As probably everyone knows by now, Friday night, Dathan Ritzenheim ran 12:56.27 for 5000m at the Weltklasse meet in Zurich. His time broke Bob Kennedy's American record, which has stood for 13 years.
What has Ritz done lately?
In the last calendar year plus two days, Ritz has beaten America's great hope in the marathon, Ryan Hall, in the 2008 Olympic Marathon (finishing 9th), beaten America's great hope in the 10,000m, Galen Rupp, in the World Championships (finishing 6th), and run faster than any American in history in the 5000m.
I think it might be time to get on the Ritz bandwagon.
Meb Keflezighi's American record in the 10,000m is 27:13.98. Will Ritz take a shot at the record this year?
The last American to hold the AR in the 5000 and 10,000 simultaneously? Ritz's new coach, Alberto Salazar.
August 29, 2009
August 26, 2009
Who's that Guy With Bob Morrison?
Photo: Paul J Maguire/The Boston Globe
The passing of Ted Kennedy yesterday moved Josh Seeherman to send the above photo. Kennedy is on the left, of course, and on the right is Newton High and Harvard alum Bob Morrison. Josh writes to point out that Morrison was a star football player at Newton and a many-time scorer at the state level on the track.
"At the state class meet (there was no all-state), Morrison finished 2nd in the 600y to Charlie Jenkins, running 1:16 at the old Boston Garden 160y track. Jenkins, of course, was Coach Blackburn's teammate at Villanova and the 1956 Gold Medalist in the 400m. Morrison also ran track at Harvard, mostly competing in the 220y, 440y, and the relay."
Thanks, Josh, for this trip to the Newton archives!
August 25, 2009
The Sincerest Form of Flattery
It's not unprecedented for a single track and field athlete to have an enormous impact on how other athletes train or compete. For example, after the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki where Emil Zatopek won the 5000, 10000, and marathon, many distance runners concluded that they had to emulate Zatopek's training methods, in particular, his heavy reliance on interval workouts.
When three New Zealand athletes from a single neighborhood won two golds and a bronze medal at the Rome Olympics in 1960, many people wanted to know how they achieved such dramatic success. The interest in the methods of their coach, Arthur Lydiard, sparked a surge of interest in high mileage training, even for middle distance runners.
There's no question that Usain Bolt is the iconic figure of the Beijing Olympics and Berlin World Championships. But instead of emulating his training (is there anything special about his training?), athletes are beginning to emulate his mannerisms, in particular his goofiness.
It was amazing to me to watch the 100m final at the World Championships and see the normally tense Asafa Powell fooling around, mugging for the cameras, and generally trying to act like his younger countryman. Powell won the bronze medal behind Bolt and Tyson Gay. Hey, maybe there's something to this "keeping loose"...
And it wasn't just in the sprints. Didn't it seem that a kind of giddiness was sweeping over all the athletes? Every time the cameras focused on the athletes during introductions, they seemed to be competing with each other to see who could seem most relaxed. After the races, we got to see dances (Sanya Richards' "Dallas boogie" comes to mind) and other antics, and for once it wasn't just the Americans mugging for the cameras.
Mark my words, you'll start seeing Bolt-like mannerisms creeping into high school meets before too long, at least until the officials make up their minds to put a stop to it.
When three New Zealand athletes from a single neighborhood won two golds and a bronze medal at the Rome Olympics in 1960, many people wanted to know how they achieved such dramatic success. The interest in the methods of their coach, Arthur Lydiard, sparked a surge of interest in high mileage training, even for middle distance runners.
There's no question that Usain Bolt is the iconic figure of the Beijing Olympics and Berlin World Championships. But instead of emulating his training (is there anything special about his training?), athletes are beginning to emulate his mannerisms, in particular his goofiness.
It was amazing to me to watch the 100m final at the World Championships and see the normally tense Asafa Powell fooling around, mugging for the cameras, and generally trying to act like his younger countryman. Powell won the bronze medal behind Bolt and Tyson Gay. Hey, maybe there's something to this "keeping loose"...
And it wasn't just in the sprints. Didn't it seem that a kind of giddiness was sweeping over all the athletes? Every time the cameras focused on the athletes during introductions, they seemed to be competing with each other to see who could seem most relaxed. After the races, we got to see dances (Sanya Richards' "Dallas boogie" comes to mind) and other antics, and for once it wasn't just the Americans mugging for the cameras.
Mark my words, you'll start seeing Bolt-like mannerisms creeping into high school meets before too long, at least until the officials make up their minds to put a stop to it.
August 23, 2009
WC Men's 5000M: Bekele Outkicks the Kicker
In the Athens Olympics, the 5000m final became a battle between the 10,000m gold medalist, Keninisa Bekele, and the 1500m gold medalist, Hicham El Gherrouj. I always felt that Bekele, who admitted being tired from the 10K, ran a race that played into the hands of El Gherrouj. The pace was slow until the end, and the 1500 meter man had the championship kick.
In the 5000m final in Berlin, Bekele once again faced a 1500 meter medalist with a superb kick, American Bernard Lagat, but this time he knew what to do. His formula for winning the gold medal went like this:
63.03
62.38
61.22
57.58
26.08
Those, of course, are Bekele's splits for his final four and a half laps. His final mile was ~3:58.8; his final 800 was ~1:54.3. And he just kept getting faster.
Lagat, running despite a spike wound suffered in the 1500 final, must have believed that the race was playing into his hands. Indeed, there is no shame in winning silver against the greatest 5K/10K runner in history. But Bekele employed a strategy perfected by the great Lasse Viren -- that of running the last mile at a gradually accelerating pace. Instead of waiting until the last moment and then wagering all on a big last lap, Bekele made sure that each lap was faster, subtly draining his rivals' anaerobic reserves. Lagat was able to briefly take the lead in the final straight, but the devastating kick was only a very good kick. Bekele, it turned out, had a better one.
Men's 5000 final - Universal Sports
There's a tactical lesson here: in a race against someone with a superb finish, it's madness to run fast at the beginning, slow in the middle, and then kick against the kicker. The long drive to the finish succeeds where the desperate run from the start fails. It is the strategy El Gherrouj used against Lagat in the Athens 1500, and it was the strategy that Bekele used against Lagat in the Berlin 5000m. Of course, maybe you have to be one of the greatest runners ever to pull it off!
In the 5000m final in Berlin, Bekele once again faced a 1500 meter medalist with a superb kick, American Bernard Lagat, but this time he knew what to do. His formula for winning the gold medal went like this:
63.03
62.38
61.22
57.58
26.08
Those, of course, are Bekele's splits for his final four and a half laps. His final mile was ~3:58.8; his final 800 was ~1:54.3. And he just kept getting faster.
Lagat, running despite a spike wound suffered in the 1500 final, must have believed that the race was playing into his hands. Indeed, there is no shame in winning silver against the greatest 5K/10K runner in history. But Bekele employed a strategy perfected by the great Lasse Viren -- that of running the last mile at a gradually accelerating pace. Instead of waiting until the last moment and then wagering all on a big last lap, Bekele made sure that each lap was faster, subtly draining his rivals' anaerobic reserves. Lagat was able to briefly take the lead in the final straight, but the devastating kick was only a very good kick. Bekele, it turned out, had a better one.
Men's 5000 final - Universal Sports
There's a tactical lesson here: in a race against someone with a superb finish, it's madness to run fast at the beginning, slow in the middle, and then kick against the kicker. The long drive to the finish succeeds where the desperate run from the start fails. It is the strategy El Gherrouj used against Lagat in the Athens 1500, and it was the strategy that Bekele used against Lagat in the Berlin 5000m. Of course, maybe you have to be one of the greatest runners ever to pull it off!
August 19, 2009
Final "Official" NSRP Run Tonight
With many of you off to college, or pre-season, or jobs in other states, tonight (Wednesday, August 19) will be the final official run for the Newton Summer Running project.
Thanks to all the runners who met on Mondays and Wednesdays this summer to get in lots of (mostly) steady miles on (mostly) soft trails. Good luck to all in your fall seasons!
Thanks to all the runners who met on Mondays and Wednesdays this summer to get in lots of (mostly) steady miles on (mostly) soft trails. Good luck to all in your fall seasons!
Sanya Richards Wins the Big One
It's a rare sight to see a runner leap across the finish line of a major race, and I've never seen it in the anaerobically brutal 400m, but for Sanya Richards there was no containing the joy and relief of finally delivering on here promise and potential and winning a world title.
Richards won in 49:00, making up for her disappointing bronze medal in Beijing, and probably hasn't stopped smiling since.
In addition to her bronze medal in 2008, Richards has a World Championships silver from 2005. In 2006, a year with no Olympics or World Championships, she was undefeated at 400m. However, with five world #1 rankings, she had higher expectations.
Her first world title looked easy, once it was out of the way, but Richards had obstacles, too. In an article today's New York Times, Christopher Clarey writes:
"Richards is afflicted with Behcet’s syndrome, a vascular disorder that causes chronic inflammation of blood vessels. It has sapped her strength at critical sporting moments in the past, spoiling her 2007 season and then flaring up again earlier this year and during these championships, leaving her with lesions that she covered with makeup Tuesday.
'I kind of expect that,' she said. 'It usually flares up when I’m stressed and even though I try to be very relaxed, it’s hard when I have a major title on the line. So I did have a little bit of a flare-up, but I know how to handle it now. It didn’t get in my mind and didn’t get in my way.'"
The U.S. won two gold medals yesterday, as Kerron Clement won the 400m hurdles in 47.91, defending his world title. The race had a fascinating cast of characters including silver medalist Javier Culson, the first athlete from Puerto Rico to win a medal at the World Championships, former world champion Bershawn Jackson of the U.S., who took the bronze, and 17-year-old Jehue Gordon, who finished fourth and very nearly got a medal. Trinidadian Gordon has lowered his personal best by 1.19 during his time in Berlin, and after running 48.26 in the final, is now his country's national record holder and the world's second fastest junior of all time. He also became the youngest-ever finalist in a World Championships sprint event.
Coincidentally, 37-year-old Jamaican Danny Macfarlane, who ran in the lane next to Gordon, became the OLDEST-ever male finisher in a WC sprint final, as he ran an ageless 48.65 to place 6th. Two-time world champion Felix Sanchez crashed into the first hurdle and finished last.
Next up: the men's 1500m final!
Richards won in 49:00, making up for her disappointing bronze medal in Beijing, and probably hasn't stopped smiling since.
In addition to her bronze medal in 2008, Richards has a World Championships silver from 2005. In 2006, a year with no Olympics or World Championships, she was undefeated at 400m. However, with five world #1 rankings, she had higher expectations.
Her first world title looked easy, once it was out of the way, but Richards had obstacles, too. In an article today's New York Times, Christopher Clarey writes:
"Richards is afflicted with Behcet’s syndrome, a vascular disorder that causes chronic inflammation of blood vessels. It has sapped her strength at critical sporting moments in the past, spoiling her 2007 season and then flaring up again earlier this year and during these championships, leaving her with lesions that she covered with makeup Tuesday.
'I kind of expect that,' she said. 'It usually flares up when I’m stressed and even though I try to be very relaxed, it’s hard when I have a major title on the line. So I did have a little bit of a flare-up, but I know how to handle it now. It didn’t get in my mind and didn’t get in my way.'"
The U.S. won two gold medals yesterday, as Kerron Clement won the 400m hurdles in 47.91, defending his world title. The race had a fascinating cast of characters including silver medalist Javier Culson, the first athlete from Puerto Rico to win a medal at the World Championships, former world champion Bershawn Jackson of the U.S., who took the bronze, and 17-year-old Jehue Gordon, who finished fourth and very nearly got a medal. Trinidadian Gordon has lowered his personal best by 1.19 during his time in Berlin, and after running 48.26 in the final, is now his country's national record holder and the world's second fastest junior of all time. He also became the youngest-ever finalist in a World Championships sprint event.
Coincidentally, 37-year-old Jamaican Danny Macfarlane, who ran in the lane next to Gordon, became the OLDEST-ever male finisher in a WC sprint final, as he ran an ageless 48.65 to place 6th. Two-time world champion Felix Sanchez crashed into the first hurdle and finished last.
Next up: the men's 1500m final!
August 18, 2009
Bekele, Bolt, and Berlin
Sometimes there's too MUCH to write about.
With the World Championships going on in Berlin, I feel like I barely have enough time to absorb one astonishing result before another event is tugging at my attention on the track or in the field. Already after three days, this meet is turning out to be hugely entertaining with some results that seem inevitable and other that seem unthinkable.
Bolt Makes Tyson Gay's AR Look Ordinary
Watching Usain Bolt get off to a smooth start and then casually run 9.89 in the semi-finals of the men's 100m, I started thinking that the final was going to live up to the hype. It did, as Bolt lowered his own world record by 0.11 and made Tyson Gay's huge AR of 9.71 -- the fastest non-Bolt time in history -- look like merely a "good effort."
Consider, if you will, that three years ago, the world record stood at 9.77 (actually, 9.762, as we should probably start using thousandths of a second when listing sprint records...). In three short years, Bolt has completely changed our idea of the possible. In that time, Bolt has lowered the record by 0.19, more than it had been lowered in the previous 38 years.
Based on an analysis of each phase of Bolt's race, it has been calculated that he ran the 20 meters from 60m to 80m in 1.61 seconds. If my math is correct, that means he was running 27.8 mph.
I can't wait to see this man can do in the 200 (Final Aug 20).
Bekele Equals Geb's Four Championships
I didn't sit down to watch the men's 10,000m final until late last night, and then only after an hour of watching other events that were riveting in their own way. I was delighted to see Americans Lagat, Lomong, and Manzano make it to the finals of the men's 1500 (I believe that having three Americans there helps all their chances, as a countryman is marginally less likely to elbow you out of the way at that crucial moment). I tend to agree with Noah Jampol, who believes that there's no way Asbel Kiprop doesn't win this race. In his semi-final he went from last to first by running a 52-second final lap, largely in the second and third lanes.
But back to the 10,000. In the early stages, there was the familiar line of East African runners from Kenya, Ethiopia, Qatar (via Kenya), and Eritrea, but with the addition of two Americans, Galen Rupp and Dathan Ritzenheim. How did we ever forget about Ritz? He has been runner-up in a number of important domestic races, but this guy finished 9th in the Olympic Marathon last year (top American, ahead of Ryan Hall). As the race developed, Ritz moved past Rupp and all the way up to 6th -- the highest finish for an American male in an Olympic or World Championships 10K since Frank Shorter finished 5th in 1976.
Meanwhile, Eritrean Zerzeny Tadese was doing everything in his power to try to shake the implacable shadow of the world's greatest 10K runner, Ethiopian Keninisa Bekele. As Tadese reeled off lap after lap at 61-63 seconds, lesser runners fell off the pace and the lead pack dwindled to five, then four, then three, and finally with 1600m to go it was only two.
Like Bolt in the sprints, Bekele awes by making the unthinkable look like child's play. With 400m to go, Bekele calmly moved up alongside the Eritrean and then proceeded to demonstrate that the previous 9600m, run at a pace that had ruined the finest distance runners in the world, was just so much warmup. Bekele ran the next 200m in 28+ seconds, opening a three-second gap. In the final 200m, run in 29+, he made sure everyone in the stadium knew that he was enjoying himself. His time of 26:46.31 was a World Championships record.
In fact, after a first 5000m of 13:40, Bekele's second 500m of 13:05 was only 13 seconds off the world championships record for the 5000 meters. And he looked like he could have run, much, much faster.
WCs > OGs
Is it just me or are the World Championships a far better track meet than the Olympics? If you'll pardon the urban analogy, the WC's are like San Francisco, intimate and classy, and the Olympics are like LA, sprawling and gaudy.
During the Olympics, athletics takes a back seat to swimming, basketball, and other sports where Americans tend to dominate. I hate having distance races interrupted all night by promos for other sports.
And speaking of coverage, are they completely mental at the Boston Globe? The morning after Chelsea Johnson won a surprise silver in the women's PV, three American men advanced to the finals of the 1500, Ritz placed 5th in the 10K, Carmelita Jeter took bronze in the women's 100m, and Jenny Barringer ran an American record in the women's steeple to take 5th, the Globe Sports Section had three quarters of a page on Brian Daubach's minor league coaching career.
C'mon guys. Get a clue.
With the World Championships going on in Berlin, I feel like I barely have enough time to absorb one astonishing result before another event is tugging at my attention on the track or in the field. Already after three days, this meet is turning out to be hugely entertaining with some results that seem inevitable and other that seem unthinkable.
Bolt Makes Tyson Gay's AR Look Ordinary
Watching Usain Bolt get off to a smooth start and then casually run 9.89 in the semi-finals of the men's 100m, I started thinking that the final was going to live up to the hype. It did, as Bolt lowered his own world record by 0.11 and made Tyson Gay's huge AR of 9.71 -- the fastest non-Bolt time in history -- look like merely a "good effort."
Consider, if you will, that three years ago, the world record stood at 9.77 (actually, 9.762, as we should probably start using thousandths of a second when listing sprint records...). In three short years, Bolt has completely changed our idea of the possible. In that time, Bolt has lowered the record by 0.19, more than it had been lowered in the previous 38 years.
Based on an analysis of each phase of Bolt's race, it has been calculated that he ran the 20 meters from 60m to 80m in 1.61 seconds. If my math is correct, that means he was running 27.8 mph.
I can't wait to see this man can do in the 200 (Final Aug 20).
Bekele Equals Geb's Four Championships
I didn't sit down to watch the men's 10,000m final until late last night, and then only after an hour of watching other events that were riveting in their own way. I was delighted to see Americans Lagat, Lomong, and Manzano make it to the finals of the men's 1500 (I believe that having three Americans there helps all their chances, as a countryman is marginally less likely to elbow you out of the way at that crucial moment). I tend to agree with Noah Jampol, who believes that there's no way Asbel Kiprop doesn't win this race. In his semi-final he went from last to first by running a 52-second final lap, largely in the second and third lanes.
But back to the 10,000. In the early stages, there was the familiar line of East African runners from Kenya, Ethiopia, Qatar (via Kenya), and Eritrea, but with the addition of two Americans, Galen Rupp and Dathan Ritzenheim. How did we ever forget about Ritz? He has been runner-up in a number of important domestic races, but this guy finished 9th in the Olympic Marathon last year (top American, ahead of Ryan Hall). As the race developed, Ritz moved past Rupp and all the way up to 6th -- the highest finish for an American male in an Olympic or World Championships 10K since Frank Shorter finished 5th in 1976.
Meanwhile, Eritrean Zerzeny Tadese was doing everything in his power to try to shake the implacable shadow of the world's greatest 10K runner, Ethiopian Keninisa Bekele. As Tadese reeled off lap after lap at 61-63 seconds, lesser runners fell off the pace and the lead pack dwindled to five, then four, then three, and finally with 1600m to go it was only two.
Like Bolt in the sprints, Bekele awes by making the unthinkable look like child's play. With 400m to go, Bekele calmly moved up alongside the Eritrean and then proceeded to demonstrate that the previous 9600m, run at a pace that had ruined the finest distance runners in the world, was just so much warmup. Bekele ran the next 200m in 28+ seconds, opening a three-second gap. In the final 200m, run in 29+, he made sure everyone in the stadium knew that he was enjoying himself. His time of 26:46.31 was a World Championships record.
In fact, after a first 5000m of 13:40, Bekele's second 500m of 13:05 was only 13 seconds off the world championships record for the 5000 meters. And he looked like he could have run, much, much faster.
WCs > OGs
Is it just me or are the World Championships a far better track meet than the Olympics? If you'll pardon the urban analogy, the WC's are like San Francisco, intimate and classy, and the Olympics are like LA, sprawling and gaudy.
During the Olympics, athletics takes a back seat to swimming, basketball, and other sports where Americans tend to dominate. I hate having distance races interrupted all night by promos for other sports.
And speaking of coverage, are they completely mental at the Boston Globe? The morning after Chelsea Johnson won a surprise silver in the women's PV, three American men advanced to the finals of the 1500, Ritz placed 5th in the 10K, Carmelita Jeter took bronze in the women's 100m, and Jenny Barringer ran an American record in the women's steeple to take 5th, the Globe Sports Section had three quarters of a page on Brian Daubach's minor league coaching career.
C'mon guys. Get a clue.
August 11, 2009
Robot, Run
Technology marches on -- actually, it's beginning to run.
Scientists at Toyota have demonstrated a robot that can trot along at about 7 km/hr (about 13:40 per mile). Very impressive! Although, based on the video below, I would say that the robot is not yet ready to challenge Usain Bolt.
It's interesting to watch the video, though, and think about how a human stride combines such a complex sequence of actions in such a fluid and continuous motion.
By contrast, the robot plonks its feet down almost flat and twists and creaks its way along in a way that seems energy-costly. Indeed, I wonder how long its power source lasts. (It would have to last a little over six hours to enable the robot to complete a marathon).
The other thing that's conspicuous is that the robot goes airborne for a relatively short period of time compared to a human runner. According to a post on the smart-machines blog, the robot runner leaves the earth for about 340ms at a time. I would have guessed less looking at the video, but in any case, the lack of vertical displacement and the long ground contact time are not associated with fast, efficient running. It just makes you appreciate that much more what people do when they soar through the air on every step.
For more description of Toyota's running robot, see this post on the Smart-machines blog.
Scientists at Toyota have demonstrated a robot that can trot along at about 7 km/hr (about 13:40 per mile). Very impressive! Although, based on the video below, I would say that the robot is not yet ready to challenge Usain Bolt.
It's interesting to watch the video, though, and think about how a human stride combines such a complex sequence of actions in such a fluid and continuous motion.
By contrast, the robot plonks its feet down almost flat and twists and creaks its way along in a way that seems energy-costly. Indeed, I wonder how long its power source lasts. (It would have to last a little over six hours to enable the robot to complete a marathon).
The other thing that's conspicuous is that the robot goes airborne for a relatively short period of time compared to a human runner. According to a post on the smart-machines blog, the robot runner leaves the earth for about 340ms at a time. I would have guessed less looking at the video, but in any case, the lack of vertical displacement and the long ground contact time are not associated with fast, efficient running. It just makes you appreciate that much more what people do when they soar through the air on every step.
For more description of Toyota's running robot, see this post on the Smart-machines blog.
Sweat!
These are the dog days of August, and the air is so thick you can spread it on your morning toast.
If you like to sweat, these are the days for you. On these humid afternoons, the sweat won't evaporate, but instead forms beads on your skin and drips off into puddles wherever you stop to stretch so you feel like a walking tropical rain forest.
Wear a dark shirt and soon it will be several shades darker and clinging to your body. Wear any color shirt and soon it will be three times as heavy as when you started.
I like sweat. I like losing six pounds of water weight every time I step outside for a run. As long as I don't have to race in these conditions, I like the feel of moist air against moist skin.
But then I stop running and the sweat keeps coming. I shower, and I'm sweating in the shower. I dry off and within five minutes I'm sweating again. I drink glasses and glasses of water, lemonade, anything... it takes forever to re-hydrate.
It's good to be in shape when you sweat. A fit runner sweats out fewer electrolytes, less salt, than an untrained runner. It's one of the useful adaptations to running in the heat. All this sweat is mostly water, less briny than might be expected.
The best thing about all this sweaty running is that when the heat wave breaks, we'll all feel like we've come down from altitude. We'll be able to run faster and not get tired. We'll have boundless energy. This last weekend felt like that, but now we're back in humidville again.
That's alright. These are the slimy, sweaty, gross days that make fall feel so good.
If you like to sweat, these are the days for you. On these humid afternoons, the sweat won't evaporate, but instead forms beads on your skin and drips off into puddles wherever you stop to stretch so you feel like a walking tropical rain forest.
Wear a dark shirt and soon it will be several shades darker and clinging to your body. Wear any color shirt and soon it will be three times as heavy as when you started.
I like sweat. I like losing six pounds of water weight every time I step outside for a run. As long as I don't have to race in these conditions, I like the feel of moist air against moist skin.
But then I stop running and the sweat keeps coming. I shower, and I'm sweating in the shower. I dry off and within five minutes I'm sweating again. I drink glasses and glasses of water, lemonade, anything... it takes forever to re-hydrate.
It's good to be in shape when you sweat. A fit runner sweats out fewer electrolytes, less salt, than an untrained runner. It's one of the useful adaptations to running in the heat. All this sweat is mostly water, less briny than might be expected.
The best thing about all this sweaty running is that when the heat wave breaks, we'll all feel like we've come down from altitude. We'll be able to run faster and not get tired. We'll have boundless energy. This last weekend felt like that, but now we're back in humidville again.
That's alright. These are the slimy, sweaty, gross days that make fall feel so good.
August 07, 2009
"He has to lean out"
So, Alan Webb will be joining the Oregon Project and will place himself under the training supervision of Alberto Salazar. (See article on Webb in USA Today.) It's another fascinating new chapter in the career of Webb, the fastest American ever at 1500m, but a runner whose disappointing performances in major events overshadow his immense talent and impressive PRs.
I can't help but feel the real story here is the ascendancy of Alberto Salazar as the pre-eminent coach of American distance runners. In the USA Today article, Salazar says he was "completely surprised" by the overture from Webb. Salazar has never coached a major 800/1500 runner. Will he be able to unlock Webb's potential? Will he turn Webb into a 5000m runner with a devastating kick?
One thing is for sure, Salazar has the self-confidence to take on America's most enigmatic runner, and won't be intimidated by all that talent. In one of his first comments, Salazar says the heavily-muscled Webb won't touch a weight for six months. "He has to lean out," says the oracle of Oregon.
I can't help but feel the real story here is the ascendancy of Alberto Salazar as the pre-eminent coach of American distance runners. In the USA Today article, Salazar says he was "completely surprised" by the overture from Webb. Salazar has never coached a major 800/1500 runner. Will he be able to unlock Webb's potential? Will he turn Webb into a 5000m runner with a devastating kick?
One thing is for sure, Salazar has the self-confidence to take on America's most enigmatic runner, and won't be intimidated by all that talent. In one of his first comments, Salazar says the heavily-muscled Webb won't touch a weight for six months. "He has to lean out," says the oracle of Oregon.
August 06, 2009
Summer Throwing Project
David Smith wants to get a group of throwers to train together over the summer. Smith, a former Mass. State Shot Put champion, writes on the DyeStat New England Forum:
"...I've been training with Newton North's Conor Ebbs (145 disc/50 shot). I'd love to get a big group of MA throwers working together to get better. I'm sure lots of throwers are in the middle of football training now, but those that want to are welcome to show up- ANY skill level- are welcome and encouraged to do so."
"Practices are at Waltham's track: Athletic Field Road/Emerson Road off of Lexington Street in Waltham. BYO Implements, although if a few show up without them it won't be the end of the world. Next practice is Thursday 8/6 at 3:30 PM."
What a great idea! It's always easier to work hard in a mutually supportive group.
if anyone is interested, PM smitty on DyeStat.
"...I've been training with Newton North's Conor Ebbs (145 disc/50 shot). I'd love to get a big group of MA throwers working together to get better. I'm sure lots of throwers are in the middle of football training now, but those that want to are welcome to show up- ANY skill level- are welcome and encouraged to do so."
"Practices are at Waltham's track: Athletic Field Road/Emerson Road off of Lexington Street in Waltham. BYO Implements, although if a few show up without them it won't be the end of the world. Next practice is Thursday 8/6 at 3:30 PM."
What a great idea! It's always easier to work hard in a mutually supportive group.
if anyone is interested, PM smitty on DyeStat.
August 05, 2009
Hidden in Plain Sight
It might seem strange to hear me say it, but on a visceral level I find great age-group performances in athletics a little underwhelming. When I watch an older runner or thrower or jumper do something amazing for their age, the amazement is kind of detached, abstract compared to, say, the breathtaking excitement of watching the fastest sprinter in the world blow down a straightaway leaving a world-class field in his wake.
I remember more than twenty years ago attending the Millrose games in NYC and watching a race that was a novelty at the time: a "masters mile," or mile race for invited athletes who were over 40. In the race were some of the heroes of my youth, including Jim Ryun and Peter Snell. I expected to feel awe, but all I felt was "aww", as in, "aww, isn't that great that they're still out there running." In that race, Ryun finished well back, running, I think, 4:40. The race was won by Web Loudat in 4:20-something, an athlete I had never heard of before. Afterwards I thought, "well that was interesting."
As a spectator sport, age-group track and road-racing often lacks that "wow" that you get when you see a young athlete out on the edge of what is humanly possible. It's just not the same to watch a 50-year-old set an age group world record. It's exciting, yes, but it also involves a mental shift to make allowances for diminished capacity (and expectations). I have never watched such a performance without thinking about how that athlete performed in his or her prime, and how the age-adjusted performance compares.
Please don't get me wrong: I am very grateful for the whole notion of "age-adjusted" or "age-graded" performances. They are very helpful in getting a lot of us out of bed in the morning and provide ongoing motivation to see whether we can "improve" our relative standing as our absolute performances continue to trend down with grim inevitability. But even tremendous age-graded performances are hard to notice in an event with young and old together.
Take for example the race I just ran, the Yankee Homecoming 10-Miler. In that race, the top age-graded performance belonged to the living legend, 62-year-old Larry Olsen. His time of 63:43 is the age-graded equivalent of a 50:29, a time that would have won the open race. But Larry was hidden in plain sight in that race, an older guy shuttling among the second-tier of younger guys, never close to the front of the race. What if he had run five minutes faster, a time that would have been the open equivalent of 46:31? It would have been a run for the ages, an American age-group record, and yet it would have gone virtually unnoticed by spectators lining the streets of Newburyport to watch the old, toothless guy chug along in 26th place, just ahead of my training partner Terry (who at 44, is no spring chicken).
Larry legend at the Newburyport 10M (photo Ted Tyler)
Here's another example: last fall, 51-year-old Joan Benoit Samuelson showed up to run the New England Open Cross-Country Championship. She finished the 6K race in 12th, ahead of a bevy of very talented young women from the BAA, GBTC, and New Balance racing teams. Her time -- 21:56 -- converts to an age-adjusted time of 18:57, a performance that would have put her more than 40 seconds ahead of Ireland's Mary Cullen, who dominated the race. Yet, to most of the people watching the race, Cullen's race was breathtaking, a tour-de-force of take-no-prisoners front-running, while Samuelson's transcendent effort was an afterthought.
In an August 4 post on his Runner's World blog, Amby Burfoot muses on age-group performances in general, and provides a list of some of the performances that stick in his mind as most impressive. That's the thing though, they are impressive in the mind. No so much in the flesh, where even the greatest of great age-group performances is likely to bring unwelcome thoughts of mortality.
So that's the bottom line I guess: when we watch Usain Bolt or Kenenisa Bekele, Kara Goucher or Allyson Felix, we revel in the eternal youthful sunshine of infinite possibility. These athletes, it seems, can do anything. And that means that human beings can do anything. But when we contemplate the latter-day exploits of a Larry Olsen or a Joan Benoit-Samuelson, we can't help but be reminded that even the great among us slow down, although some have managed to to resist the ravages of time better than others.
Still, I'll take my inspiration where I can get it. I used to enter races with the expectation that I would win. Now when I enter a road race, I never expect to win, and am always surprised if I finish near the front of even a small race. Since that's the reality, I find it enormously inspirational to think about Larry, and others who continue to train hard and race tough. I assume he knows that younger runners and spectators don't know how good he is, but I think he probably doesn't care. He's happy to run incognito, still pursuing an idea of excellence that is less about place and time and more about fighting, fighting, fighting, and never surrendering.
I remember more than twenty years ago attending the Millrose games in NYC and watching a race that was a novelty at the time: a "masters mile," or mile race for invited athletes who were over 40. In the race were some of the heroes of my youth, including Jim Ryun and Peter Snell. I expected to feel awe, but all I felt was "aww", as in, "aww, isn't that great that they're still out there running." In that race, Ryun finished well back, running, I think, 4:40. The race was won by Web Loudat in 4:20-something, an athlete I had never heard of before. Afterwards I thought, "well that was interesting."
As a spectator sport, age-group track and road-racing often lacks that "wow" that you get when you see a young athlete out on the edge of what is humanly possible. It's just not the same to watch a 50-year-old set an age group world record. It's exciting, yes, but it also involves a mental shift to make allowances for diminished capacity (and expectations). I have never watched such a performance without thinking about how that athlete performed in his or her prime, and how the age-adjusted performance compares.
Please don't get me wrong: I am very grateful for the whole notion of "age-adjusted" or "age-graded" performances. They are very helpful in getting a lot of us out of bed in the morning and provide ongoing motivation to see whether we can "improve" our relative standing as our absolute performances continue to trend down with grim inevitability. But even tremendous age-graded performances are hard to notice in an event with young and old together.
Take for example the race I just ran, the Yankee Homecoming 10-Miler. In that race, the top age-graded performance belonged to the living legend, 62-year-old Larry Olsen. His time of 63:43 is the age-graded equivalent of a 50:29, a time that would have won the open race. But Larry was hidden in plain sight in that race, an older guy shuttling among the second-tier of younger guys, never close to the front of the race. What if he had run five minutes faster, a time that would have been the open equivalent of 46:31? It would have been a run for the ages, an American age-group record, and yet it would have gone virtually unnoticed by spectators lining the streets of Newburyport to watch the old, toothless guy chug along in 26th place, just ahead of my training partner Terry (who at 44, is no spring chicken).
Larry legend at the Newburyport 10M (photo Ted Tyler)
Here's another example: last fall, 51-year-old Joan Benoit Samuelson showed up to run the New England Open Cross-Country Championship. She finished the 6K race in 12th, ahead of a bevy of very talented young women from the BAA, GBTC, and New Balance racing teams. Her time -- 21:56 -- converts to an age-adjusted time of 18:57, a performance that would have put her more than 40 seconds ahead of Ireland's Mary Cullen, who dominated the race. Yet, to most of the people watching the race, Cullen's race was breathtaking, a tour-de-force of take-no-prisoners front-running, while Samuelson's transcendent effort was an afterthought.
In an August 4 post on his Runner's World blog, Amby Burfoot muses on age-group performances in general, and provides a list of some of the performances that stick in his mind as most impressive. That's the thing though, they are impressive in the mind. No so much in the flesh, where even the greatest of great age-group performances is likely to bring unwelcome thoughts of mortality.
So that's the bottom line I guess: when we watch Usain Bolt or Kenenisa Bekele, Kara Goucher or Allyson Felix, we revel in the eternal youthful sunshine of infinite possibility. These athletes, it seems, can do anything. And that means that human beings can do anything. But when we contemplate the latter-day exploits of a Larry Olsen or a Joan Benoit-Samuelson, we can't help but be reminded that even the great among us slow down, although some have managed to to resist the ravages of time better than others.
Still, I'll take my inspiration where I can get it. I used to enter races with the expectation that I would win. Now when I enter a road race, I never expect to win, and am always surprised if I finish near the front of even a small race. Since that's the reality, I find it enormously inspirational to think about Larry, and others who continue to train hard and race tough. I assume he knows that younger runners and spectators don't know how good he is, but I think he probably doesn't care. He's happy to run incognito, still pursuing an idea of excellence that is less about place and time and more about fighting, fighting, fighting, and never surrendering.
August 03, 2009
Go West, Young Men
August always seems to be the season of departures, with graduated high school seniors preparing for their entrance into college, college kids preparing to return to their campus lives, and the rest of us preparing to miss them while we make plans for the shock that comes with Labor Day and the return of Fall.
And then there are the recent and not-so-recent college grads, trying to figure out or about to take the next big step. Scott Cole and Jesse Chebot are getting ready to leave the East Coast, and settle for a while in Santa Cruz, CA to race bikes and live the dream. Dan Chebot is also heading to California, to work and surf, and come up with his next big business idea. I have no doubt that he's well on his way to becoming a mogul of something -- while continuing to run, we hope.
And long-time friend and NNHS booster Josh Seeherman is heading out to Berkeley to begin a Ph.D program at the University there. Although Josh describes himself as a track nerd, he has been a terrific historian of Newton North track and field, as well as Massachusetts running, Penn Relays lore, and various other things. And lest I forget, he has also kept himself in good shape, as his recent sub-2:00 800m attests. I will miss running into Josh at events here, but hope he will continue to read and contribute to this blog.
Josh sent along the following as a parting gift. I hope he doesn't mind that I share it:
"[Newton HS grad] Paul Gould's records (100 and 200) are from 1953, which means they're 56 years old this year. However, the record for "record longevity" is much longer. William Pesoscolido, the best high jumper in the state, long jumped 21'9" indoors at the Bowdoin Invitational in 1939 for a meet record. This was not broken until 2008, for a stretch of 69 years..." Josh goes on to point out that Jim Blackburn himself won the long jump up there.
Thanks for the tidbit, Josh, and good luck at Berkeley!
And then there are the recent and not-so-recent college grads, trying to figure out or about to take the next big step. Scott Cole and Jesse Chebot are getting ready to leave the East Coast, and settle for a while in Santa Cruz, CA to race bikes and live the dream. Dan Chebot is also heading to California, to work and surf, and come up with his next big business idea. I have no doubt that he's well on his way to becoming a mogul of something -- while continuing to run, we hope.
And long-time friend and NNHS booster Josh Seeherman is heading out to Berkeley to begin a Ph.D program at the University there. Although Josh describes himself as a track nerd, he has been a terrific historian of Newton North track and field, as well as Massachusetts running, Penn Relays lore, and various other things. And lest I forget, he has also kept himself in good shape, as his recent sub-2:00 800m attests. I will miss running into Josh at events here, but hope he will continue to read and contribute to this blog.
Josh sent along the following as a parting gift. I hope he doesn't mind that I share it:
"[Newton HS grad] Paul Gould's records (100 and 200) are from 1953, which means they're 56 years old this year. However, the record for "record longevity" is much longer. William Pesoscolido, the best high jumper in the state, long jumped 21'9" indoors at the Bowdoin Invitational in 1939 for a meet record. This was not broken until 2008, for a stretch of 69 years..." Josh goes on to point out that Jim Blackburn himself won the long jump up there.
Thanks for the tidbit, Josh, and good luck at Berkeley!
August 01, 2009
Third Annual King 4x1600 Relay Set For August 6 @ 7:30 p.m.
Looking for a little team-building experience to add spice to summer training?
Here's information from USATF-NE Managing Director Steve Vaitones on the the 3rd annual George & Whitey King 4 x 1600 Relay:
"The third annual George and Whitey King 4 x 1600 relay takes place at Saunders Stadium in South Boston this coming Thursday, August 6, at 7:30 p.m. The race honors a pair of long-time officials who were pretty fair runners back in their day (1950's); George was New England HS XC champ and was on a US Record 4 x 1500 relay (hence the connection). Road folk are often tough to convince to run on the track, but this (and our indoor 4x1600) are low key and a good team opportunity.
Co-Ed and pick-up teams are also allowed. We've had clubs, HS alum quartets, and HS rivals coming together to have some pre-season fun. Awards for winners in all divisions are provided by Harpoon (Root beers for the juniors)."
Here's a link to the entry form (PDF):
George & Whitey King 4x1600 relay - Entry Form
Here's information from USATF-NE Managing Director Steve Vaitones on the the 3rd annual George & Whitey King 4 x 1600 Relay:
"The third annual George and Whitey King 4 x 1600 relay takes place at Saunders Stadium in South Boston this coming Thursday, August 6, at 7:30 p.m. The race honors a pair of long-time officials who were pretty fair runners back in their day (1950's); George was New England HS XC champ and was on a US Record 4 x 1500 relay (hence the connection). Road folk are often tough to convince to run on the track, but this (and our indoor 4x1600) are low key and a good team opportunity.
Co-Ed and pick-up teams are also allowed. We've had clubs, HS alum quartets, and HS rivals coming together to have some pre-season fun. Awards for winners in all divisions are provided by Harpoon (Root beers for the juniors)."
Here's a link to the entry form (PDF):
George & Whitey King 4x1600 relay - Entry Form
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