Canadian Content

I wish I could say that I'm sick of talking about them... but Cam Levins (left) and Taylor Milne (right)were at it again this past weekend.That makes 3 weekends in a row of top notch racing. Saturday past, they both were invited to the previous mentioned world-famous Millrose Games to run the 'Wanamaker Mile' (1,600m) against some of the best milers in the world, including the world championship bronze medalist at 1,500m in American Matt Centrowitz and the top NCAA miler from Brigham Young University (BYU) Miles Batty.

Centrowitz with Batty nipping his heels!

Only a week previous both of these gazelles were setting the New Balance Games track on fire where Milne ran 3:56 for the mile and Levins ran 7:45 in the 3,000m! However, this week they went head to head in the same mile event.

Immediately Milne went to the front - which is more often than not going to end well - and stayed there for 3/4 of the race. Levins tucked into the pack and held the pace with best of them. Just after 1200m, the cream rose to the top. Centrowitz and Batty effortlessly surged past Milne to take the lead. Unfortunately, Milne's front running took a major toll on him as he faded for a 4:00 finish (still incredible, but not what he was hoping for I can only imagine). In the end, Centrowitz seemingly jogged across the line in 3:53.9, with Miles Batty setting the American College record with 3:54.5! Levins ran a consistently smart race and finished with an impressive 3:57.1, given his recent race schedule.

Check out the video here, fast forward to 2:50 into the race and just watch how smooth Matt Centrowitz is. Do you think he was maxed out? I don't think so. Scary stuff

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Simultaneously, on the opposite side of America, the University of Washington had their own invitational track meet that brought some of the top collegiate athletes head to head, including many Canadians.

In the Men's 3,000m:
- Quebec native Stephane Colle, attending University of Idaho, ran an impressive 8:08 (4:22/mile or 2:43/km) for 8th in his heat (5 heats in total) finishing 25th out of the out of the 96 collegians who ran

- Newfoundland's own Ryan Brockerville from Simon Fraser University in B.C. ran a impressive 8:20 (4:28/mile or 2:47/km) for 6th place in his heat and 61st overall out of the 96.








In the Men's 5,000m:

Prince George, B.C. born and bred, Geoff Martinson threw down a tremendous 13:55 (4:29/mile or 2:47/km). Martinson was the 3rd fastest 1,500m runner in Canada in 2011 with a 3:37.5 thus allowing him to represent Canada at the 2011 World Championships, making it to the 1,500m semi-final! Check out his blog here.





As for the women in the mile ,


Canada's elite track and field club, Speed River, sent both Malindi Elmore (left) & Hilary Stellingwerff  (right) to compete in the elite one mile race with one of the WORLD's best runners Sally Kipyego from Kenya. Both Canadian females had incredible races with Stellingwerff finishing 3rd in a time of 4:29.7 and Elmore in 5th with 4:32.7.



Here's the link video for this awesome race! Go Canada! 
(It's not on youtube, so I can't attach the video, sorry)

Why running a 63 min half marathon isn't fast enough...

This is unquestionably the stat of this week's blog, despite the dominance of Lagat and Rupp.

Alistair Cragg - The 31-year old South African - who runs under the Irish flag since 2003- is one of the world's top non-'East African' (Kenya, Ethiopia, & Eriteria).

The 2008 Olympian holds 4 Irish national records, including a blistering 13:03 for 5,000m (4:12/mile or 2:35/km) and a 27:39 for 10,000m (4:27/mile or 2:46/km).

My point is that this guy can move, especially for a white boy!

Now let me ask you a question... actually two:
1) How would I feel if I said that you had the potential to run a 63:39 for a half marathon? That means a pace of 4:51/mile or 3:01/km. That would be good enough to win about 98% of all half marathon races. I'm sure you would be quite content with such a performance.

Note: before I ask you question #2, a bit of trivia for you: only 17 Americans beat that time in 2011.

2) How would you feel about running THAT incredible time but only finishing 65th OVERALL in a race!?!?

Well that's precisely what happened at a Japanese Half Marathon last week! Alistair Cragg ran 63:39 and placed 65th! In fact, I've never seen a race so deep. 178 runners ran faster than 70 mins for a half marathon (5:20/mile or 3:19/km)!! Just incredible!

Just when you thought you could be satisfied with a performance... back to the drawing board.

Reasons why you should never celebrate early

Always, always, always... cross the finish line before celebrating! Here's why...
This weekend at the USA XC championships. Molly Huddle, on the left, American 5k record holder) thinks she has triumphed over Sara Hall, on the right, (Marathoner Ryan Hall's wife). However, the celebrations were in vain as Hall surged past her literally at the line. Here's what the photos from the finish line showed:

"Victory is mine...

oh wait...

WTF...

This isn't good...

This completely reminds of this video. Make sure you cross the line first!!!

Feb 7 - News & Notes

Welcome back to another edition of Going Pro!

This week we have a bit of a hodgepodge: I introduce you all to one of Canada's top runners: Sheila Reid; I briefly describe 5 of my favorite running books; and introduce you the bittersweet world that is Track and Field!

Let's start it off with some news and notes of the week just past:

1) Last week I said, 'remember the name Cameron Levins'. Well, he was at it again this week past at the New Balance Grand Prix indoor track meet in New York. Cam ran the 3,000m against 11 other men - some of whom were the biggest names in the track world, including the silver and bronze medallists from the 2011 track and field World Championships.

O CAMada!

7 days after his 5,000m and 3,000m wins (within 24 hours) he ran yet another personal time for 3,000m - 7: 45.75 (4:10/mile or 2:35/km) placing 5th overall. Some people might be upset with a 5th place finish, however, when you are only 4 seconds behind the 10th fastest 1,500m runner of all time you can live with it!

*World 3,000m record is 7:24.9 (3:59/mile or 2:29/km)... W.T.F.

2) Two weeks ago I briefly introduced Taylor Milne, who ran 2:20 for 1,000m and setting the world's best for that distance this year. At the same meet as Levins - New Balance Grand Prix indoor track meet in New York - Milne took on the mile (that's 1,600m for you metric folk).

Milne ran tremendously well to placed 2nd with what I believe is a personal best time of 3:56.4 (2:27/km). The mile is truly one of the most amazing race distances. What is incredible was that many thought that a runner could never break the 4:00 per mile barrier. However, England's Roger Bannister did just that in 1952 with his 3:59.4 clocking on the Iffley Road Track in Oxford, England. [Which is beautifully captured in the book The Perfect Mile by Neal Bascomb... see the list of my recommended running books]

Since then, over 1200 men have run sub 4:00, including over 350 Americans and ~50 Canadians (Levins and Milne are in the pretigious club). So to go from a time period where that time seemed improbable to now have up to 3-5 guys breaking it a single race, it's a truly spectacular experience.


3) I'll give you three guesses as to which race distance the following photo finish was for:
800m? 1 mile? 3,000m? 5k? 10km?

Time's up... These 3 men (plus one other just out of the frame), crossed the finish line within 1 second in the Hong Kong MARATHON!!  Can you imagine running 26.2 miles and losing by literally one foot! Aye yi yi... But this is the world of marathoning these days. Expect many more of these close finishes as more and more Africans go after the big money that comes with winning marathons.

Seeing how I'm still speechless by this, I'll leave it up to Jerry Seinfeld to explain it to you:

Let's continue on here with an introduction to one of the most amazing female runners to come from Canada... Sheila Reid. 

Sheila Reid

Allow me to introduce you to, in my humble opinion, the most exciting Canadian female runner at the moment... Sheila Reid.

Canada's Sheild Reid Dominating

Sheila dominating... again.

                             
This week... 'Remember the name Sheila Reid'. The 23-year old (her birthday is tomorrow actually!) Newmarket, Ontario native all but owns the NCAA running world from the 1,500m to XC. Allow me to brag on behalf of Sheila... and Canada.

Sheila is in her senior year at the renowned Villanova as an english major, according to the varsity cross country webpage. After a redshirting (which means you can practice with the team but not race/compete under the school's name, and doesn't count as a year of eligibility) two seasons in 2008 she has been crushing competition in almost every race she has entered.

Since 2009:
2 x 1st place in NCAA National Championships (2010, 2011)
     *this year she won by 6 tenths of a second!!
     *254 of the BEST collegiate runners are in this race
3 x 1st place in Mid-Atlantic regional XC championships
3 x 1st place in BIG EAST conference XC championships

While on the track having personal bests of:

1 Mile: 4:35
3km: 8:56.9 (4:48/mile or 2:59/km)
5km: 15:37.5 (5:02/mile or 3:07/km)

The scary thing about Sheila is her potential, she's already running outstanding times at such a young age. After her collegiate career, she'll undoubtedly be scooped up by one of the major professional training teams in the US. If/when she builds a big mileage base - with her track speed - she is going to be a competitive force for the next decade!

Now, for a change of 'pace'... here's my top 5 favorite books.

Must Read Running Books

I started my running career in March 2009 when I worked at the Running Room in St. John's, Newfoundland. At the time when I applied for a job, I wasn't more than a 'summer runner' who ran 2-3 times a week and did the famous Tely 10 Mile race - leaving myself sore for weeks. I never thought the job would literally change my life, but it certainly has and then some.

Quite frankly, the best part of working at the Running Room was when I got to work with the legendary Art Meaney - the 67 year old who is one of the fastest men in the world at his age group - heck, he still runs his age for 10 miles every year! I can promise you a full write up on this running guru. He was the one who truly opened my eyes to not only my own potential in running but also to the professional world. His knowledge of running history is second to none. It was both inspirational and motivating.

The man, the myth, the legend - Art Meaney

He also introduced me to running books, which truly got me addicted to it the sport. Here is a list of what I believe are MUST READS for any runner as well as some honourable mentions which are well worth a spot on your bed side table.

#1) Duel in the Sun - John Brant

This epic work of prose allows you to run in the shoes of the Cuban-American world record holder Alberto Salazar (now coach of the top US distance runenrs) and Dick Beardsley, the blue collar farm-hand from Minnesota. You get to follow them before, during, and after the 1982 Boston Marathon.

All I will say about this book is:
a) I could NOT put this book down

b) The race was won by two seconds

c) This race single-handedly changed both the lives of both of these two men forever. I kid you not.

#2) Running With the Buffaloes  - Chris Lear

This book follows the 1998 Cross Country season for the University of Colorado Buffaloes. You literally feel as though you are a part of the team as you running every workout and race with them. As well,  all of the trials and tribulations that accompany the team such as 20 mile runs at 8,000ft of elevation, injuries, cuts, losing, winning, and much more that I'll let you read to find out.

The protagonist of this book is the stand out runner Adam Goucher - the husband of famed US female marathoner Kara Goucher - and his quest to be #1 in NCAA.

Note: Reading this book will pump you up. I suggest reading before a race!

#3) Once a Runner  - John L. Parker Jr.

This novel follows the fictional character of Quenton Cassidy, a mile runner at, the also fictional, Southeastern University in Florida in the 1970s. Many people believe this book is based on the collegiate years of famous American marathoner Frank Shorter!

You become intimate with the prodigious Cassidy through his interactions with teammates, relationships, workouts, races, and his eventual big decision to take the 'next step'. Not to mention the most insane workout I have ever heard of in my entire life.

Not spoiling anything here, but my favorite part of the book comes when at a party/social gathering someone asks him "why do you run?"

Favorite quote from the book: "You can remember it [the past], he told himself, but you cannot experience it this way again. You have to be satisfied with the shadows."

#4) Born to Run - Christopher McDougall

At first, I wasn't expecting much from this book as I thought it would be preaching about why barefoot running is superior to 'normal' running.

However, I was blown away with the incredibly interesting storyline that flows through about 70% of the book. The author, McDougall, makes his way to the Copper Canyons of Mexico to find a man named 'Caballo Blanco' (the White Horse) who moved from the US down to live with the ancient, indigenious tribe called the Tarahumura [Tara-oo-mara]. Along the way he discovers how running - barefoot - is the culture with the Tarahumara. Their story is absolutely spellbinding.

The remaining portions talk about the pros and cons of traditional running form, running shoes, and barefoot running in a very easy to understand and humorus approach. A definite must read.

#5) The Perfect Mile: Three Athletes, One Goal, and Less Than Four Minutes to Achieve It by Neal Bascomb

Bascomb chronicles the stories of the fastest men in the world in the early 1950s: England's Roger Bannister, America's Wes Santee, and the Australian John Landy.

Each of these men have their own incredible saga to follow as they try to find a way to break the elusive 4 minute barrier for 1 mile. Whether it be Bannister's self-coached training at lunch hour while attending medical school, Santee's trouble with the track and field authorities, or Landy's eccentric coach, this book embodies the blood, sweat, and tears of these 3 amateur running heros.

Just wait until you read about the races where they go head to head! Hard to put down!

Welcome to Track & Field

I'd like to introduce you all to the wonderful world of Track & Field: where dreams are made - and equally crushed - by tenths of seconds and fractions of millimeters. Whether indoors or outdoors, and whether it's the 60m or the 30,000m there is no shortage of drama on the track!

Click for link

 

Athletics Canada (Link)

Let's walk through an example of dream crushing to get this party started:

Last year in August, the Track & Field World Championships were held in Daegu, South Korea. Essentially, the best 'T&F' athletes in the world - that qualified - squared off at their respective distances. Like most runners, actually qualifying for an event (i.e. Boston) may be equally as satisfying as running it.

With that said, in June 2011, USA held their National T&F Champtionships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon (who some call the 'Mecca of USA Running'). This doubled as the World Championships Trials: the top 3 in each event, that reached the world championship standard time, qualified. I streamed the majority of events as all the top American runners went toe to toe. I distinctly remembering watching the Women's 1500m Final, here's the video:

Here's the lesson: It's better to tuck into a pack of runners than it is to run by yourself (also... pacing doesn't hurt either). Note: this applies to all races and not just on track.

Here's why: Christin Wurth-Thomas is a fantastic runner who decided to put fate in her own hands and immediately (within 15 seconds) took a sizeable lead which only got bigger as the race played out. The other favorites chased after her in a pack hoping they would catch her. With 400m to go, she had a 3 second lead, which doesn't sound like a lot but it's like 30m! However, the fruits of labor were starting to spoil as at 200m she was down to a 2 second lead and in the last 100m Wurth-Thomas went from 1st place to 4th place as she was passed by the 3rd place runner literally 0.1 seconds before the finish line.

Conversely, the beauty of track and field is that EVERYONE has a chance! Check out these truly incredible races (I summarize them as well for those you don't want to watch the videos, but I hope you do):

#1

This 2008 600m race was part of the NCAA Conference Indoor Track Championship where Minnesota State's Heather Dorniden, was running with the lead runner at 400m (one lap to go) where her ankle was clipped by the runner behind her. By the time she got back to her feet the 3 other runners were ~20m or more ahead of her. I can only assume that at this point, 99% of people would have realized that there is no way humanly possible to catch up and would have just stayed on the track or packed it in. Dorniden did neither. With 200m to go you can literally see her closing the gap on all the leading runners, passing 3rd place at 100m, and literally edging out the remaining two for the win! Truly remarkable to witness.

#2) In the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, the 10 x world record holder [he literally had the WR for distances from 2 miles to 20km] Australian Ron Clarke was the undeniable favorite. His 10,000m world record of 28:15 was a full minute faster than the American Billy Mills, who qualified for the 10,000m final with a time of 29:15.

Quick background on Mills: he was a Native American orphan who grew up on a reserve. His mother died giving birth to him and his father died when he was 10 years old. From articles that I've read about Mills and this race, during his training in the months and years leading up to Olympic final he used daily self-visualization techniques to convince himself that he could win this race - even over such unsurmountable odds. He said during an interview that he "visualized winning dozens of times a day". When the race started he clung to the heels of the indefatigable Clarke. They passed the 5k mark in a personal best times for Mills. Here's a bit of the video of the race and especially the finish, I won't ruin the surprise!

Billy Mills in the 1964 Tokyo Olympic 10,000m Final