More Training Insights

When I started my all track training program one reason was to avoid doing things that make my quadriceps feel like rubber.  I though that by eliminating hills and cutting back on distance I would solve all my problems.

 

I was wrong.

 

What I've discovered is that running hard is at least part of the problem.  Doing nothing more than running four hard 220s is enough to give me rubber quadriceps for a few days.

 

I think eliminating the hills and running only short distances has been a good move and I'm not planning on going back to the old way of training.  But what I've to work on now is being able to run hard and not having it take such a toll on me that I feel it for days after.

Back On Track

After I got back from Bangkok and Tokyo, having been off track for two weeks, it was a bit of a struggle to get back on the track and run the kind of workouts I had been running before going off track.

 

The first two days were not fun at all--it was all I could do to run 1.5 miles at an 8 minute pace.  By the end of the first week back, my workouts started to be about like they had been before I went off track.  By the end of the second week back on track, I think I had completely recovered from the time off track.  I was able to run a 6:50 mile--fastest time of the year.

 

I'd say the two weeks off track cost me four weeks of training.  The two weeks I was off track I didn't accomplish anything.  The two weeks after that were spent making up for the two weeks off track.

 

Four weeks is a lot.

Mark's 220

Thank you Mark.  It was kind of you to honor my request.  And to do so without question, makes the act even more gracious.

 

So why did  I make this request?

 

The fastest that I can run a 220 is 36 seconds.  Mark's mile time is so much faster than mine, I wanted to do some kind of easy sanity check to try and get some insight into this.  What Mark's 220 time tells me is that the difference in our mile times is more than just endurance and strength.  Speed plays a role also.  Mark is at least a full 3 seconds faster than I am for 220.  A reasonable implication of this is that he can expected to be a minimum of 24 seconds faster for a mile.

 

Clearly I've got my work cut out for me.

Younger Raybuck improves mile time

Michael Raybuck, a long-time Dr. K Striders member, lowered his mile time again yesterday, hitting a 6:41.2, an improvement over a 6:45 from a fortnight ago.

"It wasn't easy, and it wasn't fun!" said Raybuck to reporters immediately after the time trial, gasping for breath in between words. I think that's it for the season. But within minutes, Raybuck was "feeling much better" and talking it up about his next attempt. Raybuck, a track coach at Fillmore Central, where he was somewhat of a track legend in the late 70s (4:26 miler, school record holder), has an ultimate goal this season of beating the slowest miler on his squad (6:36). Actually, to be fair, high school times are 1600 meters, so one could safely add 3 seconds to the 6:36, putting Raybuck within a scant couple of seconds from his season's goal.

Raybuck's "claim to fame" are his legendary track battles in rural Allegany County with one John Tuttle, a school boy track prodigy turned Olympian (1984 Los Angeles Games, marathon). Raybuck gave Tuttle a run for his money on more than one occasion, although never quite gaining the edge over the future Olympian.

More to come on Raybuck's summer progress.........

First Race of 2008 a Hot One

I typically don't run summer races, as the heat and I don't get along well, but a colleague from work talked me into running an 8K (4.97 mile) hilly road race yesterday. Although it started at 9 am, temperatures were in the upper 70s and high humidity (at least by northeastern standards). With an initial goal of 7 minutes per mile, I figured I would start conservatively, and see how I felt. The first mile included an uphill, but I clocked a 7:06 (not sure how accurate the measured mile marks were). Since I was already feeling a bit warm, I just ran within myself the remainder of the race, getting warmer and warmer, and claiming a revised goal of not getting heat exhaustion or heat stroke. I finished in 35:33, about 7:09 per mile average. Although slower than I hoped, with the heat and very substantial hills, I was pleased with a 20th place finish out of 108 runners, and 2nd in the 50 to 54 age group. My colleague beat me by 12 seconds, passing me in the final mile, and finishing 3rd in the 40 to 44 age group.

Anyway, I consider all this just preliminary training for the upcoming Gary Truce 5K Autumn Cross Country Classic, only about 3 months away!

Mark

Utica Boilermaker History Question

Sunday I was in Binghamton, and a local TV channel showed the 31st annual running of the Utica Boilermaker 15K road race, now a serious world class international running event, in which Kenyans take many of the top spots. For example, Catherine Ndereba, one of the world's best female marathon runners, was in this race. The winning time was roughly 4:40 per mile.

Now, the question is........if this was the 31st running, the first running would have been 1978. Now, I think the summer after my freshman year, which would have been 1977, several Dr. K Striders including myself, my younger brother Michael, and Eric Kaplan, ran a Utica Boilermaker 10 mile road race. Of course, this was the famous race in which the Striders copped a team victory, generating contoversy and a protest from Mark Peters (whom I think was the race director), due to our enlisting of Tom Carter as a Dr. K Strider.

Was this 1977 race, simply a pre-cursor to the first Boilermaker Race? The TV coverage mentioned that the previous race director had died recently, but it wasn't Mark Peters. Also, if you count 1977, this year would be the 32nd running of the event?

I looked up the race history, and it appears that the 1977 10-mile version simply did not count or make history (see below). It would have been nice to think that the Striders had won the very first running of what is now a serious international event.

Maybe due to the contoversial team finish, or the fact that it was 10 miles instead of a 15K, wiped it from the historical records.

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Race History

The Boilermaker Road Race was established in 1978 by Earle C. Reed. Reed was looking for a way to give back to the community that had supported his family’s business, Utica Boilers (now ECR International). The 15K road race began with just over 800 runners and a budget of $750.

In 1983, renowned distance runner, Bill Rodgers, not only participated but won the race with a time of 44:38. Rodgers elevated the race by bringing both national exposure and credibility to the event. Since then, the Boilermaker has attracted top elite runners from all over the world, including Olympians and world record holders. The consistent professional management of the race has resulted in its reputation as the best 15K road race in the country. In fact, the Boilermaker has been named by the Analytical Distance Runner as the most competitive 15K road race in the world.

Today, the Boilermaker 15K road race hosts at least 10,000 runners per year. Boilermaker Weekend, which offers events for participants of every age and skill level, has grown to include fitness and special events, such as a 5K Run, 3 Mile Walk, Youth Run, Health and Fitness Expo., and more. Designed around the weekend’s crown jewel, the Boilermaker 15K Road Race, Boilermaker Weekend promotes a healthy lifestyle with a focus on fun, family, and community spirit!



Mark

Younger Raybuck Spotted Running a Mile

The younger Raybuck brother, a 4:26 high school miler, was spotted this afternoon at the track, clocking a 6:45 mile. Seemingly slow for a former elite athtlete (and Dr. K Strider), Raybuck has not been able to run for more than 3 years now, due to an arthritic hip that has been recommended by doctors for a replacement.

His training thus consists solely of an exercise bike and stair stepper machine, plus nightly 1 to 2 mile walks.

Raybuck was elated with the time...........having coached at Fillmore High School this past track season, he has a personal goal this year of beating his slowest miler's time of 6:36. And after today's encouraging performance (a 12-second improvement over a 6:57 from 3 weeks ago), he is now considering the possibility of running in the Gary Truce Classic 5K in Binghamton this coming October. What an addition to the entrants that would be..........putting both Raybuck brothers in the Truce Classic, which will be held in conjunction with the Binghamton Invitational Cross Country Event.

More Gary Truce Classic 5K news to come over the coming weeks!

Mark