Rizzo is finalist for national award

Congratulations to senior captain Steven Rizzo, who is one of four finalists nationwide for the 14th Annual Coach Wooden Citizenship Cup Award as was announced by the Athletes For a Better World. See this link on GoredFoxes.com for more details and a cool video about Rizz. This is a huge honor for Rizz and validates what a great overall Marist Citizen he has been in his four years here. He exemplifies the Marist Brothers edict of "do good quietly" ... although "quietly" doesn't really fit Rizz! But you get the idea. We're proud of him, now and always. Nicely done!

What’s next: Mets

We will be bringing a small, partial squad down to the Metropolitan Championships (Mets) on Friday. Below is the order of events and time schedule.

Metropolitan Indoor Championship

Friday, February 2, 2018

Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex

Time schedule/order of events (women then men)

12 noon: 5,000 run

12:35 p.m.: 60 hurdle trials

12:45 p.m.: 60 dash trials

1:05 p.m.: Mile run

1:30 p.m.: Heptathlon 60 hurdles (men)

1:35 p.m.: 60 hurdle finals (men)

1:40 p.m.: 60 hurdle finals (women)

1:45 p.m.: 60 dash finals

1:50 p.m.: 400 dash

2:20 p.m.: 500 dash

2:50 p.m.: 800 run

3:05 p.m.: 1,000 run

3:30 p.m.: 200 dash

4:00 p.m.: 3,000 run

4:30 p.m.: DMR

5:20 p.m.: 4x800 relay

5:45 p.m.: 4x400 relay

Girma places 5th in Miami

Thanks to a very loyal blog/program follower for sending me the link to this result from Marist Running Royalty Girma Segni, who placed fifth at the Miami Marathon in 2:32:07, a 5:49 pace. I haven't talked to Girma about it, but it looked like a strong race for him. His pace slowed as the race progressed, but he moved up by a place as the race went on. Very cool!

New smart phone. Same stupid user.

Forgive me if I have missed a call or text in the past few days. Got me a new smart phone. The previous phone, my trusty Samsung Galaxy S-whatever had ridiculously poor battery life. For the past few months, I have had to navigate through the day with a series of portable chargers and finding outlets to plug in the phone. It got so bad that when I had it plugged in and charging, the battery life actually decreased. Absurdity. Time for a new phone. I had been putting it off, because quite frankly I couldn't afford a new phone. I wasn't "due for an upgrade" till May. Leave it to my brainiac son to come up with the solution: Buy your own phone and forget about the monthly payments. He recommended the Moto G5s (I think, something like that). The reviews on it say that the camera quality is not great but the battery life is fantastic. And it was extremely cost effective (look it up, I dare you to find a better phone for cheaper price). Sold! Got it. Went to the local Verizon store, got it set up and now I'm muddling around with a new phone. I've never been an iPhone guy. The operating system on this phone is similar to the Galaxy, with a few new quirks. I was never an expert user of the previous phone; same with this one. For those keeping score at home, the first apps I downloaded were: Accuweather, New York Times, NPR and Pacer (a step-counting app). There are others, but I'm getting bored just typing this, so I'll end this post now.

BU Terrier: Men's results and splits

The men's meet started out ominously on Saturday morning. In Section 10 of the 800-meter run, sophomore Matthew Hawker and freshman Connor St. Germain got caught up in an ugly, leg-tangling mess just before completing the second lap of the race. Both of them went down, hard, in a heap, toward the infield right by the finish line (check out the flotrack video if you have a macabre sense of humor). Hawker scraped himself up and banged his head (never a good thing) while CSG's shoulder drilled the rail hard and he got his share of track rash as well. Both horrifying DNFs. No one is to blame; indoor track 800-meter racing is a full contact sport and not for the timid. Fortunately, Hawker was fine and rebounded with a strong 4x400 leg; CSG was quite sore and sat out the rest of the day.

That's the bad news. The good news is that, after that, things got a lot better on the Magic Carpet. There were strong races and PRs galore. Numbers geeks will enjoy some of these splits, because you'll note some really fast lap times -- none more impressive than Conor Stack's 29.43-second last 200 meters in a breakthrough 3km effort. Some other PR performances: Cole Ziskind (1000), Drew Burns (mile), James Moehringer (mile), James Pratt (mile), Eamonn Beers (mile), Stack and Hogue (3km), Dietrich Mosel (5km, IC4A qualifier), Chris Rivas and James Draney (5km). This meet gives us confidence moving forward for the remainder of the track season -- after the fall.

John Thomas Terrier Classic

Boston University Track and Tennis Center

Saturday, January 27, 2018

Men’s results and splits

200-meter dash

104. Santosh Krishnan 24.27

400-meter dash

92. Josh Hindle 53.62

96. Santosh Krishnan 54.23

800-meter run

71. Tanner Senius 1:58.04

28, 57 (29), 1:27 (30), 1:58.04 (31.04)

73. Zachary Ropes 1:58.47

26, 55 (29), 1:26 (31), 1:58.47 (32.47)

88. Andrew Whitney 2:00.17

28, 58 (30), 1:28 (30), 2:00.17 (32.17)

105. Mark Cappuccitti 2:03.48

28, 59 (31), 1:31 (32), 2:03.48 (32.48)

106. Will O’Connell 2:03.92

28, 59 (31), 1:31 (32), 2:03.92 (32.92)

1,000-meter run

26. Brian Henderson 2:32.87

28.8, 59.3 (30.5), 1:29.6 (30.3), 1:59.9 (30.3), 2:32.87 (32.97)

28. Cole Ziskind 2:34.58

29.3, 61.3 (32.0), 1:33.5 (32.2), 2:04.4 (30.9), 2:34.58 (30.18)

Mile run (first splits = 209 meters)

63. Drew Burns 4:19.71

33.4, 66.9 (33.5), 1:40.1 (33.2), 2:12.9 (32.8), 2:45.0 (32.1), 3:17.7 (32.7), 3:49.8 (32.1), 4:19.71 (29.91)

69. Steven Rizzo 4:20.99

33.9, 66.2 (32.3), 1:39.2 (33.0), 2:12.0 (32.8), 2:44.5 (32.5), 3:16.8 (32.3), 3:48.6 (31.8), 4:20.99 (32.39)

75. James Moehringer 4:22.43

33.5, 67.2 (33.7), 1:39.8 (32.6), 2:12.6 (32.8), 2:45.0 (32.4), 3:17.7 (32.7), 3:50.2 (32.5), 4:22.43 (32.23)

104. James Pratt 4:28.59

34.2, 68.0 (33.8), 1:42.3 (34.3), 2:15.9 (33.6), 2:49.3 (33.4), 3:23.1 (33.8), 3:56.2 (33.1), 4:28.59 (32.39)

123. Eamonn Beers 4:33.90

33.7, 67.5 (33.8), 1:41.1 (33.6), 2:13.9 (32.8), 2:47.5 (33.6), 3:22.2 (34.7), 3:57.2 (35.0), 4:33.90 (36.70)

3,000-meter run

70. Joe Miller 8:45.17

33.2, 68.6 (35.4), 1:42.6 (34.0), 2:17.2 (34.6), 2:51.4 (34.2)

3:25.7 (34.3), 4:00.6 (34.9), 4:35.3 (34.7), 5:09.6 (34.3), 5:44.4 (34.8)

6:19.1 (34.7), 6:55.2 (36.1), 7:32.0 (36.8), 8:08.0 (36.0), 8:45.17 (37.17)

Kilometer splits: 2:51.4, 2:53.0, 3:00.77

76. Conor Stack 8:48.63

33.5, 69.8 (36.3), 1:44.8 (35.0), 2:20.6 (35.8), 2:56.8 (36.2)

3:32.2 (35.5), 4:07.5 (35.3), 4:43.6 (36.1), 5:19.6 (36.1), 5:55.4 (35.8)

6:31.6 (36.2), 7:07.7 (36.2), 7:44.3 (36.5), 8:19.2 (34.9), 8:48.63 (29.43)

Kilometer splits: 2:55.4, 2:58.6, 2:53.23

86. Alex Hogue 8:57.37

34.8, 69.5 (34.7), 1:44.4 (34.9), 2:19.8 (35.4), 2:55.4 (35.6)

3:30.6 (35.2), 4:06.7 (36.1), 4:42.3 (35.6), 5:18.6 (36.3), 5:55.3 (36.7)

6:32.3 (37.1), 7:10.2 (37.9), 7:48.2 (38.0), 8:25.1 (36.9), 8:57.37 (33.27)

Kilometer splits: 2:55.4, 2:59.9, 3:02.07

98. Dan Hillman 9:08.62

34.4, 69.8 (35.4), 1:46.5 (36.7), 2:23.0 (36.5), 2:58.7 (35.7)

3:34.4 (35.7), 4:10.8 (36.4), 4:48.2 (37.4), 5:25.8 (37.6), 6:02.6 (36.8)

6:39.3 (36.8), 7:16.6 (37.3), 7:54.3 (37.7), 8:32.6 (38.3), 9:08.62 (36.02)

Kilometer splits: 2:58.7, 3:03.9, 3:06.02

5,000-meter run

13. Dietrich Mosel 14:40.39 *IC4A qualifier

35, 72 (37), 1:46 (34), 2:21 (35), 2:57 (36)

3:33 (36), 4:08 (35), 4:44 (36), 5:29 (35), 5:55 (36)

6:31 (36), 7:06 (35), 7:41 (35), 8:17 (36), 8:53 (36)

9:29 (36), 10:05 (36), 10:41 (36), 11:17 (36), 11:52 (35)

12:27 (35), 13:01 (34), 13:36 (35), 14:09 (33), 14:40.39 (31.39)

Kilometer splits: 2:57, 2:58, 2:58, 2:59, 2:48.39

33. Spencer Johnson 15:14.81

36, 73 (37), 1:48 (35), 2:23 (35), 2:59 (36)

3:34 (35), 4:10 (36), 4:45 (35), 5:21 (36), 5:57 (36)

6:33 (36), 7:08 (35), 7:44 (36), 8:20 (36), 8:57 (37)

9:33 (36), 10:11 (38), 10:49 (38), 11:27 (38), 12:05 (38)

12:43 (38), 13:21 (38), 14:00 (39), 14:38 (38), 15:14.81 (36.81)

Kilometer splits: 2:59, 2:58, 3:00, 3:07, 3:07.81

34. Christopher Rivas 15:15.06

36, 74 (36), 1:51 (37), 2:29 (38), 3:05 (36)

3:42 (37), 4:19 (37), 4:55 (36), 5:31 (36), 6:08 (37)

6:45 (37), 7:21 (36), 7:57 (36), 8:34 (37), 9:11 (37)

9:47 (36), 10:24 (37), 11:00 (36), 11:37 (37), 12:14 (37)

12:50 (36), 13:27 (37), 14:04 (37), 14:40 (36), 15:15.06 (35.06)

Kilometer splits: 3:05, 3:03, 3:03, 3:03, 3:01.06

39. James Draney 15:27.04

36, 74 (38), 1:51 (37), 2:29 (38), 3:05 (36)

3:42 (37), 4:19 (37), 4:55 (36), 5:31 (36), 6:08 (37)

6:45 (37), 7:22 (37), 8:00 (38), 8:38 (38), 9:16 (38)

9:55 (39), 10:33 (38), 11:11 (38), 11:49 (38), 12:27 (38)

13:03 (36), 13:40 (37), 14:17 (37), 14:53 (36), 15:27.04 (34.04)

Kilometer splits: 3:05, 3:03, 3:08, 3:11, 3:10.04

1,600-meter relay

23. Marist A (Cole Ziskind 52.5, Matthew Hawker 52.2, Tanner Senius 52.2, Josh Hindle 53.4) 3:30.51

31. Marist B (Andrew Whitney 53.6, Mark Cappuccitti 55.3, Will O’Connell 54.1, Santosh Krishnan 53.9) 3:37.65

BU Terrier: Women's DMR qualifies for ECACs

Our Saturday started out with a scintillating distance medley relay, which easily qualified for the ECAC Championships (qualifying standard = 12:08.64) and came within two seconds of a longstanding school record (school record = 11:54.75, 2011) in the process. What's great about this is all four ladies did their jobs, and they did them extremely well -- a day after grueling races on Friday afternoon and evening -- the sign of a tough and fast team. Excellent effort, ladies!

John Thomas Terrier Classic

Boston University Track and Tennis Center

Saturday, January 27, 2018

Women’s results and splits

Distance medley relay

7. Marist (Maria Smith 3:43.0, Danisha Craig 58.6, Shea Bohan 2:15.4, Janelle Solviletti 4:59.3) 11:56.49 *ECAC qualifier

Maria Smith: 35, 72 (37), 1:50 (38), 2:28 (38), 3:06 (38), 3:43.0 (37.0)

Danisha Craig: 26, 58.6

Shea Bohan: 31, 66 (35), 1:41 (35), 2:15.4 (34.4)

Janelle Solviletti: 35, 73 (38), 1:51 (38), 2:29 (38), 3:07 (38), 3:45 (38), 4:22 (37), 4:59.3 (37.3)

BU Terrier: Dietrich Mosel qualifies for IC4As in 5km

Congrats to senior captain Dietrich Mosel for a breakthrough race in the 5km tonight at Boston. Dietrich ran a 9-second PR and vaulted up to eighth all-time and qualified for the IC4A Championships in the event. It was a great effort for Dietrich, who has been bothered by niggling injuries on and off since the end of his stellar XC season. Tonight's race validated all the long-term work he has put in, and also proved that he can be a tough cookie out there -- he led the race (section 2) for the majority of the 25 laps, setting the pace for the rest of the field. Nicely done, Deet!

John Thomas Terrier Classic

Boston University Track and Tennis Center

Saturday, January 27, 2018

5,000-meter run

13. Dietrich Mosel 14:40.39 *IC4A qualifier

35, 72 (37), 1:46 (34), 2:21 (35), 2:57 (36)

3:33 (36), 4:08 (35), 4:44 (36), 5:29 (35), 5:55 (36)

6:31 (36), 7:06 (35), 7:41 (35), 8:17 (36), 8:53 (36)

9:29 (36), 10:05 (36), 10:41 (36), 11:17 (36), 11:52 (35)

12:27 (35), 13:01 (34), 13:36 (35), 14:09 (33), 14:40.39 (31.39)

Kilometer splits: 2:57, 2:58, 2:58, 2:59, 2:48.39

All-time 5km list

1-Girma Segni, 14:18.42, 2009*

2. Will Griffin, 14:23.43, 2013 **

3. Arquimedes DelaCruz, 14:29.82, 2013

4. Adam Vess, 14:33.41, 2008

5. Peter Pazik, 14:35.84, 1986

6. Matt Flint, 14:37.45, 2010

7. Ken Walshak, 14:37.53, 2011

8. Dietrich Mosel 14:40.39, 2018

9. Michael Melfi, 14:42.36, 1998

10. Justin Harris, 14:42.88, 2007

11. David Raucci, 14:42.92, 2006

12. Michael Nehr, 14:45.61, 2001

13. David Swift, 14:50.24, 1995

14. Zak Smetana, 14:50.39, 2011

15. Kirk Dornton, 14:50.89, 2002

16. Nick Webster, 14:52.54, 2009

17. Conor Shelley, 14:52.67, 2008

18. Palmer Weimann, 14:53.61, 2017

19. Joel Moss, 14:54.57, 2012

20. Greg Salamone, 14:55.79, 2000

21. Tim Keegan, 14:56.45, 2009

22. Mark Valentino, 14:56.77, 2016

23. Steven Rizzo 14:56.99, 2017

24. Stefan Morton, 14:58.19, 2016

25. Ryan Scrudato, 14:58.43, 2013

26. Spencer Johnson, 14:58.46, 2015

* indoor school record

** outdoor school record

BU Terrier: Women's results/splits (two ECAC 5km qualifiers!)

The magic carpet lived up to its billing, with some noteworthy performances from our women's distance squad -- two sub-5:00 mile times, numerous PR times, and two individual ECAC qualifiers in the 5km, freshman Gianna Tedeschi and junior Jordan Casey (pictured above). Fantastic evening at BU! Back at it tomorrow with the women's DMR, followed by the men's meet.

John Thomas Terrier Classic

Boston University Track and Tennis Center

Friday, January 26, 2018

Women’s results and splits

60-meter dash

44. Candhace Forrest 8.46

50. Lauren Adams 8.56

200-meter dash

65. Danisha Craig 26.78

69. Debbie Boerke 26.82

100. Grace Cepeda 27.33

109. Lauren Adams 28.06

400-meter dash

37. Danisha Craig 59.26

45. Debbie Boerke 59.72

800-meter run

78. Jess Howe 2:30.85

34.8, 72.6 (37.8), 1:51.9 (39.3), 2:30.75 (38.85)

1,000-meter run

24. Gianna Mastromatteo 3:04.16

32.70, 68.51 (35.81), 1:46.61 (38.10), 2:24.44 (37.83), 3:04.16 (39.62)

Mile run

20. Shea Bohan 4:59.08

38.2, 76.1 (37.9), 1:53.7 (37.6), 2:31.0 (37.3), 3:07.1 (36.1), 3:44.1 (37.0), 4:21.6 (37.5), 4:59.08 (36.48)

22. Janelle Solviletti 4:59.89

37, 74 (37), 1:53 (39), 2:30 (37), 3:08 (38), 3:46 (38), 4:24 (38), 4:59.89 (35.89)

31. Denise Grohn 5:03.88

38, 74 (36), 1:52 (38), 2:31 (39), 3:10 (39), 3:49 (39), 4:27 (38), 5:03.88 (36.88)

35. Emily Burns 5:04.91

38, 76 (38), 1:54 (38), 2:32 (38), 3:10 (38), 3:49 (39), 4:29 (40), 5:04.91 (35.91)

41. Maria Smith 5:07.74

37, 74 (37), 1:52 (38), 2:30 (38), 3:08 (38), 3:48 (40), 4:30 (42), 5:07.74 (37.74)

59. Kerry Gaye 5:12.89

39.2, 78.4 (39.2), 1:57.9 (39.4), 2:36.9 (39.0), 3:16.6 (39.7), 3:56.3 (39.7), 4:36.1 (39.8), 5:12.89 (36.79)

60. Boushra Belkhir 5:13.10

40, 78 (38), 1:57 (39), 2:37 (40), 3:16 (39), 3:55 (39), 4:34 (39), 5:13.10 (39.10)

61. Christine Gambell 5:13.33

36, 74 (38), 1:52 (38), 2:31 (39), 3:11 (40), 3:51 (40), 4:31 (40), 5:13.33 (42.33)

82. Maddie Tooker 5:23.37

40, 78 (38), 1:57 (39), 2:37 (40), 3:18 (41), 4:01 (43), 4:41 (40), 5:23.37 (42.37)

94. Jill Laliberte 5:27.78

39.8, 80.0 (40.2), 2:01.6 (41.6), 2:43.3 (41.7), 3:24.2 (40.9), 4:05.7 (41.5), 4:47.3 (41.6), 5:27.78 (40.48)

3,000-meter run

26. Ali Bartolotta 10:03.51

39.7, 78.8 (39.1), 1:58.6 (39.8), 2:38.5 (39.9), 3:18.8 (40.3)

3:58.9 (40.1), 4:39.6 (40.7), 5:19.6 (40.0), 6:00.9 (41.3), 6:42.3 (41.4)

7:24.3 (42.0), 8:06.4 (42.1), 8:48.1 (41.7), 9:28.5 (40.4), 10:03.51 (35.01)

Kilometer splits: 3:18.8, 3:25.5, 3:21.21

55. Jenna Robinson 10:33.71

41.1, 82.2 (41.1), 2:04.4 (42.2), 2:45.5 (41.1), 3:27.5 (42.0)

4:09.5 (42.0), 4:51.5 (42.0), 5:33.2 (41.7), 6:15.5 (42.3), 6:58.3 (42.8)

7:41.2 (42.9), 8:24.8 (43.6), 9:08.5 (43.7), 9:52.3 (43.8), 10:33.71 (41.41)

Kilometer splits: 3:27.5, 3:30.8, 3:35.41

5,000-meter run

17. Gianna Tedeschi 17:21.44 *ECAC qualifier

40, 82 (42), 2:04 (42), 2:46 (42), 3:27 (41)

4:09 (42), 4:50 (41), 5:32 (42), 6:14 (42), 6:55 (41)

7:37 (42), 8:20 (43), 9:02 (42), 9:44 (42), 10:26 (42)

11:08 (42), 11:50 (42), 12:32 (42), 13:15 (43), 13:57 (42)

14:40 (43), 15:21 (41), 16:03 (42), 16:42 (39), 17:21.44 (39.44)

Kilometer splits: 3:27, 3:28, 3:31, 3:31, 3:29.44

19. Jordan Casey 17:23.24 *ECAC qualifier

40, 82 (42), 2:04 (42), 2:46 (42), 3:27 (41)

4:09 (42), 4:51 (42), 5:33 (42), 6:14 (41), 6:56 (42)

7:38 (42), 8:21 (43), 9:04 (43), 9:46 (42), 10:27 (41)

11:09 (42), 11:51 (42), 12:34 (43), 13:17 (43), 13:59 (42)

14:42 (43), 15:23 (41), 16:06 (43), 16:45 (39), 17:23.24 (38.24)

Kilometer splits: 3:27, 3:39, 3:31, 3:32, 3:24.34

22. Hayley Collins 17:29.07

40, 82 (42), 2:04 (42), 2:47 (43), 3:28 (41)

4:09 (41), 4:50 (41), 5:32 (42), 6:14 (42), 6:55 (41)

7:37 (42), 8:20 (43), 9:04 (44), 9:46 (42), 10:28 (42)

11:10 (42), 11:53 (43), 12:35 (42), 13:18 (43), 13:59 (41)

14:43 (44), 15:25 (42), 16:08 (43), 16:48 (40), 17:29.07 (41.07)

Kilometer splits: 3:27, 3:27, 3:33, 3:31, 3:30.07

BU Terrier: Men's DMR

Our men's distance medley relay team ran on Friday night with the goal of an IC4A qualifier, unfortunately falling short of the mark, which is a bummer. We'll get back at it tomorrow in the individual events and get to a relay qualifier in future meets.

John Thomas Terrier Classic

Boston University Track and Tennis Center

Friday, January 26, 2018

Men’s results and splits

Distance medley relay

9. Marist (Brian Henderson 3:11.9, Connor St. Germain 51.7, Drew Burns 1:56.9, Steven Rizzo 4:22.4) 10:23.42

Brian Henderson: 30, 60 (30), 1:31 (31), 2:04 (33), 2:38 (34), 3:11.9 (33.9)

Connor St. Germain: 23, 51.7

Drew Burns: 27, 57 (30), 1:27 (30), 1:56.9 (29.9)

Steven Rizzo: 29, 59 (30), 1:30 (31), 2:04 (34), 2:37 (33), 3:11 (34), 3:46 (35), 4:22.4 (36.4)

BU Terrier: Time schedule, order of events

John Thomas Terrier Classic

Boston University

January 26-27, 2018

Friday’s time schedule and order of events

1:00pm Women’s 60H

1:05pm Women’s 60H Invitational Trials (Top 27 verifiable entries)

1:10pm Women’s 800m

1:50pm Women’s 60m

1:55pm Women’s 60m Invitational Trials (Top 27 verifiable entries)

2:00pm Women’s 400m

2:40pm Women’s 60H Invitational Finals

2:42pm Women’s 60m Invitational Finals

2:45pm Women’s 500m

3:05pm Women’s 1000m

3:30pm Women’s 200m

4:10pm Women’s 1mile

5:20pm Women’s 4x400m

6:05pm Women’s 3000m

7:10pm Invitational Men’s 3000m

7:20pm Women’s 5000m

8:20pm Men’s Distance Medley Relay

Friday field event

2:00pm Women’s High Jump (Starting Height 1.50m) – 2 sections if needed

Saturday’s time schedule and order of events

11:00am Women’s Distance Medley Relay

11:30am Men’s 60H

11:32am Men’s 60H Invitational Trials (Top 27 verifiable entries)

11:40am Men’s 800m

12:30pm Men’s 60m

12:35pm Men’s 60m Invitational Trials (Top 27 verifiable entries)

12:40pm Men’s 400m

1:25pm Men’s 60H Invitational Finals

1:27pm Men’s 60m Invitational Finals

1:30pm Men’s 500m

1:50pm Men’s 1000m

2:25pm Men’s 200m

3:10pm Men’s 1mile

4:25pm Men’s 4x400m

5:05pm Men’s 3000m

6:05pm Men’s 5000m

Here is the address for the meet, for any parents or friends or family driving there.

Meet venue:

Boston University Track and Tennis Center

100 Ashford Street

Boston, MA 02215

A January surprise

For once, we were on the positive end of an oddity of the weather on Tuesday. Our phones were blowing up with notifications of flood watches and flood warnings. The temperature warmed to unusual for January and the heavy rains pelted us all morning and into the afternoon. Athletes came into the racquetball court, soaked and annoyed. The soaked and annoyed conversation went like this.

Soaked athlete: Pete, can we get waterproof jackets next year?
Coach Pete: No.
Soaked athlete: Why not?
Coach Pete: Too expensive.
Soaked athlete: Will we be able to get on the outdoor track at New Paltz?
Coach Pete: No idea. Depends on if all the snow's gone.

Loading up the vans in the rain, the mood was indeed as damp as everyone's socks and sneakers. Driving down Route 9, I glanced to my right, across the river, and I saw clearing. "Look!" I said. "Blue skies over New Paltz. Dark cloud over Poughkeepsie. This is good."

We are greeted with brilliant sunshine and relative warmth in New Paltz. The outdoor track was mostly clear, save for a narrow path on one of the turns that some alert team members had to cleverly burrow through the snow. Snow banks covered the most of the outside lanes but who cares? We're not hosting a meet, we just want to get our work in. We got our work in. Outside. In spring-like attire. Everyone was happy. Who needs those waterproof jackets anyway? For one day, at least, who needed the Big Blue Doughnut indoor track?

We return to campus. About an hour later. The dark clouds roll in. The wind whips. The rain resumes. The forecast for tomorrow is for a return engagement of winter. We got a three-hour window of nice weather. We pounced. For once, we caught a break with the weather in the majestic mid-Hudson Valley.

NYC Gotham Cup: Men's results and splits

NYC Gotham Cup

Friday, January 19, 2018

Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex

Staten Island, NY

Men’s results and splits

400-meter dash

54. Sean Patterson 52.57

70. Nick Brady 54.20

71. Cole Lucaszcyk 54.24

72. Josh Hindle 54.46

76. Santosh Krishnan 55.13

800-meter run

8. Brian Henderson 1:58.13

28.6, 58.4 (29.8), 1:28.4 (30.0), 1:58.13 (29.93)

19. Tanner Senius 2:00.50

27.9, 58.7 (30.8), 1:29.0 (30.3), 2:00.50 (31.50)

25. Cole Ziskind 2:01.23

28, 59 (31), 1:29 (30), 2:01.23 (32.23)

35. Will O’Connell 2:03.54

28, 60 (32), 1:31 (31), 2:03.54 (32.54)

1,000-meter run

9. Drew Burns 2:32.82

29.6, 58.8 (30.2), 1:31.5 (31.7), 2:02.8 (31.3), 2:32.82 (30.02)

12. Matthew Hawker 2:37.39

29, 61 (32), 1:33 (32), 2:06 (33), 2:37.39 (31.39)

13. Andrew Whitney 2:38.37

30, 61 (31), 1:33 (32), 2:06 (33), 2:38.37 (32.37)

Mile run

16. James Moehringer 4:28.46

33, 66 (33), 1:41 (35), 2:14 (34), 2:47 (33), 3:21 (34), 3:54 (33), 4:28.xx (34.xx)

25. Conor Stack 4:36.55

34, 70 (360, 1:44 (34), 2:20 (36), 2:54 (34), 3:30 (36), 4:04 (34), 4:36.55 (32.55)

30. James Pratt 4:37.94

33, 68 (35), 1:44 (36), 2:20 (36), 2:54 (34), 3:29 (35), 4:04 (35), 4:37.94 (33.94)

32. Eamonn Beers 4:38.32

34, 69 (35), 1:44 (35), 2:18 (34), 2:52 (34), 3:27 (35), 4:02 (35), 4:38.32 (36.32)

3,000-meter run

17. Connor Fitzpatrick 9:18.17

35, 71 (36), 1:49 (38), 2:26 (37), 3:04 (38)

3:41 (37), 4:19 (38), 4:58 (39), 5:36 (38), 6:14 (38)

6:52 (38), 7:29 (37), 8:07 (38), 8:44 (37), 9:18.17 (34.17)

Kilometer splits: 3:04, 3:10, 3:04.17

19. Matthew Ronan 9:21.14

36, 72 (36), 1:50 (38), 2:27 (37), 3:04 (37)

3:41 (37), 4:20 (39), 4:58 (38), 5:36 (38), 6:14 (38)

6:53 (39), 7:31 (38), 8:10 (39), 8:48 (38), 9:21.14 (33.14)

Kilometer splits: 3:04, 3:10, 3:07.14

20. Connor Levins 9:22.38

36, 71 (35), 1:46 (35), 2:22 (36), 2:59 (37)

3:35 (36), 4:11 (36), 4:50 (39), 5:29 (39), 6:09 (40)

6:49 (40), 7:30 (41), 8:09 (39), 8:19 (40), 9:22.38 (33.38)

Kilometer splits: 2:59, 3:10, 3:13.38

3,200-meter relay

4. Marist (Zachary Ropes 2:00.9, Connor St. Germain 1:59.6, Mark Cappuccitti 2:04.4, James Pratt 2:05.1) 8:10.10

Zachary Ropes: 29, 59 (30), 1:29 (30), 2:00.9 (31.9)

Connor St. Germain: 27, 58 (31), 1:29 (31), 1:59.6 (30.6)

Mark Cappuccitti: 28, 59 (31), 1:32 (33), 2:04.4 (32.4)

James Pratt: 28, 58 (30), 1:31 (33), 2:05.1 (34.1)

NYC Gotham Cup: Women's results and splits

NYC Gotham Cup

Friday, January 19, 2018

Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex

Staten Island, NY

Women’s results and splits

60-meter dash

45. Grace Cepeda 8.54

200-meter dash

23. Danisha Craig 26.60

400-meter dash

20. Debbie Boerke 1:00.96

800-meter run

35. Jessica Howe 2:35.52

36.0, 74.3 (38.3), 1:54.7 (40.3), 2:35.52 (40.82)

52. Shannon Gildea 2:52.68

39.4, 83.3 (43.9), 2:07.7 (44.4), 2:52.68 (44.98)

Mile run

35. Ashley Wallace 6:10.21

41, 84 (43), 2:09 (45), 2:57 (48), 3:46 (49), 4:35 (49), 5:23 (48), 6:10.21 (47.21)

3,000-meter run

20. Talia Cutrone 11:19.33

45, 89 (44), 2:13 (44), 2:58 (45), 3:42 (44)

4:26 (44), 5:12 (46), 5:57 (45), 6:44 (47), 7:31 (47)

8:17 (46), 9:04 (47), 9:51 (47), 10:37 (46), 11:19.33 (42.33)

Kilometer splits: 3:42, 3:49, 3:48.33

NYC Gotham Cup: Time schedule

NYC Gotham Cup

Friday, January 19, 2018

Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex

Staten Island, NY

Time schedule and order of events

Women then men

1:58 p.m.: 60 hurdle trials

2:15 p.m.: Women’s 3,000

2:37 p.m.: 60 hurdle finals

2:46 p.m.: 60 dash trials

3:15 p.m.: Men’s 3,000

3:45 p.m.: 60 dash final

4:00 p.m.: 400 dash

4:45 p.m.: Mile run

5:25 p.m.: 1,000 run

5:50 p.m.: 800 run

6:30 p.m.: 200 dash

7:05 p.m.: 5,000 run

7:40 p.m.: 4x800 relay

8:00 p.m.: DMR

8:20 p.m.: 4x400 relay

Women’s high jump: Following dash final

Snowy Tuesday at Big Blue Doughnut

We are in the midst of a Winter Storm Warning, with 5-10 inches of snow on the way. Our men's distance team was able to sneak over to New Paltz before the storm got bad to get a workout in on the elevated indoor track at SUNY -- also known as the Big Blue Doughnut. Thanks to freshman Graham Strzelecki for taking this photo. As we arrived, we were pleased to run into living legend Don Davis, the founder and creator of the SOS (Survival of the Shawangunks) triathlon in the New Paltz area. Don said that NBC Sports did a special documentary on the special race. It will air later this month. Neat. 

Deedy gets new job!

Congrats to Marist Running alum Pat Deedy on his new job as head athletic trainer at Southern Vermont College in Bennington. Deedy was an AT major at Marist and a loyal and dedicated member of our distance running team. As you can see, he's still sporting the Kevin Youkilis look. Nicely done, Deedy!

Our bleacher creatures

We implored our men's and women's teams to come out and support the men's basketball team on Saturday night in a key MAAC matchup with Fairfield -- and they came out in full force! Joe Miller urged me to take a picture of the team; I told him he should, since I'm clearly not skilled with the cell phone camera, but alas he was "working" as an usher (as were several of our athletes, as you can SEE), so I took this "photo" of the team during the second half of a thrilling OT victory over the Stags.

Coogan's update: It's staying open!

Thanks to several alert blog followers who emailed or texted me the great news that Coogan's in Washington Heights (near the Armory) is indeed staying open. Here's the story that was sent to me. Neat.

Spartan Regional Invite: Women's results and splits

What a start to 2018 for our women's team! The word that comes to mind is "dominance" in the first meet of the calendar year -- dominance from junior Shea Bohan, who ran a forceful, wire-to-wire win in the mile run; dominance in the 3km, where our athletes ran with extreme toughness and closed strongly and took the top four spots and six out of the first seven spots (see women's 3km runners above); dominance in the relays, where we set a school record, got a win, and nearly bagged a few ECAC qualifying marks, which are sure to follow in the coming weeks. Nicely done, ladies! Look forward to the upcoming weeks and meets.

Spartan Regional Invitational

Friday, January 12, 2018

Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex

Staten Island, NY

Women’s results and splits

60-meter dash

2-Candhace Forrest 7.98

10-Grace Cepeda 8.45

200-meter dash

2. Candhace Forrest 27.52

3. Grace Cepeda 27.62

4. Debbie Boerke 27.78

400-meter dash

1-Debbie Boerke 1:01.25

800-meter run

3-Jill Laliberte 2:29.31

36.09, 72.70 (36.61), 1:51.19 (38.49), 2:29.31 (38.12)

Mile run

1-Shea Bohan 5:02.56

37, 76 (30), 1:54 (38), 2:32 (38), 3:09 (37), 3:46 (37), 4:24 (38), 5:02.56 (38.56)

3-Christine Gambell 5:22.98

37, 77 (40), 1:56 (39), 2:35 (39), 3:16 (41), 3:57 (41), 4:40 (43), 5:22.98 (42.98)

4. Boushra Belkhir 5:25.48

38, 78 (40), 1:58 (40), 2:39 (41), 3:20 (41), 4:01 (41), 4:44 (43), 5:25.48 (41.48)

5. Maddie Tooker 5:29.65
37, 77 (40), 1:57 (40), 2:38 (41), 3:20 (42), 4:02 (42), 4:46 (44), 5:29.65 (43.65)

3,000-meter run

1-Alexandra Bartolotta 10:15.54

39, 81 (42), 2:01 (40), 2:42 (40), 3:23 (41)

4:05 (42), 4:46 (41), 5:29 (43), 6:10 (41), 6:52 (42)

7:34 (42), 8:16 (42), 8:59 (43), 9:40 (41), 10:15.54 (35.54)

Kilometer splits: 3:23, 3:29, 3:23.54

2-Gianna Tedeschi 10:17.01

39, 81 (42), 2:02 (41), 2:42 (40), 3:23 (41)

4:05 (42), 4:46 (41), 5:27 (41), 6:08 (41), 6:50 (42)

7:32 (42), 8:14 (42), 8:57 (43), 9:38 (41), 10:17.01 (39.01)

Kilometer splits: 3:23, 3:27, 3:27.01

3-Hayley Collins 10:18.72

39, 81 (42), 2:02 (41), 2:42 (40), 3:23 (41)

4:05 (42), 4:48 (43), 5:30 (42), 6:11 (41), 6:53 (42)

7:34 (41), 8:16 (42), 8:58 (42), 9:38 (40), 10:18.72 (40.72)

Kilometer splits: 3:23, 3:30, 3:25.72

4-Jordan Casey 10:18.75

40, 81 (41), 2:02 (41), 2:43 (41), 3:24 (41)

4:06 (42), 4:48 (42), 5:30 (42), 6:11 (41), 6:53 (42)

7:34 (41), 8:16 (42), 9:00 (44), 9:41 (41), 10:18.75 (37.75)

Kilometer splits: 3:24, 3:29, 3:25.75

6. Emily Burns 10:33.03

39, 81 (42), 2:03 (42), 2:44 (41), 3:26 (42)

4:07 (41), 4:50 (43), 5:32 (42), 6:14 (42), 6:56 (42)

7:41 (45), 8:22 (41), 9:06 (44), 9:50 (44), 10:33.03 (43.03)

Kilometer splits: 3:26, 3:30, 3:37.03

7. Alyssa Lafave 10:39.28

40, 83 (43), 2:04 (41), 2:46 (42), 3:28 (42)

4:10 (42), 4:54 (44), 5:38 (44), 6:18 (40), 7:02 (44)

7:46 (44), 8:30 (44), 9:14 (44), 9:58 (44), 10:39.28 (41.28)

Kilometer splits: 3:28, 3:34, 3:37.28

800-meter relay

1-Marist (Candhace Forrest 25.97, Danisha Craig 26.16, Grace Cepeda 26.70, Debbie Boerke 26.23) 1:45.36 *school record, old record 1:45.88 set in 2016 by Forrest, Craig, Boerke, Molly Weeks

3,200-meter relay

1-Marist (Kerry Gaye 2:23.2, Denise Grohn 2:20.1, Jenna Robinson 2:23.1, Gianna Mastromatteo 2:19.5) 9:26.21

Kerry Gaye: 35, 71 (36), 1:48 (37), 2:23.2 (35.2)

Denise Grohn: 34, 68 (34), 1:45 (37), 2:20.1 (35.1)

Jenna Robinson: 33, 68 (35), 1:44 (36), 2:23.1 (39.1)

Gianna Mastromatteo: 31, 66 (35), 1:42 (36), 2:19.5 (37.5)

Distance medley relay

2. Marist (Maria Smith 3:46.2, Danisha Craig 60.2, Shea Bohan 2:19.1, Janelle Solviletti 5:03.1) 12:08.92

Maria Smith: 35, 72 (37), 1:49 (37), 2:28 (39), 3:07 (39), 3:46.2 (39.2)

Danisha Craig: 27, 60.2

Shea Bohan: 31, 65 (34), 1:42 (37), 2:19.1 (37.1)

Janelle Solviletti: 36, 73 (37), 1:50 (37), 2:28 (38), 3:07 (39), 3:47 (40), 4:26 (39), 5:03.1 (37.1)

Spartan Regional Invite: 4x200 relay record!

Congrats to our 4x200 relay team of Candhace Forrest, Danisha Craig, Grace Cepeda and Debbie Boerke for breaking the record in this rarely run relay by about half a second. Candhace, Danisha and Debbie were on the previous record, with recent graduate Molly Weeks. Grace, who is a freshman, had a strong and crucial third leg with two great relay passes. Nicely done, ladies!

800-meter relay

1-Marist (Candhace Forrest 25.97, Danisha Craig 26.16, Grace Cepeda 26.70, Debbie Boerke 26.23) 1:45.36 *school record, old record 1:45.88 set in 2016 by Forrest, Craig, Boerke, Molly Weeks

Spartan Regional Invite: Men's results and splits

Thanks to my loyal and trusty split helpers, especially a frantic Riley Hughes in second two of the 3km, as well as Mariah Christian and Kerry Gaye for helping out. A true "rust buster" meet for the men.

Spartan Regional Invitational

Friday, January 12, 2018

Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex

Staten Island, NY

Men’s results and splits

200-meter dash

8-Sean Patterson 24.43

12. Santosh Krishnan 25.08

400-meter dash

5. Sean Patterson 53.82

6. Cole Lucaszcyk 54.19

7. Santosh Krishnan 57.08

8. Anthony Colasanto 57.75

800-meter run

2. Brian Henderson 2:00.66

27.72, 57.92 (30.20), 1:29.79 (31.87), 2:00.66 (30.87)

Mile run

4-Steven Rizzo 4:23.11

32.8, 64.3 (31.5), 1:36.3 (32.0), 2:09.5 (33.2), 2:42.9 (33.4), 3:16.6 (33.7), 3:50.0 (33.4), 4:23.11 (33.11)

8-Palmer Weimann 4:40.59

33.5, 67.7 (34.2), 1:43.2 (35.5), 2:19.8 (36.6), 2:56.4 (36.6), 3:32.2 (35.8), 4:07.4 (35.2), 4:40.59 (33.19)

3,000-meter run

2. Dietrich Mosel 8:46.51

34, 71 (37), 1:45 (34), 2:20 (35), 2:56 (36)

3:34 (36), 4:08 (34), 4:44 (36), 5:19 (35), 5:55 (36)

6:29 (34), 7:04 (35), 7:39 (35), 8:14 (35), 8:46.51 (32.51)

3. Joe Miller 8:56.29

35, 71 (36), 1:46 (35), 2:21 (35), 2:56 (35)

3:34 (36), 4:09 (35), 4:45 (36), 5:21 (36), 5:57 (36)

6:33 (36), 7:08 (35), 7:44 (36), 8:20 (36), 8:56.29 (36.29)

Kilometer splits: 2:56, 3:01, 2:59.29

4. Conor Stack 9:01.27

34, 72 (38), 1:49 (37), 2:24 (35), 3:00 (36)

3:36 (36), 4:12 (36), 4:48 (36), 5:24 (36), 6:01 (37)

6:38 (37), 7:15 (37), 7:53 (38), 8:29 (36), 9:01.27 (32.27)

Kilometer splits: 3:00, 3:01, 3:00.27

5. Alex Hogue 9:02.08

34, 73 (39), 1:49 (36), 2:24 (35), 3:00 (36)

3:37 (37), 4:16 (39), 4:50 (34), 5:25 (35), 6:01 (36)

6:38 (37), 7:14 (36), 7:51 (37), 8:29 (38), 9:02.08 (33.08)

Kilometer splits: 3:00, 3:01, 3:01.08

6. Spencer Johnson 9:03.44

35, 71 (36), 1:46 (35), 2:21 (35), 2:56 (35)

3:34 (38), 4:08 (34), 4:45 (37), 5:21 (36), 5:57 (36)

6:32 (35), 7:10 (38), 7:48 (38), 8:26 (38), 9:03.44 (37.44)

Kilometer splits: 2:56, 3:01, 3:06.44

7. James Draney 9:05.53

33, 71 (38), 1:49 (38), 2:24 (35), 3:00 (36)

3:37 (37), 4:16 (39), 4:50 (34), 5:26 (36), 6:05 (39)

6:45 (40), 7:20 (35), 7:56 (36), 8:32 (36), 9:05.53 (33.53)

Kilometer splits: 3:00, 3:05, 3:00.53

11. James Moehringer 9:13.50

36, 73 (37), 1:48 (35), 2:23 (37), 2:59 (36)

3:35 (36), 4:12 (37), 4:49 (37), 5:26 (37), 6:03 (37)

6:42 (39), 7:21 (39), 8:00 (39), 8:38 (38), 9:13.50 (35.50)

Kilometer splits: 2:59, 3:04, 3:10.50

13. Dan Hillman 9:16.52

34, 71 (37), 1:47 (36), 2:24 (37), 3:00 (36)

3:35 (35), 4:13 (38), 4:48 (35), 5:24 (36), 6:01 (37)

6:42 (41), 7:18 (36), 7:57 (39), 8:37 (40), 9:16.52 (39.52)

Kilometer splits: 3:00, 3:01, 3:15.52

14. Eamonn Beers 9:20.37

34, 72 (38), 1:49 (37), 2:25 (36), 3:03 (38)

3:39 (36), 4:16 (37), 4:53 (37), 5:29 (36), 6:09 (40)

6:48 (39), 7:27 (39), 8:06 (39), 8:44 (38), 9:20.37 (36.37)

Kilometer splits: 3:03, 3:06, 3:11.37

17. Brian Edsall 9:29.11

34, 72 (38), 1:49 (37), 2:24 (35), 3:00 (36)

3:38 (38), 4:16 (38), 4:53 (37), 5:29 (36), 6:09 (40)

6:49 (49), 7:29 (40), 8:09 (40), 8:48 (39), 9:29.11 (41.11)

Kilometer splits: 3:00, 3:09, 3:20.11

18. Will Duggan 9:29.95

37, 75 (38), 1:53 (38), 2:31 (38), 3:09 (38)

3:46 (37), 4:24 (38), 5:02 (38), 5:40 (38), 6:19 (39)

6:57 (38), 7:56 (39), 8:14 (38), 8:52 (38), 9:29.95 (37.95)

Kilometer splits: 3:09, 3:10, 3:10.95

20. Matthew Ronan 9:32.10

34, 72 (38), 1:50 (78), 2:26 (36), 3:04 (38)

3:42 (38), 4:21 (39), 4:58 (37), 5:38 (40), 6:18 (40)

6:57 (39), 7:37 (40), 8:16 (39), 8:56 (40), 9:32.10 (36.10)

Kilometer splits: 3:04, 3:14, 3:14.10

1,600-meter relay

3. Marist (Cole Ziskind 53.93, Matthew Hawker 52.44, Nick Brady 54.36, Will O’Connell 56.59) 3:37.87

3,200-meter relay

2-Marist A (Brian Henderson 1:58.4, Tanner Senius 2:00.8, Matthew Hawker 1:59.2, Steven Morrison 1:59.0) 7:57.76

Brian Henderson: 29, 59 (30), 1:28 (29), 1:58.4 (30.4)

Tanner Senius: 28, 58 (30), 1:29 (31), 2:00.8 (31.8)

Matthew Hawker: 27, 57 (30), 1:28 (31), 1:59.2 (31.2)

Steven Morrison: 27, 56 (29), 1:25 (39), 1:59.0 (34.0)

4-Marist B (Cole Ziskind 2:02.9, Andrew Whitney 2:04.5, Nick Brady 2:06.5, Will O’Connell 2:07.1) 8:21.25

Cole Ziskind: 29, 60 (31), 1:29 (29), 2:02.9 (33.9)

Andrew Whitney: 28, 58 (30), 1:29 (31), 2:04.5 (35.5)

Nick Brady: 29, 60 (31), 1:32 (32), 2:06.5 (34.5)

Will O’Connell: 29, 60 (31), 1:32 (32), 2:07.1 (35.1)

Spartan Regional Invite: Order of events

The first meet of the calendar year is Friday at Ocean Breeze. Here is the order of events; it's a rolling schedule, so it's difficult to determine what time the later events will be held. Hope to see you there.

Spartan Regional Invite

Friday, January 12, 2018

Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex

Staten Island

Order of events (rolling schedule), men then women

10:30 a.m.: Facility open for warmups

12 noon: National anthem

12:10 p.m. (rolling from that time)

60 hurdle trials

60 dash final on time

60 hurdle finals

4x800 relay

4x200 relay

Mile run

500 dash

400 dash

800 run

1000 run

200 dash

3000 run

DMR

4x400 relay

Field event

1:45 p.m.: High jump

Last call at Coogan's

Word has spread quickly within the regional running community about the impending closure of a restaurant/bar near and dear to our hearts – Coogan’s, on Broadway in Washington Heights, NYC, a short walk from the Armory Track and Field Center. You can check out this excellent article in yesterday’s New York Times, which details the absurd unfairness of trying to operate an excellent community business in the city. Shame on … whoever is to blame here. Really and truly, Coogan’s is an institution – not only in that neighborhood, but within the track and field community that has called the Armory home for the past two decades.

One of the owners of Coogan’s is a Marist alum – Pete Walsh, Class of 1968. He is pictured here with another Marist alum who most of us know, my good friend Ken Bohan, Class of 1984, and equally as important, father of current school-record-holding track/XC runner, junior Shea Bohan. Since the Armory became the current iteration of the Armory, Coogan’s has been a safe landing place for parents, friends and certainly alumni, looking for a great post-meet meal and perhaps an adult beverage or three. And when the meets go on and on for hours on end, it’s a great spot to duck away during endless heats of … whatever … to get a quick bite and brew. I’ve been to Coogan’s a few times, never, ever for an adult beverage, because I’ve always been at the Armory in coaching/work mode. It’s one of those places where you instantly feel comfortable and at home, as soon as you walk in the door; a true neighborhood tavern.

As New York Times writer Jim Dwyer points out, Coogan’s has also been home to an enormously popular 5km road race each March – Coogan’s Salsa, Shamrock and Blues 5k. It’s a darn shame that this place is closing, it really is. However, it is open for a few more months, so we all can have a “bell lap” and a “last call” visit to a place that has been so welcoming to Marist Running and to countless other teams, coaches and families through the years.  

Back in town, ready to go

Much of the team returned to campus yesterday for the beginning of the 2018 track season, practice and competition. We ran up a nice, large grocery store bill so that our men and women will be well-fed during this intersession week when the Grand Dining Hall (it's actually called that!) is closed. As if on cue, the brutal cold weather has finally abated and we can resume complaining about normal January weather. Actually, it's supposed to get warm and rainy later in the week, which will hopefully melt a lot of the snow on the outdoor tracks that we use. We can only hope. Our first meet back is on Friday at Ocean Breeze, hosted by our friends at St. Thomas Aquinas College in Rockland County. It will be, as they say, a "rust buster" and will be good to get everyone back on the track. More details on the meet later in the week. Let's GO!

Winter break: Postcard from New Mexico

Thanks to freshman Graham Strzelecki for texting me this photo him running "out in the middle of nowhere in New Mexico, pretty amazing running though." Indeed!

Winter vacation: Postcards from Montreal

Well. Here's the thing! Unlike Palmer's postcard location from a few posts ago? These photos from Spencer Johnson came from a significantly colder locale -- Montreal, Quebec (as of this writing, the temperature there is a brisk minus-3 Fahrenheit, yikes?). Fortunately for these guys, they were able to find their way inside to the McGill University indoor track, where they did a track workout. Current team members and a few alums were there as well. Good stuff. Looks like a really nice indoor facility. I'm envious.

Winter, continued

This morning, I jogged and walked in a small parking garage on the campus of the Culinary Institute of America. I am neither proud nor ashamed of this fact (OK, maybe a wee bit embarrassed?). This winter has been challenging so far in terms of cold, wind, ice and snow. The cold and wind is difficult but mostly a nuisance. The ice and snow are a different story. Most schools were delayed or closed today, mostly because of blowing snow and icy secondary roads. In the predawn darkness, not much is worse than that. So our normal Friday morning Marist/College Hill 6-mile loop was canceled and I headed to the parking garage – mostly because I truly despise the treadmill.

Did I mention that this garage – I euphemistically refer to it as my “open air jogging facility” – is small? Well. It is. I’ve never measured it, but it’s got to be 10 to 12 laps to a mile, minimum. Not that it matters. When I go there by myself (yes, oddly, on occasion I have an equally oddball friend who joins me there?), I follow a 2 laps fast walk/4 laps slow jog pattern, and do that until it’s time to go home. Today, I did it for about 70 minutes; sometimes it’s a little less time than that, other times it’s more than that. Geez, I’m getting bored just typing this. But you know what? At least I’m moving forward and sort of in the fresh air but with some shelter. In that regard, it’s far better than the treadmill for me. About the only time I’ll do the treadmill is when I’m on the road and in a hotel.

OK. What’s my point? My point is that this has been a tough few weeks for outdoor recreational activity. This weekend’s going to get even worse. Monday, there’s more snow and ice in the forecast. But after that? It looks to bounce back to “normal” mid-30s and maybe a few days approaching 40 degrees. That will feel like a darn heat wave now, won’t it? So I guess the point is, as they say, “it never always gets worse,” and that better days are on the way. 

Winter vacation: Palmer's Postcards from Hawaii

 In a wonderful respite from this terrible weather, I got the following photos from junior distance runner Palmer Weimann, who has been in Hawaii for the past week or so. He has been able to train in relatively warm weather while seeing dispatches from home about the cold and ice and snow. Here's what he texted me: Being in Hawaii and hearing stories about how bitter cold the Northeast is strange. On the one hand, I feel bad for everyone who has to run through that. On the other, it has been between 60-75 degress and sunny every day and I’ve gotten to see some spectacular views. While I hate to leave a place as nice as this, I also cannot wait to be back and be better for track. 

Winter weather, Chapter 3: Road race canceled

As you may recall from previous posts, each January my old friend Charlie Sprauer and I organize a low-key, free road race each January called the Recover From the Holidays (Fat Ass) 50km. This year's race was (key word) to be on Saturday, but we have decided to cancel it for 2018 given the extreme weather forecast. First of all, the roads at and around Norrie Point in Staatsburg are already icy and slick in spots, and the parking lot at Norrie Point is like a darn skating rink. Add the anticipated few inches of snow we're supposed to get tonight, and then mix in brutal cold and wind on Saturday (forecast wind-chills around 20-below!), and it really made no sense to hold this race. In keeping with our long-standing policy, we are not rescheduling. It's canceled. If we don't have it on the appointed date, we skip it and move on. Hopefully, we'll be back to doing the 5km loops there again in 2019. Only a few days into this year and a few weeks into this winter, and we've had enough. August, anyone?

Still cold, still running

Day Two of 2018 in the Arctic ... thanks to Spencer Johnson for sending this workout photo of him, Rizzo, Rivas and CSG. "We ran in West Cornwall, CT and behind us is one of the most photographed covered bridges in New England (you can look up the Cornwall covered bridge for some more history on it)." All four men did a quality workout in the cold weather, and here's something neat: Four different classes represented -- grad student (Spencer), senior (Rizz), sophomore (Rivas), freshman (CSG). OK!