My title has two meanings, because this track season, I had to A) recover with a less than ideal fall cross country season and B) learn the steeplechase, my new event in which I fell down in as many races as I stayed upright. But I definitely grew as an athlete and the season reaffirmed my belief in the long-term and the value of patience. I'm very grateful that my season went by without injury and that I made serious leaps in my fitness.
My first race was a 5k at Davis, where I ran a terrible race. The only redeeming part was kicking down Erick Garcia and passing him on the inside.
My second race, a steeplechase at Sac State where I ran unattached, was a great introduction to the event. After I finished in 9:37, I was so fired up I wanted to race it again. I ran very conservatively, because I was worried about hitting the wall and injuring myself. Looking back, my form was absolutely atrocious at this meet, and I can't believe I came through without an injury. But seriously, now I was stoked for track season because I got to run the coolest event. And even cooler - I had run the conference qualifier in my first race!
Heading into April, I kept working on my hurdle form, which got a lot better once we got some alumni - Tim and Jessica Helms - to show us proper form and some new drills. At the Chico Distance Carnival, I went into the race gunning for the regional qualifier - 9:07. After going through 4 laps at regional pace, I even started to pick it up and pass people. But coming through the backstretch the knee of my trail leg hit the barrier and I was down in a heap. According to my coach, because I was in such a fog that I don't remember how it happened, I was on the ground for two or three seconds and then got up facing the wrong way. So I had to turn around and race again with a sore knee. And although I still managed to PR by 10 seconds in 9:27, I was pretty bummed that I hadn't been able to get the qualifier. The only good thing was that I didn't permanently damage my knee, I just got a major bruise.
The next week was Woody Wilson. I wasn't able to get my head into the race, and I was only able to run a 9:25 when I should have been up with the leaders. But this race definitely taught me to focus just on the race and not let other parts of my life get in the way.
And then came my best race of the season at the Causeway Classic - this was a serious breakthrough race. After the Woody Wilson steeple where I didn't put it on the line, I stepped up big time for this 3k. In the race, I actually executed tactically pretty well. After running :68, :70, :64, and :70 for the first four laps, I was right on the back of the second pack. With 1200 to go I was hurting and was right behind a teammate and a Sac State guy, but coming up to 1k to go I felt like the pace slowed so I just threw in a burst of speed to keep the pace at :70. With 600 to go I was in fourth, having passed a couple other guys I started pushing. The race up front had been between my teammates Jonathan Peterson and KC Cody as well as Sac State's Dominic Vogl. So I picked up the pace, trying to catch the Sac State guy in third, who was easily 50-70 yards ahead at this point I would say. So I really turned it on, and pulled even with him with 200 to go. At that point I had really started to run out of steam and I felt myself giving up. But I buckled down, ignored my aching legs, picked up my turnover, and gave it my all. I passed him on the turn coming in to the homestretch and kept going. I did look back twice, but I couldn't tell how fast I was going anymore, and I was worried I was going to lose right there. But I finished in third with a huge PR - 8:29!!! - and just felt amazing. The time converts to a 9:05 two mile or so, so I can be really proud of my time. My last 600 was a 1:37, and the last 200 was a :31!!! Nice finishing speed right there. What was even cooler was that the UCD guys finished 1-2-3 and my effort had displaced Vogl, making the team score even for the last event - the 4x400. Although we lost in a close battle, it was really cool to see my effort pay off for the team.
Flying down to Irvine was my first flight with the team, which was pretty cool. I really liked the outside water barrier, even though I made a fool of myself by almost falling in it as I warmed up. I felt really in control of myself in this race, and the conditions were perfect. Although we were on regional pace through 3 laps, I slowed down with the leaders on the fourth lap. Moving up from 3rd to 1st in the fifth lap, I knew I was going to have to really start moving if I wanted to get 9:07. I really went after it with 800 left, and after coming through in the lead at the bell, my legs really started feeling weighted down. But I kept driving, and was still in the lead coming up to the water barrier with 150 left. But going over I caught my trail leg and face-planted in the water. I got up quickly but was in second for good, coming through in 9:15. At this point I felt like fitness-wise I was ready for a sub-9:10 at least, but wasn't getting it thanks to all of my falls.
So after a week off from competing, it was time for Big West!! I was chosen to run the steeple with my teammate, Kyle Suarez, down in sunny Northridge. I couldn't believe that I was actually going as a freshman, I had never thought of myself as good enough. So I competed at 9:45 in the morning, and it was already in the 80s and I was sweating like crazy. We dumped a bunch of water over ourselves right before the race, and then off we went. I was in the second third of the pack for the first lap, and then surged through the water pit and pushed into third. I settled in there for a couple more laps, then pushed up to second place, right off the leader's shoulder. And it was cool, my form was so much better than the leader's that I would actually hurdle into first place over every barrier, and he would have to surge to catch up again! But with four laps down, Mike Powers and some other guy went by me into the lead. And I tried to go with them, but my legs just didn't respond. I got passed by three more guys in the course of the next two laps. I definitely didn't have my usual kick, which was disappointing, but considering my allergies/cold and the heat, I was pretty satisfied with my result. Looking back on the season, I am very happy with how far I've come, it's been a lot of fun.
So yeah, now it's two weeks off and then I start ramping up for cross country again. I have a lot of goals for this season, I'm amped to get training again.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Lydiard's Training
If anyone has books they recommend describing Lydiard's training methods, please let me know. I would really like to read up on his ideas, they seem to have worked wonders for his runners in the Olympics!
Monday, May 19, 2008
Demons
FIRST CALL FOR THE MILE RUN
His heart twisted around in his chest like a wild animal; it was an absolutely wrenching shot of adrenaline. They were going to run it after all! He was going to have to go through with it!
Then he got control again and steadied himself.
...
SECOND CALL FOR THE MILE RUN
Flash went another shot of adrenaline through his veins - he took two gasping breaths that seemed wrenching from his body as if from one tossed suddenly into an icy sea. He got control again, this time with difficulty.
Cassidy looked Denton in the eye very briefly, then smiled. He gripped Denton's forearm and held it hard for a moment. Then he turned back and ran off down the track. So, Denton thought to himself. He had seen it in Cassidy's eye. So there it is after all.
- Once a Runner
So as the season ends for many of us the question will be; "Is it there after all?"
Will it be there when we need it for the last qualifying rounds? If it is not for some reason, will it be there in the fall? A year from now? When we want it most? When our demons just want to wail on?
His heart twisted around in his chest like a wild animal; it was an absolutely wrenching shot of adrenaline. They were going to run it after all! He was going to have to go through with it!
Then he got control again and steadied himself.
...
SECOND CALL FOR THE MILE RUN
Flash went another shot of adrenaline through his veins - he took two gasping breaths that seemed wrenching from his body as if from one tossed suddenly into an icy sea. He got control again, this time with difficulty.
Cassidy looked Denton in the eye very briefly, then smiled. He gripped Denton's forearm and held it hard for a moment. Then he turned back and ran off down the track. So, Denton thought to himself. He had seen it in Cassidy's eye. So there it is after all.
- Once a Runner
So as the season ends for many of us the question will be; "Is it there after all?"
Will it be there when we need it for the last qualifying rounds? If it is not for some reason, will it be there in the fall? A year from now? When we want it most? When our demons just want to wail on?
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
The Black Ice Knee Fiasco and Comeback
So about two months ago I was out for my long run up in the foothills and slipped on black ice, fell on my right knee and gashed it pretty bad. I got it cleaned out by our trainers, a couple small rocks were taken out and then I waited for the swelling to go away and tried running after 5 days of biking. This was probably not too soon but then my knee swelled up to the point I couldnt walk so I went to the doctor and it was found I had a fever and strep, caused by an infection and not swelling of the injury. This was kind of good news because I thought something was wrong with my IT band and that would have taken longer to heal than the infection and swelling to go away. After another week off I had taken a total of 2 weeks off with two short runs in the middle, but at least was pain free and ready to run.
After the black ice knee fiasco, things have been getting better. I have a February and March of training that can only be described as crap, with 3 workouts in that time and three weeks above 50. Amazingly my third workout was great... 8, 4, 2, 4, 2, 4, 2, 8 very quick for the training up to that point - 2:23/66/30/64/30/62/29/2:13. That was nothing short of a breakthrough in training, then three days later was the fall and back to square one. Now I am running really consistently, I hope to be ready come November, the month of resolve.
After talking with Gary (my coach) about a comeback plan, we decided that there is no need to try to salvage the season as far as running fast times, but really just putting in good miles and workouts to help in the future. The other thing is to race a few 5ks in order to learn how to race the distance on the track. My first collegiate track race was at the end of my third week back; a 1500 in 4:09. We chose the 15 because otherwise I would have had to run 5ks on back to back weekends, which I dont think is the greatest idea when not in shape. I think that was a pretty good sign because I had pretty much only done tempo work up to that point, and nothing under 5 minute pace except strides since the aforementioned workout, so a 4:26/4:27 mile equivalent is fine with me, last season I had opened with a 4:32 off far more consistent training.
A week later I raced my first 5k, which was not as successful, but it is easy to see why. I was at the end of my first 75 mile week since January, my shoe came untied in the 3rd lap, it was my first 5k, my training was up to that point very inconsistent, it was ridiculously windy on the last turn, etc. My initial response was anger at seeing 15:46 but in retrospect I don't see why I should have expected to run very much faster than that given the circumstances. Right now I feel like I am rolling pretty well though, having just completed my first 80 mile week since October, then doing another 80 and handling the fatigue pretty well.
This last weekend I ran at a last chance meet put on by Santa Clara University and USF, a 3k. It went decently I suppose, it was hot and for some reason the other runners in the race thought I shouldnt be in second place. I was passed on every 200 by someone even though I was trying to not let people in by keeping close to the runner in front of me and eventually shuffled to 7th place by the mile, which I ran in 4:45, off of completely even splits (71 points). On lap 5 I must have run a very slow split and I think I only passed one person. Over the next lap I passed 3 more, then 2 more at 600 to go. I was repassed at 300 to go despite having made a good surge at 600 out and again at 400 out, held onto whoever that was and then ran away in the last 200 to get 2nd place in 8:57, which is about a 9:35 3200. Damned positive splits (5th lap). First place, Cheyne Inman, had just run away with it and it became a race for 2nd after the mile. Later we put together a 4x4 and I split like 56. At the end of an 80 mile week, and 6 weeks of training after 2 weeks off, plus a horrible February with no workouts and low mileage, I will accept those times. It was a good experience, putting in random surges late in the race.
This weekend I have a 5k at Davis, assuming I get in. Hopefully dropping down to 55 miles this week will give my legs the freshness they need in order to run well at that distance.
I have recently applied to a job in Montana at a resort in Glacier National Park which is at 5k ft and hope to get that. The resort is called St. Mary Lodge and Resort, located on St. Mary Lake. If I get the job I will stay there from June 1st-ish until August 10th-ish then go to Chico XC's week of camp in Tahoe. Some other guys that are in for the Montana gig include Torrey Olson, Matt Duffy, Charlie Enscoe, my teammate Cameron and some other assorted runners that Torrey knows. If I don't get the job I will stay in the Bay and work for my dad and try to get to altitude a few times. I got a call today from them but wasnt around to pick it up, called back and got their answering machine, didnt know what kind of message I could possibly leave so I didnt. I wonder why they havent just emailed me... Im kind of excited/worried to see what the call was about.
After talking with Gary (my coach) about a comeback plan, we decided that there is no need to try to salvage the season as far as running fast times, but really just putting in good miles and workouts to help in the future. The other thing is to race a few 5ks in order to learn how to race the distance on the track. My first collegiate track race was at the end of my third week back; a 1500 in 4:09. We chose the 15 because otherwise I would have had to run 5ks on back to back weekends, which I dont think is the greatest idea when not in shape. I think that was a pretty good sign because I had pretty much only done tempo work up to that point, and nothing under 5 minute pace except strides since the aforementioned workout, so a 4:26/4:27 mile equivalent is fine with me, last season I had opened with a 4:32 off far more consistent training.
A week later I raced my first 5k, which was not as successful, but it is easy to see why. I was at the end of my first 75 mile week since January, my shoe came untied in the 3rd lap, it was my first 5k, my training was up to that point very inconsistent, it was ridiculously windy on the last turn, etc. My initial response was anger at seeing 15:46 but in retrospect I don't see why I should have expected to run very much faster than that given the circumstances. Right now I feel like I am rolling pretty well though, having just completed my first 80 mile week since October, then doing another 80 and handling the fatigue pretty well.
This last weekend I ran at a last chance meet put on by Santa Clara University and USF, a 3k. It went decently I suppose, it was hot and for some reason the other runners in the race thought I shouldnt be in second place. I was passed on every 200 by someone even though I was trying to not let people in by keeping close to the runner in front of me and eventually shuffled to 7th place by the mile, which I ran in 4:45, off of completely even splits (71 points). On lap 5 I must have run a very slow split and I think I only passed one person. Over the next lap I passed 3 more, then 2 more at 600 to go. I was repassed at 300 to go despite having made a good surge at 600 out and again at 400 out, held onto whoever that was and then ran away in the last 200 to get 2nd place in 8:57, which is about a 9:35 3200. Damned positive splits (5th lap). First place, Cheyne Inman, had just run away with it and it became a race for 2nd after the mile. Later we put together a 4x4 and I split like 56. At the end of an 80 mile week, and 6 weeks of training after 2 weeks off, plus a horrible February with no workouts and low mileage, I will accept those times. It was a good experience, putting in random surges late in the race.
This weekend I have a 5k at Davis, assuming I get in. Hopefully dropping down to 55 miles this week will give my legs the freshness they need in order to run well at that distance.
I have recently applied to a job in Montana at a resort in Glacier National Park which is at 5k ft and hope to get that. The resort is called St. Mary Lodge and Resort, located on St. Mary Lake. If I get the job I will stay there from June 1st-ish until August 10th-ish then go to Chico XC's week of camp in Tahoe. Some other guys that are in for the Montana gig include Torrey Olson, Matt Duffy, Charlie Enscoe, my teammate Cameron and some other assorted runners that Torrey knows. If I don't get the job I will stay in the Bay and work for my dad and try to get to altitude a few times. I got a call today from them but wasnt around to pick it up, called back and got their answering machine, didnt know what kind of message I could possibly leave so I didnt. I wonder why they havent just emailed me... Im kind of excited/worried to see what the call was about.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Causeway Classic
Well, it's coming up to championship time. I feel like it's high school all over again, and we're having our last couple of meets before we really buckle down for the big-time. My fitness has improved in leaps and bounds this season, it's been an enjoyable ride. My most recent steeple was a let-down, but I made up for it in a big way at the most recent meet - in the 3k in the Causeway Classic against Sac State. Although my laps were slightly inconsistent to begin with, I settled in at 70s for the 3-5th laps, passing a couple people until I found myself in fourth place with 1200 to go, a good 50-70 meters back of third place. So with 600 to go I started my drive for the finish, coming closer and closer to Sac State's Dominic Vogl until I'm right behind him with 200 to go. As we round the curve coming to the homestretch I just push through the lactic acid wall and pick up my rhythm and go for broke. I ended up in third in 8:29.97, an exciting finish behind my teammates Jonathan Peterson and KC Cody. In the last 600 I managed a 1:37 and the last 200 in :31. Pretty sweet day.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Recent Quad Meet
So, I ran the 5k recently at a home meet against Fresno State, Stanford, and USF. So the conditions were hardly ideal, sunny with 15-20 mph winds, so I didn't run a great time. But nevertheless, I had a fun finish, and here's some photos to prove it:
That was the most dramatic finish I've been in, and it was against Erick Garcia no less, a 9:09 2-miler and 15:30 at Woodward!
That was the most dramatic finish I've been in, and it was against Erick Garcia no less, a 9:09 2-miler and 15:30 at Woodward!
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Sub 4 vs Everest
A recent thread was made on letsrun about which is harder, a sub 4:00 mile or climbing Mt. Everest. This is one of the replies.
"A guided trip up Everest is like sub-4:00 on rollerskates on a one-lane track with the perimeter of the track having a 12-story dropoff, and every once in while, a chunk of the track falls away completely."-Some letsrun poster
I thought it was funny.
"A guided trip up Everest is like sub-4:00 on rollerskates on a one-lane track with the perimeter of the track having a 12-story dropoff, and every once in while, a chunk of the track falls away completely."-Some letsrun poster
I thought it was funny.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Boston
First off, I have been sick the past few days and haven't run since Wednesday, it is now Sunday. Although being sick is a major drag it is giving me time to refocus, and while I have lost four days of development, I think I have mentally recovered whatever slight bit may have been lost. Although going into sickness I was extremely psyched for this track season, I think I am now even more focused and again seeing things in the big picture, as well as wanting it more and more every day I can't run.
Last weekend I went to Boston for the Boston Indoor Games with my friend Mike Brondello who currently runs at Campo. Mike's sister goes to Boston University so we stayed in her dorm room while there. Before I bought my ticket, I found out about what I thought was an all-comers the day of BIG and signed up for the 5k online. After talking to Campo alum, Chris Vizcaino, I found out that it was a much bigger meet than just some random all-comers meet and that he would be racing the 3k there, so I was excited to see him as well.
I like Boston, it is a pretty cool city. The Subway has way more stops than BART and has better pay methods to save money. The "T" line in Boston is the major form of transportation because of this, something the Bay Area should look into so that the freeways aren't always so crowded.
I was going to run the 5k at the Terrier Invitational but instead changed to the 3k so that I wouldn't miss the Boston Indoor Games. Since it is so early and I haven't done any sort of race pace work, I didn't treat the race as a race so much as a way to find out roughly where I am and finished in 9:07. It was fairly easy, my last 50m I opened up a lot but definitely didn't go near the Well, like the Well was a good distance away and I used an extra long slurpee straw to take a teaspoonful of Welljuice. It's worth about a 9:45 3200m, which is a good indicator, especially for how easy it was and that I havent done any work specific to racing.
After that I put on my sweats really quick and cooled down to the nearest "T" station because BIG was about to get interesting. Too bad for whoever sat next to me, I must have not smelled too great.
I got there just in time to watch the last 3/4ths of the mens 800 and saw Khadevis Robinson outkick Nick Symmonds for the win in 1:50. Soon after, I saw the women's indoor 2 mile record dropped from 9:23 to 9:10 right in front of me by Meseret Defar, while a white Australian girl hung on for a 9:13!!! Respect to Kim Smith. After that I think was the Mens' mile which was of little interest since it didn't go under 4 and I had seen a 3:59 earlier that day during the Terrier Invitational. I have to say that I was disappointed in how the race played out, but no disrespect to the milers, things just didnt work out in that race. I got spoiled.
Later was the mens' 3000 meter race. Craig Mottram dominated, he went out faster than the mile field in 60.5 opposed to 61 for the first 400m. He continued just hammering the pace, lap after lap, 4:05 at the 1600m and then began his negative split battle of insanity. The next split 400 split was 5:04, he had run a 59 5th quarter. He continued running 30 seconds for each lap to finish in 7:34.5 for the 3k which is on pace for an 8:05 3200, and equivalent in effort to an 8:08 full two mile... indoors with those short turns and all. Pretty baller. After that he got all excited and started high fiving everyone around the outside lane, I saw that from a few feet away and was like "OMG ME TOO" so I went and got a high five from him. I am a huge Mottram fan so getting a high five from him was definitely the highlight of the trip and maybe even the winter. The only thing I think was cooler than that was getting all my winter miles in and running without flaw until now. But I'll get better soon.
After all that I was going through security at the airport in Boston and some guy asks me "Did you race this weekend?" He must have caught on because I was wearing two different Arcadia Invitational backpacks and Nike Frees. I turned around and told the guy I did but was mainly there for BIG and we start a conversation. The guy is Jason Jabaut, a 3:57, 1:48 runner who was racing the mile the night before. I spent the next 45 minutes talking to him about running, one of my favorite pastimes and something I rarely do with sub 4 guys. He let me in on his training with the Nike Farm Team which was recently disbanded but based in local Palo Alto. Apparently those guys did 3-4 hard workouts a week. Sometimes they would do an 8 mile tempo in the morning then come back and do hard 300s in the afternoon... while running in excess of 100 miles a week and doing their 2 hour long runs around 5:30 pace.
I got some good tid-bits out of him about his philosophy on running as well. He told me that he didn't think that running that hard all the time was actually the best way to train, that a different training program allowing more rest may have suited him better than the Farm Team's training. He then said that it set him up to run well now, everything he does is so much easier than the training there mentally, but more physically benefiting so he is racing better. He told me that cross training and supplement training (specifically weight training) in addition to a training regimen aren't worth it if you are tired because of such activities; that running should be the first and foremost concern. If something is making you sore and have a bad workout, it isn't worth the effort and energy. That doesn't mean however to not do weights, just cut out supplement training when it begins to hurt your running, or cut it back to an easier level.
Then he asked the big question: "Why do you run?" I didn't have an answer for him, just that I want to be really fast. He told me that he was looking for a coach after the Farm Team was disbanded and one prospective asked him to write her an essay on the topic "why do you run." It took him weeks and dozens of drafts before he was able to respond in the best way he could. This was the essay he wrote. I actually didn't find that until about 15 minutes ago, while searching for his PRs. If I had something more to add, I forgot it.
Last weekend I went to Boston for the Boston Indoor Games with my friend Mike Brondello who currently runs at Campo. Mike's sister goes to Boston University so we stayed in her dorm room while there. Before I bought my ticket, I found out about what I thought was an all-comers the day of BIG and signed up for the 5k online. After talking to Campo alum, Chris Vizcaino, I found out that it was a much bigger meet than just some random all-comers meet and that he would be racing the 3k there, so I was excited to see him as well.
I like Boston, it is a pretty cool city. The Subway has way more stops than BART and has better pay methods to save money. The "T" line in Boston is the major form of transportation because of this, something the Bay Area should look into so that the freeways aren't always so crowded.
I was going to run the 5k at the Terrier Invitational but instead changed to the 3k so that I wouldn't miss the Boston Indoor Games. Since it is so early and I haven't done any sort of race pace work, I didn't treat the race as a race so much as a way to find out roughly where I am and finished in 9:07. It was fairly easy, my last 50m I opened up a lot but definitely didn't go near the Well, like the Well was a good distance away and I used an extra long slurpee straw to take a teaspoonful of Welljuice. It's worth about a 9:45 3200m, which is a good indicator, especially for how easy it was and that I havent done any work specific to racing.
After that I put on my sweats really quick and cooled down to the nearest "T" station because BIG was about to get interesting. Too bad for whoever sat next to me, I must have not smelled too great.
I got there just in time to watch the last 3/4ths of the mens 800 and saw Khadevis Robinson outkick Nick Symmonds for the win in 1:50. Soon after, I saw the women's indoor 2 mile record dropped from 9:23 to 9:10 right in front of me by Meseret Defar, while a white Australian girl hung on for a 9:13!!! Respect to Kim Smith. After that I think was the Mens' mile which was of little interest since it didn't go under 4 and I had seen a 3:59 earlier that day during the Terrier Invitational. I have to say that I was disappointed in how the race played out, but no disrespect to the milers, things just didnt work out in that race. I got spoiled.
Later was the mens' 3000 meter race. Craig Mottram dominated, he went out faster than the mile field in 60.5 opposed to 61 for the first 400m. He continued just hammering the pace, lap after lap, 4:05 at the 1600m and then began his negative split battle of insanity. The next split 400 split was 5:04, he had run a 59 5th quarter. He continued running 30 seconds for each lap to finish in 7:34.5 for the 3k which is on pace for an 8:05 3200, and equivalent in effort to an 8:08 full two mile... indoors with those short turns and all. Pretty baller. After that he got all excited and started high fiving everyone around the outside lane, I saw that from a few feet away and was like "OMG ME TOO" so I went and got a high five from him. I am a huge Mottram fan so getting a high five from him was definitely the highlight of the trip and maybe even the winter. The only thing I think was cooler than that was getting all my winter miles in and running without flaw until now. But I'll get better soon.
After all that I was going through security at the airport in Boston and some guy asks me "Did you race this weekend?" He must have caught on because I was wearing two different Arcadia Invitational backpacks and Nike Frees. I turned around and told the guy I did but was mainly there for BIG and we start a conversation. The guy is Jason Jabaut, a 3:57, 1:48 runner who was racing the mile the night before. I spent the next 45 minutes talking to him about running, one of my favorite pastimes and something I rarely do with sub 4 guys. He let me in on his training with the Nike Farm Team which was recently disbanded but based in local Palo Alto. Apparently those guys did 3-4 hard workouts a week. Sometimes they would do an 8 mile tempo in the morning then come back and do hard 300s in the afternoon... while running in excess of 100 miles a week and doing their 2 hour long runs around 5:30 pace.
I got some good tid-bits out of him about his philosophy on running as well. He told me that he didn't think that running that hard all the time was actually the best way to train, that a different training program allowing more rest may have suited him better than the Farm Team's training. He then said that it set him up to run well now, everything he does is so much easier than the training there mentally, but more physically benefiting so he is racing better. He told me that cross training and supplement training (specifically weight training) in addition to a training regimen aren't worth it if you are tired because of such activities; that running should be the first and foremost concern. If something is making you sore and have a bad workout, it isn't worth the effort and energy. That doesn't mean however to not do weights, just cut out supplement training when it begins to hurt your running, or cut it back to an easier level.
Then he asked the big question: "Why do you run?" I didn't have an answer for him, just that I want to be really fast. He told me that he was looking for a coach after the Farm Team was disbanded and one prospective asked him to write her an essay on the topic "why do you run." It took him weeks and dozens of drafts before he was able to respond in the best way he could. This was the essay he wrote. I actually didn't find that until about 15 minutes ago, while searching for his PRs. If I had something more to add, I forgot it.
Friday, January 11, 2008
Again to Carthage Book Review
First off, you must have read the first book "Once a Runner" which is reviewed below.
Calvin:
"Again to Carthage" was, in my opinion, a really great book. It certainly isn't on the same plane as OAR, but it is certainly another great novel packed with training information and motivation. It slowly reintroduces the reader to Cassidy and his new life as a lawyer in Florida. For the first half of the novel, Cassidy actively avoids training seriously, and enjoys his time fishing, diving, and visiting his family. After hitting the half-way point, which includes the loss of two friends, Cassidy again considers resuming "the task." I won't give away what happens, but there is a little bit of romance, some self-reflection, and a lot of hard-core training. I highly recommend you read Parker's latest novel.
Joey:
"Again to Carthage" is not as good as OAR, unfortunately. If you are looking for the best ever written about anything, read the original book, but if you are looking for a good book, read ATC. After taking some time off Cassidy returns to training... also after some 150 or more pages about what he likes to do in his time off from work; including fishing and partying with his attorney friends. This book builds even more suspense than the first, with almost no running for the first half, then gets into some training. As you can imagine Cassidy has moved up in distance as that is what you do when you grow up and lose your fast twitch yet have more endurance than ever before. [this is due to long term aerobic development ;) ]
Basically Cassidy has a midlife crisis and goes back to training full tilt.
All this, a high point and a sweet Olympic trials race with hallucinations, then the most anti-climactic ending I have ever read, but its not as bad as it sounds. The ending really speaks to the cold war and how Carter screwed a whole bunch of athletes over with no result for occupying a country that we currently are, LOL. Classic.
The writing style was similar, but I was unable to pick out any of the great quotes of the quality that OAR left with us. It wasn't bad, I was just a little disappointed and quite frankly it would have been impossible to top OAR since after all, it is the greatest book ever written about anything.
Calvin:
"Again to Carthage" was, in my opinion, a really great book. It certainly isn't on the same plane as OAR, but it is certainly another great novel packed with training information and motivation. It slowly reintroduces the reader to Cassidy and his new life as a lawyer in Florida. For the first half of the novel, Cassidy actively avoids training seriously, and enjoys his time fishing, diving, and visiting his family. After hitting the half-way point, which includes the loss of two friends, Cassidy again considers resuming "the task." I won't give away what happens, but there is a little bit of romance, some self-reflection, and a lot of hard-core training. I highly recommend you read Parker's latest novel.
Joey:
"Again to Carthage" is not as good as OAR, unfortunately. If you are looking for the best ever written about anything, read the original book, but if you are looking for a good book, read ATC. After taking some time off Cassidy returns to training... also after some 150 or more pages about what he likes to do in his time off from work; including fishing and partying with his attorney friends. This book builds even more suspense than the first, with almost no running for the first half, then gets into some training. As you can imagine Cassidy has moved up in distance as that is what you do when you grow up and lose your fast twitch yet have more endurance than ever before. [this is due to long term aerobic development ;) ]
Basically Cassidy has a midlife crisis and goes back to training full tilt.
All this, a high point and a sweet Olympic trials race with hallucinations, then the most anti-climactic ending I have ever read, but its not as bad as it sounds. The ending really speaks to the cold war and how Carter screwed a whole bunch of athletes over with no result for occupying a country that we currently are, LOL. Classic.
The writing style was similar, but I was unable to pick out any of the great quotes of the quality that OAR left with us. It wasn't bad, I was just a little disappointed and quite frankly it would have been impossible to top OAR since after all, it is the greatest book ever written about anything.
"Once a Runner" Book Review
Joey:
We are going to do a book review on the book "Again to Carthage" which is the sequel to "Once a Runner" but I thought it would be impossible for me to evaluate ATC without referencing OAR all the time. My ATC review would turn into a mixed review of both books so I am going to get my OAR thoughts out first. Both books are by John L. Parker Jr.
"Once a Runner" is the best book ever written about anything... ever. The book starts off with a good hook, but then gets off-topic for a huge section which turns a lot of people off whom I have talked to. They say it is boring, but it builds suspense like no other for what is to come. The main character is Quenton Cassidy, a miler at fictional Southeastern University in Florida, and covers his quest for the sub 4 mile, then an even larger goal. Every line in this book is poetry, it is 257 pages of pure running poetry and you have to read carefully to pick up all the subtleties. I have read it 4 times all the way through and I don't know how many random chapters or passages here and there, and I still pick up little things that I didn't notice the first times.
On top of the overall quality of writing this book is very, very inspirational. When you see the lengths to which Cassidy goes in order to achieve the goal, otherwise known as his absurd Task. Ah the Task, and the orb which is broken when he has used everything. After reading this book, you will most likely wish to undertake the "Trial of miles, miles of trials" but just remember to build into mileage, sudden jumps yield low benefits when you are injured. However finding that "red line" would be good sooner than later.
Two awesome quotes that don't give away too much:
"And too there were the questions: What did he eat? Did he believe in isometrics? Isotonics? Ice and heat? How about aerobics, est, ESP, STP? What did he have to say about yoga, yogurt, Yogi Berra? What was his pulse rate, his blood pressure, his time for the 100-yard dash? What was the secret, they wanted to know; in a thousand different ways they wanted to know The Secret. And not one of them was prepared, truly prepared to believe that it had not so much to do with chemicals and zippy mental tricks as with that most unprofound and sometimes heart-rending process of removing, molecule by molecule, the very tough rubber that comprised the bottoms of his training shoes. The Trial of Miles; Miles of Trials. How could they be expected to understand that?"
"Cassidy sought no euphoric interludes. They came, when they did, quite naturally and he was content to enjoy them privately. He ran not for crypto-religious reasons, but to win races, to cover ground fast. Not only to be better than his fellows, but better than himself. To be faster by a tenth of a second, by an inch, by two feet or two yards than he than he had been the week or year before. He sought to conquer the physical limitations placed upon him by a three-dimensional world (and if Time is the fourth dimension, that too was his province). If he could conquer the weakness, the cowardice in himself, he would not worry about the rest, it would come. Training was a rite of purification; from it came speed, strength. Racing was a rite of death; from it came knowledge. Such rites demand, if they are to be meaningful at all, a certain amount of time spent precisely on the Red Line, where you can lean over the manicured putting green at the edge of the precipice and see exactly nothing."
I really don't want to give any spoilers which I would have to in order to share my true feelings and love for this book, so I will stop now. I would recommend it for any runner who isn't A.D.D. to the point they can get through the boring part (which I don't think is that boring since it is all poetry). There you go.
Calvin:
As far as running books go, I would argue that this is the best fictional running novel I have ever read. Although I had a little bit of difficulty adjusting to the author's style, once I got into a rhythm the book is just incredible. I still need to find a copy of my own, as I read it all from a pdf that I got online, but that's a whole other story.
Joey really gets to the heart of the book with those two quotes; if I had to choose a phrase that epitomizes what the novel is trying to convey, it would be the "Trials of Miles, Miles of Trials" line. I mean, that phrase alone has been on the back of countless running shirts, so merely by popular vote it is probably a winner, but I find that it really gets at the heart of what distance running is all about. I don't know about other runners, but getting out there in the pouring rain and driving wind and putting in the mileage is what psyches me up. I don't know if that's psychotic or what, but all I know is that I get pumped when I realize that I'm running in conditions that softer people look through their blinds at and go back to watching tv. So, to me, that quote really strikes a chord, and I'm sure it does for other people as well.
What really gets me about this book is how many little nuggets of training and running wisdom that Parker imparts. A big part of it was his history as an excellent miler for the University of Florida, and he crafts his book so that a careful reader will be able to find its hidden advice. I have yet to read it again, but I certainly plan to, so maybe I too will be able to take the world by storm, just as Quenton Cassidy did.
We are going to do a book review on the book "Again to Carthage" which is the sequel to "Once a Runner" but I thought it would be impossible for me to evaluate ATC without referencing OAR all the time. My ATC review would turn into a mixed review of both books so I am going to get my OAR thoughts out first. Both books are by John L. Parker Jr.
"Once a Runner" is the best book ever written about anything... ever. The book starts off with a good hook, but then gets off-topic for a huge section which turns a lot of people off whom I have talked to. They say it is boring, but it builds suspense like no other for what is to come. The main character is Quenton Cassidy, a miler at fictional Southeastern University in Florida, and covers his quest for the sub 4 mile, then an even larger goal. Every line in this book is poetry, it is 257 pages of pure running poetry and you have to read carefully to pick up all the subtleties. I have read it 4 times all the way through and I don't know how many random chapters or passages here and there, and I still pick up little things that I didn't notice the first times.
On top of the overall quality of writing this book is very, very inspirational. When you see the lengths to which Cassidy goes in order to achieve the goal, otherwise known as his absurd Task. Ah the Task, and the orb which is broken when he has used everything. After reading this book, you will most likely wish to undertake the "Trial of miles, miles of trials" but just remember to build into mileage, sudden jumps yield low benefits when you are injured. However finding that "red line" would be good sooner than later.
Two awesome quotes that don't give away too much:
"And too there were the questions: What did he eat? Did he believe in isometrics? Isotonics? Ice and heat? How about aerobics, est, ESP, STP? What did he have to say about yoga, yogurt, Yogi Berra? What was his pulse rate, his blood pressure, his time for the 100-yard dash? What was the secret, they wanted to know; in a thousand different ways they wanted to know The Secret. And not one of them was prepared, truly prepared to believe that it had not so much to do with chemicals and zippy mental tricks as with that most unprofound and sometimes heart-rending process of removing, molecule by molecule, the very tough rubber that comprised the bottoms of his training shoes. The Trial of Miles; Miles of Trials. How could they be expected to understand that?"
"Cassidy sought no euphoric interludes. They came, when they did, quite naturally and he was content to enjoy them privately. He ran not for crypto-religious reasons, but to win races, to cover ground fast. Not only to be better than his fellows, but better than himself. To be faster by a tenth of a second, by an inch, by two feet or two yards than he than he had been the week or year before. He sought to conquer the physical limitations placed upon him by a three-dimensional world (and if Time is the fourth dimension, that too was his province). If he could conquer the weakness, the cowardice in himself, he would not worry about the rest, it would come. Training was a rite of purification; from it came speed, strength. Racing was a rite of death; from it came knowledge. Such rites demand, if they are to be meaningful at all, a certain amount of time spent precisely on the Red Line, where you can lean over the manicured putting green at the edge of the precipice and see exactly nothing."
I really don't want to give any spoilers which I would have to in order to share my true feelings and love for this book, so I will stop now. I would recommend it for any runner who isn't A.D.D. to the point they can get through the boring part (which I don't think is that boring since it is all poetry). There you go.
Calvin:
As far as running books go, I would argue that this is the best fictional running novel I have ever read. Although I had a little bit of difficulty adjusting to the author's style, once I got into a rhythm the book is just incredible. I still need to find a copy of my own, as I read it all from a pdf that I got online, but that's a whole other story.
Joey really gets to the heart of the book with those two quotes; if I had to choose a phrase that epitomizes what the novel is trying to convey, it would be the "Trials of Miles, Miles of Trials" line. I mean, that phrase alone has been on the back of countless running shirts, so merely by popular vote it is probably a winner, but I find that it really gets at the heart of what distance running is all about. I don't know about other runners, but getting out there in the pouring rain and driving wind and putting in the mileage is what psyches me up. I don't know if that's psychotic or what, but all I know is that I get pumped when I realize that I'm running in conditions that softer people look through their blinds at and go back to watching tv. So, to me, that quote really strikes a chord, and I'm sure it does for other people as well.
What really gets me about this book is how many little nuggets of training and running wisdom that Parker imparts. A big part of it was his history as an excellent miler for the University of Florida, and he crafts his book so that a careful reader will be able to find its hidden advice. I have yet to read it again, but I certainly plan to, so maybe I too will be able to take the world by storm, just as Quenton Cassidy did.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)