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Saturday, December 18, 2010

Post-Race Day

Its the day after my first track and field meet.  I'm not certain how I feel about the experience.  There were lots of young faces and plenty of anxious parents sizing up the competition on behalf of their sons and daughters regardless of whether their child wanted to know anything about the competition.

I watched one father and mother approach a young girl just to find out how old she was.  The young girl was from Montreal and she was 9 yrs old.  She ran in the heat just ahead of me.  Both she and her older brother are naturally talented runners.  I wish I took the time to ask her her name.  She was quite nervous, but she ran a great race.  She beat a few older girls which raised eyebrows.  That's why this father and mother who perched beside me on the stands looking like vultures at the ready, wanted to find out if this talented 9 yrs old was their daughter's competition.  I wanted to say something to the parents but I just sat there and kept my mouth shut.  Not my place to say anything.  These are the kinds of people I detest being around. The parents that lack any respect for the competition or the sport.

A day later, I am still wondering what lessons learned I can take away?  I learned that their is no margin for error in a sprint distance race.  It is fundamentally critical that you execute the game plan from the moment the Race Officals says, 'on your mark'.  In fact, I am more apt to believe that the execution of the game plan begins in practice.  You have to be able to practice your game plan in order to perfect it.  Come race day, the execution of the game plan is essentially second nature.  The difference between first and second is purely the mind game.  If you believe you will
win the race, you will.  If you can execute your game plan to perfection the result is inevitable.  She who can execute a flawless plan is triumphant.

So what next?  Well, I have to build a race game plan that I can practice every time I go to the track.  Simply running down the track and trying to go faster each and every time is not enough.  I will also have to rethink my Plan B.  I am learning invaluable running skills but I also need to
translate that into a fast 5km race.  I also have to determine if I am even talented enough to be doing sprints.  I like endurance events and I'm just not convinced that I have the fast twitch muscles necessary to become a 'speedster'.  What I have decided to do is set milestones.  If I am unable to achieve two successive milestones, then I will revisit my commitment to track and field - to the sprint distance race.  At the same time that I set milestones for my sprinting, I will set milestones for my 5km race.   I think I already know the outcome but this means that I am situating my estimate to a certain degree, and that is not good thing.

I have decided to keep an open mind, build milestones and focusing on achieving those milestones head on.  Its going to be a tough 4th quarter but I have nothing to lose and everything to gain.  Lets wait and see.

Friday, December 17, 2010

Training with Yoda

When you have one of the top National Sprinting coaches in Canada taking interest in your running, you know you have struck pay-dirt !!

Three short weeks after placing third at the World Paratrithlon championships, I met Hugh Conlin.  With my trusty coach Helen Cooper by my side, Hugh asked if I would be interested in trying sprints - the 100m and the 200m.  I was a little shocked at the offer.  I even asked him, "are you certain I am talented enough to do sprints?"  He just laughed and told me not to worry about it.  Two short weeks later and I am starting my first ever sprinting session with this amazing person I have now dubbed YODA.  I have learned so much about good running technique in such a short time - it was awesome.  Sprinting is incredibly technical, completely powerful, and absolutely frightening all rolled up into one.  I was hooked.  Sprinting is not for the faint of heart, and it takes the courage of a lion to step into a starting block.

Its been 5 weeks since I started training with YODA.  This Saturday, I am going to do my first race.  I'm stoked.  I am going to have a great race and an even greater day.

To my good friend Helen (aka Obi-Wan Kenobi), thank you for believing in me, for taking a chance on me, and for allowing me to achieve amazing things on the track and out on the triathlon race course.  Together we will change the world one race at a time!!