Last Chance

The only picture of me running this year that I know of. If you're looking to donate an awesome black singlet my way, let me know...

Armory. Saturday Night. 800-meters. Last indoor race of the season. Should be a fun one. Hopefully we run fast.

And that's really about it.

Although I do feel somewhat responsible for Charlie Sheen's acts of craziness after I rated his CBS show as the worst in my 2010 Recap. He did send me an email to let me know I was a [expletive deleted] idiot, and that he was winning!

But other than that, not much going on in NY. HEPS was a fun meet to watch as usual. A little disappointing with how much Princeton dominated the meet, but can't really complain about the atmosphere for a track meet.

The training has been going really well lately. I haven't raced since the New Balance 1500, but have gotten in a really good block of training. Hopefully I'm not too rusty for the race, but I dont' think that I will be. Although, jumping into an 800 for the first race in a while always hurts like hell.

After this race, we'll take another break from racing for a bit and gear up for the outdoor season. It is going to be a long one this year, and hopefully I do the European season right this year (three alright races doesn't cut it for a European season). Hopefully I'll start things up in early April to get the racing juices flowing.

If you're in NY, head up to the armory around 8:05 for the 8 on Saturday night.

Snow

Central Park Snowstorm

Last week I complained about the snow. "I get it, Universe," I said. "New York looks awesome under a foot of snow. But can we please get a break from these winter storms??"

But the Universe didn't listen. Instead, it dumped another load of snow over my favorite city.

I reluctantly--and slowly due to the snow--walked to the gym and got my morning run in on the treadmill. I cursed as I tredged my way through the snow to the subway for work. I almost cried as I nearly slipped walking across Columbia's College Walk after work. Then I talked myself into going outside for my shakeout run that evening.

But the gods work in mysterious ways. Because once I reached Central Park the hate left.

The park was peaceful, the snow was bright white, and the air was fresh. I watched my exhales float away from me and disappear. I enjoyed the crunching sound my shoes made with each step on the thin layer of snow covering the road. I actually loved the snow in the park. Like my younger self, I had the urge to ruin a spot of perfect, untouched snow; so I jumped on it. It was only a 30-minute run, but I wanted it to last longer. Still, I turned around and headed home.

Leaving the park at 110th and Central Park West, I had a renewed perception of the snow. Even the sight of the slush at the crosswalk a block later at 110th and Manhattan Ave. couldn't dampen my spirits.

Then it deceived me.

I jumped for a longer stride to avoid a pile of snow. My left foot landed on what I thought was sturdy ground, but the slush wasn't solid and my foot kept going down, down, down, right into a puddle that went past my ankle.

My shoe waterlogged, my happier spirit gone, I finished my run up Morningside Hill and cursed the snow once again. I hate New York.

New Balance Recap

On yesterday's long run with Jeff, we were going by a lady who had one of those water belts on. I was thirsty, so I grabbed one off her, chugged it down, then threw it back at her. True story.

Well, not really, but I thought about it. Instead I kept on going with my run and felt tired from the weekend at the armory. And with that, a recap of the race:

First off, I forgot that the 1500 meter didn't start in the normal spot. So when everyone was over on the far turn, I was a little confused. I made my way over to the actual starting line and felt alright. It was mayhem at this meet; it is a high school meet that has a few elite events added in, and there were a TON of high schoolers on hand. Even so, it made for a pretty great atmosphere for a race...warming up was a different story.

But the race got out alright and since there were only 8 guys, my somewhat slow start wasn't a problem as I found myself in 3rd for the first half of the race...one of the people in front of me was a rabbit. We were through around 1:59.5 for the first 800 and I was starting to get in the racing zone, but after Sean Tully (our rabbit and my NJ-NY TC teammate) stepped off the track, the pace lagged quite a bit. 800-1100 was pretty slow, but then with 2 laps to go, Kyle Miller took off.

I was almost boxed in, but was able to answer his move and try to hang on. He was rolling from pretty far out so I gave him a few meters figuring I'd catch them back at some point, but I was wrong. He clearly was ready to go and had a really good race. By 200 he was about 15 meters in front, and I was clear from 3rd place by about 10 meters. I tried to, but couldn't, muster up much of a kick, and even though I closed the gap some, Miller got me by a little over a second and a half. I took 2nd with a 3:43.6. Not a bad opening 1500.

Overall, it was a good race. It's clearly not fun to get beat (and beat pretty good), but looking at big picture, last year's opening outdoor 1500 at Stanford was a 3:43.9, whereas this year I closed the 3:43.6 in a 57 last 400. I'm still missing some strength after missing the time with the stress fracture this fall, but pretty excited about what we're going to be doing coming up.

I'm rabbiting the Millrose 2-Mile this Friday, should be a fun time. Enjoy the footage courtesy of Flotrack of the race...

The Cut-Off Hoodie

It was Labor Day Weekend 2009 and a group of Columbia grads was up in Loon Lake, NY for a bachelor party celebration. I had made the trip up from DC, and was happy to be spending a weekend doing all things masculine. There was a lot of sports playing and a lot of unhealthy eating. Plus, there was my cut-off hoodie. I figured what better for a weekend amongst the guys than for a sweatshirt that keeps you warm and looks awesome, yet also shows off your muscles.

The cut-off sweatshirt turned out to be such a big hit, that Jon Pastore (the friend who was in Amsterdam this summer for one of the euro-posts) offered me $1000 for it (it was actually $60, but that’s still a lot). I obviously declined, and instead wore the sweatshirt at all times that weekend. Even over a flannel in an impromptu street race relay of Zach and I vs. Will and Kevin Verge (see above picture--albeit dark) that I was clearly on the winning team for. Needless to say, I love cut-off hoodies/sweatshirts of all sorts.

There was what some may call a ballyhooed frenzy over the picture at the bottom of my last post. It was an awesome sweatshirt. I am always on the lookout for a new cutoff hoodie. Meanwhile, the process of turning the arms coming out of those sleeveless wonders from linguini to sculpted rock continues.

And by ballyhooed frenzy, I really mean I have no idea what kind of reception the picture received (there was one comment from Joseph that said: “that’s bad-ass”….I’m assuming he was referring to the sweatshirt, not the lifting schedule). Viewership of the site neither ebbed nor flowed, and all in all it seemed to be a pretty normal week for runLBP.com. All except for the awesome news that I did get a new sleeveless hooded sweatshirt; it is bright orange, and it is legit. I do love myself a man-made cut off, but this one that has been hemmed to perfection is no slouch.

Recently, David Torrence posted a blog post about what we need to do to help track and field. No sleeve hoodies are a huge part of my life, and any time I get a shot at one I take it. I’m somewhat encouraged to race in one…maybe what the Fab Five’s long shorts were to college basketball, the cut-off hoodie will be to track and field.

For all of that to go to plan, however, I need to win me some races. So, I’ll keep working out, I’ll keep lifting so my arms look awesome without the sleeves, and I’ll try to win some races. Once sleeveless hoodies are the norm, track and field will be on the map.

Night Running

For a city that never sleeps, Central Park at night is at least in nap mode. Instead of kids yelling and cars honking you hear bike spokes whirring and footsteps clomping. And it is a welcome break.

Wednesday’s are going to be my busiest day of the week for the next long block of time. Here’s what I have on tap:

7:30am – Wake up and do ankle exercises that I have do every morning in bed (a lesson from Ron Warhurst back in my high school days).

7:34am – Brew a pot of coffee and have a bowl of cereal. Check out some really important news sites.

8:00am – Get a call from Gags telling me not to run the first mile of my tempo too hard.

8:30am – Head out the door for my run.

8:41am – Meet Will in Central Park and start up the tempo four minutes later.

8:50:24am – Run the first mile of the tempo too hard. Curse at Will under my breath.

9:06am – Finish up my 3 mile tempo in 16:25, getting the pace right for the rest of it.

10am through 5:30pm – A lot of stuff goes on here, and since it was going to be a really long post if I continued with the minute-by-minute update, I’ll start doing some blocks of time. Here is where I make sure to eat some bfast, get in an ice bath at Columbia, head down to work, do some work in usual Mad Men fashion, and then take the god forsaken rush hour train back up town.

6:00pm – Out the door for my evening hill session. It is really nice running in Central at night because it is just a little bit calmer. You can hear your own breathing, can look up at the glowing buildings, and actually relax while running. You can get this in Central at other parts of the day, but it is a lot easier at night.

7:00pm – Get back from the hills (8x100 meters) and make myself some dinner. Today it was burritos. *it most likely will be burritos every Wednesday, considering how much I love burritos.

8:00pm – Let my friend, Krisch, in because he locked himself out of his apartment. Keep him company while watching “Man V. Food” (one of the influences for “Will Run For Food”).

9:00pm – Shower time.

9:30pm – write a runLBP post.

10:00pm – Bedtime. Boom.

And there’s a day in the life. For one of the first times in my life I am really busy, and its actually pretty nice. But it’s 9:58 as I’m finishing up, and as you can see from the schedule, 2 minutes ‘til bedtime. Let’s Go (to sleep)!

Workout Wednesday

There seems to be a new trend developing on runLBP.com: The Wednesday Post. I guess it’s the day that works best for the working man, so from now on, check back Wednesdays instead of Sundays for new journal entries. Fittingly, I will often times be working out on Wednesdays (hence the name steal from FloTrack), so there can hopefully be a few good posts to check out.

And thankfully…the workouts have begun for me! Last Friday I was able to put my first workout in at the Rutgers Track and drop 4x800 in 2:32, 2:32, 2:30, 2:29 before rocking some strides after. Then yesterday, I was able to hop into some 1ks with Delilah and Frances Koons (one of my new teammates). As chivalrous as I am I led the last two. Then I discarded my gentlemanly ways and tried dropping them…alas, it was to no avail. But I did get in 4x1k at around 3:15 (~2:36 ½ mile pace) before running some 150s and concentrating on form.

On top of getting back into running, I have been doing some more strength-based exercising and trying to get jacked. I am incorporating a lot of hurdle work, drill work, and push-up work so that I can rock that last 120 of a race. Delilah and I were doing some exercises a week or two ago. One in particular proved extremely challenging:

Someone must be sitting in a chair in front of you, their back and the backrest facing you (they are sitting there to anchor the chair). You lie face-down on the ground and reach up with your hands so that you are grabbing the top of the chair, thus your back is arched (kinda like the cobra pose in yoga but your arms are up in the air grabbing a chair). From there, you pull yourself up using your core strength. The book we were using told us that it may feel as if your back was going to break in half. But that you would make it through and then complete the exercise by standing over the chair, it defeated below you.

I got about halfway through the exercise and, sure enough, I thought my back was going to break in half. I stopped immediately and cried out in horror.

Needless to say, I didn’t beat the chair that day. I have always known it, but I am really starting to understand that to be great at this sport, you really have to work your ass off. So keep in touch for when I start beating that chair, and really start to fill out the shirt in the picture below... Let’s Go!

Re-Adaptation

While “fresh air” in New York City can sometimes be reminiscent of a bio classroom filled with formaldehyde soaked frogs, when I stepped out of my apartment building on West 118th Street and took in a deep breath, it was as if I was on top of a mountain, sucking in sweet air. That’s because I was going for a run for the first time in about seven weeks.

My highly overpriced orthotics made their way into town and I found myself chugging away on a 30 minute run and enjoying the awfulness of it all. While I have kept in fairly good shape via the elliptical machine and the pool, there is only one way to get in good running shape: running. I am three runs into my season now (with a fourth coming tomorrow morning), and there is still a long way to go. Luckily for me, there is still a long way to go until I need to be ready. I’m working my way through a light workout this Friday and then seeing the doctor next Thursday to hopefully get cleared to go full blow.

I can’t wait to get going, because even though I just said there was a long way to go, I know January is fast approaching and I am going to be ready to run come indoor season this year.

Meanwhile, I am adapting back into the New York swing of things. While I spent a summer in sweatpants, I am into the “Mad Men” routine and styling the hell out of New York. (The second part of that sentence was an complete lie: I do dress nicely now for work, but I miss my sweatpants sooooo much.)

New Jersey awaits on Friday for my first “workout” of the year. Let’s Go!

Ps – Only East Coast Electricity was offered as a possible team name. I liked it quite a bit, Furcht.

East Coast Enemies

All Black Outfits are a Must for the East Coast Criminals

After struggling through last year’s 5th Avenue Mile, it was great to be a spectator at this year’s event. It also was a somewhat upsetting event as last year I remember sucking air through a 1:55 first half mile and this year they crawled through in a pedestrian 2:02 that I would have been much more capable of running last year at the time. Alas, I wasn’t out there, and was viewing from the sidelines this year knowing that I will be out there next year giving it a go.

Instead, I continued my trend of exercising inside all last week. I get in an hour on the elliptical before work and then 30 minutes to an hour afterwards. Once the orthotics make their way to my antsy feet, I’ll be out and about in the parks of New York and working my mileage up. While I’ve been a 70 per week guy the last two years I’ll be going in 3 week stints at 70-70-60. Working in that “recovery” week will keep me nice and fresh and fast for the upcoming races.

But the big news from last week was the introduction of our yet-unnamed team. Let’sRun had this up on its site:

“Gags (Frank Gagliano) Has Started Another Training Group--From the Reebok Enclave to the Farm Team to OTC and now an unnamed team in New Jersey. It seems like every prominent East Coast grad is in the group, including Erin Donohue, Rob Novak, Julie Culley, LBP and Max Smith.”

I had to like the call out…especially that the running community does recognize my LBP self-proclaimed nickname (although it wasn’t really self proclaimed, they are my initials and all). Here’s a link to the article that Walt Murphy put together with a roster line-up of our team: http://www.trackandfieldnews.com/index.php?option=com_content&id=290&Itemid=115

Practice on Friday had us all thinking of names for the group. Gags liked “No Money Track Club” and the boring—yet most likely actual name—“New York/New Jersey Track Club”…but Delilah had my personal favorite: “East Coast Enemies.” We would wear all black or gold and purple. My Jordan Brand headband wouldn’t seem out of place in the least.

Any suggested team names would be great. As always, Let’s Go!

State of the Union Address

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Coach, Members of the Training group, and the Family of the Runner:

I gather you all here tonight to speak not only to the great readers of this web-journal, but to speak frankly and directly to the running public.

And with that, begins my first State of the Union address from New York. Essentially every one of these blog posts is a state of the union type affair, but I am going to go over a few of the standards in my life with a report on each of them. An address like this can be expected every once in a while. Especially when I can’t think of anything else to write and can use this gimmick to get by.

Things are finally settling down in New York…as much as they can settle down in this city. I am getting into my routine and it’s nice to be on a schedule where I’m doing basically the same thing every day with a few new things mixed in here and there. What follows are the four topics that will be covered in every state of the union address:

- DIET: As you can tell from my tweets, I have a love of disgusting/awesome foods and I prefer to post pictures and mention putting it down my pants. Lately, the move to NY has halted my diet of fun-ness. A lack of funding has left me eating fairly healthily minus the odd Koronets run every once in a while. Currently, I am saving up for this in a call back to my REEESE’S nickname.

- MORALE: Currently morale is a mixed bag. I am waiting in the wings for my orthotics to come in. Sometimes people are afraid of getting orthotics, but two stress-fractures (the latest injury wasn’t quite a stress-fracture) in the same spot did enough convincing for me. Once they get in I’ll start up my running.

- IN SHAPE-NESS: aside from adding “ness” to a ton of words in this entry, my “in shape-ness” isn’t bad for not being able to actually run. Every day I spend an hour and a half on an elliptical machine. It is painstakingly boring, but I think it is pretty darn good for re-teaching yourself how to focus…I have imagined about a million possible race scenarios and what I would do in them the past 3 weeks. I also have listened to a lot of music.

- JAM OF THE MOMENT: indoor exercising can get boring. So there has been a lot of music listened to. In the search for the best exercise song ever I went through a lot of different options. From pop music to obvious ones, it took me listening to my top 50 songs of all time to really get jacked up on the elliptical machine: PEARL JAM – ALIVE

There you have it. The first runLBP State of the Union Address. Expect many more…or none at all if no one likes it. As always, Let’s Go!

Mad Man

HamDel...it's good to be back.

“You’re only as good as your last 800.” That’s what we used to say as part of the Columbia Mid-D Crew. I liked the sentiment. It didn’t matter if you were a 1:48 guy, if you were dropping 1:51s, then it wasn’t quite cutting it. Sure it was nice that you had the faster one under your belt, but you couldn’t rest on your laurels. Sadly for me, my last 800 the summer before my 5th year was a 1:57 rig-fest that was one of the worst things I had ever been a part of.

According to our maxim, for almost a full year I was a 1:57 guy. It was discouraging to say the least. Surprisingly it ended up being my best year. I split 1:46.00 and didn’t lose an 8 all year (in retrospect I should have run the 8 at NCAAs and tried to do some damage there). But those parentheses are the problem right there and the problem with Columbia’s Mid-D Rule in general. I’m not looking back at the past anymore (unless I’m looking at the 2007 Penn 4x8 to get myself jacked up).

This year, I am changing that motto. Instead: “You’re only as good as your next 800.” Play with it if you please and insert your event here, but that’s what it’s gonna be for the upcoming track career of yours truly…time to get going and run your ass off.

My last year at Georgetown was a little stale, and now that I’m up in NY, the intensity is back and it’s going to be a fun year. There are real goals now, and I’m ready to make some noise again. You can also look out for me in quite a few more 800s…time to turn myself back into a sprinter type. Boo. Yah.

The move to New York went smoothly. I am packed into a tiny room in an apartment with two assistant coaches at Columbia on 118th and Amsterdam. It’s nice to be close to Columbia and as a volunteer assistant coach I get to use the gym for cross training and stuff like that.

I started up working a part time job on Madison Avenue. It is exactly like the show “Mad Men.” Well, except for the whiskey drinking and the infidelity. Plus, I probably smoke more cigarettes than Don Draper, so that’s a plus (maybe not actually).

I am getting some orthotics, and as soon as they come in I’ll be up and running. It’s still a lot of time on the elliptical machine and in the pool, but I’m feeling pretty in shape so I won’t be too far behind once I get out on the roads, trails and tracks.

And in terms of housekeeping, sorry for taking a week off from the posting...because of it, there will be a Wednesday post with a recap and state of the season report.

Let’s Go!

The Humbling of a Middle Distance Runner

The bikes in Amsterdam...

Yesterday was the first time I had exercised outside in about 3 weeks. It was a crisp, autumn-esque morning in Bath, and I took my Dad’s road bike out for a spin. My foot feels great, but going to avoid running on it until I see the Doc once I get back to New York. Enjoying the fresh air compared to my now accustomed to chlorine tainted oxygen, I approached the corner of Chandler and Clark to take a left and head back towards my Dad’s house to finish up the ride.

At the same time, a biker with some serious gear was taking a right onto Clark coming from the opposite way on Chandler. I beat him to the turn and settled into my 15mph tempo that I had gotten so used to. Then disaster struck.

The dude BLEW by me. I thought about trying to go with him, and picked up the tempo for a moment, but when I looked up he was already 50 meters ahead of me and drifting further away every second. I shook my head in disgust and settled into my tempo trying to avoid looking up to see how terribly I was being beaten.

I need to stick to running.

After getting my ass kicked daily in the pool I was biking my own pace and thought I was doing pretty well until this joker rocked my world. It is a humbling thing to get beaten so soundly so many days a week. Especially to women who are clearly just better swimmers than I am. I tell myself I’m staying in shape, but I am getting antsy to getting out and running so I can show the weekend warriors what’s up. Man it sucks.

The one glimpse of light I’ve seen has been the improvement of my swimming. If I was 10-years-old I would have the Haslett Community Pool records from 25 to 200-meters. Boo. Yah.

Moving up to New York on the 12th…can’t wait. Let’s Go!

Brand Spanking New!

Falmouth right before dropping out. I am sitting behind my new training partner, Rob Novak...

New Month, New City, New Look. Same old idea. As you can see, some changes have been made to runLBP.com, hopefully for the better. It was starting to look a little cluttered on here and it was confusing with what was the blog—err, I mean web journal—and what wasn’t. So now, it should be pretty easy to navigate and the blog is all at the blogspot site just because it’s easier to post there even if I don’t have my computer. The first paragraph of each new post will be on the front page of the site, but you’ll have to head to the blog to read the rest…

There’s the house cleaning. Sadly, there isn’t much else to report. I am at home in Bath still and enjoying my time with nothing to do. Boredom is setting in, but that’s part of it. I found out at the end of the season that I had a stress reaction, so I have been in a boot and getting healthy. I probably could start running now, but we’re making sure that I get as healthy as possible before I start training so that I can go un-interrupted the next two years.

I am going to be living near Columbia U. in NY, but it is going to be a lot different than when I was at school. It will be a different experience, but I am looking forward to what’s ahead. But what that means for the frequenters of “runLBP.com” is that there will be a new arena for more LBPjams! Boo. Yah.

Coach Gags keeps emailing me telling me to be patient, and lord knows I am, but I am starting to get antsy, I want to get out there and run again. Soon enough, I know. For now it is the swimming pool and getting worked by the same girl every day who is a much better swimmer than I. I work my balls off to swim 25 meters in 30 seconds. It’s awful.

I’m getting there. Let’s Go!

Start Spreading The News

Embarrassingly enough, when driving around town or watching vh1, there are a few songs that I leave on to get the full listen. While I don’t call myself a Pop music aficionado, I do find myself bobbing my head to some catchy tunes. Recently in Pop music, there has been a trend of making a song for your city. Jay-Z started things off with the classy “Empire State of Mind” and things seemed to be going in the right direction. Then, Katy Perry decided to make a response to Jay-Z by putting out “California Gurls.” While catchy as can be, California Gurls as a response to Jay-Z would be like Blink-182 writing a response to Tupac back in the 90s. It just doesn’t work that way. Tupac’s “California Love” ranks as one of the best “city songs” of all time. However, some white guy back in the 80s tops the standings.

So through Sinatra’s song, I’d like to announce that I will be moving back to New York, New York to pursue my running career under famed coach, Frank Gagliano.

After meeting with Coach Gags, as he is referred to by most, I couldn’t turn down the opportunity to be coached by such a great mind. He has coached multiple Olympians and Team USA members, and I believe that he is my best chance to become exactly that.

I never thought that I would be moving back to New York unless I was done running, but Central Park and I have 2 more years left in us. I am going to be living near Columbia U. and will be living the life of a runner in the city that never sleeps.

I’m hoping the bright lights get brighter in 2011 and 2012, and I can’t wait to get out there and get training towards becoming the best middle distance runner that I can be.

Let’s Go!

Thanks to Dan Leyh for the pic...

Moving On

New York...

...or Michigan?

Falmouth was disappointing to say the least. The Friday shakeout for the Saturday race left my left foot feeling sore and flared up. I had a stress fracture on the 4th metatarsal of this foot as a senior at Columbia, so I have always been extremely careful with that area for the past 3 years. But I decided to ice it a bunch and figured that I could race one more mile on it and then call it a season. However, as soon as the spikes went on for the race on Saturday I knew I was in trouble.

The race had a money bonus if you got under 4, so the racers had decided to split up the pacing duties. I offered to take the first lap just for the chance that my foot wasn’t going to allow anymore. Turns out 600 meters was all that I would make it. The foot was getting worse so I decided to pull the plug, dropping out of a race for the first time since being a sophomore in high school trying to complete the 16, 8, 3200 double and not being ready for the heat and pace of the 2 mile. It’s not fun to drop out of a race, but hopefully I kept my foot from getting too bad. About to see a specialist to try to figure it all out as we speak.

The other big news in my little world is that I am leaving Washington, DC. I loved the city, loved the Georgetown team and really appreciated all that Coach Henner did for me both as a Georgetown runner and after. He has been an amazing coach and really will do anything for his athletes. However, we both decided that if I am going to run at the level that I want to, I needed a little bit more than a college coach.

I have narrowed down my choices to 2 different yet similar places/coaches/groups. I will either be moving back to my home state to train with Olympic Silver Medalist and his coach, Ron Warhurst, or will be moving back to New York City to train with Coach Gagliano. Both coaches are legends and really know how to coach middle distance runners.

I have been given a great opportunity and I am really excited about either group that I join. The next 2 years of my life are going to be all about running, and I am really looking forward to making a push towards my goal of making an Olympic Team (It is funny to say that out loud considering how long the odds are, but that’s the goal, and I’m going to make a run at it).

I was thinking of contacting ESPN to see if they wanted to show “The Decision Part II: LBP to Ann Arbor or NYC?” but I’m not sure they’re interested. Flotrack maybe?

Look out for the decision sometime this weekend or early next week….as always, Let’s Go!

Freshmen

Most of my training partners were gone this week. They were off in Greensboro, NC trying to qualify for the NCAA Championships (a lot of them did, congrats to all the Columbia and Gtown kids who are flying out to Eugene in a week for NCs!), so I was left with but a few kids to run with.

They happened to be freshmen. The whole week I was running along with Andrew Springer and Bobby Peavey. I am five years older than these kids, so one would think that my maturity level may not necessarily mesh with theirs…but it was an AWESOME week.

It reminded me of my freshman year. My classmates and I were idiots. We were always scheming and planning something. Once, we planned a dinner date for the entire freshman class. It was going to be held at the famous (or more infamous) Columbia Cottage, a Chinese food place where free wine was served with dinner. We told everyone that they must dress nicely. Here is a quote from the invitation we sent out to the class of ’08: “A night of class, sophistication, and revelry. This is a formal affair in which you will dress appropriately and act in a proper and fair manner.” We went on to tell the girls that they would be paying for dinner since we took care of the wine tab beforehand. Somehow, people showed up even though as freshmen boys, we were clowns.

But Peavey and Springer aren’t really as big of idiots as I was, at least I don’t think so. Our runs were spent discussing video games (namely tetris, which apparently Springer is very good at). And in the process, Springer and Peavey tried beating me in some workouts.

Tuesday of this week was not an easy day for me. It was hot and humid, and I was doing a 5k workout; my least favorite type of workout. We were running 500, 1k, 500, 2k, 500, 1k, 500 all at 67.5 pace. Two minutes were allotted for resting between the intervals, which seems like a lot until you have just run a 2k in 5:37.

So we get through the 2k in 5:37, and Springer is looking good. Peavey’s foot is kind of bothering him, so he stops the workout. It’s just Springer and I (he’s legit, ran 4:02 for a full mile as a high schooler last year), and I do not run the 500 too well. I hit the pace, but struggle doing it.

Coach to me: “Can you finish this up, Liam?” Me to coach: “I don’t know.” And then I walk away from him to the start line for the 1k. I was straight hurting. Arms locking up, back arching, lactic acid filling my legs. Springer took us through the first 400: 67.1. I was hurting like hell, and definitely questioned dropping away from him. Then all of a sudden, I wasn’t anymore. I was just going to stay on him and finish this workout. We came through in 2:14 and finished up in 2:47. Then I led the last 500 and we ran 1:18 (62 through the quarter). I was done. But I had finished.

Two weeks ago I would have dropped out of the workout, but sometimes good things happen even when you feel terrible. The rest of the week went well, and now I’m getting stronger and stronger waiting for USAs.

My schedule is shaping up: I am going to be running an 800 at Indianapolis on the 12th of June and then gearing up for USAs after that (sorry to Ryan Pett, I definitely thought about the Tennessee Distance Classic, but its just not going to work out, thanks for the suggestion!). As always: Let’s Go!!

Ps – if you’re looking to read even more Liam Boylan-Pett, check out my latest PowerBar blog-post.

Pay It Back

My perusing of Let’sRun.com’s “World Famous Message Board” depends on how well I have run. Yes, as vein as that is, it is true. I check the message boards if I’ve run well so that I can see what people are saying about me. If I’ve run poorly, I stay the hell away from it. It is not a confident booster to read that you don’t have what it takes. But I’m not solely self-centered, I actually check the message board if a teammate or friend has done well too.

So when Kyle Merber broke 4 last night in a race I rabbitted, I made sure to check out Let’sRun. While he was receiving his due praises, there were also some notes that mentioned breaking 4 doesn’t mean anything anymore. That too many Americans are doing it. That it has become too easy.

I beg to differ.

While the University of Washington may be excused, where sub-4 miles seem to come a dime a dozen, the mystique is still there. The problem with Washington is that no one races. Everyone sets one another up in a line and then runs accordingly to a really fast time. And don’t get me wrong, the fact that people run that fast is just amazing, I am jealous that I haven’t run a 3:57. But then watch Kyle Merber’s race from Friday night and tell me that it isn’t a little different running 3:58 for the win than running 3:59 to take 8th place in your race. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pitqexSNLcQ)

What happened at the Armory on Friday night was a sight to see. Kyle was able to accomplish a goal that he most likely set when he was in 6th grade when he first laced up his running shoes, and he was able to do it in front of and with people that mean the world to him. If he had run 3:58 at UW he would have been able to hug Coach Wood at the finish line and that would have been it. Instead, he was able to share it with his entire team.

So congrats Kyle, and congrats to anyone who ever breaks 4. A Syracuse coach came up to me after I rabbitted and thanked me. I asked him what Brad Miller ran. “4-flat,” he replied. I apologized. He said I didn’t need to, I did my job. I went on my way. But I hadn’t apologized because of my job, I apologized because I know what it feels like to break 4, and I wish that the Syracuse kid who I have talked to maybe twice in my life could have done the same.
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There are more stories from last night, but they are ones that may be kept secret for a while, ones to be told later when they make more sense. My training is going well. I am pretty excited to see what can happen this outdoor season. I have begun my training block and am discussing what my outdoor season will look like with coach. I’ll post up what I know as soon as I do. But I’m going to hit 73 miles this week and got in a nice tempo run of 7 miles on Tuesday before this pacing job last night. It’s going to be fun come April, May, June and July.

Let’s Go!!

Ps – check out two added LBPjams…BOO YAHHH.

Conference Meets

The video below, albeit shaky and blurry, is proof of why I love Heps. It is video of my first Heps Title. It was junior year and a 4:08 mile beat out Princeton’s Michael Maag. Yes, I love it because I win. Yes, I love it because the “LBP” chant and nickname was born. But more than that, I love it because this video is Heps.

How can an athlete not get up for a competition with that kind of atmosphere? I brought it that day because it was impossible not to. Other than Penn Relays, there isn’t a place I would rather race (sorry Heps, the 46,000 strong on the Saturday of Penn is unparalleled). Heps was the spot to go. If you didn’t have it that day, I don’t know when you would. I would win two more Heps titles, and both were great, but that first one, with chants filling the Armory, that one is extra sweet.

Bear with me while I relive the glory days. Understand that my sense of self-splendor shuts down when I remember other Heps races: The fall in the prelims of the mile sophomore year followed by a dismal DMR where I stupidly allowed everyone back into the race after Erison ran one of his patented Pass Everyone In The Field relay legs at Dartmouth; sophomore and junior year failing to pass Ben True in the final straightaway of the 1500; or senior year when I failed to anchor a 4x800 relay team to victory and give a surely deserving Jonah Rathbun a Heps Title.

“Almost” – the worst word in sports. I almost had a second gear after getting myself into the race after falling; I almost still outkicked the field to win the DMR; I almost caught True; I almost pulled myself together in the 4x8 to put up a fight.

Even though I no longer have a Heps to run in, even though I hopefully have bigger things on the horizon, I think about these races. They, along with many others, are the reason I’m still chasing.

I am haunted by almosts.

(Video shot by Colin Pile, Columbia ’03)
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USA Indoors are next weekend. I am entered in the 800 and am looking forward to it. After three weeks of travel and racing I finally was able to have a good week of solid training and a weekend at home. On a snow shoveled track (with banks the same height as me) I was able to pound out some quick 150s and 300s on Friday to hopefully have me sharpened up a bit for some quick 800s this weekend. Still hit 68 miles for the week and I’ll back off this week in order to get nice and rested for the weekend. As always, Let’s Go!

Road Racers

I ran two races this weekend. One was the more conventional route, being on a track with the set distance of a mile (I won in the easiest 4:04 I’ve ever run) and the other was on the warm-up for the actual race against some old man who drafted behind me as I slogged through my 7-minute paced jog.

Going up the hill on riverside drive back up towards NYC’s Armory the dude legitimately locked in behind me and let me block the wind without humor or malice. I continually shook my head and laughed out loud to try to send the dude a hint, but he didn’t get it. He was unrelenting and remained tucked in, void of any wind, behind me. Around the crest of the hill he moved beside me, but clearly wasn’t still running with me as he was about 3 feet to my left. He got a few feet ahead then cut right in front of me. So I moved to my left and remained on the constant pace I had been at for the entire warm-up. Now I was catching up to him and his breathing cadence quickened and loudened (no, loudened is not a word). Then all of a sudden, he was gone. The dude turned around with no word or hint.

The only thing that bothers me is that I’m not sure who won and who lost our race, since I think only he knew the finish line.

And it is fun to challenge the weekend warrior once in a while, but I really wanted to tell this dude to come in and try to race me in a mile in 20 minutes if he was going to bother me so much on this workout. I’m pretty sure that he ended up throwing up somewhere because of the hard effort. At least that’s what I’m going to tell myself.
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Training for the week was great. Ran a 4:04 mile on top of doing a little tempo and stride action on Tuesday and still getting in 69 miles for the week. I’ll keep the mileage up in that area for the next couple of weeks and then cut it back some for USA Indoors, which is still remaining the main goal. I’m probably heading up to Boston this week and hopefully popping a quick 800…Enjoy the interview from Flotrack…Let’s Go!

Track and Field Videos on Flotrack

A World Champ and Two All-Americans; What a Bunch of Losers

I spent Thanksgiving in New York this past weekend. My mom, step-dad and little sister made the drive out from Michigan to spend the holiday at my brother’s apartment on the Upper West Side. They had a place rented out for the weekend near Times Square, but I was lodged up near Columbia the whole weekend.

Thanks to two separate dinners, I had my fill of turkey and stuffing and mashed potatoes and green beans and gravy and apple pie and ice cream and cupcakes (only thanks to a trip to Magnolia for the caboose of that list).

The highlight of Thanksgiving day may have been the first (and most likely last) “Boylan, Fanta, DiCrescenzo,Boylan-Pett Turkey Football Game.”

In a backyard football game that took place in Riverside Park, My brother, Will, quarterbacked a team of himself, my mom, and my sister, Annie. My team included my step-dad, Charlie, and Delilah.

To give more meaning to the title of this entry, Charlie is a World Champion Taxidermist. No Joke. The guy is incredible at stuffing animals. If you ever kill a deer or a turkey and want it kept as a memento, look no further than http://www.fantataxidermy.com for all your needs. Then, add in the fact that Delilah and I were both All-Americans in the last track races of our NCAA careers, we had a pretty stacked team.

However, it doesn’t always work out the way that you think it would. In a defensive duel that yielded only 3 touchdowns, my leadership led to nothing but a letdown. On one play I even took out Delilah and seriously jeopardized both of our running careers. We ended up just fine, and I also made the catch.

In the end, with Delilah threatening to “throw the game,” my Mom made the game-winning catch as the sun set on the leaf covered field. 14-7, the World Champ and the All-Americans lose. What can ya do?

There was some running this weekend, but as in all Thanksgiving weekend runs, they weren’t the lightest. The mileage keeps on upping and the workouts will start to pick up soon enough, but for now its miles and miles.

Racing Trains

“We might not be the best people” – Jack
“But we’re not the worst!” – Liz
“Graduate students are the worst.” – Jack and Liz
-30 Rock

Now not all graduate students are the worst. But we certainly aren’t the best either. Sometimes grad school can get a little tedious and boring. But other times it can be great.

One course has really stood out. “The Reported Memoir” has allowed me to write about my favorite subject: myself! But in all honesty, it has been fun to try to write a story that you think you know so much about, but end up finding that you really didn’t know a thing.

Back in my freshman year at Columbia, I raced the subway. It is this topic that acts as the driving force of my first official memoir. Here is an excerpt from the still unfinished story, but enjoy…
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Choo, Choo, Choo. Smack, Smack, Smack. The six-car train barrels forward carrying its’ passengers to their destinations.

Stomp, Stomp, Stomp. Gah, Gah, Gah. My feet and exhale breaths carry me along, unwavering.

At about 12 feet tall and 227 tons, the R62A rushes forward unrelenting, ready to smash anything in its path.

At about 5-foot-10 and 135 pounds, I delicately glide over the sidewalk, avoiding even dips in the sidewalk that could falter my stride.

Dreadfully, the green lights begin to turn against me as their hues turn a yellowish orange. The signal men who were smiling at me earlier saying, “Oh go ahead, you’re fine,” have turned into a red, blinking hand warning me, “Stop you idiot, you’re going to kill yourself.”

Idiot I may be, I am going to beat this subway. My cadence quickens, light feet, clear mind.

Nearing the intersection at 113th, I see a car raring to cross Broadway. A quick glance left; the light is green. A quick glance ahead; the driver is looking down. A quick decision; I’m going for it.

“Oh shit,” I realize as I cross in front of the car and see that the driver has just looked up. My right arm extends, my hand in the same position as the one in the walk signal that had warned me against continuing. I Heisman pose my way across the street, the driver slams his foot back onto the brake, and I continue on as a honk from behind rings in my ears.
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In running news, it was an alright week. Struggled through a mile repeat workout, which reminded me how much I hate mile repeat workouts. Now, off for another week of running and only 2 weeks away from the race out in the Bay Area. Gonna be fun.