just ahead of Lexington (43.25).
Mitchell also ran 49.88 to finish second to Lexington's Meikle Paschal in the 400m.
Forbes placed fourth in the 100 hurdles, running 15.41 in the finals.
Ivan Kostadinov finished seventh in the long jump with a leap of 20-9. Seb Putzys ran a four-second PR to finish seventh in the 1M in 4:27.
Robinson's time of 11.44 into a headwind placed him 8/100 of a second ahead of Woburn's Mike Pereira.
Newton's 4x400 team (Avery Mitchell, Hymlaire Lamisere, Robinson, and Gordan Forbes) ran 43.09 for a new meet record, just ahead of Lexington (43.25).
Mitchell also ran 49.88 to finish second to Lexington's Meikle Paschal in the 400m.
Forbes placed fourth in the 100 hurdles, running 15.41 in the finals.
Ivan Kostadinov finished seventh in the long jump with a leap of 20-9. Seb Putzys ran a four-second PR to finish seventh in the 1M in 4:27.
May 13, 2007
For Martha
Her father was a Presbyterian minister who boasted that he walked a brisk four miles a day, a habit that continued into his mid-eighties. Her mother's talent was music, not athletics, and she taught piano and voice, and preferred to get her exercise by keeping an immaculate house and playing with her two children, Ralph and Martha.
Martha Louise Johnson was always active, always moving, whether running to school or playing stickball with the boys on her street. Her father didn't always approve, and would have preferred Martha to be more proper. He teased her about being a tomboy. His lukewarm support for her athletic interests didn't stop her from going out for school sports. In field hockey she turned out to be pretty good. In her senior year, she was good enough to make the New Jersey All-State field hockey team. She also played basketball ("But it wasn't really basketball, not the way we played it in those days...," she says) and softball. There was no girls track at her high school.
When the time came to think about college, Martha (an excellent student) applied to and attended Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts, a prestigious all-women's school. Her father would have preferred something closer to home, something that would prepare her for teaching, if she was so inclined. She surprised him again when, after earning a Bachelor's degree, she went on to graduate school, eventually earning a master's degree in Zoology, fairly rare for a young woman growing up in the 1940's.
After graduating from Mount Holyoke, Martha married Paul, a man she had met on a trip to Maine several summers earlier. Paul loved the outdoors, loved to sail, and played the piano quite well. He had played in the USO during the war. Together, they settled in Amherst, Massachusetts.
In 1951, their first child, Robin, was born. Two years later Karen was born. Then Timothy, and then two more boys. As the mother of five young kids, Martha didn't have the time to pursue her own athletic interests, but she loved to watch her children play, and she played with them when she could.
Both girls loved sports, and Martha would spend time tossing them softballs in the backyard. Both girls would play sports in high school. One of them would be a field hockey all-star, following after her mom.
All of her sons liked playing backyard games, but her fourth child was crazy about sports. As soon as he was old enough, he started playing t-ball, and then little league. He played basketball, too, and flag football. There was no youth soccer for young kids in those days, but he would have played that, too, if he could have. Martha's fourth child wasn't especially fast, but he never seemed to stop moving. When he was ten years old, Martha found him running around and around the house. He claimed he had measured the distance with his father's yard stick and he had figured out it was 16 laps around the house to make a mile, so he was running the mile.
If Martha had been like a lot of parents, she would have laughed at him and made him feel silly and foolish for tiring himself out by running in circles, but she had an intuition about things, and he seemed to be enjoying himself, so she simply let him keep running -- and had cold juice for him when he finished.
In Jr. High School, and then high school, her son ran track in the spring and cross-country in the fall. In the winter, he played basketball (there was no indoor track). He started running all over the place -- on weekends, he would sometimes disappear for an hour or more, returning with stories of all the places he had been. Sometimes he would ask her to drive with him along the same route where he had just run, to measure it. None of her other kids had ever done anything like this, but he was so serious about it, so she went along. In fact, she did a lot more than go along. As he got older, she listened to him talk about his meets, about his times, about the places he had run, about what the coach had had the kids do that day, about how many miles he wanted to run that summer. Sometimes when they were driving home from some place, he would ask to be dropped off so he could run the rest of the way home. She never told him he was crazy or foolish, never made him stay in the car if he wanted to go on foot. She was always there to give him a ride, but never insisted on it. She was happy to have this window onto her son's world.
And so it went. When he was in high school, she would attend his meets, standing around with the other parents watching their kids run. Sometimes they would joke with each other... "What are we doing here?" and she always knew the answer, "If it's important to our kids, then it's important to me!" One day, she was walking and she saw her son jogging with some other boys. For a moment, she wasn't sure what to do. Her son was shy, and she guessed that her son wouldn't want to be seen talking with his mother in front of the other boys, but she was surprised and touched when he jogged up, smiled, and yelled out "Hi, Mom!" She loved to tell that story.
One thing Martha never could or would do was judge her son's efforts. No matter how her son ran, whether the time was fast or slow, she always said the same thing: "Wow, that's really good! Good for you!" At times like these, her son would grow impatient with her, and say, that no it was NOT very good, and he should have run faster. But she never learned to be critical, and continued to give him complete, unconditional encouragement. It took him a long time, but eventually, he learned to accept it.
After high school, her son stopped running for several years, at least competitively. He went to college, graduated, got a job, got married, and then, all of a sudden started running again. In his mid-twenties, and about to start a family of his own, it somehow came back into his life, and it was a gift to be able to enjoy again what had brought so much happiness as a kid. And when he would call to tell her that he had finished a marathon in this or that time, that he had won some race (or failed to win), that he had struggled or suffered in some event that seemed very important at the time, she would still say the same things she had always said: "Wow. That's awfully fast. Good for you!"
One day, Martha got a call from her son. He had won an important race, and he said that as soon as he had finished, he had been overwhelmed with a desire to share the victory and the experience with her and with Paul. He said he couldn't have done it without them, and that he just wanted her to know how much her support had meant to him over all these years, and how much it still meant to him. He said...
"...Thank you, Mom, for letting me run around the house, for standing out in the rain at my meets, for driving me all over the county to measure my runs, for supporting me in a hundred ways that I didn't notice at the time but I understand now that I have kids of my own, and for believing that if it was important to me and if it made me happy, then it was important to you, too."
Thank you, Martha. It was great to talk to you today.
Martha Louise Johnson was always active, always moving, whether running to school or playing stickball with the boys on her street. Her father didn't always approve, and would have preferred Martha to be more proper. He teased her about being a tomboy. His lukewarm support for her athletic interests didn't stop her from going out for school sports. In field hockey she turned out to be pretty good. In her senior year, she was good enough to make the New Jersey All-State field hockey team. She also played basketball ("But it wasn't really basketball, not the way we played it in those days...," she says) and softball. There was no girls track at her high school.
When the time came to think about college, Martha (an excellent student) applied to and attended Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts, a prestigious all-women's school. Her father would have preferred something closer to home, something that would prepare her for teaching, if she was so inclined. She surprised him again when, after earning a Bachelor's degree, she went on to graduate school, eventually earning a master's degree in Zoology, fairly rare for a young woman growing up in the 1940's.
After graduating from Mount Holyoke, Martha married Paul, a man she had met on a trip to Maine several summers earlier. Paul loved the outdoors, loved to sail, and played the piano quite well. He had played in the USO during the war. Together, they settled in Amherst, Massachusetts.
In 1951, their first child, Robin, was born. Two years later Karen was born. Then Timothy, and then two more boys. As the mother of five young kids, Martha didn't have the time to pursue her own athletic interests, but she loved to watch her children play, and she played with them when she could.
Both girls loved sports, and Martha would spend time tossing them softballs in the backyard. Both girls would play sports in high school. One of them would be a field hockey all-star, following after her mom.
All of her sons liked playing backyard games, but her fourth child was crazy about sports. As soon as he was old enough, he started playing t-ball, and then little league. He played basketball, too, and flag football. There was no youth soccer for young kids in those days, but he would have played that, too, if he could have. Martha's fourth child wasn't especially fast, but he never seemed to stop moving. When he was ten years old, Martha found him running around and around the house. He claimed he had measured the distance with his father's yard stick and he had figured out it was 16 laps around the house to make a mile, so he was running the mile.
If Martha had been like a lot of parents, she would have laughed at him and made him feel silly and foolish for tiring himself out by running in circles, but she had an intuition about things, and he seemed to be enjoying himself, so she simply let him keep running -- and had cold juice for him when he finished.
In Jr. High School, and then high school, her son ran track in the spring and cross-country in the fall. In the winter, he played basketball (there was no indoor track). He started running all over the place -- on weekends, he would sometimes disappear for an hour or more, returning with stories of all the places he had been. Sometimes he would ask her to drive with him along the same route where he had just run, to measure it. None of her other kids had ever done anything like this, but he was so serious about it, so she went along. In fact, she did a lot more than go along. As he got older, she listened to him talk about his meets, about his times, about the places he had run, about what the coach had had the kids do that day, about how many miles he wanted to run that summer. Sometimes when they were driving home from some place, he would ask to be dropped off so he could run the rest of the way home. She never told him he was crazy or foolish, never made him stay in the car if he wanted to go on foot. She was always there to give him a ride, but never insisted on it. She was happy to have this window onto her son's world.
And so it went. When he was in high school, she would attend his meets, standing around with the other parents watching their kids run. Sometimes they would joke with each other... "What are we doing here?" and she always knew the answer, "If it's important to our kids, then it's important to me!" One day, she was walking and she saw her son jogging with some other boys. For a moment, she wasn't sure what to do. Her son was shy, and she guessed that her son wouldn't want to be seen talking with his mother in front of the other boys, but she was surprised and touched when he jogged up, smiled, and yelled out "Hi, Mom!" She loved to tell that story.
One thing Martha never could or would do was judge her son's efforts. No matter how her son ran, whether the time was fast or slow, she always said the same thing: "Wow, that's really good! Good for you!" At times like these, her son would grow impatient with her, and say, that no it was NOT very good, and he should have run faster. But she never learned to be critical, and continued to give him complete, unconditional encouragement. It took him a long time, but eventually, he learned to accept it.
After high school, her son stopped running for several years, at least competitively. He went to college, graduated, got a job, got married, and then, all of a sudden started running again. In his mid-twenties, and about to start a family of his own, it somehow came back into his life, and it was a gift to be able to enjoy again what had brought so much happiness as a kid. And when he would call to tell her that he had finished a marathon in this or that time, that he had won some race (or failed to win), that he had struggled or suffered in some event that seemed very important at the time, she would still say the same things she had always said: "Wow. That's awfully fast. Good for you!"
One day, Martha got a call from her son. He had won an important race, and he said that as soon as he had finished, he had been overwhelmed with a desire to share the victory and the experience with her and with Paul. He said he couldn't have done it without them, and that he just wanted her to know how much her support had meant to him over all these years, and how much it still meant to him. He said...
"...Thank you, Mom, for letting me run around the house, for standing out in the rain at my meets, for driving me all over the county to measure my runs, for supporting me in a hundred ways that I didn't notice at the time but I understand now that I have kids of my own, and for believing that if it was important to me and if it made me happy, then it was important to you, too."
Thank you, Martha. It was great to talk to you today.
May 12, 2007
Barton Wins Steeplechase at Hartford Public Meet
Senior Jess Barton, fresh off her scintillating 2M at the Weston Invitational, won the Women's 2000m steeplechase at the prestigious Hartford Public School Invitational on Saturday. Barton's time of 6:57.44 was nearly 11 seconds ahead of second place.
Jess is not a newcomer to the hurdles and water barrier; last summer she won the 2000m SC at the 2006 Junior Olympics outdoor championships.
Jess is not a newcomer to the hurdles and water barrier; last summer she won the 2000m SC at the 2006 Junior Olympics outdoor championships.
May 10, 2007
Weekend Preview: State Coaches Meets, Hartford, College Meets
There's a lot of track and field happening this weekend, so without further ado, here's a preview:
Mass State Coaches Meet (Boys: Wilmington HS; Girls: Plymouth South HS Saturday) - This is a great showcase meet, focusing on individual, rather than team competition. After a month of dual meets, you often see terrific performances at the State Coaches meet. I believe the Newton North girls are not attending. I would expect the boys to be out in force.
Hartford Public Meet (New Britain, CT, Saturday) - It was at this meet in 2004 that Chris Barnicle ran 8:50 for the 2M, defeating Victor Gras for the first time and leading five runners under 9:00. This year might not produce times quite that fast, but will once again feature a matchup of the best Mass. two-milers, including Ryan Collins, Keith Gill, Mark Amirault, and Robert Gibson. On the girls side, Newton North's Jess Barton is entered in the 2000m steeplechase.
Men's start lists (PDF)
Women's start lists (PDF)
Andover Invitational (Andover HS - Saturday) - This is a more team-oriented meet for teams that aren't keen on splitting up the boys and girls for separate trips to the State Coaches meets. I believe Newton South is attending the Andover meet.
NEIAAA (College) Championships (Dartmouth College, Hanover NH, all weekend) - Some of the NNHS alumni that we follow will be competing this weekend at the All-New England meet at Dartmouth, including Simone Weisman and Doug Brecher.
ECACs and other College Conference Championships (various, all weekend) - A number of conferences are having their championship meets this weekend. This includes the SEC championships, where Chris Barnicle is seeded fourth in the 5000m (to be run Sunday).
Mass State Coaches Meet (Boys: Wilmington HS; Girls: Plymouth South HS Saturday) - This is a great showcase meet, focusing on individual, rather than team competition. After a month of dual meets, you often see terrific performances at the State Coaches meet. I believe the Newton North girls are not attending. I would expect the boys to be out in force.
Hartford Public Meet (New Britain, CT, Saturday) - It was at this meet in 2004 that Chris Barnicle ran 8:50 for the 2M, defeating Victor Gras for the first time and leading five runners under 9:00. This year might not produce times quite that fast, but will once again feature a matchup of the best Mass. two-milers, including Ryan Collins, Keith Gill, Mark Amirault, and Robert Gibson. On the girls side, Newton North's Jess Barton is entered in the 2000m steeplechase.
Men's start lists (PDF)
Women's start lists (PDF)
Andover Invitational (Andover HS - Saturday) - This is a more team-oriented meet for teams that aren't keen on splitting up the boys and girls for separate trips to the State Coaches meets. I believe Newton South is attending the Andover meet.
NEIAAA (College) Championships (Dartmouth College, Hanover NH, all weekend) - Some of the NNHS alumni that we follow will be competing this weekend at the All-New England meet at Dartmouth, including Simone Weisman and Doug Brecher.
ECACs and other College Conference Championships (various, all weekend) - A number of conferences are having their championship meets this weekend. This includes the SEC championships, where Chris Barnicle is seeded fourth in the 5000m (to be run Sunday).
You're Not Eating Right!
While I do not normally try to sound like your mother, it is almost Mother's Day, so today I want to help out mothers everywhere and write about why you should be eating a more healthy diet.
I write as a convert. It has taken me a long time to really see the connection between what I eat and how I run. And even now, I still make "training mistakes" that involve not eating (or drinking) enough, not eating at the right time, not eating the right stuff.
Of course, I wouldn't be noticing any of these sins on a day-to-day basis except that I have this crazy thing I do called training. Let me refresh your memory about training: training is adaptation to stress. It has three parts: you perform some moderately stressful task; you recover; you improve. There are basically two training errors: 1) too much stress (not enough recovery), which leads to injury or staleness and diminished performance; 2) too little stress/too much rest, which provides insufficient stimulus for adaptation to occur. Training is nothing more than figuring out how to provide an appropriate stress and getting the balance of stress and recovery right. So simple.
And yet, we always seem to mess it up. One way we do this is by taking insufficient care to provide fuel for performance and recovery. Either we try to get by on less than we need, or we fail to replace what we use.
Do any of the following scenarios sound familiar?
You skip your breakfast or lunch (or get by on snacks). When I am coaching, one of the most frustrating experiences is to watch someone struggle through a run or a workout and then find out they have eaten anything all day, or they had an apple at breakfast. I'm not talking about anorexia, which deserves its own more serious essay. I'm talking about being too busy or too distracted to eat well when it will do you the most good, and when it will help set up your day to do everything you need to do, including train at a high level.
You don't re-hydrate or eat until hours after a hard run or race, and then you eat junk. I understand that it's normal not to feel hungry after a gut-wrenching effort on the track or in an XC race. But you've got to know, to anticipate, that within a couple of hours your body is going to need hydration and carbohydrate replacement. Failure to plan for it and get a good meal in, means you'll be dragging for the next couple of days. I learned the right habits after years of watching my training partner Terry, who ALWAYS has a bottle of electrolyte/carbohydrate replacement drink with him after every workout and long run. I don't think it's an accident that he recovers very quickly from hard efforts and has proven extraordinarily durable over the years.
You eat too much white stuff. I know there's some trendy diet these days in which you avoid white things: white sugar, white flour, white bread, potatoes, etc. I don't know anything about that diet, and I'm not a big fan of diets anyway, but I do know that the craving for quick calories in the form of sugar and fat leads to a quick-fix mentality about food. But quick-fix approaches end up being bad habits. I think the result is wildly fluctuating sugar and energy levels, which, again, negatively impact training.
You don't get enough sleep. Ok, this isn't about food, but it's part of the same pattern as not eating right. The athletes I coach have heard me say this a thousand times: sleep is the most underrated part of training. Sleep is recovery. Sleep is where physiological changes occur that consolidate fitness gains. Lack of sleep kills otherwise useful training.
So, wise up. Eat breakfast. Eat lunch. Eat dinner. Replace fluids and carbs within two hours after hard runs. Get a good night's sleep. Get faster, stronger, healthier.
Happy Mother's Day.
I write as a convert. It has taken me a long time to really see the connection between what I eat and how I run. And even now, I still make "training mistakes" that involve not eating (or drinking) enough, not eating at the right time, not eating the right stuff.
Of course, I wouldn't be noticing any of these sins on a day-to-day basis except that I have this crazy thing I do called training. Let me refresh your memory about training: training is adaptation to stress. It has three parts: you perform some moderately stressful task; you recover; you improve. There are basically two training errors: 1) too much stress (not enough recovery), which leads to injury or staleness and diminished performance; 2) too little stress/too much rest, which provides insufficient stimulus for adaptation to occur. Training is nothing more than figuring out how to provide an appropriate stress and getting the balance of stress and recovery right. So simple.
And yet, we always seem to mess it up. One way we do this is by taking insufficient care to provide fuel for performance and recovery. Either we try to get by on less than we need, or we fail to replace what we use.
Do any of the following scenarios sound familiar?
You skip your breakfast or lunch (or get by on snacks). When I am coaching, one of the most frustrating experiences is to watch someone struggle through a run or a workout and then find out they have eaten anything all day, or they had an apple at breakfast. I'm not talking about anorexia, which deserves its own more serious essay. I'm talking about being too busy or too distracted to eat well when it will do you the most good, and when it will help set up your day to do everything you need to do, including train at a high level.
You don't re-hydrate or eat until hours after a hard run or race, and then you eat junk. I understand that it's normal not to feel hungry after a gut-wrenching effort on the track or in an XC race. But you've got to know, to anticipate, that within a couple of hours your body is going to need hydration and carbohydrate replacement. Failure to plan for it and get a good meal in, means you'll be dragging for the next couple of days. I learned the right habits after years of watching my training partner Terry, who ALWAYS has a bottle of electrolyte/carbohydrate replacement drink with him after every workout and long run. I don't think it's an accident that he recovers very quickly from hard efforts and has proven extraordinarily durable over the years.
You eat too much white stuff. I know there's some trendy diet these days in which you avoid white things: white sugar, white flour, white bread, potatoes, etc. I don't know anything about that diet, and I'm not a big fan of diets anyway, but I do know that the craving for quick calories in the form of sugar and fat leads to a quick-fix mentality about food. But quick-fix approaches end up being bad habits. I think the result is wildly fluctuating sugar and energy levels, which, again, negatively impact training.
You don't get enough sleep. Ok, this isn't about food, but it's part of the same pattern as not eating right. The athletes I coach have heard me say this a thousand times: sleep is the most underrated part of training. Sleep is recovery. Sleep is where physiological changes occur that consolidate fitness gains. Lack of sleep kills otherwise useful training.
So, wise up. Eat breakfast. Eat lunch. Eat dinner. Replace fluids and carbs within two hours after hard runs. Get a good night's sleep. Get faster, stronger, healthier.
Happy Mother's Day.
May 09, 2007
Versatility key as Tigers Swamp Wamps
New England Patriots Coach Bill Belichek always says he likes football players with versatility. I am starting to feel the same way about track athletes, especially after Tuesday's wins over Braintree.
The Newton North girls were facing a very strong and talented Braintree team, that, like the Tigers, hadn't lost a meet. On the track and in the jumps, the meet was just about even, but Newton swept all three throwing events and won the meet 83-53. A big part of North's success must be credited to the versatility of athletes such as Lily Brown, Jess Barton, and Morgan Faer. Each one of these runners is also a thrower: Brown excels at the shot put and the 200, both of which she won against Braintree; Barton won both the mile and the javelin; Faer won the high hurdles, and placed third in both the discus and javelin. With the win the versatile Newton North girls ran (and jumped and threw) their record to 6-0, and all but clinched an undefeated season and their 16th Bay State league title in 18 years.
Here's a link to coverage of the meet in the Daily News Tribune.
The boys also won, but I don't have any results yet.
Newton North runs their final dual meet against Needham next Tuesday at home.
The Newton North girls were facing a very strong and talented Braintree team, that, like the Tigers, hadn't lost a meet. On the track and in the jumps, the meet was just about even, but Newton swept all three throwing events and won the meet 83-53. A big part of North's success must be credited to the versatility of athletes such as Lily Brown, Jess Barton, and Morgan Faer. Each one of these runners is also a thrower: Brown excels at the shot put and the 200, both of which she won against Braintree; Barton won both the mile and the javelin; Faer won the high hurdles, and placed third in both the discus and javelin. With the win the versatile Newton North girls ran (and jumped and threw) their record to 6-0, and all but clinched an undefeated season and their 16th Bay State league title in 18 years.
Here's a link to coverage of the meet in the Daily News Tribune.
The boys also won, but I don't have any results yet.
Newton North runs their final dual meet against Needham next Tuesday at home.
May 08, 2007
New Age-Group Records
Results from the 1500m at the Duke Twilight Meet on May 6th, 2007:
Five of the first six finishers are college students, and the other, Matt Kerr (a former NCAA steeplechase champion), is 31. The seventh finisher, John Hinton, is 45 years old, and that time of 3:56.39, the equivalent of a 4:16 mile, is a new world record for the M45-49 age group.
At the same meet, Joan Nesbit Mabe ran 4:43.21 in the women's 1500 to set a new American W45-49 record for the distance. (Joan writes about the race on her runningland blog).
Hinton's new world record is vulnerable! This weekend, the University of Oregon will be hosting the "Fountain of Youth" masters mile event at the Oregon Relays. In the field are two M45's who could challenge Hinton's WR: Tony Young (who ran 4:06 at age 40, and has a recent 4:20 mile to his credit), and Pete McGill, who has a seed time of 4:18 (converted from a recent 1500m time).
The race will be Saturday, May 12th. Check out race info here.
(My best time as an M45? 4:33.32, thank you for asking!)
Event 24 Men 1500 Meter Run
===============================================================
NCAA REG: R 3:47.80
Name Year School Finals
===============================================================
1 Matt Kerr Unattached 3:49.93
2 Tamas Kovacs High Point 3:50.11
3 Jamie McCarthy Coastal Carolina 3:50.94
4 Doug Currie Coastal Carolina 3:52.52
5 Travis Wray Lynchburg 3:53.30
6 Douglas Noreen Davidson 3:55.01
7 John Hinton Carrboro AC 3:56.39
...
Five of the first six finishers are college students, and the other, Matt Kerr (a former NCAA steeplechase champion), is 31. The seventh finisher, John Hinton, is 45 years old, and that time of 3:56.39, the equivalent of a 4:16 mile, is a new world record for the M45-49 age group.
At the same meet, Joan Nesbit Mabe ran 4:43.21 in the women's 1500 to set a new American W45-49 record for the distance. (Joan writes about the race on her runningland blog).
Hinton's new world record is vulnerable! This weekend, the University of Oregon will be hosting the "Fountain of Youth" masters mile event at the Oregon Relays. In the field are two M45's who could challenge Hinton's WR: Tony Young (who ran 4:06 at age 40, and has a recent 4:20 mile to his credit), and Pete McGill, who has a seed time of 4:18 (converted from a recent 1500m time).
The race will be Saturday, May 12th. Check out race info here.
(My best time as an M45? 4:33.32, thank you for asking!)
May 07, 2007
Rough Spots
I raced on Sunday at the USATF-NE 5K Road Race championships, one of seven "Grand Prix" events that form a championship series for the association's open and age-group teams.
I've always maintained that every race is an opportunity to learn something, or at least be reminded of something. I've certainly run a lot of 5Ks in my life, and almost all of them faster than what I ran Sunday, but this race gave me a really good lesson on a favorite subject: surviving rough spots.
After several years at a different venue, the 5K moved to Westford this year. The race started on an uphill, climbed very gradually for about 600 meters, flattened out for a while, and then started a long steady downhill that carried us well past the mile mark. From about 1.2M to 2.4M, the course was rolling, losing a bit more elevation than it gained, perhaps. At about 2.4M , we made a sharp turn and encountered a long uphill that took us up to Westford Town Center, and a 400m flat stretch to the finish. Jogging the course before the race, that hill near the end looked pretty nasty.
We were packed in very tightly at the start, and when the gun went off, it was all any of us could do to remain on our feet. I tried to settle in to an appropriate pace, but felt jostled out of any regular rhythm. I also felt sluggish. I had been hoping that I would feel energized by the excitement of the start, but instead I felt very lethargic, and my running seemed mechanical. I saw a lot of other runners with whom I was hoping to compete well ahead of me and pulling away.
When we hit the downhill, my stride started feeling a little bit more fluid. I tried not to push, but rather let the hill help me with my turnover. I passed 1M at 5:22, and although I was still lagging the runners with whom I should have been competing, it seemed that they were no longer pulling away.
The second mile was strange, as I tried to maintain the momentum from the downhill without pushing too hard too early. I felt that my mood shifted from one moment to the next. For a few hundred meters I would feel strong and competitive, and then I would suddenly start feeling weak and uncertain whether I could maintain the pace. At about the 1.8M mark -- for no apparent reason -- I went through a real rough spot. I can't tell you why at that moment I started having thoughts of dropping out of the race, why some insecurity in my mind started whispering to me "...you don't have to do this..." I wasn't running too badly, in fact, I was catching people, but there it was: the sudden temptation to ease off and avoid the effort that would be involved in running hard to the finish.
Not bravely, but stubbornly, I kept running.
And then, as quickly as it had come, it was gone. I looked down the road and saw someone I wanted to beat, and got a jolt of competitive adrenaline. I passed the 2M mark in 10:42 and began preparing myself for the hill ahead. When I hit the bottom of the hill, I tried to keep my stride short and quick, and keep my eyes focused about 10-15 meters ahead, rather than letting them look to the top of the climb. In reality, I was running more slowly up the hill, but I felt faster. I passed my "target", and set off after another runner who was laboring. I passed him, too. I was working very hard to maintain my pace, but now the hill was flattening, and I knew it wouldn't be so bad once we hit the flat. I caught another group of three runners, and we all ran hard the last few hundred meters. Two of them beat me, and one of them didn't. My time at the finish: 16:54.
It has been said that in almost every race there is a moment of doubt, a moment in which you make the decision whether to run hard or not. Once the decision is made, the temptation to quit rarely comes back. I have found that to be true, and I have also learned not to panic when the rough spots come, as they often do, with quite a long way to go to the finish. My race on Sunday was a good lesson, and I'm glad I didn't give in to the momentary mental and physical discomforts and stop chasing my end goal.
I've always maintained that every race is an opportunity to learn something, or at least be reminded of something. I've certainly run a lot of 5Ks in my life, and almost all of them faster than what I ran Sunday, but this race gave me a really good lesson on a favorite subject: surviving rough spots.
After several years at a different venue, the 5K moved to Westford this year. The race started on an uphill, climbed very gradually for about 600 meters, flattened out for a while, and then started a long steady downhill that carried us well past the mile mark. From about 1.2M to 2.4M, the course was rolling, losing a bit more elevation than it gained, perhaps. At about 2.4M , we made a sharp turn and encountered a long uphill that took us up to Westford Town Center, and a 400m flat stretch to the finish. Jogging the course before the race, that hill near the end looked pretty nasty.
We were packed in very tightly at the start, and when the gun went off, it was all any of us could do to remain on our feet. I tried to settle in to an appropriate pace, but felt jostled out of any regular rhythm. I also felt sluggish. I had been hoping that I would feel energized by the excitement of the start, but instead I felt very lethargic, and my running seemed mechanical. I saw a lot of other runners with whom I was hoping to compete well ahead of me and pulling away.
When we hit the downhill, my stride started feeling a little bit more fluid. I tried not to push, but rather let the hill help me with my turnover. I passed 1M at 5:22, and although I was still lagging the runners with whom I should have been competing, it seemed that they were no longer pulling away.
The second mile was strange, as I tried to maintain the momentum from the downhill without pushing too hard too early. I felt that my mood shifted from one moment to the next. For a few hundred meters I would feel strong and competitive, and then I would suddenly start feeling weak and uncertain whether I could maintain the pace. At about the 1.8M mark -- for no apparent reason -- I went through a real rough spot. I can't tell you why at that moment I started having thoughts of dropping out of the race, why some insecurity in my mind started whispering to me "...you don't have to do this..." I wasn't running too badly, in fact, I was catching people, but there it was: the sudden temptation to ease off and avoid the effort that would be involved in running hard to the finish.
Not bravely, but stubbornly, I kept running.
And then, as quickly as it had come, it was gone. I looked down the road and saw someone I wanted to beat, and got a jolt of competitive adrenaline. I passed the 2M mark in 10:42 and began preparing myself for the hill ahead. When I hit the bottom of the hill, I tried to keep my stride short and quick, and keep my eyes focused about 10-15 meters ahead, rather than letting them look to the top of the climb. In reality, I was running more slowly up the hill, but I felt faster. I passed my "target", and set off after another runner who was laboring. I passed him, too. I was working very hard to maintain my pace, but now the hill was flattening, and I knew it wouldn't be so bad once we hit the flat. I caught another group of three runners, and we all ran hard the last few hundred meters. Two of them beat me, and one of them didn't. My time at the finish: 16:54.
It has been said that in almost every race there is a moment of doubt, a moment in which you make the decision whether to run hard or not. Once the decision is made, the temptation to quit rarely comes back. I have found that to be true, and I have also learned not to panic when the rough spots come, as they often do, with quite a long way to go to the finish. My race on Sunday was a good lesson, and I'm glad I didn't give in to the momentary mental and physical discomforts and stop chasing my end goal.
May 06, 2007
NNHS Alumni Results - May 6, 2007
David Polgar was back in a familiar role at the America East conference meet, running the lead-off leg in the 4x800 relay for Boston University. David led off a lot of great relay races for Newton North, and did it again for BU, as the Terriers won the race by 7 seconds with a meet record 7:38.81.
At the New England championships, Stephanie O'Brien finished 2ind in the 800m with a time of 2:17.4 (apparently hand-timed). Simone Weisman ran the 400m and finished 11th in 61.27.
Competing at the Centennial Conference championships at Haverford College Sunday, Noah Jampol ran 4:12.37 for the 1500.
At the New England championships, Stephanie O'Brien finished 2ind in the 800m with a time of 2:17.4 (apparently hand-timed). Simone Weisman ran the 400m and finished 11th in 61.27.
Competing at the Centennial Conference championships at Haverford College Sunday, Noah Jampol ran 4:12.37 for the 1500.
May 05, 2007
Ranti 2:14! Barton 10:37!! at Weston Invite
It was simply hard to believe what I was seeing. Not once, but twice.
First, in the 800 meeters, I watched Newton North's Carolyn Ranti negotiate a 67-second first lap, trailing Lincoln-Sudbury's Dana Jamieson and Molly Binder ans Chelmsford's Sarah Shanahan. At the start of the 2nd lap, Jamieson and Binder accelerated. Ranti matched their acceleration but still trailed, running faster than she ever had in an 800. But she did not fade, in fact, in the final 100 meters, she caught and passed Binder, and she was running down Jamieson. In case you weren't paying close attention, let me repeat that, she caught and passed Binder (the All-State champion at 1000m), and she was running down Jamieson (A 57-second 400m runner). Jamieson won, in 2:14.13, and Carolyn flashed across the line less than a second later in 2:14.97. It was a PR by more than 5 seconds.
I was still buzzing from that race, when they started the seeded heat of the girls two mile. I was pretty sure that nothing would top that 800, but the 2M did top it. The race featured four great runners -- Jess Barton, Bridget Dahlberg, Emily Jones, and Colleen Wetherbee -- who had never before all run in the same race. Each one of these girls is a MULTIPLE all-state champion. The race started slowly, with Barton taking the early lead through a pedestrian first lap of 82 seconds ("only" 10:56 pace). Shortly thereafter, Emily Jones took over the lead and the pace began to drop as Jones started reeling off 80-second laps. She hit the mile in 5:26 and the pack of four was still intact, but just barely. Dahlberg was in second, with Barton right behind, and Wetherbee struggling to maintain the ever-quickening pace. At that point, Jones put the hammer down, running her next two laps in 78.9 and 76.5. Wetherbee was gone, swallowed up into the night. Dahlberg fought briefly, and then cracked and gave up the chase. With 800m to go, only Barton still had a chance to catch the breakaway, but she was now 20-30 meters back, and Jones was flying. On Lap 7, the gap widened more, then stabilized. Finally, it seemed, the pace was catching up with Jones -- had it taken a greater toll on Jess? Apparently not. As she began her final circuit beneath the lights, she found another gear and began the desperate process of reeling in the runner ahead. Although she had been running quite fast, she was suddenly running as though possessed. Down the backstretch she accelerated, around the final turn and into the final straight, energizing the crowd as her sprint cut seconds out of Jones' lead.
But the gap was too great and Jones held on. With a last lap of about 76, she had run a personal best of 10:34.78, the fifth fastest 2M in the country for HS girls this season. Jess finished close behind, running 10:37.11, a personal best by 20 seconds. Dahlberg finished third in 10:52, a fine time and her first time under 11 minutes.
Even more amazing than the results were the splits, in particular, Jess's splits. After her first mile in 5:27, she ran the second mile in 5:10, her final 800 in 2:34, and her final lap in 73.7. It was a remarkable performance and an unforgettable race.
Although Ranti and Barton ran spectacular races, there were other great performances at the meet.
David Smith continued his dominance of the shot put, winning and setting a meet record with a throw of 55-5.5. Marvin Chan was 4th with throw of 48-5.5, while Marcus Chang threw 39-6.25. Smith, Chan, and Chang teamed up again in the discus, with Smith throwing 140-6 for 4th, Chan throwing 130-3 for 6th, and Chang throwing 123 for 8th.
(Watch a video of Smith's winning throw on YouTube)
Gordon Forbes won the high hurdles in a personal best 15.38, and is beginning to look like a potential contender at the Class A meet. Avery Mitchell led for most of the 400 meters, but was nipped at the line by Nick Coluntuono. Mitchell still recorded a season's best 49.90.
(Watch Avery's race in the 400m on YouTube)
Gabe Feinberg ran 44.76 in the 300 hurdles, and Dan Hamilton ran 10:30.51 in the 2M.
In the girls 400, Emaa Kornetsky (60.76) was second, Lily Brown (61.91) was sixth, and freshman Ariana Tabatabaie (64.25) was 18th in a field of 24. In the girls high hurdles, Michelle Kaufman placed 7th in 16.74, and Morgan Faer placed 9th in 17.05. Sophomore Nevart Varadian ran the 300 hurdles, finishing 9th in 51.78. Latifah Smalls ran 14.09 in the 100.
In the girls mile, Nora Barnicle ran 5:39.42, with Elena Hemler at 5:59.86, and Kate Hutchinson at 6:01.62.
In the field events, Hester Breen recorded a PR 114-8 in the discus to finish second, while Morgan Faer threw 95-7 to take 6th. In the shot put, Tracy Isman (30-10.5) finished 4th, with Bonny Guang (28-0.75) 12th.
Sarah Berkland tied for 5th in the HJ, clearing 4-10, and placed 12th in the triple jump with a leap of 32-1.75. Michelle Kaufman (15-4), Sky Lewis (15-0.5), and Laryssa Manigat (14-10) placed 9th, 13th, and 15th in the long jump.
The girls competed in all three relays. The 4x100 team placed 9th in 53.50; the 4x400 team placed 7th in 4:31.74; and the 4x800 team ran an outdoor season's best 9:50.99 to place 2nd.
Weston Invite - Complete Boys Results
Weston Invite - Complete Girls Results
First, in the 800 meeters, I watched Newton North's Carolyn Ranti negotiate a 67-second first lap, trailing Lincoln-Sudbury's Dana Jamieson and Molly Binder ans Chelmsford's Sarah Shanahan. At the start of the 2nd lap, Jamieson and Binder accelerated. Ranti matched their acceleration but still trailed, running faster than she ever had in an 800. But she did not fade, in fact, in the final 100 meters, she caught and passed Binder, and she was running down Jamieson. In case you weren't paying close attention, let me repeat that, she caught and passed Binder (the All-State champion at 1000m), and she was running down Jamieson (A 57-second 400m runner). Jamieson won, in 2:14.13, and Carolyn flashed across the line less than a second later in 2:14.97. It was a PR by more than 5 seconds.
I was still buzzing from that race, when they started the seeded heat of the girls two mile. I was pretty sure that nothing would top that 800, but the 2M did top it. The race featured four great runners -- Jess Barton, Bridget Dahlberg, Emily Jones, and Colleen Wetherbee -- who had never before all run in the same race. Each one of these girls is a MULTIPLE all-state champion. The race started slowly, with Barton taking the early lead through a pedestrian first lap of 82 seconds ("only" 10:56 pace). Shortly thereafter, Emily Jones took over the lead and the pace began to drop as Jones started reeling off 80-second laps. She hit the mile in 5:26 and the pack of four was still intact, but just barely. Dahlberg was in second, with Barton right behind, and Wetherbee struggling to maintain the ever-quickening pace. At that point, Jones put the hammer down, running her next two laps in 78.9 and 76.5. Wetherbee was gone, swallowed up into the night. Dahlberg fought briefly, and then cracked and gave up the chase. With 800m to go, only Barton still had a chance to catch the breakaway, but she was now 20-30 meters back, and Jones was flying. On Lap 7, the gap widened more, then stabilized. Finally, it seemed, the pace was catching up with Jones -- had it taken a greater toll on Jess? Apparently not. As she began her final circuit beneath the lights, she found another gear and began the desperate process of reeling in the runner ahead. Although she had been running quite fast, she was suddenly running as though possessed. Down the backstretch she accelerated, around the final turn and into the final straight, energizing the crowd as her sprint cut seconds out of Jones' lead.
But the gap was too great and Jones held on. With a last lap of about 76, she had run a personal best of 10:34.78, the fifth fastest 2M in the country for HS girls this season. Jess finished close behind, running 10:37.11, a personal best by 20 seconds. Dahlberg finished third in 10:52, a fine time and her first time under 11 minutes.
Even more amazing than the results were the splits, in particular, Jess's splits. After her first mile in 5:27, she ran the second mile in 5:10, her final 800 in 2:34, and her final lap in 73.7. It was a remarkable performance and an unforgettable race.
Although Ranti and Barton ran spectacular races, there were other great performances at the meet.
David Smith continued his dominance of the shot put, winning and setting a meet record with a throw of 55-5.5. Marvin Chan was 4th with throw of 48-5.5, while Marcus Chang threw 39-6.25. Smith, Chan, and Chang teamed up again in the discus, with Smith throwing 140-6 for 4th, Chan throwing 130-3 for 6th, and Chang throwing 123 for 8th.
(Watch a video of Smith's winning throw on YouTube)
Gordon Forbes won the high hurdles in a personal best 15.38, and is beginning to look like a potential contender at the Class A meet. Avery Mitchell led for most of the 400 meters, but was nipped at the line by Nick Coluntuono. Mitchell still recorded a season's best 49.90.
(Watch Avery's race in the 400m on YouTube)
Gabe Feinberg ran 44.76 in the 300 hurdles, and Dan Hamilton ran 10:30.51 in the 2M.
In the girls 400, Emaa Kornetsky (60.76) was second, Lily Brown (61.91) was sixth, and freshman Ariana Tabatabaie (64.25) was 18th in a field of 24. In the girls high hurdles, Michelle Kaufman placed 7th in 16.74, and Morgan Faer placed 9th in 17.05. Sophomore Nevart Varadian ran the 300 hurdles, finishing 9th in 51.78. Latifah Smalls ran 14.09 in the 100.
In the girls mile, Nora Barnicle ran 5:39.42, with Elena Hemler at 5:59.86, and Kate Hutchinson at 6:01.62.
In the field events, Hester Breen recorded a PR 114-8 in the discus to finish second, while Morgan Faer threw 95-7 to take 6th. In the shot put, Tracy Isman (30-10.5) finished 4th, with Bonny Guang (28-0.75) 12th.
Sarah Berkland tied for 5th in the HJ, clearing 4-10, and placed 12th in the triple jump with a leap of 32-1.75. Michelle Kaufman (15-4), Sky Lewis (15-0.5), and Laryssa Manigat (14-10) placed 9th, 13th, and 15th in the long jump.
The girls competed in all three relays. The 4x100 team placed 9th in 53.50; the 4x400 team placed 7th in 4:31.74; and the 4x800 team ran an outdoor season's best 9:50.99 to place 2nd.
Weston Invite - Complete Boys Results
Weston Invite - Complete Girls Results
NNHS Alumni Results: May 4-5, 2007
Doug Brecher (Bates) and Pat Pierce (Bowdoin) competed in the 10000m at the Div III New England Championships (held at Springfield College). Doug won this battle, finishing 9th overall in 33:06.65, coming within a second of his PR. Pat placed 12th in 34:06.78.
At the NYSCC State Championships, Dan Chebot (Rochester) also ran the 10000m, finishing fifth in a personal best 32:59.50, a time which qualifies him for the ECAC championships.
At the NYSCC State Championships, Dan Chebot (Rochester) also ran the 10000m, finishing fifth in a personal best 32:59.50, a time which qualifies him for the ECAC championships.
Have a Rotten Day
Last Thursday night I jogged over to Fresh Pond for a short tempo run with my long-time training partner, Terry McNatt. Terry and I typically run track workouts on Tuesday, and on Thursday we do something a little less intense -- a tempo run at threshold pace, or sometime a short workout on the hills of Comm Ave in Newton.
It was a beautiful evening on Thursday. Flowers were blooming along the borders of the path and around the public waterworks there. The trees had new young leaves that rocked in the wind and made a rustling sound I haven't heard for six months. After what seemed like months of cold and rain, it was great to be out in shorts and t-shirt, feeling fast and light. At least, it was great until we started our run.
The problem was that every other citizen in the greater Cambridge Metropolitan area was also at Fresh Pond that night, and each one had brought his or her three tennis-ball chasing golden retrievers, and they all had the same idea of enjoying strolling around the Pond talking on their cell phones. (The owners, not the dogs.)
Where were all these people last month, I wondered. Where were all the dogs all winter? Had they been indoors all this time, and only let out yesterday for the romp of all romps? I tried not to begrudge them access to the whole width of the Fresh Pond path, as I tried to slip by them quietly while running at 5:50 pace and breathing hard. They had every bit as much right to be there as I did, probably more, since theoretically a runner takes up a lot more space than a walker. No, I didn't mind the traffic, but -- and here is the amazing thing -- I started thinking with nostalgia about those happy evenings several weeks earlier when Terry and I would meet at The Pond under the shelter of a building entrance, and set off into the rain with the whole path to ourselves.
There's something very satisfying about being out training in weather that keeps most people indoors. It can be tough to motivate yourself, but once underway, it's not so bad, and the heat from running keeps you warm. With few pedestrians to dodge, few dsitractions of any kind, the run becomes very focused and pure.
The warm weather has changed all that. A month ago there was no problem with joggers, and the very few dog walkers were a welcome sight, isolated islands of humanity with whom to exchange a nod or a wave. Now, it's summertime and the living is easy. Dogs are jumping and the human density on the running paths is high.
It's the same on the Charles, on Comm Ave., even on the local high school tracks, whose inner lanes fill with good people from all walks (I use the term intentionally) of life from 6 to 9 p.m. every night.
It turns out that finding a place to run fast is a heck of a lot easier when the weather is rotten and forbidding than when it is lovely and inviting. As much as we runners complain about winter in New England, and Spring in New England,... and even Fall in New England, we have it pretty easy compared with running along the Esplanade on a warm summer's evening. I really hate to admit it, especially after this spring, but rotten days for everything else are actually pretty good days for training. And nice days are a distraction.
Even as I type these words, I hear the sounds of my neighbors talking to friends they have invited over for a cookout. I hear the laughter, the easy conversation, the clink of bottles... I smell food. It seems so inviting, and I have to rouse myself and remember that I have an appointment with a certain 7-mile course.
If only it were 40 degrees and raining!
It was a beautiful evening on Thursday. Flowers were blooming along the borders of the path and around the public waterworks there. The trees had new young leaves that rocked in the wind and made a rustling sound I haven't heard for six months. After what seemed like months of cold and rain, it was great to be out in shorts and t-shirt, feeling fast and light. At least, it was great until we started our run.
The problem was that every other citizen in the greater Cambridge Metropolitan area was also at Fresh Pond that night, and each one had brought his or her three tennis-ball chasing golden retrievers, and they all had the same idea of enjoying strolling around the Pond talking on their cell phones. (The owners, not the dogs.)
Where were all these people last month, I wondered. Where were all the dogs all winter? Had they been indoors all this time, and only let out yesterday for the romp of all romps? I tried not to begrudge them access to the whole width of the Fresh Pond path, as I tried to slip by them quietly while running at 5:50 pace and breathing hard. They had every bit as much right to be there as I did, probably more, since theoretically a runner takes up a lot more space than a walker. No, I didn't mind the traffic, but -- and here is the amazing thing -- I started thinking with nostalgia about those happy evenings several weeks earlier when Terry and I would meet at The Pond under the shelter of a building entrance, and set off into the rain with the whole path to ourselves.
There's something very satisfying about being out training in weather that keeps most people indoors. It can be tough to motivate yourself, but once underway, it's not so bad, and the heat from running keeps you warm. With few pedestrians to dodge, few dsitractions of any kind, the run becomes very focused and pure.
The warm weather has changed all that. A month ago there was no problem with joggers, and the very few dog walkers were a welcome sight, isolated islands of humanity with whom to exchange a nod or a wave. Now, it's summertime and the living is easy. Dogs are jumping and the human density on the running paths is high.
It's the same on the Charles, on Comm Ave., even on the local high school tracks, whose inner lanes fill with good people from all walks (I use the term intentionally) of life from 6 to 9 p.m. every night.
It turns out that finding a place to run fast is a heck of a lot easier when the weather is rotten and forbidding than when it is lovely and inviting. As much as we runners complain about winter in New England, and Spring in New England,... and even Fall in New England, we have it pretty easy compared with running along the Esplanade on a warm summer's evening. I really hate to admit it, especially after this spring, but rotten days for everything else are actually pretty good days for training. And nice days are a distraction.
Even as I type these words, I hear the sounds of my neighbors talking to friends they have invited over for a cookout. I hear the laughter, the easy conversation, the clink of bottles... I smell food. It seems so inviting, and I have to rouse myself and remember that I have an appointment with a certain 7-mile course.
If only it were 40 degrees and raining!
May 04, 2007
Weekend Preview: Weston Invitational
It looks like good weather for the Weston Invitational, scheduled for Saturday afternoon/evening at Weston H.S. There's a lot of buzz about the girls 2-Mile field, which will bring together three runners who have run under 11:00, and two others who are quite capable of doing it. The five in alphabetical order (with their credentials):
Jess Barton, SR Newton North - 2005 outdoor all-state 1M champ; two-time Div I all-state XC champ; 2006 indoor Div I 2M champ (10:57).
Bridget Dahlberg, SO Newton South - two-time indoor all-state champ for 1M (PR: 4:52); has fastest outdoor 2M so far this year (11:02)
Emily Jones, SO Bromfield - defending outdoor all-state 2M champ; defending XC state champ; 2006 footlocker XC finalist; fastest 2M PR in the field (10:37)
Rebekah McKay, SR Whitinsville Christian - Winner 2007 State Coaches indoor meet; 2nd to Wetherbee at 2007 indoor Div II meet; PR of 11:04
Colleen Wetherbee, SR Dennis-Yarmouth - 2006 outdoor 1M champ (PR: 4:51); 2007 indoor 2M champ (PR: 10:45)
Should be memorable... but the girls 2M isn't the only race to watch at Weston!
The girls 200M should be very competitive with Andover's Mellissa Knapp (25.8), Cambridge's Sarah Trotman (25.9), and indoor all-state 300M champ Stoneham's Christina Izzicupo (26.2) heading the field.
In the girls 400m, three girls are seeded under 60 seconds, led by Andover's Colleen Shannon, and Newton North's Emma Kornetsky is seeded fifth at 60.4. Kormetsky ran a blazing 60.3 anchor leg in the 4x400 relay on Tuesday against Weymouth and could dip under 60 for the first time at Weston.
The boys 400m is going to be a great race, as North's Avery Mitchell takes on a very strong field that includes New Bedford's Mike Jones and Lincoln-Sudbury's Nick Coluntuono. Brookline's Tobias Blattler is also seeded in the top six and might surprise the field.
The girls 800 features two of the top runners from the state-champion Lincoln-Sudbury team, Dana Jamieson and Molly Binder, both seeded at 2:15. Into the mix throw Newton South's Diana Braver and Newton North's Carolyn Ranti, as well as Marian's Christi Gallagher and we could see five runners under 2:20. Yikes!
The boys mile is also stacked, as defending 2006 outdoor all-state champ, Brockton's Kevin Gill, heads a field that includes 10 runners seeded at 4:30 or below, including all-state 1000m champ, Westwood's Jeff Moriarty.
In the boys 110 hurdles, North's Gordon Forbes takes on Framingham's Jordan Maddocks. In the girls hurdles, Michelle Kaufman and Morgan Faer get to run against state 55M hurdle champ, Lauren Barner of New Bedford.
The girls 4x800 relay could be a tremendous race, bringng together four ofthe state's best teams in Lincoln-Sudbury, Chelmsofrd, Newton South, and Newton North. But that's only IF the teams are running at full strength. It's still a bit early in the season, and if the weather is cold, there might be some scratches.
All-in-all, a very high quality meet with the potential for some unforgettable races.
Jess Barton, SR Newton North - 2005 outdoor all-state 1M champ; two-time Div I all-state XC champ; 2006 indoor Div I 2M champ (10:57).
Bridget Dahlberg, SO Newton South - two-time indoor all-state champ for 1M (PR: 4:52); has fastest outdoor 2M so far this year (11:02)
Emily Jones, SO Bromfield - defending outdoor all-state 2M champ; defending XC state champ; 2006 footlocker XC finalist; fastest 2M PR in the field (10:37)
Rebekah McKay, SR Whitinsville Christian - Winner 2007 State Coaches indoor meet; 2nd to Wetherbee at 2007 indoor Div II meet; PR of 11:04
Colleen Wetherbee, SR Dennis-Yarmouth - 2006 outdoor 1M champ (PR: 4:51); 2007 indoor 2M champ (PR: 10:45)
Should be memorable... but the girls 2M isn't the only race to watch at Weston!
The girls 200M should be very competitive with Andover's Mellissa Knapp (25.8), Cambridge's Sarah Trotman (25.9), and indoor all-state 300M champ Stoneham's Christina Izzicupo (26.2) heading the field.
In the girls 400m, three girls are seeded under 60 seconds, led by Andover's Colleen Shannon, and Newton North's Emma Kornetsky is seeded fifth at 60.4. Kormetsky ran a blazing 60.3 anchor leg in the 4x400 relay on Tuesday against Weymouth and could dip under 60 for the first time at Weston.
The boys 400m is going to be a great race, as North's Avery Mitchell takes on a very strong field that includes New Bedford's Mike Jones and Lincoln-Sudbury's Nick Coluntuono. Brookline's Tobias Blattler is also seeded in the top six and might surprise the field.
The girls 800 features two of the top runners from the state-champion Lincoln-Sudbury team, Dana Jamieson and Molly Binder, both seeded at 2:15. Into the mix throw Newton South's Diana Braver and Newton North's Carolyn Ranti, as well as Marian's Christi Gallagher and we could see five runners under 2:20. Yikes!
The boys mile is also stacked, as defending 2006 outdoor all-state champ, Brockton's Kevin Gill, heads a field that includes 10 runners seeded at 4:30 or below, including all-state 1000m champ, Westwood's Jeff Moriarty.
In the boys 110 hurdles, North's Gordon Forbes takes on Framingham's Jordan Maddocks. In the girls hurdles, Michelle Kaufman and Morgan Faer get to run against state 55M hurdle champ, Lauren Barner of New Bedford.
The girls 4x800 relay could be a tremendous race, bringng together four ofthe state's best teams in Lincoln-Sudbury, Chelmsofrd, Newton South, and Newton North. But that's only IF the teams are running at full strength. It's still a bit early in the season, and if the weather is cold, there might be some scratches.
All-in-all, a very high quality meet with the potential for some unforgettable races.
May 02, 2007
Uniform Rules
I had one of those puzzling experiences at the meet on Tuesday.
I have to preface this by saying that I was at the meet as an official, not as a coach. I used to coach for Newton North (and might do so again), but on this particular day, I had been very careful to avoid wearing any Newton school colors, or anything else that would call into question my role. After watching the finish of the boys mile, I was busying myself by reading out times for the stragglers. One of those stragglers was Andrey Tenne, who was on his way to running about a 6:45 for the mile. I had noticed Andrey at the start of the race, standing in the second row. Andrey, as usual, wasn't sporting a thread of school-issued clothing. He was wearing some long pair of basketball shorts and his usual shirt. Andrey has Asberger's syndrome, and is very particular about what he wears. Newton North coaches long ago gave up trying to get Andrey to wear anything other than his own shirt and shorts (and sometimes jacket and pants).
So while I was waiting for Andrey to reach the finish line, the head official came over to me and started berating me for Andrey's presence in the race. Mo was there and can confirm that the official was really ticked off and lectured me for 20-30 seconds on the importance of the uniform rule, and the importance of meeting minimum standards, etc. He also claimed that he hadn't seen Andrey at the start of the race, and was questioning whether he had even started with the others.
It was one of those moments when there was so much to say, that I ended up not saying a word. I wanted to explain about Andrey, but then I remembered that I wasn't even a Newton North coach and so it wasn't my responsibility or place to be on the receiving end of the head official's diatribe. I also felt particularly annoyed by the official's suggestion that Andrey hadn't actually started at the correct time or run the correct distance. You can say a lot about Andrey, but he is always there at the start and he always runs four laps. Mo was greatly amused by my befuddlement, as I stammered to get any words out.
Interestingly, later in the meet, another Newton North runner ran the 800 with non school-issued shorts. He asked the head official whether it was ok, and the official said "yes," and allowed him to run. Later on, that same runner changed his shorts for the relay.
I found myself thinking about this again today, and wondering about uniforms, and the uniform rule. I know that every coach spends a lot of time worrying about the uniform rule, and emphasizing the importance of following it. Almost every big meet begins with a pronouncement by the head officials that "The Uniform Rule Will Be Strictly Enforced." I guess there would be chaos if there wasn't a uniform rule, but I also think that the REAL issue is a little deeper, a little subtler.
I credit Peter Martin with the idea that the real issue is to impress upon the athletes that the uniform is the manifestation of belonging to the team. Ideally, that uniform should feel special, and should inspire not only a desire to wear it, but a desire to live up to it. I think we, as coaches, parents, officials, etc., can help make that the case, by focusing not so much on the "strict enforcement" side of the issue, although that side will never completely go away, but more on the team-building and team support that leads to a regard for the symbols of that team, including the uniform.
I guess what I'm saying is, that if you want your team members to feel special wearing the uniform, you start by making them -- including those who run 6:46 miles -- feel special about being on the team.
I have to preface this by saying that I was at the meet as an official, not as a coach. I used to coach for Newton North (and might do so again), but on this particular day, I had been very careful to avoid wearing any Newton school colors, or anything else that would call into question my role. After watching the finish of the boys mile, I was busying myself by reading out times for the stragglers. One of those stragglers was Andrey Tenne, who was on his way to running about a 6:45 for the mile. I had noticed Andrey at the start of the race, standing in the second row. Andrey, as usual, wasn't sporting a thread of school-issued clothing. He was wearing some long pair of basketball shorts and his usual shirt. Andrey has Asberger's syndrome, and is very particular about what he wears. Newton North coaches long ago gave up trying to get Andrey to wear anything other than his own shirt and shorts (and sometimes jacket and pants).
So while I was waiting for Andrey to reach the finish line, the head official came over to me and started berating me for Andrey's presence in the race. Mo was there and can confirm that the official was really ticked off and lectured me for 20-30 seconds on the importance of the uniform rule, and the importance of meeting minimum standards, etc. He also claimed that he hadn't seen Andrey at the start of the race, and was questioning whether he had even started with the others.
It was one of those moments when there was so much to say, that I ended up not saying a word. I wanted to explain about Andrey, but then I remembered that I wasn't even a Newton North coach and so it wasn't my responsibility or place to be on the receiving end of the head official's diatribe. I also felt particularly annoyed by the official's suggestion that Andrey hadn't actually started at the correct time or run the correct distance. You can say a lot about Andrey, but he is always there at the start and he always runs four laps. Mo was greatly amused by my befuddlement, as I stammered to get any words out.
Interestingly, later in the meet, another Newton North runner ran the 800 with non school-issued shorts. He asked the head official whether it was ok, and the official said "yes," and allowed him to run. Later on, that same runner changed his shorts for the relay.
I found myself thinking about this again today, and wondering about uniforms, and the uniform rule. I know that every coach spends a lot of time worrying about the uniform rule, and emphasizing the importance of following it. Almost every big meet begins with a pronouncement by the head officials that "The Uniform Rule Will Be Strictly Enforced." I guess there would be chaos if there wasn't a uniform rule, but I also think that the REAL issue is a little deeper, a little subtler.
I credit Peter Martin with the idea that the real issue is to impress upon the athletes that the uniform is the manifestation of belonging to the team. Ideally, that uniform should feel special, and should inspire not only a desire to wear it, but a desire to live up to it. I think we, as coaches, parents, officials, etc., can help make that the case, by focusing not so much on the "strict enforcement" side of the issue, although that side will never completely go away, but more on the team-building and team support that leads to a regard for the symbols of that team, including the uniform.
I guess what I'm saying is, that if you want your team members to feel special wearing the uniform, you start by making them -- including those who run 6:46 miles -- feel special about being on the team.
Fast Times at Weymouth High
A fast track at a new facility. A pleasant spring evening with little wind. A well-run meet with an enthusiastic crowd. A terrific opponent. I think this is what every runner, jumper, and thrower dreams about, and it was all on display at Weymouth High yesterday as Newton faced its toughest competition of the season. Both meets were close, but Newton came out on top, as the boys won 78 to 58 and the girls won with an almost identical score of 79 to 57
Girls Meet Highlights
As the winning runner crossed the line in the 4x400 relay, the crowd was going crazy and wild celebrations were breaking out on the infield. Indeed, anyone would have thought that Weymouth had won the meet, and in a way they had: all evening long they had stepped up to the challenge of the Newton North team and improved on their personal bests. Some of the races went to North by agonizingly close margins (200, 400), and others went to Weymouth (800, 4x100). In the final event, the Wildcat grils ran 10 seconds (!) faster than they had three days ago at the State Relays to win the race and set a school record of 4:09. Boy, it doesn't get much better.
If Newton hadn't also stepped up its game, the Tigers would have been in trouble, but they got outstanding performances from Michelle Kaufman (winning the 100, 300H, and LJ), Lily Brown (winning the SP in 32-10 and the 200), along with wins from Sarah Berkland (HJ), Morgan Faer (100H), Carolyn Ranti (1M), Jess Barton (2M), and a photo-finish win from Emma Kornetsky in the 400. The Tigers also swept the discus, which was huge, and picked up numerous seconds and thirds in close battles. That depth enabled Newton to overcome losing both relays (rare!)
I'm sure I'm forgetting some other outstanding performers, but it just seemed that every event was hotly contested, and every athlete was performing at a different level.
Boys Meet Highlights
This Newton North team is explosive, with perhaps its best sprint crew ever and certainly one of the best group of throwers. The Tigers built up a big lead in the sprints, shot put, and discus, and withstood Weymouth's depth in the middle distances and the efforts of James Endres to win its second big meet in as many weeks.
Newton North won the first six events on the track, as Gordon Forbes won the 110 hurdles (15.8) to start the meet, and then Cailean Robinson won the 100 (11.1), Seb Putzys the mile (4:34.0), and Avery Mitchell the 400 (50.0!). The Tigers won the 4x400 relay, and then Sam Arsenault used his trademark finishing kick to come from behind in the 300 hurdles. Weymouth took 1-2 in the 800, and then Mitchell and Robinson responded by going 1-2 in the 200. Dan Hamilton ran a PR 10:26 in the 2M for second place.
In the field events, Sam Arsenault won the HJ (6'2") and the throwers, led by David Smith swept the shot and discus.
Girls Meet Highlights
As the winning runner crossed the line in the 4x400 relay, the crowd was going crazy and wild celebrations were breaking out on the infield. Indeed, anyone would have thought that Weymouth had won the meet, and in a way they had: all evening long they had stepped up to the challenge of the Newton North team and improved on their personal bests. Some of the races went to North by agonizingly close margins (200, 400), and others went to Weymouth (800, 4x100). In the final event, the Wildcat grils ran 10 seconds (!) faster than they had three days ago at the State Relays to win the race and set a school record of 4:09. Boy, it doesn't get much better.
If Newton hadn't also stepped up its game, the Tigers would have been in trouble, but they got outstanding performances from Michelle Kaufman (winning the 100, 300H, and LJ), Lily Brown (winning the SP in 32-10 and the 200), along with wins from Sarah Berkland (HJ), Morgan Faer (100H), Carolyn Ranti (1M), Jess Barton (2M), and a photo-finish win from Emma Kornetsky in the 400. The Tigers also swept the discus, which was huge, and picked up numerous seconds and thirds in close battles. That depth enabled Newton to overcome losing both relays (rare!)
I'm sure I'm forgetting some other outstanding performers, but it just seemed that every event was hotly contested, and every athlete was performing at a different level.
Boys Meet Highlights
This Newton North team is explosive, with perhaps its best sprint crew ever and certainly one of the best group of throwers. The Tigers built up a big lead in the sprints, shot put, and discus, and withstood Weymouth's depth in the middle distances and the efforts of James Endres to win its second big meet in as many weeks.
Newton North won the first six events on the track, as Gordon Forbes won the 110 hurdles (15.8) to start the meet, and then Cailean Robinson won the 100 (11.1), Seb Putzys the mile (4:34.0), and Avery Mitchell the 400 (50.0!). The Tigers won the 4x400 relay, and then Sam Arsenault used his trademark finishing kick to come from behind in the 300 hurdles. Weymouth took 1-2 in the 800, and then Mitchell and Robinson responded by going 1-2 in the 200. Dan Hamilton ran a PR 10:26 in the 2M for second place.
In the field events, Sam Arsenault won the HJ (6'2") and the throwers, led by David Smith swept the shot and discus.
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