run, jobs, run

New study about the benefits of muscle massage

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 06:31:00 +0000

According to a study published this week by researchers McMaster University, Canada, massaging muscles apparently results in biologic changes that help reduce inflammation akin to NSAIDs. This sheds new scientific light on the benefits of muscle massage.

Here's an excerpt:

Investigators obtained specimens of participants' quadriceps at rest, immediately after massage, and after a 2.5-hour recovery period.

Using whole-genome microarrays, Tarnopolsky and colleagues examined gene expression associated with massage and then performed targeted reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction studies, analyzed protein signaling, and quantified metabolite production.

As compared with baseline values, muscle tissue from the control leg exhibited changes in expression of 592 genes 30 minutes after exercise and 1,309 genes after the recovery period. Investigators identified five genes that exhibited changes in expression immediately after massage and four genes that differed in expression levels after the recovery period.

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"A Capriccio Of Rome With The Finish Of A Marathon"

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 03:27:00 +0000

An 'oil on canvas' painting by Pierre-Henri de Valenciennes from 1788. Saw this at the Legion of Honor museum in San Francisco, California. It's a bit difficult to see, but, in the bottom left of the painting, there are a few runners presumably finishing the marathon. No timing mats, finish line tapes, TVs, etc. Barely a handful of spectators too.

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Finishing times at the US men's marathon Olympic Trials

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 20:38:00 +0000

This is an interesting table of the last qualifying finishing time for the men's marathon at the Olympic Trials dating back to 1968. (Three runners qualify.)

1968 - 2:33:09
1972 - 2:20:30
1976 - 2:13:54
1980 - 2:10:55
1984 - 2:11:50
1988 - 2:13:09
1992 - 2:12:54
1996 - 2:13:22
2000 - 2:15:30
2004 - 2:12:01
2008 - 2:11:40

This year the last qualifier was Abdi Adbirahman with 2:09:47. That would make it the fastest third place qualifying time since before 1968. Probably the fastest ever.

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Here's to a great new year

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 04:57:00 +0000

What does 2012 have in store for us? Is Usain Bolt going to set the London Olympics ablaze with a new WR or two? Will Haile Gebreselassie or Paula Radcliffe win Olympic gold and announce their retirement? Will yet another Kenyan bring down the marathon WR yet again? Will we see a sub-2:03 marathon?

Another ~~364~~ 365 days to go (since this is a leap year) and we'll know the answers. Hang in there for the long run.

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2011 Prefontaine Classic - photos and write-up

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 09:57:00 +0000

Click on any photo for a larger version

Yesterday was the first day of the Prefontaine Classic 2011 in Eugene, Oregon. Today, June 4, was the main day with about a couple of dozen events. Things kicked off with a powerful rendition of the national anthem. First up was the women's pole vault followed by the women's triple jump. Below is the lineup for the triple jump event which was eventually won by Olha Saladukha of Ukraine as a gift to herself for her birthday which was today.

If two events are boring, you can always wait a bit and soon enough you'll see a third or fourth event. All at the same time. A good exercise in multitasking your eyes and brain. Below is the lineup for the men's discus event. Robert Harting of Germany won with a 68.40m throw.

The women's shot put (lineup in photo below) was won by Nadezhda Ostapchuk with a 20.59 effort.

While the field events were in progress, the international men's mile kicked off. Ryan Gregson of Australia won with a strong finishing kick and finished in 3:53.86. Eight of the total nine runners in the race finished in sub-4 times.

As soon as the mile finished, hurdles were put up by the officials. Not the bad kind, but the good kind and for a good purpose - the men's 3000m steeplechase. Below is a photo of some of the runners on their way. Ezekiel Komboi of Kenya won in a time of 8:08.34 beating Paul Koech, the current meet record holder, by well over a second.

This was followed by the women's 400m hurdles. Lashinda Demus (seen below) won with a 53.31s effort. Next was the men's 800m. Abubaker Kaki of Sudan (not shown) won in blistering time of 1:43.68 thereby setting a new meet record.

The men's high jump took to orbit while the track events continued. The eventual winner was Raul Spank of Germany with 2.32m. Below is the lineup.

While the high jumpers continued, the women's 1500m event started. There were some good headwinds at points during the race and the meet record (or any other record) was pretty safe. There was some incident that happened around 150m away from the finish where there seemed to be some tripping but I wasn't able to catch a good glimpse as it was half way across the field. Here's a shot of Gelete Burka battling with Maryam Jamal on the final straightaway. Burka won in 4:04.63. Morgan Uceny finished third.

Here's Burka after her victory.

The women's javelin was won by Christina Obergfull with a 65.48m effort. Here's a shot of the lineup.

The men's long jump was won by Greg Rutherford of England with a 8.32m jump. Irving Saladino of Panama failed to complete a single legal jump. You could see the frustration on his face even from afar. It just wasn't his day. Here's the lineup before they started.

The men's 100m hurdles was looked forward to by the Chinese segment of the crowd as seen in the photo below. The placard translates to "Liu Zhang, go for it". This was the second time for Zhang at the PreClassic, if I remember correctly. The last time which was a couple of years ago, he got disqualified for a false start and that was a great anti-climax.

No such anti-climax this time. However, David Oliver decided he wanted first place, with a time of 12.94s beating Zhang by 6/100 of a second.

Next up was "Blade Runner" seen below, aka Oscar Pistorius of South Africa. Here he is lining up for the 400m race. Pretty darn impressive when you see him run like that in real life from 100 feet away. Watching it on TV is one thing but it's only when you see it in real life, you think a little bit beyond "Wow!"

Pistorius put up a good show but Angelo Taylor took the race in 45.16s followed closely by Jeremy Wariner. Pistorius finished last in a time of 46.33s.

After the 400m came the men's 2 mile race with a lineup of, among others, Bernard Lagat, Eliud Kipchoge, Tariku Bekele, Matt Tegenkamp. Here's a short of part of the lineup.

Here's another shot during the race. Meanwhile, Reese Hoffa won the men's shot put with a 21.65m effort and Hayward Field extended its record as the home of the most 70+ feet shot put throws.

Here's the 2 mile race again, this time in the final 100 meters with Lagat battling Koech. Lagat won comfortably in 8:13.62 and got a very loud round of applause. However that was nothing compared to the applause the last place finisher got. High school kid Lukas Verzbickas who finished about 16 seconds behind Lagat. If you didn't know, you'd have thought the applause was for Usain Bolt breaking 9.50s. The Eugene crowd is absolutely wonderful. No wonder Verzbickas is joining the University of Oregon in Eugene. He got interviewed by the presented Katherine Clark and came across as a shy but nice young kid. Hopefully Eugene and the PreClassic will see more of him.

Carmelita Jeter won the women's 100m with a 10.70s effort which was better than the meet record. However the wind had been pretty strong and I don't know if that has been ratified as a new record yet. Jeter also won the Maria Mutola award and here she is being interviewed by Katherine Clark, who did a great job throughout.

Below is the end of the men's 100m race. Steve Mullings of Jamaica won in 9.80s. Justin Gatlin finished 6th and he did get a good round of applause at the beginning of the race. No high is better than the runner's high.

Here's Mullings again. Happy as a bunny. A real fast bunny. This was followed by the women's 800m (not shown). Kenia Sinclair won in 1:58.29. Caster Semenya, making her first appearance in a while, ran a good race and finished second, about 0.59s behind. She was probably around fifth or sixth with about 200m to go before she kicked it up a level.

Here's a shot of the men's 200m in progress. Walter Dix won in 20.19s.

Another shot of Dix after he finished. Next was the women's 400m (not shown). Amantle Montsho won in 50.59s. Allyson Felix finished third and Sanya Richards Ross was fourth. There was a false start at the beginning and it seemed to be Felix. The guys sitting behind me were totally convinced it was Felix. I did see her leg move or twitch a bit but in the end, the officials decided to not charge it on any one. An official walked around to each athlete with a green card held up in her hand, apparently indicating that the athlete was good to go. A bit like the yellow and red card you see in soccer.

The final race of the day - the Bowerman mile. Below is a shot of the starting lineup. Haron Keitany of Kenya won in 3:49.09. Asbel Kiprop finished third after picking it up from fifth or sixth place with about a 100m to go.

Thus ended another great edition of the Pre Classic. Nice, warm, and sunny day in Eugene. About 75F. Of the five times I've been to the PreClassic, it's rained only once and that too at the very end. Who says it's always raining in Oregon?

If you're interested, you can read my write-ups from earlier years - 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007.

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Prefontaine Classic 2011 special event - photos and writeup

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sat, 04 Jun 2011 08:55:00 +0000

Click on any photo for the larger version.

As seems to have become the annual norm, we found ourselves in Eugene, Oregon this weekend for the 2011 Prefontaine Classic. This year was a bit different - they had a special set of events on Friday, a day before the actual event on Saturday. Three events, each with an amazing lineup of runners - mens 25k/30k, womens 5,000m, and mens 10,000m. The cool thing was Friday's events were free.

We got there a couple of hours before the event started only to find out we needn't have. As can be seen in the photo below, we found a grand total of one other person there. The weather was great however and killing two hours was easier than guessing which event Galen Rupp would be running.

We could have picked any but one seat in the stadium. I picked the one right next to the finish line, literally about 15 feet away - much less than what Irving Saladino will likely long jump tomorrow. While waiting around for the start to arrive, I took a bunch of pictures of the various equipment. Here are some finish line cameras, probably meant for photo-finish decisions. Too bad there were any today.

First up, at 6:40 p.m., was the mens 25K/30K combo. The lineup included, among others, the recent 2:03 Boston marathoner, Moses Mosup. He was going to go for a world record in both. The 25K and 30K world records were both set by Toshihiko Seko of Japan back in 1981. Here's a photo of the start.

Mosop was definitely on a mission. Eugene also decided to cooperate - both in terms of the weather and the spectators. Each of the 76 laps that the runners finished was accompanied by a good round of clapping and cheers without fail. Each and every single round. Soon, the lead pack dropped to four as seen below.

Mosop keep hammering away and about the half way mark, the lead pack was down to two - Mosop and Joel Kimurer - seen in the photo below.

World record attempts require a different kind of personality. Mosop embodied it today. Lap after lap, you could see the power emanating from his legs and the intensity in his face. At some point, Kimurer decided to get water only to see Mosop break away a bit further.

A bit further became a bit more and then a bit more and soon enough, the crowd was on its feet cheering Mosop, first onto a 25K world record (1:12:25) and then a 30K world record (1:25:47). There was no stopping Mosop today and somebody probably knew that this would be the case and went ahead and got a T-shirt made well in advance. (Also notice in the photo below that there's still someone running in the race much after Mosop finished his victory lap.)

He was beaming brighter than a 100W bulb. Seems like a really nice guy - something you wouldn't be able to tell looking at the intensity on his face throughout the race. Here's a close-up of him.

Summer days are long at this latitude, but at some point, the stadium lights had to come on. As far as I can remember, this was a first for the Prefontaine Classic, which is usually held in the mornings.

The men's race was followed by the women's 5K with a huge lineup of about 20 runners including Cheruiyot, Dibaba, Cherono, Flanagan, Goucher, Masai, Kipyego, and several others. Vivian Cheruiyot won in a handy time of 14:33.98. Here's Cheruiyot and Masai lapping Amy Yoder-Begley on their way to a 1-2 finish, followed closely by Mercy Cherono.

Cheruiyot again, breaking the finish tape.

She seems like a really nice person. While on her post-victory lap, someone handed her their baby to take a photograph with. Then, after she finished, someone did the baby thing again. Here's a photo below. Trying to inspire the baby or trying to get some of the DNA from the sweat to rub off onto the baby? Anyway, she was a real sport and posed with the baby for the longest time.

Another thing I found interesting was this camera at ground level right at the finish line. Here's a shot below. Does anyone know what it is for? Photo-finish decisions? Motion activated or remote-controlled photography?

The final race of the day was the men's 10K. Pretty big lineup again. Funny thing is that the handout showed Galen Rupp, the big stadium scoreboard showed Galen Rupp, but reality decided not to show Galen Rupp. I don't recall any announcement either. Here's a shot at the start of the race.

At one point, the pacesetters were apparently going too slow and Tedesse of Eritrea decided to kick it up a notch by himself. After 25 laps of some exciting action, during the course of which, some people dropped out or dropped back, Mo Farah of England hit the final straightway and put in a pretty good kick at the end to win the race.

He reminded me (a bit) of Bernard Lagat with his big smile on his way to breaking the tape. I took a very similar picture of Lagat about 2-3 years ago when Lagat won the 2 mile race at the PreClassic. Farah was joined by his daughter afterwards. The announcer seen below talked to him for quite a bit. Sorry I don't remember her name but apparently she was an Olympic medalist for England in 2004 (I think). If you know her name, please let me know.

In the absence of Galen Rupp, Chris Solinsky was definitely a crowd favorite. However, he dropped out due to some reason. Here he is, in the photo below, presumably explaining the reasons for his doing so.

At almost close to 3 hours, this was about the same as the main PreClassic event usually is. A great day and some great weather. Some great performances. Hopefully this was just an appetizer to tomorrow's weekend brunch.

I wrote this in a hurry. So, please excuse any typos and do let me know so that I can rectify them.

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Best temperature for running?

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 02:49:00 +0000

This is a neat little infographic on what the ideal temperature is for running a marathon. According to it, 53F seems to be the best. Keep in mind this is a set based on runners at the New York City Marathon. Nonetheless, it gives you some idea. Temperature doesn't affect everyone in the same way. Elite runners are not affected as much as slower runners are. However, what I found most interesting was that the runners between 4:00 and 4:30 hours seem to be the least affected (after the elites). Look at how even the circles are in that diagram for the runners in this segment.

Personally, I've always felt my best running comes when the temperature is between 50 and 55 F. Haven't done any detailed study to narrow it down any further.

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New York marathon live on the web, TV, and phone

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 06:13:00 +0000

This year's New York marathon will be broadcast on the web, TV, and the phone. The even have an iPhone/iPad app. I remember watching the London marathon live on the web about three years ago. It was pretty disappointing. The quality was bad - low resolution and very jittery. Hopefully this one is good. Haile Gebrselassie is in the field this year. Here's to a great show.

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Guys crashing women's road races

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sat, 25 Sep 2010 14:41:00 +0000

An article in the Wall Street Journal on how some guys run women's races. Here's an excerpt:

"To discourage male interest, many women's races present trophies only to female winners. Goodie bags often contain feminine-cut T-shirts, along with swag like perfume samples, chocolates and pink sandals. One race is giving away feather boas and tiaras.

Ahead of its Oct. 2 inaugural half marathon, Run Like a Diva announced that finishers' medals will be awarded by bare-chested male firefighters. "We had four men signed up, but two dropped out when they heard about the firemen," says Mr. Pozo, the race organizer. "We're making this race so girly that men won't want any part of it."
"

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Tabata workouts - results from the last time

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sat, 18 Sep 2010 17:37:00 +0000

I started doing the Tabata protocol workouts back in late spring but never got around to posting the results. So, here goes:

Last week of May - 19:56 5K
Next week: 30 miles with Tabata
Next week: 40 miles including last Tabata workout
Next week: 7 miles
Next week: 22 miles and 19:37 5K at the end of the week
Next week: 11 miles and 19:05 5K at the end of the week

Probably ran a total of one or two tempo pace runs in the last three weeks. All the others were at 8:00-9:00 pace. Yet I was able to get the time down from 19:56 to 19:05 within about five weeks. I think it was probably a combination of the Tabata workouts and cooler weather in general. Plus the fact that the workouts probably took some time to pay off, i.e., the results aren't like instant noodles. Anyway, some time not too far away into the future, I'm planning to give this another try.

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Is running an expensive hobby?

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sun, 12 Sep 2010 20:59:00 +0000

Like most things in life, the answer is it depends. It's like going out for dinner - you have a whole range from a $5 fast food meal to a $100 meal at a fancy restaurant. Let's take a look at how things add up.

For the most basic running, you need a pair of shoes, shorts, and a shirt. Some may argue that some or all of these are optional, but I think it's safe to say that for 99% of runners these three things are the most essential. Say $30 for shoes, $10 for a simple shirt, and $10 for shorts. You're looking at about $50 and that's about as low as it gets even if you get stuff on clearance. How long will this last? Assuming a runner does 20 miles/week, he gets 1000 miles in a year. Let's say he gets 1000 miles from his $30 shoes which is stretching it for most people. Assume he can get by on wearing the same shirt and shorts for the whole year. With all these assumptions, he can get by with $50 a year. Typically this is not the case.

Most people spend $40-$80 or more on a pair of shoes. Typically shoes get thrown out after anywhere from 300 to 500 miles. Most runners usually have two or three pairs in use at any given time. Shirts and shorts - most people probably have a few of each and more likely than not, these are technical fabric, which means upwards of $25-30 for shirts and upwards of $20 for shorts. Let's do some numbers again:
- 4 pairs of $30 shirts = $120
- 4 pairs of $20 shorts = $80
Say they last you for 5 years. In 5 years, say you go through 10 pairs of shoes at 20 miles/week and 500 miles to a pair.
- 10 pairs of $40 shoes = $400
So, that's $120 + $80 + $400 = $600 over 5 years for an average of $120 a year.

Of course, the costs go up the more you run and the more expensive shoes you get. For a 40 miles/week runner, the $400 above goes up to $800 which, in combination with the shirts/shorts, works out to $200 a year. If you're a serious marathoner logging 80 miles/week, you probably go through 10 pairs of shoes in a single year. That means anywhere from $300 to $800 or more on shoes alone in a single year.

So, all this was just considering the three "essentials". Now, let's throw in more stuff that runners typically need or use:
- watch - anywhere from $15 to $300 (for the GPS ones)
- hat - $10-$20
- sunglasses - $10-$200
- gels - at about a buck each, it depends on how much you run and need
- mp3 player - $10-$100?
- sunblock - $5-10 a bottle
- ointments for all those aches and pains - $5 a tube
- race entry fees - $10 to $100
- extra food to meet all that extra nutritional demands
- extra showers means extra costs on your water and heating bill
- rain, winter, or snow gear if you live in those kind of places. Those things are particularly expensive.

Now it's not looking that cheap, is it? But, is it worth it? I say, totally. Think of all the extra health benefits. Better health means less time/money spent on medical appointments and costs. Many a time, a runner will just run down the neighborhood street to run an errand (dropping off a DVD rental, dropping off some mail, etc.), thereby saving money/fuel that would otherwise be spent on driving. More time outdoors mean more vitamin D. Runner's high means you increase the total happiness quotient on the planet. I could go on and on but I'm sure there are many such benefits all of which add to the fact that I've never heard anyone say "don't be a runner, it's too expensive."

How much do you spend on running?

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Does it take longer to warm up as you get older?

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 04:30:00 +0000

Based on my own experience, I say yes. Back in my 20s, I could get out of bed and go for a run at a sub-7:00 minute pace right away and I'd alright. Now that I'm in my 30s, it seems not so easy to crank out a sub-7:00 right out the door. My latest experience was on an 8-mile run. I started slow as usual (8:30-9:00 pace), gradually increased the pace, and then tried to run the second mile at a 7:00 minute pace. To my surprise and utter disappointment, I was panting at the end of that mile. It was very slightly uphill but not so much that I should be panting like a locomotive engine. Anyway, I continued thereafter at about an 8 minute pace or so. Just over half an hour into the run, I had recovered enough to run mile 5 in 6:28 and mile 6 in 6:22 and at the end of that, I could still have run another sub-6:30 mile. What a difference some additional minutes make. A complete turnaround. I'm thinking that by half an hour or so, my system (legs, muscles, etc.) had warmed up sufficiently to facilitate a better performance. Anyone else have a similar experience?

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Running on the track - lane etiquette

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 19:10:00 +0000

Lately, I've been going to the nearby high school track for a few odd laps occasionally. It's a nice, new rubberized track, the kind you see in an national/international meet. Unfortunately, however, very often I see people walking in lane 1 regardless of whether the other lanes are being used. I see two things wrong with this.

Back in my university days, the track on campus used to have explicit signs for at least two things - 1) Slower walkers/runners keep to the outside lanes and 2) Don't use lane 1 if you're not on the track team (or something to that effect).

Rule 1 should be somewhat obvious to anyone who uses a highway/freeway. It's simple consideration. The faster runners are probably timing their laps. If you're walking, it's best not to get in their ways. However, sadly, I do see a lot of folks that don't seem to care, more so on the track than the highway. People walking in lane 1 while chatting with their partner or on the cellphone. (Similar to a highway sometimes, isn't it?)

The campus folks were pretty good, even stringent at times, in enforcing rule 2 to the extent that they would block lane 1 altogether by putting up hurdles all around. After talking to some knowledgeable folks, I found the reason for doing so was to prevent wear and tear. Apparently, it is pretty expensive to lay out a track like that (upwards of $100,000) and the lifespan is less than 10 years. So, the idea was to make it last longer. Apparently, lane 1 is the most vulnerable. I guess this would be something like a carpet which starts to wear first from the edges.

Other than that campus, I've rarely seen any such signs on high school tracks. I wonder if it is because 1) they don't know, 2) they don't care, or 3) the lane 1 wear concept is a myth. I'm inclined to think it is 1.

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Running barefoot

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 03:06:00 +0000

Recent online exchanges with some friends and acquaintances got me interested in barefoot running again. I also managed to find a track within running distance. So, for the last couple of weeks or so, I've been running a few (3-5) laps barefoot on the track occasionally during my regular runs. Last time I did some was over six years ago. It was surprising how easy it was to get up to speed. Bear in mind though that this is on a rubberized track and I am not running much more than a mile for now. This week, I covered 200m faster than Usain Bolt covers 400m. It took me about 34s to do so barefoot, the same it took me to do so in shoes. Similarly, I was able to cover 100m in about 14.5s - the same for both, barefoot and shoes. The shoes are a bit old and heavy - over 1100 miles and over 13oz each. Factor in maybe half a second for that. Still not bad with regards to what barefoot was able to do. Not yet ready to put in a mile at a fast pace yet. Exhilarating experience however; it feels as though you are flying. I'm going to keep at this and see how it goes.

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High heels lead to shorter calf muscles

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 18:39:00 +0000

Interesting link about how high heels can damage leg tendons. Excerpt:

Researchers looking at leg sonograms of women who frequently wear 2-inch or higher heels found that these women had calf muscle fibers that were an average of 13 percent shorter than their flat-wearing counterparts.

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Prefontaine Classic 2010 - photos and write-up

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 04:08:00 +0000

Click on any photo for a larger version.

This weekend, I went to see the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon; the fourth consecutive year for me.This edition was a special one since the Pre Classic is now part of the IAAF Diamond League. The day was beautiful - blues skies with occasional clouds, and a gentle gust of wind or two once in a while. Not too warm either. A sold out crowd (they apparently had to build some 500 additional seats at the last minute) and there you have it - all the elements for a great start to the July 4th weekend.

The first event was the women's hammer throw. It is not part of the official IAAF Diamond League any more. However, the Prefontaine Classic decided to have it anyway, albeit as a separate event. It started at 11 a.m., before the Pre Classic which was at 12:00 noon. The meet kicked off with a powerful rendition of the Star Spangled Banner by someone from the Eugene Symphony (I think). Incredibly powerful vocal chords. That's him on the live display screen of the stadium.

The first official event was the International Men's Mile. It had a large field with at least four wearing Oregon colors including AJ Acosta and Galen Rupp who drew some enthusiastic crowd support. Unfortunately, green wasn't the one to win. Ryan Gregson of Australia won in 3:53.19 followed closely by AJ Acosta who was 0.57 second behind in a new PR for him by over four seconds.

In a compressed 3-hour meet such as this, you always have multiple events on at the same time. At some points, we could see a track event, a shot put, a pole vault, and a long/triple jump simultaneously. The men's discus throw event was won by Piotr Malachowski of Poland with a 67.66m throw. The men's shot put winner was Christian Cantwell with 22.41m, adding yet another notch to Hayward Field's record as the reigning home of the most 70 foot throws anywhere in the world. Nadezhda Alekhina of Russia won the women's triple jump with a 14.62m effort.

From where we were, it was a bit difficult to see the pole vault on the other side of the field because the protective net for the discus throw was up. This is what it looked like through the net. Fabiana Murer of Brazil won the women's event with a 4.58m effort. Too bad Yelena Isinbayeva couldn't make it. Murer gave a nice interview where she looked genuinely happy and thankful to the crowd for their support.

The women's 5000m was won by Tirunesh Dibaba in 14.34.07. Shalane Flanagan put up a great fight to overtake a few over the final lap and ended up in second place. That's Dibaba below gliding her way to victory.

The men's 1000m was the next event. Abubaker Kaki of Sudan had gone on record in his intention to set a new world record. Nick Symmonds, the local favorite was there. So were Alfred Yego and Boaz Lalang. In the end, Kaki was the victor with a 2:13.62 effort, about 1.66 seconds off the world record. Valiant effort nonetheless. That's Kaki below followed by Lalang, the second place winner. Symmonds hung back for the first half as usual, but kicked hard in the last lap to finish third.

The women's 400m hurdles was next. Lashinda Demus took victory with a 53.03 in a new Hayward Field record and a PreClassic record. The women's steeplechase followed soon. Milcah Chemos of Kenya won with a 9:26.70 performance. That's her in the photo below followed by the eventual runner-up, Marta Dominguez of Spain.

Next up was the women's 800m, this time without the perennial contestant and favorite Maria Mutola who retired a couple of years ago. Mariya Savinova of Russia made sure that Mutola's name was mentioned by breaking her 13 year old meet record by 1/100th of a second. Here's Savinova on her way to victory.

Irving Saladino won the men's long jump with a 8.46m jump beating out Dwight Phillips by 5cm. Last year it was Phillips who won and Saladino finished second. The men's 110m hurdles was won by David Oliver equaling the current American record of 12.90s. Oliver was elated. Big smiles and big victory celebration.

This was followed by the women's 100m event pictured below. Veronica Campbell Brown of Jamaica took victory in 10.78s.

The men's 5000m started soon after with a strong field - Tariku Bekele, Kipchoge, Solinsky, Tegenkamp, Merga. Solinsky looks much bigger than the rest in real life. Almost like a rugby player in comparison. The race itself was exciting. The Hayward Field crowd kicked into high gear in the last couple of laps and pulled Bekele in for a 12:58.93 win. Gebremeskel followed barely 0.37 second behind.

Two sub-13 performances and the first time ever on American soil as the announcer told us. That's Bekele in the photo below on his way to number one. I wonder if Bekele has ever raced his brother Bekele.

Needless to say, a new Hayward Field and PreClassic record. Solinsky however looked totally spent afterwards. Here he is lying on the track with a concerned meet official looking over him. Matt Tegenkamp is the background a few meters away.

The men's 200m race featured Tyson Gay, Walter Dix, Shawn Crawford, Churandy Martina, and Richard Thompson among others. Dix won in 19.72 followed by Gay 19.76. The post-race interview featured both Dix and Gay. Gay said that he was happy with the result and that it was "not bad for my first race." I guess that was his first race of the year?

The women's 400m was another tightly contested race. Allyson Felix beat out Amantle Montsho by 0.03 second. The third place was 0.01 second behind that - Shericka Williams. Here's a photo on them on the final straightway.

The event that everyone looks forward to at the end of the meet - the Bowerman men's mile - started on time, in fact, about 15 seconds before the scheduled time of 2:47 p.m. The announcer informed us that until then Hayward Field had seen 221 performances under 4 minutes. A spectacular field lined up as usual, under the sunny Eugene sky. The biggest cheer, however, for Andrew Wheating who lined up for his last race wearing the University of Oregon uniform. What a race it turned out to be. The crowd played a big role, especially when they all got up on their feet for not the last, but the last two laps. That finishing stretch was just like you see on TV - incredibly fast and powerful, almost like a Bolt sprint. Kiprop and Laalou battled it out with Kiprop edging ahead to win by 0.49 second. Here's them on their final sprint.

Check out the super-thin legs of Kiprop. I read somewhere on the Internet (and therefore it must be true) that the "bird-like legs" act as a powerful lever and and push you forward real fast. Funnily enough, I was talking to a high school kid today who mentioned he can't really run because he has thick calves.

The race was amazing. I can't do a byte-based description well enough to do justice; you should have been in the stadium to have experienced the atmosphere. It was louder than a stadium filled with 40,000 vuvuzelas. Wheating came through in a PR-shattering 3:51.74. He gave a nice interview at the end where he said that now he knows that he has it in him and that "I think I can run with the big dogs". That's him below waving to the crowd on his way out.

Another year, another great meet. A few meet records, field records, soil records, and American records. Everything but a world record. It was a great experience as usual. Nutrilite didn't seem to have their tent from last year with all the good stuff. I guess recession hit them too. Lots of people. For some reason, I noticed there were a lot more kids hanging around to get autographs and photographs of the athletes on their victory lap. I think it was Kara Patterson, the javelin throw winner, who spent at least 15 minutes doing that. Great overall entertainment for less than the price of a movie and a dinner. A great start to the weekend and as always, we made our way to the best ice-cream in Eugene, Prince Pucklers.

If it interests you, here are my reports from 2007, 2008, and 2009.

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Prefontaine Classic 2010 starting lineup?

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 13:30:00 +0000

The Prefontaine Classic is next Saturday, July 3rd. Unfortunately, they still haven't updated the start list on their website which still shows the lineup from 2009. You can get some of the names by looking at the few news items, but it would have been nice to know them all by now, especially considering that the meet is now a part of the IAAF Diamond League.

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How many miles do you run in a soccer game?

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 20:37:00 +0000

Since it's soccer mania right now courtesy of the World Cup in South Africa, I thought I'd post this. How many miles do you run while playing a 90 minute game? Based on my experiences, I'd say about 5-8 miles depending on the position of the player. When I used to play soccer back in grad school, a few times I decided to play with a pedometer clipped on. A typical reading would be around 10,000 steps or more for an hour or so play, which is about 5-6 miles. I used to love to run the field and that figure is probably a bit higher than average. Also keep in mind that the pedometer is not exactly accurate.

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Vista Strawberry Festival 5K

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 17:19:00 +0000

Ran a 5K race last week. This was at the Vista Strawberry Festival. Apparently this was the first time they were holding this race in 15 years. If I were to rate it, I'd give it 4.5/5. Pretty much everything was done well.

I registered on the day of the race. This in itself was very well-managed and efficient. There were clearly marked counters for different steps. Step 1 - you fill out a form. Step 2 - you hand over the form and your entry fee. Step 3 - You pick up your bib and timing chip. Yes, a timing chip. Not many of those 5K races around. At least not for an entry fee of $35 (race day). You got the keep the chip at the end. No need to give it back.

The course was straightforward with no surprises. The marshals and the cone placements were good enough to ensure that there were no mistaken detours. There was music on the course at a couple of points. Two water stops on the course. I got water at both - it was a hot day. Nice long finishing stretch about 200 meters. Thanks to that, I was able to sprint all out and eke out a sub-20 by two seconds. Finisher medal for everyone. Very helpful volunteers all around.

The post-race festivities were substantial. Strawberries, all kinds of energy bars, granola, muffins. No bananas, oranges, or Gatorade type liquids. There was also the strawberry festival right next to the finish area. Lots of booths selling all sorts of things. Lots of food. Balloons and face painting for the kids. There was a van where you could get your blood pressure and glucose checked. They also tested your eyes for vision and glaucoma. RoadRunner had a booth where you could get your running gait analyzed. They had a treadmill and a video camera to record your feet in motion.

The bib itself was good for a free burrito or a bowl at Chipotle Mexican Grill. This is a clever ploy on their part and I mean this in a positive way. Most runners usually come with someone - spouse, family, friend. If they end up going to Chipotle, so do their companion(s). More people means more business. In addition to this, all runners got a $10 gift card for Dick's Sporting Goods who were the main sponsors.

All in all, an excellent event. I'd run it again if I get a chance. So why did I take off a half point on my rating? The mile 3 marker. I didn't see any if there was one. I think a well marked one would definitely help especially if you want to know when to start the final sprint. Usually, the last 0.1 mile is where a lot of people want to do so.

Overall, it was a very satisfying experience. I'd definitely recommend this to anyone. Kudos to the organizers once again.

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Tabata Protocol (continued)

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sat, 29 May 2010 19:33:00 +0000

This was my second week doing the Tabata workouts. Still stuck at 4 cycles. The protocol calls for 20 seconds at 170% V02Max which, given the lack of access to a lab and/or proper equipment, is a bit difficult to do. The first time, I went all out and later on, calculated it using the Internet and some fuzzy logic. So, this is how I went about it. Using a 5:55 min/mile as my pace for 3K, which is the V02Max pace (by one of many accepted notions), gives me 710 seconds for 3k which implies 23.67 seconds per 100m. At 170%, I'd need to cover 170m in 23.67s. For 20s (as per the protocol), I need to cover 143m and from online maps, it looks like I'm covering around 140m. The fuzzy logic comes in because I'm doing the Tabata cycles on grass whereas the 5:55 min/mile pace that I used to calculate my V02Max was done on tar, concrete, and dirt. Add to that the fact that I'm using online maps to measure my runs. So, fuzzy gets a bit fuzzier.

Nonetheless, the workout itself is a killer. I can barely finish 4 cycles of the protocol whereas it calls for up to 8 cycles. My RHR these days is around 42-45 but even after 2+ hours of finishing one of these workouts, I'm still ticking away at 70+ beat/minute.

My experience with the Tabata Protocol

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sun, 23 May 2010 23:29:00 +0000

This week I started experimenting with the Tabata Protocol. It's a form of high intensity interval training. This is what Wikipedia says about it:

A popular regimen based on a 1996 study[2] uses 20 seconds of ultra-intense exercise (at 170% of VO2max) followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated continuously for 4 minutes (8 cycles). In the original study, athletes using this method trained 4 times per week, plus another day of steady-state training, and obtained gains similar to a group of athletes who did steady state (70% VO2max) training 5 times per week. The steady state group had a higher VO2max at the end (from 52 to 57 ml/kg/min), but the tabata group had started lower and gained more overall (from 48 to 55 ml/kg/min). Also, only the Tabata group had gained anaerobic capacity benefits.

On Monday, I tried and could only go up to 4 cycles before I could go at maximum intensity no more. On Wednesday, I tried again and this time I made it to 5 cycles before saying "Na mas". It is quite incredible how exhausting even 120 seconds of high intensity exercise can be. The main thing is to be able to go at high intensity for all cycles. The moment you feel yourself faltering is the time to stop. I'm going to keep at this for a while to see what benefits follow.

Does running make you sweat more easily especially when you eat spicy foods?

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sat, 08 May 2010 23:39:00 +0000

These days, if I eat spicy food, my body breaks into a sweat in less time than it takes Usain Bolt to run a 400m lap. No kidding. It's really strange but I think I know why, after all these years of trying to find the truth. Over the past decade since I started running I've noticed this change happen slowly but surely. Back then I could eat any spicy food, even raw green chillies, without breaking into a sweat. I still can, in the sense that I don't feel the need to reach for the nearest glass of water when eating anything spicy. My tongue doesn't feel as if it's on fire, my eyes do not turn red and watery, and there's no steam coming out of my ears like in the cartoons. However, my face becomes covered with sweat - almost instantaneously. It's bizarre and embarrassing especially when you have to explain it to your buddy or whoever is sitting across you at the table. So why does this happen?

Over the years, I've tried researching but haven't run into anything specific. Maybe there are studies but I just haven't seen them. What I've gathered from tidbits and anecdotes here and there and also from talking to a friend who happens to be a doctor is this: my running has resulted in a more efficient cooling system. The body sweats in response to a rise in the core temperature of the body. The more efficient this temperature sensing and subsequent cooling mechanism is, the earlier you sweat. For instance, if you watch the NBA basketball players on TV, they are covered in sweat after about a minute or two into the game. Same logic. Also, the sweat glands are probably more enlarged and possibly more in number as compared to a sedentary person.

The next time this happens to you, think of yourself as a lean, mean, sweating machine. :)

Have to go now, it's time for my afternoon snack - ~~jalapeno~~ Bhoot Jolokia poppers. But, if you have a similar experience to share, send me a few bytes.

Energy drinks work as soon as they touch your tongue

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sat, 01 May 2010 15:50:00 +0000

Interesting article on New Scientist. Energy drinks work as soon as they touch your tongue

Excerpt:

If you spit out an energy drink after taking a sip, it could still boost your strength. This pre-digestive effect is immediate and seems due to a newly discovered neural pathway that links taste buds to muscles.

London Marathon 2010, Virgin, and Open Source

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 00:32:00 +0000

I went searching for where I could watch tomorrow's London Marathon live on the internet. Universal Sports seem to be one option. It is not clear from the website but I think it's about $5-7 to watch. BBC seems to be the other option. However, the internet option seems to be available only for those in the UK.

At the time of searching, I also came across this article about how Virgin (the main sponsor) has started a charity site based on open source technology (MySQL, Apache, etc.). If they can use free technology, why can't they have a free live feed on the marathon website? As it is, they already have ads on that website. Putting in a live feed would not only bring in several thousand hits but would make thousands of runners outside the UK very happy. Thus, not only would they earn several thousands of pennies but also the love and admiration of many running fans worldwide.

I would have sent them an email regarding this but all they have on their "Contact Us" page is a UK phone number. If you know of a way to reach them via email, please let me know.

What is more popular - jogging or running?

noreply@blogger.com (jobs) — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 21:31:00 +0000

Running vs jogging is a surefire way of sparking a debate, especially online. As for the difference, there are many theses out there, some of them particularly humorous. I decided to see what the search engines had to say by putting in some search words. These are the number of results I came up with:

Google:

running - 379 million
jogging - 12.6 million
runner - 53.8 million
jogger - 3.4 million

Bing:

running - 265 million
jogging - 10.6 million
runner - 35.8 million
jogger - 3.4 million

"running" is a common word with more meanings than simply running as in the physical activity. That's probably why it got so many more hits than "runner". The difference between "jogging" and "jogger" is not as big. In any case, the result is unanimous as per the search engines - "running" is more popular than "jogging".