Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Lunar lineage

Outdoor season has begun. Our first meet was Saturday at West Point. This season will find me behind the wheel of a van more often than not, because of our quirky travel schedule. Yes, that means "van talk."

On Saturday, it also meant the renewal of a regrettable -- but certainly legendary -- tradition in our program.

I guess you could call it a family tradition.

But first, a little history is in order.

Back in the dark ages of my tenure as coach at Marist, we rarely traveled in buses. It was always vans, usually to some dreadful indoor track venue like FDU in Hackensack, NJ. Let's travel back in time to a dark winter's night in 1992, and a van trip back from FDU.

I'm behind the wheel of a Marist van, cruising along Route 4. In the back, Dave Swift yells out for me to speed up or slow down (I cannot remember which, that was a long time ago), so we could be near the other van, being driven by Coach Phil Kelly. Naturally I obliged.

Ah, Dave. You remember Dave, right? Now the fancy Spackenkill High School coach. Back then, he was JLSB. Mr. Bucket. A team leader, school record-holder, and resident wiseass.

I did as instructed. Then, BOOM! Shattered glass in the back! What the heck happened? Hey, we're in Jersey. Did we get SHOT AT? Was it a DRIVE-BY? No, no. Nothing nearly that sexy. Instead, Bucket thought it might be entertaining to MOON his teammates in the other van. Apparently, the sheer force of his Two Cheeks shattered the large back window into pieces.

It was too bizarre to be true, but the "cold reality" hit us soon after as we sped up Route 17 toward home.

But first, we stopped on Route 17 for a Pizza Hut dinner. We explained to the staff our predicament, and they agreed to give us some pizza boxes to shore up the gaping hole in our van. Yeah, great. That cardboard lasted for a few miles till we got to the NJ/NY border, after which we froze our ... um, asses ... all the way back to Poughkeepsie. Explaining the gaping hole in the van to the Marist athletic staff was interesting, to say the least.

Fast-forward to 2009. Through a minor miracle of taking my shortcut along the waterfront in Newburgh, I somehow got ahead of Coach Chuck, who was driving his Jeep down to West Point. When I spotted him in the rearview mirror as we were going over Storm King Mountain, I got very excited that I was ahead of him. A rare occurence indeed, since I drive like an old man ... and he does not.

In the back of the van, by the window, was Adam Vess. Ah, Vess. You remember Vess, right? Bucket's nephew and God-son. Vess, the fancy IC4A champion. A team leader, school record-holder, and resident wiseass.

Come on. You know what's coming next. Yup, you got it. Two Cheeks to the window, Vess moons Chuck and his passengers.

Fortunately, the 2009 Marist vans are sturdier and the big back window remained intact. For now.

Sorry. I bet you were waiting for another "van window explodes" ending to this story.

Anyway ... I will post West Point meet splits as soon as possible.

Friday, March 27, 2009

Link to article about Steve Lurie

In case anyone is interested, here the link to the article I wrote about my old coach, Steve Lurie.

New practice venue

We have a new home for our Wednesday, 11 a.m., practices: Vassar College and its beautiful new track.

Coach James McCowan was a great runner back in the day at Vassar, battling with Mike Melfi back in the late 1990s. Now, he is an excellent coach and good friend of the Marist Running program.

To say he has been accommodating to us would be an understatement. He's always welcoming to our use of Vassar Farms during cross country. And now, he has gone out of his way to advocate for our usage of the Vassar track. Right now, we are only permitted there on Wednesdays but we are hoping those hours are expanded.

For now, we will enjoy and make good use of this time. Already, our steeplers are ahead of the game by getting over barriers for the first time on March 25. The form was a bit ragged and rocky. But imagine if the first barrier hurdling were at a meet, as has been in the past? This is a good thing!

For team members, a few reminders of the rules of usage for the Vassar track:

1. No spitting on the track. I don't want to hear snickers on this one. They asked. We'll comply.
2. Enter the track through the sidewalks/driveways, NOT on the grass. And no hopping over the fence. Walk through the gates.
3. No Gatorade/sports drinks on the turf field or inside the track facility. Outside the fence is fine. Water inside the fence is fine.
4. Any hurdles/barriers we use, we must return to where we found them.
5. No garbage of any kind left behind, which is obvious. But especially, no plastic wrappers, etc., on the turf field because it will burn up on there because of the warmth of the field in the sun.

That's about it. First outdoor meet is at West Point on Saturday. The weather is actually looking passable for March 28.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Why I'm proud of Matt Janczyk

A surefire sign that I have a great group of athletes to coach is this: After a long break from practice -- like our recent spring break -- I am overjoyed to encounter the faces of the runners I haven't seen in 10 days.

Such was the case on Monday as we returned to the track grind after spring break. I was especially happy and uplifted to see junior Matt Janczyk, who spent his spring break in impoverished Mexico as part of a campus ministry mission there.

The Marist Brothers order was founded on the ideals of service to others. While modern-day Marist College certainly is a far more secular place than the one founded by the Brothers all those years ago, it's comforting to know that the tradition continues with activities such as this. Matt and his travel party embodied that tradition last week. For that, I am extremely proud of him.

I asked Janzo to write a brief description of his time in Mexico. This was not some feel-good, photo-op, couple of hours working at a local soup kitchen. This was hard, cruel reality that hit Janzo between the eyes. I submit it here for all to read, and I reiterate my pride in calling Matt Janczyk a member of the Running Red Foxes ...

The goal of Global Outreach is to become immersed in the world and lives of the poor, learning and experiencing from them, while completing service projects to help the community. This year, the group returned to Merida, Mexico, and planned on helping in the initiation of a nutrition awareness program, teaching after-school computer classes to children at the community center, working in a medicinal garden, and helping with the purification and transportation of water.

The hope going into the week was to accomplish these things, and help out a community. Instead, I left more confused and angry than accomplished. We lived in a house on cement floors, with one shower during the week. Houses, at best, were made from cement blocks and garbage was being burned in the streets. Stray dogs roamed freely, and their dead bodies were thrown on the side of roads to decay.

In the worst part of the city people were living in tin huts, with no water or electricity. The trees were all dead, and even the dogs didn’t live here. We heard stories that made us sick to our stomach.

To make things worse, the north end of the city was just like any other American city. Fast food restaurants, car dealers and supermarkets lined the streets. It was clear that money was not a problem here, but 20 minutes down the road was another world.

However savage this may sound, these people were still people. Horrible things happen in horrible situations, but never did I feel unwelcomed or unsafe. The people with nothing were some of the happiest people I’ve ever seen. The love within their families and for their neighbors was incomparable. It was said that although they have nothing material, they are the richest in spirit and love. The question, though, was at what point is a smile not enough to sustain life?

Our projects weren’t completed in the week that we were there, partly because there wasn’t enough time, and partly because the participation of the people was not enough. I left with a feeling of abandonment. Although we came and lived among them, we always knew in a week our plane was going to take us away. The injustice suffered by these people, and people all over the world was so stomach turning, so eye opening that it’s something that will sit with the group forever. And hopefully the small impact we had will do the same with the people of Merida.

Death of a coach

Most readers of this blog did not know Steve Lurie, who passed away earlier this month in Arizona. Steve was the Marist running coach back in the mid-1980s, when I was a runner at Marist. He was my coach for the final three years of my college career (1983-1986).

I am writing a personal remembrance of Steve and I will post the link, or the entire remembrance here, when I am done with it.

Steve was a unique character, to say the least. I got along with him well, but the same cannot be said of some of my teammates. We probably had more in common away from the coach-athlete relationship in that he had a long and distinguished journalism/writing career, and he had an influence on the early part of my journalism career.

While his tenure at Marist can best be described as rocky, as I said in an email message yesterday, Steve's passion for the sport to the end cannot be questioned. Some of you younger blog followers might recognize the name because Steve wrote articles for dyestat.com in recent years.

Anyway, as I said, a longer remembrance will follow soon. RIP, Steve.

Monday, March 23, 2009

Alumni racing news

A few bits of news and results from Marist alumni runners ...

-- At Sunday's National Half Marathon in Washington, DC, Sean Prinz was 10th overall out of more than 4,000 runners in an excellent time of 1:12:45. Good stuff for this early in the year! Matt (CT) Szymaszek was 23rd overall in 1:16:17, a good start to his training and racing season.

-- At last week's New Bedford Half Marathon in Massachusetts, Mike Guarascio (Mike G) was 101st in a personal-best time of 1:16:42. G runs for the Greater Boston Track Club now, and he plans on using this stellar PR to get him into the NYC Marathon in the fall ... where hopefully he'll be sporting the red-and-white of the Marist Alumni Racing Team.

-- Justin Harris has been tearing it up on the roads with his bike, winning the first two races in the Bethel (CT) Spring Series. Check this link to see him flashing a pose during his most recent victory. Jut is in fantastic shape and getting ready for some big multisport events in the coming weeks.

-- Lastly, the MART will be defending its title at Mudders and Grunters this weekend. Best of luck, team!

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Spring break

Sorry for the lack of posts. This is spring break and the team is scattered hither and yon -- at home or in foreign countries. My cell phone has been suspiciously quiet and largely devoid of calls and texts.

That's OK. Starting next week, we do the mad sprint to the finish line as the outdoor track season is a mere 6 weeks long.

I do have some alumni racing news to share, but I'll get back into the flow next week when everyone is back.

It's pretty amazing how quickly this week has filled up. It does not feel like a week off, considering I'm only working one full-time job this week. Again, the spare hours are filled with the little details of life that I don't get to when I am scuttling back and forth.

See you next week.

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Alumni go 1-2 in Syracuse

Congrats to Marist Running alumni Mike Melfi (class of 1999) and Steve Hicks (class of 2005) for going 1-2 at Sunday's fourth annual Tipperary Hill Shamrock Run 4-mile race in Syracuse. After talking with Hicks on Monday night, the "Hill" part of the race title was very appropriate as it was a tough race.

Mike, who is now 32 (we're all getting old!), won it in 21:10. He's taking a short break from marathoning to try and recapture some of his old leg speed, doing track workouts while maintaining his long runs. This was a great effort.

Steve entered the race on a whim at the last minute and proved he is in pretty decent shape despite admittedly maintaining fitness training during the brutal Central New York winter, finishing a few strides behind in 21:22. Oh yeah, he IS in med school too! Anyway, encouraged by this performance, Steve said he is looking forward to the spring racing season.

Hicks, Kirk, Jut and ... well, anyone else who is healthy and available (??) are planning on defending the Marist Alumni Racing Team title at the Mudders and Grunters later this month. I like having that Taconic skull head award thing in my office. So someone please step forward and round out what seems to be a pretty good team.

Again, congrats to Melfi and Hicks.

Monday, March 9, 2009

2008-2009 composite indoor track results

For those of you that are big Track and Field News fans (oddly, I am NOT), here is a TFN-type list for you with the entire season's worth of performances. If there any omissions or errors, let me know.


Meet Key:
Yale: Yale Invite, 12.6.08
NYU1: Metro Coaches, 1.9.09
NYU2: Gotham Cup, 1.16.09
BU1: Terrier, 1.23.09
Mets: Met Champs, 1.29.09
NB: Armory Collegiate, 2.6.09
BU2: Valentine, 2.14.09
MAAC: MAAC Champs, 2.20.09
NYU3: Fastrack, 2.27.09
IC4A: IC4As, 3.7-3.8.09

Results key:
SR = School Record
IC4A = IC4A qualifying mark
USAJr = USATF Junior qualifying mark


55-meter dash:
Mike Cocca 6.86, MAAC
Mike Cocca 6.88, BU1
Mike McCloskey 6.91, MAAC
Mike McCloskey 6.93, BU1
Mike Cocca 6.93, BU2
Mike McCloskey 6.95, BU2
Neal Viets 7.20, MAAC
Neal Viets 7.29, BU2
Neal Viets 7.29, BU1
James Boylan 7.51, BU1
James Boylan 7.54, BU2
James Boylan 7.56, MAAC

60-meter dash:

Mike McCloskey 7.42, Yale
Mike McCloskey 7.43, Mets
Mike Cocca 7.45, Mets
Mike Cocca 7.47, NYU2
Mike McCloskey 7.53, NYU2
Mike McCloskey 7.55, NYU1
James Boylan 7.65, Yale
Neal Viets 7.80, NYU1
Neal Viets 8.11, Yale
James Boylan 8.20, Mets
James Boylan 8.21, NYU2
James Boylan 8.30, NYU1

200-meter dash:

Derrick Powell 23.35, BU1
Mike Cocca 23.38, BU1
Mike Cocca 23.49, BU2
Mike McCloskey 23.89, MAAC
Mike McCloskey 24.02, BU1
Mike McCloskey 24.05, BU2
Mike Cocca 24.06, Yale
John Kristie 24.31, BU2
Neal Viets 24.36, BU2
Mike McCloskey 24.54, Yale
Neal Viets 24.66, MAAC
Neal Viets 24.72, BU1
Neal Viets 24.93, Yale
Neal Viets 25.00, Mets
James Boylan 25.13, BU2
James Boylan 25.25, BU1
James Boylan 25.34, MAAC
James Boylan 25.59, Yale

400-meter dash:

Colin Frederickson 50.54, MAAC
Derrick Powell 50.93, BU1
John Carabetta 50.94, MAAC
Derrick Powell 51.22, BU2
Colin Frederickson 51.26, Mets
John Carabetta 51.58, Yale
John Kristie 52.34, BU2
John Kristie 52.50, BU1
Colin Frederickson 53.60, Yale
Derrick Powell 53.52, MAAC
John Kristie 53.80, NYU2
Greg Dubois 53.91, Yale
John Kristie 53.95, Yale
John Kristie 54.05, Mets
Greg Dubois 54.24, MAAC
Neal Viets 56.19, NYU2

500-meter dash:

Colin Frederickson 1:05.91, BU2
Colin Frederickson 1:06.16, BU1
John Carabetta 1:06.51, BU1
John Carabetta 1:06.54, Mets
Colin Frederickson 1:06.74, NYU3
John Carabetta 1:07.20, NYU3
Colin Frederickson 1:08.19, NYU2
John Carabetta 1:08.75, NYU2
Greg Dubois 1:10.12, NYU2
Greg Dubois 1:10.29, BU1

800-meter run:

Thomas Lipari 1:56.27, MAAC
Kyle Havard 1:58.43, MAAC
Matthew Janczyk 1:58.75, MAAC
John Carabetta 1:58.91, BU2
Colin Johnson 1:59.02, MAAC
Kyle Havard 2:00.18, Mets
Brian McCormick 2:00.66, Mets
Brian McCormick 2:01.09, NYU2
Brian McCormick 2:01.54, MAAC
Kyle Havard 2:02.19, NYU1
Greg Dubois 2:03.67, BU2
Colin Johnson 2:03.72, BU1
Corey Ennist 2:06.42, BU2
Ryan Brown 2:06.52, NYU1
Alex Cuesta 2:07.72, BU1
Alex Cuesta 2:09.61, BU2
Greg Masto 2:12.32, NYU1

1,000-meter run:

Adam Vess 2:29.88 (IC4A), NYU2
Matt Janczyk 2:30.45, NYU3
Kyle Havard 2:32.58, BU2
Tom Lipari 2:33.19, NYU2
Matt Janczyk 2:33.33, NYU2
Kyle Havard 2:33.92, BU1
Will Griffin 2:34.31, NYU2
Brian McCormick 2:35.99, BU1
Brian McCormick 2:37.09, BU2
Colin Johnson 2:37.23, BU2
Matt Janczyk 2:37.93, Mets

Mile run:

Adam Vess 4:08.66 (SR, IC4A), MAAC
Adam Vess 4:10.11 (SR, IC4A), NYU1
Adam Vess 4:13.39 (SR, IC4A), Yale
Will Griffin 4:13.97 (IC4A), BU2
Will Griffin 4:17.79, BU1
Tom Lipari 4:18.18, BU2
Joe McElhoney 4:20.42, Mets
Matt Janczyk 4:22.00, BU1
Will Griffin 4:23.26, MAAC
Will Griffin 4:24.40, IC4A
Will Griffin 4:24.93, NYU1
Tom Lipari 4:25.10, NYU1
Matt Flint 4:26.40, NYU2
Kyle Havard 4:27.41, NYU3
Curtis Jensen 4:27.42, BU1
Zak Smetana 4:31.20, NYU3
Sam McMullen 4:31.29, NYU2
Brian McCormick 4:32.85, NYU3
Brian McCormick 4:34.06, Yale
Zak Smetana 4:34.78, NYU2
Kris Geist 4:35.81, BU1
Kris Geist 4:36.02, BU2
Patrick Duggan 4:36.79, MAAC
Kris Geist 4:41.89, Mets
Kris Geist 4:42.53, MAAC
Alex Cuesta 4:46.33, Yale

3,000-meter run
:

Adam Vess 8:05.82 (SR, IC4A Champ)
Adam Vess 8:05.89 (SR, IC4A), BU1
Girma Segni 8:23.25 (IC4A), NB
Matt Flint 8:30.49 (USAJr), BU2
Matt Flint 8:33.45 (USAJr) , BU1
Curtis Jensen 8:41.60, BU2
Curtis Jensen 8:41.78, NYU3
Matthew Flint 8:42.87, MAAC
Matt Flint 8:44.91, NYU1
Nick Webster 8:45.92, NYU3
Curtis Jensen 8:46.29, MAAC
Joe McElhoney 8:46.33, NB
Tom Lipari 8:48.25, BU1
Curtis Jensen 8:50.52, Mets
John Keenan 8:51.21, NYU2
Tom Lipari 8:51.90, NYU3
Joe McElhoney 8:52.29, NYU2
Girma Segni 8:52.51, MAAC
Zak Smetana 8:53.21, BU2
Zak Smetana 8:53.58, BU1
Pat Duggan 8:56.45, NYU2
Sam McMullen 8:56.95, BU2
Will Griffin 8:57.34, MAAC
Pat Duggan 9:01.75, NYU3
Joe McElhoney 9:01.94, NYU1
Matt Janczyk 9:06.79, Yale
John Keenan 9:06.91, MAAC
Alex Emerel 9:11.83, NYU3
Brian Townsend 9:15.28, NYU3
Ryan Brown 9:18.70, Mets
Ryan Brown 9:20.22, BU1
Ryan Brown 9:21.61, NYU3
Greg Masto 9:34.89, Mets
Greg Masto 9:37.08, BU1
Greg Masto 9:48.32, BU2
Mike Holinko 10:07.70, BU2
Mike Holinko 10:13.01, BU1
Alex Lombardozzi 10:47.52, BU1

5,000-meter run:

Girma Segni 14:18.42 (SR, IC4A), BU1
Girma Segni 14:43.87 (IC4A), MAAC
Tim Keegan 14:56.45, BU2
Joe McElhoney 15:05.91, BU1
John Keenan 15:06.54, BU1
Matt Flint 15:08.11, NYU3
Nick Webster 15:11.96, BU2
Timothy Keegan 15:12.57, MAAC
Nick Webster 15:16.11, BU1
John Keenan 15:16.22, BU2
Nick Webster 15:27.34, MAAC
Tim Keegan 15:30.95, NYU2
Zak Smetana 15:32.46, MAAC
Girma Segni 15:32.66, IC4A
Alex Emerel 15:36.37, MAAC
Sam McMullen 15:36.73, BU1
Alex Emerel 15:37.90, BU2
Pat Duggan 15:38.04, BU1
John Keenan 15:42.40, NYU3
Brian Townsend 15:44.11, BU1
Alex Emerel 15:45.19, BU1
Pat Duggan 15:45.26, BU2
Brian Townsend 15:47.01, BU2
Alex Emerel 15:50.35, Mets
Brian Townsend 15:52.01, Yale
Alex Emerel 16:01.45, NYU2

1,600-meter relay
:

Marist 3:23.60, MAAC
Marist 3:26.29, Mets
Marist 3:28.64, NYU3
Marist 3:28.88, BU1
Marist 3:29.16, BU2
Marist 3:30.32, NYU2
Marist 3:32.43, NYU1
Marist 3:38.41, Yale

Sprint medley relay
:

Marist A 3:43.70, NYU1
Marist B 3:49.32, NYU1

3,200-meter relay
:

Marist 7:59.69, NYU1
Marist 8:06.17, NYU2
Marist 8:15.26, Yale
Marist 8:26.41, Mets

Distance medley relay
:

Marist 10:04.20 (SR, IC4A), NB
Marist 10:22.66, IC4A
Marist 10:34.51, MAAC
Marist 10:35.65, Mets
Marist A 10:52.40, NYU1
Marist B 11:03.78, NYU1

Pole vault:

Max Carow 4.26m (SR), NYU3
Max Carow 4.20m (SR), MAAC
Max Carow 4.10m, NYU1
Max Carow 4.05m, Yale
Max Carow 4.05m, Mets
Max Carow 3.96m, BU2

High Jump:

Greg Masto 1.74m, MAAC

Wrapping up Boston weekend

IC4As:

Girma Segni had a tough race in the 5km, a big disappointment for him. The race started ridiculously slow (40-second first lap!) then sped up. He was fine with the shifting gears for a while, but it blew up on him around 3km, and it was a long last 2km.

It was great to have so many qualifiers and participants at ICs, our largest contingent ever. Vess' win was memorable. Aside from that, we were hoping for better, but that's life.

ECACs:

Coach Chuck brought a DMR over to Reggie Lewis Center on Sunday and they ran well, their best time of the season. I cannot locate the official results but here are the splits as reported to me via cell at the meet. (By the way, my cell was dead on Sunday in case anyone was trying to call or text ...)

Sarah Keating, 1200: 3:45. She handed off in the middle of the pack and probably should have run a big more aggressively, according to Chuck.
Holly Burns, 400: 60point. Holly was sick and gave us everything she had.
Julie Hudak, 800: 2:19.2. Chuck was pleased with the sub-2:20 leg.
Kathryn Sheehan, 1600: 5:08. Solid leg and good end to a very busy season for our freshman phenom.

Great to see MIKE G at BU on Sunday. He is running great and he must supply me with race updates for this fancy blog. G also requested more women's team news, and I will try to be more diligent in that area. See? I already am. Ha!

In all, it was a long and mostly productive winter season. As you know, outdoor track follows closely on its heels and will be here in a matter of weeks, and will be done very quickly.

Thanks for following and reading.

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Saturday's IC4A splits

Thanks for the comments, well-wishes and texts. Saturday was a great day for Adam. Today is a new day as Girma runs the 5k this afternoon, putting an end to the long indoor season.

Probably won't be able to update the blog till Monday at some point so check www.lancertiming.com for results if you are interested. Here are Saturday's splits...

3,000-meter run: Adam Vess, 1st place, 8:05.82. School record.
33.7, 67.4 (33.7), 1:38.8 (31.4), 2:11.2 (32.4), 2:44.4 (33.2)
3:17.4 (33.0), 3:49.9 (32.5), 4:22.5 (32.6), 4:55.8 (33.3), 5:29.0 (33.2)
6:02.0 (33.0), 6:35.0 (33.0), 7:06.8 (31.8), 7:37.3 (30.5), 8:05.82 (28.52)
1km: 2:44.4; 2km: 5:29.0 (2:44.6); 3km: 8:05.82 (2:36.82)

Comments: Obviously thrilling to have our first IC4A champ in school history. Still, this was a nerve-wracking race in that no one was willing to do the "dirty work" and take the lead. Adam did take the lead but did not push the pace. At that point, he was running for the win, but it was a risky proposition given the quality of the field. He closed like a champ and got a narrow PR. Of course, he was pissed at not approaching 8:00, which was the goal. But you can only run (and win) the race you are in. Which he did.

Mile run

Will Griffin: 32nd place, 4:24.40
33.8 (209 meters), 66.9 (33.1), 1:40.2 (33.3), 2:12.8 (32.6), 2:44.2 (31.4), 3:16.5 (32.3), 3:50.0 (33.5), 4:24.48 (34.48)

Comments: This was the absolute worst-case scenario for Will in that he was in a crazy tactical race. Consider that the leaders in his section closed in faster than 2:00! That's insane. Will switched gears as best as he could but was still hung out to dry. This should not diminish what has been a great freshman year so far. Chalk this up to experience.

DMR: 28th place, 10:22.66

1200-meter leg: Matt Janczyk 3:08.3. 30, 61 (31), 1:31 (30), 2:03 (32), 2:35 (32), 3:08.3 (33.3). Comments: The leadoff leg sets the tone for the relay and unfortunately this was an off day for Matt. And unfortunately, it did affect the way the rest of the relay was run.
400-meter leg: Colin Frederickson 23, 50.7. Comment: Solid, solo effort.
800-meter leg: Kyle Havard 28, 58 (30), 1:29 (31), 1:59.8 (30.8). Comment: Solid, solo effort.
1,600-meter leg: Tom Lipari 29, 62 (33), 1:36 (34), 2:11 (35), 2:44 (33), 3:19 (34), 3:53 (34), 4:23.6 (30.6). Comment: Started like a bat out of hell, settled a bit too much in the middle (you realized this) and then closed strong on the last lap.

Saturday, March 7, 2009

ADAM VESS: IC4A CHAMPION

Adam Vess won the IC4A title in the 3,000-meter run today at BU. It was a thrilling day for all involved. His time of 8:05.82 eclipsed his PR and SR of earlier this winter by .07. But that is no matter. HE WON.

Vess, being Vess, was disappointed at not having a shot at breaking 8:00 because of the cautious nature of the race (4:22.5 opening 1600, I'll post the splits later after I get something to eat). But he closed in a remarkable (even by his standards) 28.5 last lap and bested some pretty amazing runners, including last year's IC4A titlist from Harvard and an Iona runner who just a few weeks ago ran 14:00 for 5km.

Again, this wasn't some early-season tuneup meet field he was blitzing. This was the IC4As. Can you tell I'm pumped? Well, I am. Here are the top six finishers:

1 Vess, Adam 12 Marist College 8:05.82 10
2 Chenoweth, Dan 11 Harvard University 8:06.64 8
3 Wilhelm, Patterson 10 William & Mary 8:08.74 6
4 Sheridan, Ryan 12 Iona College 8:09.60 5
5 Waggoner, Bo 11 Duke University 8:11.20 4
6 Yeates, Richie 09 Providence College 8:12.39 3

Several texters have wondered if this performance gets Vess into Nationals. It does not. The provisional is 8:05.00, but realistically he needed to run at least 7:57 or faster to have a chance to make the field. We'll save that goal for a future winter season, God willing.

For now, we savor our first IC4A champ in school history and the fact that for tonight we (he) are in 5th place with 10 points! Woo-hoo!

Our other competitors Saturday did not fare as well: Will Griffin in the mile, and the DMR. Both were a little off. So be it. Also: Girma Segni runs the 5km on Sunday afternoon.

Again, I'll try to get splits up later tonight. If not, when I get home and settled early next week.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

What's next: This week

For those that are not aware: Big snowstorm on the way tonight (Sunday) into Monday. Possibly as much of a foot of snow. There goes running on North Field (and other trails) for quite a while. After the snow, it will be cold too, for the rest of the week. Prepare for that. Mentally and physically.

For those not competing at IC4As, it's time to start (or continue) cranking mileage. We may do a strength-based workout or two, but no real speed this week. Doesn't matter how or where you do the mileage. Roads. Treadmill. Fieldhouse. Just get it in.

The IC4A lineup for this coming weekend.

Saturday races: Mile Run (Will Griffin); 3,000-meter run (Adam Vess); DMR (Matt Janczyk, 1200; Colin Frederickson, 400; Kyle Havard, 800; Tom Lipari, 1600)

Sunday races: 5,000-meter run (Girma Segni); If Will or the DMR qualifies for finals, they would race on Sunday. The 3,000 is a final on time (in the past, it was a trials and finals thing).

NYU Fastrack splits

In the order they were raced ...

Mile run

Kyle Havard: 34 (long split, 209m), 67 (33), 1:40 (33), 2:14 (34), 2:47 (33), 3:21 (34), 3:55 (34), 4:27.41 (32.41). Comment: Strong, solid PR. A little flat as were most of the guys. Good effort.

Zak Smetana: 34 (long split), 67 (33), 1:40 (33), 2:14 (34), 2:48 (34), 3:22 (34), 3:57 (33), 4:31.20 (34.20). Comment: Personal best. Nicely done. Excellent season, Zak.

Brian McCormick: 31.8 (long split), 63.7 (31.9), 1:37.3 (33.6), 2:11.4 (34.1), 2:46.5 (35.1), 3:22.2 (35.7), 3:58.3 (36.1), 4:32.85 (34.85). Comment: Personal best, the hard way. The very hard way. You went out way too fast, almost like you were running a 1200 instead of a mile.

1,000-meter run


Matt Janczyk: 2:30.45. Personal best.
29.6, 59.6 (30.0), 1:29.1 (29.5), 1:59.0 (29.9), 2:30.45 (31.45). Comment: Very strong effort. Just missed the IC qualifier. Get ready for a monster 1200 leg on Saturday.

Conor Shelley: 2:42.42. Running unattached.
30.3, 61.0 (30.7), 1:33.0 (32.0), 2:06.6 (33.6), 2:42.42 (yikes). Comment: Time to get serious for a good outdoor season.

3,000-meter run

Curtis Jensen: 8:41.78. Equals PR.
34, 69 (35), 1:43 (34), 2:17 (36), 2:51 (34)
3:25 (34), 3:59 (34), 4:34 (35), 5:09 (35), 5:44 (35)
6:18 (34), 6:53 (35), 7:29 (36), 8:06 (37), 8:41.78 (35.78)
1k: 2:51; 2k: 5:44 (2:53); 3k: 8:41.78 (2:57.78)
Comment: Your sub-8:40 was there for the taking, you just ran out of steam at the end. Too bad. You had a great indoor season and I'm looking forward to an even stronger outdoor season. Nicely done.

Nick Webster: 8:45.92. Personal-best time
34, 71 (37), 1:45 (34), 2:21 (36), 2:56 (35)
3:31 (35), 4:07 (36), 4:42 (35), 5:18 (36), 5:54 (36)
6:30 (36), 7:06 (36), 7:42 (36), 8:16 (34), 8:45.92 (29.92)
1k: 2:56; 2k: 5:54 (2:58); 3k: 8:45.92 (2:51.92)
Comment: An excellent finish to a great indoors. Maybe you had a bit too much left, but it sure looked great with your closing in sub-30!

Tom Lipari: 8:51.90.
35, 69 (34), 1:43 (34), 2:17 (34), 2:52 (35)
3:26 (34), 4:01 (35), 4:37 (36), 5:13 (36), 5:50 (37)
6:27 (37), 7:04 (37), 7:42 (38), 8:17 (35), 8:51.90 (34.90)
1k: 2:52; 2k: 5:50 (2:58); 3k: 8:51.90 (3:01.90)
Comment: A bit quick early on, but you were flat on this day and it just wasn't getting done. Bounce back next week with a little bit of rest.

David Raucci: 8:56.12 (running unattached)
35, 72 (37), 1:47 (35), 2:22 (35), 2:57 (35)
3:31 (34), 4:07 (36), 4:42 (35), 5:19 (37), 5:55 (36)
6:32 (37), 7:07 (35), 7:43 (36), 8:20 (37), 8:56.12 (34.12)
1k: 2:57; 2k: 5:55 (2:58); 3k: 8:56.12 (3:01.12)

Pat Duggan: 9:01.75
34, 70 (36), 1:47 (37), 2:23 (36), 2:58 (35)
3:34 (36), 4:09 (35), 4:45 (36), 5:21 (36), 5:56 (35)
6:32 (36), 7:10 (38), 7:49 (39), 8:26 (37), 9:01.75 (35.75)
1k: 2:58; 2k: 5:56 (2:58); 3k: 9:01.75 (3:05.75)
Comment: Ran out of gas, but a good indoors. Looking forward to outdoors. Should be good!

Alex Emerel: 9:11.83
34, 70 (36), 1:48 (38), 2:24 (36), 2:59 (35)
3:33 (34), 4:09 (36), 4:45 (36), 5:22 (37), 5:59 (37)
6:38 (39), 7:17 (39), 7:55 (38), 8:34 (39), 9:11.83 (37.83)
1k: 2:59; 2k: 5:59 (3:00); 3k: 9:11.83 (3:12.83)

Brian Townsend: 9:15.28
35, 71 (36), 1:48 (37), 2:24 (36), 2:59 (35)
3:34 (35), 4:11 (37), 4:48 (37), 5:25 (37), 6:02 (37)
6:40 (38), 7:18 (38), 7:57 (39), 8:36 (39), 9:15.28 (39.28)
1k: 2:59; 2k: 6:02 (3:03); 3k: 9:15.28 (3:13.28)

Ryan Brown: 9:21.34
35.5, 73.0 (37.5), 1:50.9 (37.9), 2:28.4 (37.5), 3:05.8 (37.4)
3:43.3 (37.5), 4:21.3 (38.0), 4:59.5 (38.2), 5:37.1 (37.6), 6:14.7 (37.6)
6:51.9 (37.2), 7:30.9 (39.0), 8:09.4 (38.5), 8:46.8 (37.4), 9:21.34 (34.74)
1k: 3:05.8; 2k: 6:14.7 (3:08.9); 3k: 9:21.34 (3:06.64)

5,000-meter run

Matt Flint: 15:08.11. Personal-best time
36, 72 (36), 1:48 (36), 2:22 (34), 2:58 (36)
3:34 (36), 4:10 (36), 4:46 (36), 5:12 (36), 5:59 (37)
6:35 (36), 7:11 (36), 7:48 (37), 8:24 (36), 9:00 (36)
9:37 (37), 10:14 (37), 10:52 (38), 11:30 (38), 12:07 (37)
12:45 (37), 13:22 (37), 14:00 (38), 14:34 (34), 15:08.11 (34.11)
1k: 2:58; 2k: 5:59 (3:01); 3k: 9:00 (3:01); 4k: 12:07 (3:07); 5k: 15:08.11 (3:01.11)
Comment: Uneven effort for first 5km. A little bit flat, I thought, but outdoors is on the way and it should be great. Fantastic first indoor season of your career!

Mike Rolek: 15:09.47. Running for the Marist Alumni Racing Team
36, 72 (36), 1:48 (36), 2:22 (34), 2:58 (36)
3:34 (36), 4:10 (36), 4:46 (36), 5:12 (36), 5:59 (37)
6:35 (36), 7:12 (37), 7:49 (37), 8:25 (36), 9:00 (35)
9:38 (38), 10:16 (38), 10:54 (38), 11:32 (38), 12:10 (38)
12:46 (36), 13:24 (38), 14:00 (36), 14:35 (35), 15:09.42 (34.42)
1k: 2:58; 2k: 5:59 (3:01); 3k: 9:00 (3:01); 4k: 12:10 (3:10); 5k: 15:09.42 (2:59.42)
Comment: Excellent race and great to see you and Flint working together much of the way. Strong effort. Nice.

John Keenan: 15:42.40
37, 72 (35), 1:49 (37), 2:23 (34), 3:00 (37)
3:36 (36), 4:10 (34), 4:48 (38), 5:24 (36), 6:01 (37)
6:37 (36), 7:16 (39), 7:54 (38), 8:31 (37), 9:09 (38)
9:48 (39), 10:27 (39), 11:07 (40), 11:46 (39), 12:25 (39), 13:06 (41), 13:47 (41), 14:27 (40), missed split; 15:42.40
1k: 3:00; 2k: 6:01 (3:01); 3k: 9:09 (3:08); 4k: 12:25 (3:16); 5k: 15:42.40 (3:17.40)

Kirk Dornton: 15:54.90. Racing for Marist Alumni Racing Team
37.1, 74.8 (37.7), 1:51.6 (36.8), 2:29.0 (37.4), 3:04.6 (35.6)
3:41.1 (36.5), 4:17.4 (36.3), 5:32.0 (37.6), 6:10.0 (38.0)
6:48.0 (38.0), 7:26.1 (38.1), 8:05.5 (39.4), 8:45.3 (39.8), 9:25.4 (40.1)
10:05.4 (40.0), 10:43.7 (38.3), 11:24.1 (40.4), 12:04.2 (40.1), 12:43.4 (39.2)
13:23.1 (39.6), 14:02.2 (39.1), 14:41.1 (38.9), 15:19.0 (37.9), 15:54.90 (35.90)
1k: 3:04.6; 2k: 6:10.0 (3:05.4); 3k: 9:25.4 (3:15.4); 3k: 12:43.4 (3:18.0); 5k: 15:54.90 (3:11.50)