NB Twilight Meet #2

The past couple of weeks of training have been a little up and down as far as how I have been feeling. I have been having some really bad back, piriformis and hamstring tightness, and it has been affecting how I have been running. I noticed it a few days before the 1st Twilight meet, but just thought it was because my legs were just feeling tired. I took it fairly easy this past week with workouts, just trying to keep the runs up without all the workouts. It made my legs feel a little better, but the tightness was still there going into the 1500 at Bentley.

The weather was pretty good the night of the race. I think it was about 70 degrees and nothing really for wind. There was also a good field assembled: Thomas Morgan of ZAP, Matt Debole, Steve Hallinan and Pat Mellea as our Pacer...planned 2:28 through the 1000. Mentally, going into this race, I was a touch nervous but nothing out of the usual. I knew that it was going to be a fairly fast race, and I had nothing to lose by trying to run fast. My plan was, with the race going according to schedule, to hang out in like 4th or 5th in hopefully around 2:33 for the 1000, which is 61's per 400, and then work the last 500. The gun went off and everything felt pretty easy, probably the easiest 61 I have ever run...that was because the first 400 was 64 for me....very very slow. Thomas Morgan never really attached himself to the Pacer, and I feel that everyone else was queing off of him, so the Pacer was hanging out waiting for someone to go with him. So, first lap done, the pace quickens and our next lap was about 59-60, so back on track, but the harder way of doing it. At this point, I started moving up into 4th and then 3rd by the time I reached the 1000. When I was at this point, I felt okay, but I was hoping that my legs could handle a very hard last 3 laps...which I have not been training at this pace yet. With 400 to go, I moved up along side the leader and started pushing the pace. We hit the 1200 in 3:03-3:04, so a 60 3rd quarter. After I started pushing with about 250m to go, my legs became very very tight and unresponsive and from here on out was in max range of speed and movement. I faded very badly the last 150 meters and finished 12th. 3:53.59.

I am not disappointed with much of the race. I am unhappy about the time, but I am happy with how I raced and how I treated everyone else in the race...which is not caring how fast or good they are. My back and legs were so tight the last 200 meters and the entire night and following day.

I had a massage today...which was brutal by the way...on my back, piriformis and hamstrings, and hopefully over the next week or 10 days, everything can loosen up.

Upcoming Races
- NB Twilight Meet #3 @ Bentley - 1500 - 06/05
- American Milers Club @ University of Indiana - 3k Steeple - 06/12