The 2016 US Olympic Team Trials Marathon: the inspiration is cyclical

My Sunday run was a success. It wasn't perfect, I had a couple of unplanned stops to relieve myself. Those always frustrate me, but it happens, right? The surprise upside to the 2nd stop was then deciding, stay at a controlled slow pace or chase after the 3 guys I was out there with who are now almost a minute ahead of me. I didn't want to end the run solo, I gave chase...hard.

 I have probably done about 20 runs of 2hrs 30mins or more in the past ten years of marathon training. Few of them have I walked away from feeling "okay" and feeling "not beat up" the next day. But this Sunday, despite the absurd low temperatures, I ended the last 5miles of my run like a dog off the leash. Today, I felt no worse for it.

 If I told you I wasn't inspired by watching the Olympic Trials marathon race the day before, I would be a liar. Will, Jeremy, Brandon, and I were discussing the Us Olympic Trials Marathon race somewhere along the way. Then as I knew I had ground to make up, I imagined myself the 6th man in the OT race. Running a calculated faster pace to reel in my competition and get a spot on the team. After about 1.5miles I passed Jeremy and Brandon (who were left by Will who had decided to pick it up), exchanged some words of thanks and encouragement and I kept at it. Another 1.5miles later I caught Will, he was surprised and glad I had reeled him back in. 

He asked "Do you have another 3 left in you?" 

I said "Hell yea!" 

And we stuck the fast pace until we hit 22 miles. We congratulated each other on a great effort and quickly parted ways, it was still only12 degrees by that time. It was a lot of fun to finish a run that way. Most often I have been just grinding to get the last 10-15mins finished and hating it. Not today, today was like a 17mile warmup and great 5mile tempo!

In running, I can appreciate that there are a couple of levels above my head. That greatness is an inspiration that has always been in front of me, simultaneously pulling and pushing me to new achievements. I have always looked at being "far from the best" as a built in bonus, keeps the pressure of being the one who most others expect big things from.

So, what is the inspiration for those who are the champions? The best of the best? I think the ones who keep striving to win and stay at the top level are the ones who know that Victory or any achievement becomes a memory as soon as the next newspaper is printed. As soon as the next race comes, or the talk of the next championship upcoming. So, they recognize this, enjoy the day and get ready to do it again because it is a great challenge to have repeated success or just to have the chance to compete with a field of the best.

I think they can also be inspired by those that are chasing them, competitors, training partners, or just other athletes that have the common bond of making the effort to be a great as you can be. 

You need your rivals as much as you need your teammates, because without them; what would any win or medal be worth? Who would you beat to get it? Who would it matter for?

On Saturday I was amazed to see Meb Keflezighi run with all the younger challengers and beat all but one, simply inspired to see Tyler McCandless push to the front, Tyler Pennel making his surge and leading for several miles. Jared Ward's patience and strength that ultimately led him to the 3rd spot on the team. On the Women's side, Amy Cragg and Shalane Flanagan working together the whole way until Flanagan began to struggle. Seeing Desiree Linden's push into 3rd and then 2nd as the race wore on in its' later miles had me on the edge of my seat. I am continually impressed by Kara Goucher's drive, running hard stuck in 4th is a mental kick in the gut. She never backed down and I think we'll see her do amazing things still!

Seeing the emotion of these Athletes in triumph or failure reminds me: They are just like me, the numbers are different but we go through it just the same. Like they say, the struggle is real.  Training for years to hopefully have a shot to run with your country's best for one of three slots into the Olympic Marathon race is a dream. I can only imagine how a runner may handle it when the outcome is sour. Many vow to come back again no matter what happens out there.

All of it is an inspiration, and makes me think "one more mile today", "three seconds faster today", "run more hills you sissy". Yeah, I say Inspiration is reflexive and cyclical, it is NOT a pyramid scheme.

Hey, I was thinkin' about it, it's 1:35am now, having sufficiently emptied my brain, I bid you a good night.

The 119th B.A.A. Boston Marathon

If you aren't careful you can easily ramble from one year's race into another. If you are a creature of habit and tradition, as I tend to be. You think of the first time you ran the Boston Marathon when you start thinking about the one you just ran. My mind does that anyway.  Read my previous post, and you'll see how this year's race was very uncertain for me. I didn't think I would make it to the starting line with a reasonable hope of running more than half the distance. In the end I ran a brilliantly executed 2:52:13 (1:28/1:24).  Far from my best, and a decent bit better than my worst.  The truth is, if systems aren't failing and you put forth the best effort you feel that you can at the moment; then you ran a good race.  As a competitive runner, I tend to mark myself against recent or long past results. It is a practice of mental torture we inflict upon ourselves. We want the feeling of knowing we've made a new achievement. Maybe we won't admit that we're all "PR" addicts.  If you aren't a runner...well, whatever, let's just say, "It's a runner thing."

"The Belgian Bullet" Johan on the right, and Me on the Left, before the ride to Hopkinton.

My Employer, TomTom, required my support for the marathon expo, Inevitability was knocking. I'll say this, being at the expo center for several days was a great feeling! I've worked several other big race expos for TomTom by now, but this was my first chance to work at the Boston expo! I had a blast teaming up with my coworkers to help sell our product! But I also had a good time meeting runners from around the world who were there for their first Boston; or their 10th! You really do get to appreciate the dedication it takes for people to qualify or raise money to be at this event.  Also, over the course of the five days I was in Boston, I had a chance to see two games at Fenway Park, I'd never taken the opportunity to do so in the past. I bought the official Boston Mararthon commemorative jacket! Despite this being my fifth, I'd run in 07', 10', 12', and 14'. Many reasons lead to the gaps between years, so I was very excited to make it back to back years for the first time!
 I managed to arrange a very comfortable couch to crash on with last year's host, Dave Moyer. Again, I made my way with Dave and Will Appman to the Boston Commons on the morning of the race. In one of my favorite moments of the day, Dave says to Will and I "We'd better hurry or we're going to miss the train and the next one isn't for another 15mins". Which resulted in the three of us running Tempo pace for roughly .3-.4miles (thankfully downhill), into the station, and I managed to swipe my "Charlie card" for Will just in time to get through the turnstile. We bounded down the stairs and onto the train, doors closing with about 3seconds to spare! We'd told a bunch of friends, also racing the marathon, to meet at a specific time. Ironically, most of them were late anyway. So, our mad dash "warm-up" was largely pointless. But, hey, we got there!
 I met up with my friend and running protege, Johan "The Belgian Bullet" Ghillebert, who had qualified for Boston after numerous attempts across a span of 2yrs, made the "hop across the pond" from the UK. His goal of 2:58-2:59 roughly lined up with what I figured I might be able to run safely, all moderately scientific speculations. But I figured, "30min slower than my PR, 20mins slower, what's the difference?".  Finding myself in the scenario I was in (recent surgery for a sports hernia), I decided: help my friend, offer to run his pace. Johan was very glad when I told him I would run his pace and help guide him to goal. So, a crowd of us, Dave, Will, Johan, and numerous others from NJ dropped our gear at the gear check tents in the Boston Commons, lined up to board a school bus to ride out to Boston. All of us getting simultaneously nervous and excited.
The weather was not favorable, a raw 43-44degrees with 20mph gusts at times and a steady light to moderate rain for more than 90 mins before the race start. This forced us all under cover, an interesting scene. Thousands of runners trying to stay dry and warm.  Sadly for many waiting on a line for a bathroom at the wrong time, they had wet feet long before the race started. As for myself, I was quite on the edge of barely comfortable before we moved from the athlete's village at Hopkinton HS to the starting line. Still the time passed as Johan and I made acquaintance of a couple decent fellows. The one guy, Ethan, followed us all the way to starting line as it turned out he was in the same corral with Johan. We chatted with Ethan and the other guy, finding that we had some connections through other runners, trading stories about our prior marathons and attempts at big goals. The numbers may be different but the experience is usually all about the same. Talking about some of this stuff before a race like this helps me get through the seemingly endless waiting that takes place beforehand.
Ethan, followed Johan, and I up to the start corral. As we marched along, I reminded them both to keep on a throw away layer for as long as they felt comfortable, as got near the start there were a lot of random articles of clothing being tossed aside as per the usual before a marathon. I noted that poor Ethan had just a cotton short sleeve shirt over his race singlet, and I spotted a long sleeve tech tee for him! He agreed it was a better choice and swapped his cotton throwaway for the tech long sleeve.  As we stood at the edge of the entrance to the 4th corral, the national anthem played, Air Force fighter Jets soared overhead, and many runners wished luck with a hearty hand shake to anyone within reach. They announced the start and we were off...kinda. No one really starts to run until they are right at the start mat. So, about 2mins after the gun went off, we were finally started!
Ethan hung with us for about a mile or two, and he settled into his own pace, later I found out from him that he finished in 3:12, "not my best, not my worst.", he told me. Johan, was very locked into his pace, if anything I might have possibly sabotaged his race, and he would remind me several times "we're speeding", I did edge about 3-5 seconds per mile faster at points than he had in mind in a best case.  So, I kept tapping the brakes. At one point, I simply just had to pee, I thought it over for about a mile. There was no point in holding out, I let Johan know I would catch back up. I stopped into some trees alongside the road, did what I had to do, and hopped back into the fray. Trying to catch a friend in a marathon, that has just developed a 30second gap on you is a challenge when running through other evenly paced runners on a race course.
I did catch him after about a mile or so, that was my fastest mile of the race by far, something probably in the 5:40-50 range.
Johan had a moment of doubt around 12 miles and decided he had to hit the Porta-John, I told him, "I will lock up from the cold if I stop and wait, You got this, I'm gonna' roll." And so I did, I started methodically picking off runners constantly throughout the rest of the race.  I was touching 6:10's later in the race, and felt pretty decent doing it. This all was quite a surprise, I kind of figured it would be a bigger struggle after the surgery. As the miles went buy and I realized, I can get 2:56, 2:55, on pace now for 2:54, faster, 53, 52!  It is exciting to exceed your expectations on a race and do it in smooth, commanding fashion. 

Pushing up Heartbreak Hill, on my way to my big negative-split run!

 I knew with 2miles to go that I was going to stay on the pace I'd been running for the past 3-4miles, which is a great feeling compared to the typical fade that I have experienced in most of my marathons. Running down Boylston Street, weaving through some slower runners, I crashed the line like I was racing a Mile!

Will, Dave, Katie, Me, Stephen, and Nick! Runners and Supporters, good times after the race!

So, there you have it. A great time in Bean Town, with friends near and far. I'm motivated to get truly healthy, strong and fit to go back next year to chase the magical 2:29:xx!
More stories about relatively recent things coming soon!
Hope the Summer Training is going well for all!

Winning a Marathon

So, I won a marathon, again. You might be wondering, how does that feel? I can say, mentally and emotionally, it is great. As for Sunday while doing it, physically, it gradually felt quite bad. Yet, the discomfort and pain were well worth the internal reward of knowing you can be a Champion!

And we're off! Letting them know I mean business!

Through pain with determination, I arrive victorious!

Through the course of the past year I have had some nice successes in running, some PR's last fall in a couple of XC races, most notably having had a good day racing the Boston Marathon this spring and getting a long overdue PR.  I have similar goals for later this fall.  It is interesting to stop and think, In one year; I ran 3 marathons and won 2 of them. I will allow myself to be impressed.  Now, some of you who know me and my times relative to "what is a good time", or "elite" you might ask, "Who was in the race?"
True enough, yesterday at Chasing the Unicorn in Washington Crossing, PA, I took the lead right from the gun and lead the race wire to wire.  However, it is a difficult thing to force yourself to stay on a fast pace when you are following a cyclist who is clearing traffic in front of you.  At points, you start to wonder if you are falling in with the pace of the cyclist or if the cyclist is doing a really good job of listening for your footfalls.
Yesterday's race was one that I felt quite ready for. I have had quality long runs and many uptempo runs with my GSTC teammates throughout the past 6 weeks when they resumed training after their mid-yr break. I believe I went on long runs of 19, 20, 23, 19, 16, and 15 miles in the 6 weeks prior to the race. Most people will train in a bigger block for a marathon, and if I were keying on it as my premier race for the year, I might have bumped long runs a few miles about 10 weeks sooner. I ran this race for several reason.
1-I was asked to come and defend the title. The Champion, the "Unicorn Slayer"!
2-The park is beautiful, the Delaware River and the canal path are very nice to run alongside between Washington Crossing and New Hope.
3-I love the concept of a race where people are looking to qualify for Boston, it is new and I have a pioneering spirit, I love to make history in my sport! Small as this may be in memory years from now, it is a note on a page...somewhere.

Along the way from last yr's, less challenged victory (winning by 11mins), I got to know the President and race director of RunBucks, Pat McCloskey while last yr's race was in progress, he rode the lead cycle and I chatted with him at times during the race. We have communicated here and there about the CTU, and the running scene in general. Pat's genuine enthusiasm for running and putting on these events is magnetic. I have heard only good things about his events and plan to run others in the future.
For many of us, all over the country, that are marathoners, we felt the shock of the Boston Bombing April 15, 2013. It took about 18hrs before I decided I would run the race in 2014. Judit Ward (a runner friend of course!) posted a link in a fb group about this race, it had all the items on my checklist for a Boston Qualifier, not too far from home, relatively low cost compared to many other marathons, and it was placed on the calendar at a time of year when I didn't have other big goals that it conflicted with. So, I bulked up the mileage through the summer, started runs at 6:00 on the ultra hot days to get them done without suffering a heat stroke, and just got myself ready to run a bulletproof race in August. That is precisely what I did; a negative split race and nearly a PR! It was terrific to get the BQ, run a race where I felt strong and WIN!

At this yr's Boston Marathon, a number of people I know from NJ travelled up to Boston, to be there in support of all those who were racing, and I heard them, and saw them. Michael Loenser, an old training partner and teammate with Raritan Valley Road Runners was on the course somewhere around mile 15. His excitement for my performance was such a great boost to my spirits in that moment! He later told me how he was inspired to see me run by, looking strong and seeing all the other racers going by as well. It's true, the atmopshere of the Boston Marathon can breathe life back into running for you! For him, it rekindled that desire to train hard again and qualify for Boston in 2015. Loenser was an all-star for South Plainfield HS and ran for DII East Stroudsburg University, posting times that I will forever admire him for. His best marathon to date is a 2:37 and I tell him all the time he can get faster! We competed against one another in Middlesex County dual meets and Championships as High Schoolers. He is a knowledgeable runner who trains smart, an easy going guy that I am glad to call a friend.

At some point some months ago, in the middle of a run, Loenser was telling me about how he was trying to decide which race to run to enter in the hunt for a BQ. I reminded him about Chasing the Unicorn, as the race apporached sell out I urged him again, and he signed up. On a recent run, it occured to me that we should share a ride to the race, and so we left Sunday morning at 5am and made our way in my trusty old 5spd Honda Civic through darkness to Washington Crossing, PA. We listened to Black Sabbath Vol.4 and Coheed and Cambria-2nd stage Turbine Blade to get revved up to kick ass, Loenser reminisced about how he would always carry a walk-man around in high school and college to psych up for his races!  The mood was: On a mission. As Loenser put it, this was "a business trip", but I find a way to keep laughing going into these scenarios, you have to, or you get extra nervous and can get kinda' panicked.

On our 2nd to last run together before the race, Loenser tells me he has been battling Plantar Fasciitis, and admittedly hadn't done too much for it. Mostly taking 2 weeks off just a few days prior. This surprised me coming from a veteran like him. However, I was not going to let my buddy slip through the cracks, I know what to do for this. I told him all about KT tape, and how this can help get you through such problems. I convinced Loenser to come see me at the Westfield Running Company, where I taped his foot for him. We ran again the next day, Friday before the marathon, and he gave me some feedback. He felt the tape could have been tighter, so he re-did 2 of the 3 tape strips at home on his own. Apparently it worked, Loenser ran 3:01:08! Which, I believe should be a safe time to get in, and I hope it will be.  I am proud of Loenser for making it happen! I am very confident we will see him come in under the 2:50 mark next spring!

My own efforts at this year were more challenging than the previous year's. I think I might have over eaten the night before and at too late a time as well. There is a chance that the tomatoes I added into the Ragu might have gone bad.  Oops.  Yea, I had some GI troubles during the race.  I'll get into some of that in a bit. But on with race scene, prep, start, etc.

Loenser and I walked from the parking area in the last moments of the night toward the registration/start/finish area, the area was incredibly peaceful and the only sounds were some other runners arriving in their automobiles and the faint hum of a power generator for the finish line clock.  We were greeted by Pat, who gave me a big hug! I introduced him to Loenser, and we chatted briefly. Pat had race director business to handle. Loenser and I both got our race bibs, walked back over to the Civic and did the typical things. Pin the bib to the singlet, apply anti-chafing balm, put on the racing socks/shoes, put on a cammo head band in honor of Andrew Capizzi, put on a gps watch, pinned energy/electrolyte gels to our shorts, and then began a slow/easy warmup jog toward the porta-johns.  My nerves were now getting to be on edge. I have to admit, I feel better at "big marathons" where you have a large amount of down time being shuttled to the start site with a later start time. This allows more time for the Gastro-Intestinal Tract to do what it has to do before you start the race.
So, I ran about 1/4mile, hit the toilet, ran another 1/2mile easy, did some light dynamic stretches and hit the toilet one last time.  I saw the first wave of 50 or so runners was gathered up behind the starting line, and so I made my way through the crowd to the front. I found some other very fit looking fellows clustered up near the front, I was unphased; I had my plan, their presence would not intimidate me.

Pat McCloskey, spoke over the PA system, welcoming everyone, giving last minute instructions. Kindly, he introduced me to the crowd as "The Unicorn Slayer", and to "try to stay out of his way" because "he is going for a 2:30". I can't recall that I ever actually told Pat that I was going to aim for 2:29-2:30, but he knows the score. The national anthem is played over the PA, Pat says "Ready, set, go!" I took off quickly, I wanted to set the tone for my legs immediately, I was definitely out kind of hard for the first 1/2mile, but I settled down and clipped a 5:52. I figured I could run a 5:45vg over the first half, and if things were going well, run the back half around 5:37avg, for the magic 5:42(2:29:5x). But none of that was in the cards for me this day, and that's alright. Things were alright through 11miles, up to that point avg pace of 5:49, and then suddenly, I was suffering from GI distress, I knew I was going to have to stop, but I was 2miles away from the start/finish and toilets near them. Those were a rough 2miles.

Halfway split 1:16:32(ironically the same as my split from Boston this spring), after the pit-stop, I had lost about 2minutes already. I knew the sub 2:30 was gone, a PR was likely gone as well. Over the next few miles I realized, I was not totally alright, and I had to stop again, the next opportunity didn't come along until mile 17.7. I lost another 90seconds there no doubt. Now I was fairly sure that breaking my course record from the previous yr was also out of the question. I chatted a bit with the lead cyclist when there were no runners ahead and the view was clear for a while.  I told him that the goals were out the window, but I was fighting to stay on pace to be as close as I could and to hold the lead that I had from the first step.
He said, "I'll be your carrot", so he stayed ahead a little bit and I fought to bring the pace back to the 5:50's, I got a few miles in there back under 6. At the 20mile turn around I saw the 2nd place runner, who was now closer than he was when we had turned at 6.55 and 13.1 (no surprise, I stopped twice). Naturally, this prodded me and I pushed once again, clipping a 5:51and 5:58 for miles 21 and 22. That was the last of my best. My calves felt like crap from about 10miles and they just got progressively worse.

The last 4 miles were 6:09, 6:16, 6:28, 6:40, the last .2 was probably a touch slower.  I looked over my shoulder a few times in those last few miles, I knew I was fading hard and fought to hold it together. So, yea, I actually separated from the 2nd runner (Rafer Dannehauer, 23 of Shutesbury, MA) a bit after all, while he was actually 1:06 back at the 20mile turn-around, in the moment; it felt and looked like less. In the end I beat him by 2:37, but you don't let yourself think you have it in the bag when you are hurting.  There was surrprising crowd support for a small Sunday morning race, and  more than the previous year! Also, I have to say, most all the other runners I passed as we ran back and forth along the 6.55mile stretch; encouraged me as they themselves were working to get their own BQ or PR.

As I made the last turn back into Washington Crossing Historic Park, I thought, "Just another couple minutes and your done." My left foot was hurting, my calves were like dead wood (and 3 days later, they still are), and I was glad to have the win. I cruised through the finish line to applause, got my finisher's medal and a bottle of water. I took my socks and shoes off immediately, and shortly thereafter sat my tired ass down. Pat came over and asked how I was, with honesty I told him, "I had a rough time out there". But I was relieved. It was nice that the 2nd and 3rd finishers came in just a few minutes later, we posed for a few photos for the sponsors and family members of the other two guys Last year, I thought, "I never thought I would win a marathon", and a year later I am equally surprised to have done it again. I mean, seriously, who WINS a marathon?! Again, it wasn't my best day, but not far off. Given the struggles I experienced on a warm/humid morning, I'll say it was a strong run. I am proud of my 2:38:57!

After Loenser finished, we walked back over to the car, got on some dry clothes and regathered with Jeff and Ardena Blough for the post race meal that was provided. Chatted with other runners and saw some great moments of other proud finishers reuniting with one another and their supporters! Numerous people came by to congratulate me, and I congratulated them as well. There accomplishments' are equal to mine. I am just the lucky guy who got the W!

Left to right, Kevin Hoyt 3rd, Mike Anis 1st, Rafer Dannenhauer 2nd.

and some more photos:

The shoes that won the race, the singlet they gave everyone, and my Bib!

Sunrise at Washington's Crossign Park

Just a Tempo in the Dark

Sometimes, the thing that drives you is as simple as having just enough time to get in the run you need before another obligation.  That extra little bit that motivates you to move your ass isn't always something like a cliche of visualizing yourself sitting in a lead pack with 400m to go in the "big race", or other such cheesy scenes from a poorly directed film about running.  Too often, training at a high level is isolating, and you just need to do it on your own, by numbers alone, the facts are that not too many people have the time or the drive to do what you're doing.  So, you need to play psychologist with yourself, and ignore the desire for social interaction fairly often.
    Circumstances as they were, my best possible option for a traffic-free tempo run, was to head over to Ferris High School in Jersey City.  This track is not 400m around(this I already knew).  This track is not an oval(also knew this).  This track is not entirely flat(did not know this).  As I arrive there, it is a good while past sunset, and all the artificial light from buildings and street lamps are glaring off of the many puddles strewn about this dilapidated 3-lane strip of worn out rubber.  I run 1 lap around to survey the landscape.
   This track is lumpy.  That is to say, there are spot where you're going to step into a depression, and then your next stride you will stumble upon a spot that is risen higher than ground level, and then back into another depression.  This seemed to be most evident on the beginning of the back straight, but was a ripple compared to the sloped crater that spanned lanes 2 and 3 on the next corner.  The turns were crudely rounded corners, none of which had any semblance of symmetry.  To add to the obstacles, there were several large piles of goose droppings in some well placed spots.  I tell you, those devil birds must have known I was coming!
   So, I started my 6-mile Tempo, weaving around puddles and goose droppings, adjusting stride length to avoid tripping on uneven ground, holding tight through the "turn 3" to avoid the crater.  As I got a feel for the track, I got a feel for my body's rhythm.  I felt pretty good, and the toughest factor was the tight turns(all 108 of them).  In the end I wracked up 27+ laps on this piece of ground.  I checked my watch often, on most laps I clipped about 76secs.
    Google Map Pedometer(best tool on the internet for runners), would prove later, that this was in fact 356m, not 350m(as someone had told me it was).  The way I ran this thing, I did roughly 363m on each lap.  This shed new light on my feelings about the relative success of the workout.  As I ran back to Runner's High to meet up with the Group Run, I kept double checking the math in my head and continued believing that I was in the 5:45-5:48range at best, when in fact I was averaging 5:36per mile!  The cold, damp weather, the isolation, and the poor excuse for a track couldn't hold me back!  So today, I'm feeling a little bit like Ronnie James Dio(RIP) did in 1983! 

    Just a Rainbow in the Dark!  LOOK OUT!