Run to Win

Haile Gebrselassie won the Berlin Marathon this weekend in a world record time of 2:04:26! He surpassed Paul Tergat’s time of 2:04:55 from 4 years ago at the same race. With his win, he moves into second place in the world marathon majors for the 2006/2007 scoring year, and is tied for first place in the 2007/2008 standings. The conditions were near perfect, reaching a high in the low 60s at the end of the race and with very little wind.

Gete Wami moved into 1^st place after her win in the women’s race in 2:23:17.

I thought that Gebrselassie was going to break Paul Tergat’s record, but I did not expect to see it until next year or the year after. It turns out that he was able to break the record much earlier than I had given him credit for. While it is not likely, I hope that this record spurs on a series of world record runs in the next couple of years, because I would like to see the record get down below 2 hours. I do not know if anybody will ever be able to do that, but it would be something to see!

(Source: World Marathon Majors)

Photo by David Colby Young
Photo #68 of 124The Elliot Festival Day 5k was this morning in Elliot, Maine. There were 683 finishers this year, including Kay West (pictured right) who finished below the USATF age group guidelines time in 1:28:53; she was the oldest finisher at 97 years of age!

The weather conditions were near perfect for running, with clear skies and cool temperatures in the mid-60s. The course is slightly aided with about 5 feet of total elevation loss.

Ethan Hemphill did not face the stiff competition that he had last year, but bettered his time to win the race in 15:08. There were 20 finishers under 17 minutes, when Mariko Holbrook came in to win the women’s race by a healthy 26 seconds.

Team results for this race are based upon an age and sex graded time, so despite winning the race Ethan did not even score to help Dirigo in their almost 2 minute win over Whirlaway Racing. The age graded times of Tom Ryan, Mike Payson, and Pete Bottomley were all faster than Whirlaway’s first runner.

Dirigo had a good showing at the race; my time was not even fast enough to make it into the team results. I failed to meet my goal of running under 16 minutes. I was right on pace through 2 kilometers (6:24) but wound up running at about the same pace as I have for most of this season. My 16:37 was a 1 second season PR.

In a reversal of last year specifically, and just about any race with a downhill finish generally, I managed to out sprint TJ Hesler by about 4 seconds coming into the finish line. I did not manage to keep up with Chris Gatchell, who ran a personal best 16:16 (congratulations!)

(Full Results - Team Results - Race Photos: Set 1 - Set 2 - Set 3)

This week last year was pretty busy, with a lot of racing notes and sports news. More interestingly:

• I made the front page of the local newspaper with a tiny picture pointing to an article inside the paper. The article itself gave me a huge picture, even though the article really had nothing to do with me and only included a few quotes. I will take what I can get, though; it was a great picture!
• I related a story that pointed out how easy it is to make new friends while you are running. Introducing yourself and running a few miles with someone won’t hurt, and you could end up with a new training partner or at least some company for a short while. This was how I met my wife.
• A training schedule is a very important piece of the puzzle that will help you reach your goals. A flexible training schedule is even more important. Recognizing your limitations and working around them can keep you on schedule fitness wise even when the official schedule calls for something else. My strategy worked, and I ran exactly what I wanted in New York City.
• I tend not to take drugs when I can avoid it. I do not trust doctors and except for migraines I usually choose to just wait things out. One of the reasons that I avoid drugs is because it can be easy to overdose on painkillers by accident, especially if you mix drugs and are not aware of how they will interact.
• I ran the Eliot 5k for the first time; this year’s race is in a few hours and this year team competition has returned! Here’s to going under 16 minutes and winning some money this year!
• This week two years ago, I discussed DNA tests that determine what sports you may have better success at than others. I also discussed running through illnesses and a good swiss ball routine.

Lisa Sabin is a personal trainer, and she hired me to write about her program over at Konamoxt where she is offering to train people online for free to get them ready for the Las Vegas Half Marathon.

By joining this introductory program you get access to exclusive features, personalized training and support, tons of useful articles and information to take your running to the next level, a pre-race party where you’ll meet fellow athletes, and membership in an active community of athletes who share your passion.

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Photo by boxercabDogs and runners have a love/hate relationship (usually hate.) As a runner, we are invading their turf, putting their owners in danger, moving fast enough to look interesting and tasty, or just have some bright colors on that makes the dog think that we are a toy. There are a lot of reasons for a dog to chase us, and for the most part they are valid reasons. Sometimes the dog just wants to play with us, or to come over and say hi, and sometimes the dog wants to hunt and maim us.

I was recently asked what do you do when a dog is not on a leash, and it looks like it may want to chase you?

I have had mostly good luck following the steps below, but I will also be the first to admit that I have also been bitten before. I have not been bitten very many times, and I plan on continuing to follow these steps as being the least intrusive to my run, the least danger to both myself and to the dog, and from my own experience has the highest success rate.

What to do when a dog chases you:

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In a continuing collaboration with Scott over at Straight to the Bar, we will be writing about training and travel throughout the month of September. Scott finishes up this month by asking, “Does bodyweight training carry over to free-weight work?”

Scott has at times done a lot of traveling, and rather than cart around heavy objects or lift random things that he can find he tends to opt for body weight work. He has not had a lot of success translating that body weight work into free weight work such as squats and bench presses, however.

Personally, I do not see a problem with that. Body weight exercises tend to work your body in more natural ways than most free weight exercises anyway.

My brother and one of his best friends always wrestle when they meet, to see whether weight room strength (my brother) or farm strength (his friend) will win out. My brother always gets beat, because his friend’s muscles are used to doing real work, and not just simulated work.

Body weight exercises are not quite as good as working on a farm for most of your life, but they are still better than nothing. I recommend a balanced program that incorporates both, along with running and other sports.

So, how has body weight training worked for you?

This week last year had more of the same with race results and NFL picks. I also discussed:

• A video demonstration of how to tie your shoes so that they do not come untied while you are running is one of my most linked to articles on this site. I use the runner’s knot every day and have yet to have a pair of shoes come untied since I started using it a few years ago. I also listed a few exercise related How-To articles that were written on other sites around the same time.
• I reviewed Chariots of Fire, which must be the most well known running movie ever made.
• Dean Karnazes began the Endurance 50 and ran his first of 50 marathons in 50 states in 50 days. This year, Brad Alsop is running a marathon every day between the 4^th of July and Veteran’s Day on November 11^th. So far, he has run 82 of the 131 marathons in his efforts to raise money for the Injured Marine Semper Fi fund.
• I learned how to mix up my pushups with medicine balls, which has become my standard method over the past year. I also offered a race tip: run a bit early in the morning before a race to properly loosen up your body.
• Two years ago, I climbed Mount Washington and I wrote about gym etiquette.

Photo by KesoIt has been 90 days since the end of the 2007 legislative session in Maine, which means that a slurry of new laws take effect today.

Some of those laws will make the streets safer for cyclists (and to a lesser extent, runners) who ride in traffic.

• Motor vehicles must give at least 3 feet of clearance to any cyclist that they pass.
• Motor vehicles are now allowed to cross a solid center line to pass a cyclist when it is safe to do so.
• Teenagers are no longer allowed to talk on cell phones or use other hand held devices while driving.

These laws are not going to make it instantly safe for cyclists, so if you ride your bicycle in traffic do not magically expect to have the road to yourself. Here are 3 specific points to bear in mind before your next ride:
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