Hello from cold, snowy and icy upstate NY! I'm finally home with real internet service, happily sitting on the couch watching TV in English and cuddling with my cats. Feels like heaven. I'm hoping to write a post on my experience training in Ecuador for the month before the race, but for now I'd like to share about the race in Santee, California on January 25th. The race that was the Men's 50K Olympic Trials and the women's 50K national championships.
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| Start of the women's and international and masters men's 50K |
Historically in Santee we've had crazy hot weather for that time of year. One year the temperature got up to about 86F (30C) and the ambient temperature on the pavement was insane. This year we started off I think around 45F (7C) with a really nice mist in the air. That misty fog stayed around for a good couple hours before burning off and the sun coming out. For me it never got to feeling that hot. What I noticed more was that it seemed dry. Near the end by the time I was getting back around to the aid table (1.25K loops) my mouth was getting dry. I wasn't necessarily thirsty, just dry mouth. I know for Dave it felt warm, but that's because he's been in the cold, icy mess that is upstate NY at this time of year.
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| AJ and Dr. Tina Nagle |
Okay, I'm getting ahead of myself! First, I want to make sure I get the thanks out there. I knew that if I was training in Ecuador for a month my body would be out of alignment. Ever since my accident my body can be... shall we say... temperamental. My spine will go out of alignment and I'll lose all power and strength in my stride. Sometimes if I see a new chiropractor they don't really know the intricacies of my neck and can actually make things worse. So my chiropractor took three days off work to come out and make sure my body was in the best possible condition it could be. Words will never be able to express how thankful I am to her for doing that! Because wow did I need her! My body was just about sideways by the time I got to California between the training in Ecuador and the 18 hours of plane flights/travel. There is zero chance I would've raced as well as I did if it wasn't for her. If you're ever in the Southern Tier of NY and need a chiropractor there is absolutely no one better than Dr. Tina Nagle!!!!!!!! From the bottom of my sore feet to the top of my head, thank you!
With the new Safesport rules we thought that we would have to have a safesport checked and verified person at the aid station. Those rules were subsequently loosened to have a waiver for people, but before we knew that I told our friend Brett Shelton and he immediately jumped into action. He also took three days off work so he could come out and do our aid. And he did amazing! I never had to worry about anything, things were waiting for me when I came by. He was always positive and happy and encouraging. If you haven't done a 50K you don't realize the importance of a solid aid person. It can literally make or break your race at times. Well, with Brett our race was made becuase he was amazing. I can't thank him enough for the time he took for us to help us reach our dreams.
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| AJ by the flame |
On to the races! I had four athletes competing; myself (yes, I count myself as my athlete because I coach myself) Dave, AJ and Lydia. Dave and AJ were entered in the Olympic Trials and started at 7:00. Lydia and myself were in the open 50K that started at 7:20. Everyone had their race plan, their goals and their motivation. I had a feeling it was going to be a good day and it was.
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| AJ racing strong. You can see how nice and foggy the race started off. |
AJ went into the race seeded 4th which is where he placed. He had a strong race, not as good timewise as we needed, but he kept pushing and never gave up. We have some things to work on and improve, but not too shabby for his first Olympic Trials!
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| Isn't he cute! I think we make a good tired and sweaty post 50K race couple. Photo Credit Karen Beth Pearlman |
Dave went into the race with his goals. He held pace for about half the race and slowed a bit. Some people passed him, he passed some back at the end. His finishing time of 5:06:52 was an improvement from his last 50K in hotter conditions and placed him seventh and in the money position. And that improvement came while training in snow and ice and temperatures that were sometimes 17F (-8C). I couldn't be prouder of him.
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| Lydia finding her 100% even before the race. She always finds it when she needs it! |
Lydia came into the race not quite 100% physically but 100% mentally. She amazes me with her positive mindset and positive outlook. When the race turned from what she wanted she was able to turn her mind from that disappointment into what positives she saw. I knew I never had to tell her to just keep going. I knew there was no way she'd stop. Her strength and determination kept her in fourth place, an awesome showing.
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| Later the mist burned off to bright sunny blue skies. |
I know the most about my race, since I raced it. :) I started off way slower than I thought I was going, probably because I was colder than I'd been in a month. In hindsight it was a blessing in disguise as it let me really settle into a comfortable pace. I started off in sixth that was actually fifth. I'll explain. We have deadlines for when our national championships are entered. One of the women, Stephanie Casey wasn't entered. My understanding was she wasn't planning on coming but later entered the 10K. I heard that she was convinced to start the 50K to see what happened. But since entries were closed she was entered as a guest, just like international athletes were. So while she was ahead of me she wasn't my competition for our national championship places, prize money or World Athletics bonus points.
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| Getting tired but still pushing. Photo credit: Karen Beth Pearlman |
I was patient because I know what happens in a 50K. I warmed into my pace and was feeling right on that edge of thinking "is this too fast" pace but thought this was a chance to see where I'm at fitness wise. So I kept going. I passed half way in about 2:22:45 and was happy with that. By that point I had moved into fourth (third). Then about 35K or so I moved into third (second). Robyn, the eventual winner was way up, but Stephanie seemed to be not gaining on me and I thought maybe coming back towards me. I knew she wasn't my direct competition, but I thought it was good motivation to keep my time from slowing, so I started trying to work up to her. I think at one point she was about three and a half minutes up on me. That time cut down to just over a minute and kept shrinking. With two laps to go I was about 45 seconds back and with a lap to go I was 15 seconds back. So I put my head down (literally and figuratively) and just gave it what I had. With about 200 or so meters to go I caught her, but she had something left in the tank and was able to pick it up. I knew I was still second in the championships and didn't want to do something stupid like race down the line and get pulled for being off the ground racing against someone who wasn't my competition so I settled and stayed smart. My time of 4:47:01 is my fastest time since 2017. My second half of the race was only about 1:30 slower than my first half. I'm very proud of that.
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| The only thing better than finishing is finishing and then seeing my sweetie! Photo credit: Karen Beth Pearlman |
Another thing I'm very proud of is I got no paddles or cards. My technique feels stronger and more solid than it ever has. I've really been working on my technique and my glute and core strength and it's paying off. There's more to be gained there too! Which is really exciting.
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| With the wonder Chloe!!!! One of my biggest fans!!! Photo credit: Karen Beth Pearlman |
So Team Fashizzle (as one of my younger athletes calls me and the athletes I coach) did fantastic. Second, two Fourths and a Seventh. I'm not sure who all the athletes in the 50K are coached by (but I know most....) and I think we were the biggest team in the 50K. I'm very proud of all the hard work that all of the athletes that I coach put in. They really do inspire me to work harder and keep going and to try and be a good model for them.
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| Lydia and I getting our age group awards. I really am not posing, I don't even know how to pose. |
One thing that's really hard for me, being a coach and athlete, is not feeling like I am able to coach athletes during the race as much as I'd like. I realize that an athlete must do the race themselves, but I love cheering and yelling and helping with splits and being supportive more than I can do while I'm also racing. I'm very thankful that the athletes I coach are understanding of this.
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| The Shore AC crew! It's thanks to Elliott Denman and the Sore AC's support that so many of us are where we are today. Their support means the world to us! |
Now it's time to recover and figure out goals for the rest of the year. Both AJ and I made the team to Belarus, so that's obviously on the radar. I'm very excited to have made another (I think tenth?!?!?!) national team.
To the people who continued to believe in me through the few lean years. If you continue to believe in yourself and keep working it is possible to turn things back around.
Stay tuned for more!!!
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| "Boss" and "The Kid" |
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| Lydia and her amazing support team. 50K athletes can't do it without our support!!! |
