Cross Country Race Wrap-Up: October 3rd and the 10th

Ponte Vedra XC Invitational

After a successful meet at Ridgeview, we hoped to continue our dominance at a moderately sized meet right in our backyard. On Saturday, bright and early, the Nease Cross Country contingent traveled right down the road to the newly built Ponte Vedra High School. After previewing the course the day before, my teammates and I felt ready to crank out some PRs on a fast course. On another note, we received favorable weather leading up to Saturday and hoped the recent spell of heat would be long gone.

Varsity Girls were up first and the Nease Girls improved on the times from last week, many of whom PRed, en route to a 10th place team finish. The girls confirmed that the course was indeed fast and spectator friendly, providing a multitude of opportunities to cheer the team on. Varsity Boys toed the line next and soon throngs of runners from different teams stormed across the field and towards the woods. After one mile, five of the seven Nease Varsity guys were in the Top 25. But a threat in the form of Lake Brantley loomed behind the boys and was closing fast. With a half mile to go, the meet went from an invitational to a Lake Brantley vs Nease dual meet; the top seven were either Nease or Lake Brantley. But in the final turn, Lake Brantley unfortunately prevailed, taking the top three spots. Still, Nease didn't go down without a fight and took home 2nd Place out of 15 teams. Next up, was Girl's JV, the penultimate race of the day. Nease JV Girls didn't fail to impress, demonstrating their impressive depth. Again, many PRed.

Finally, it was time for the Guys JV Race. By now the mercury was closing in on 80 degrees, so I was anxious to get the race over with. 126 runners crammed into their starting blocks and waited for the pistol to fire. With a boom everyone sprinted but luckily Josh, our number one guy on JV, assumed the lead from the get go. I tucked in a few steps behind him and tried to prevent throngs of runners from passing me. The course meandered around the baseball complex and a lake before hitting the first mile. I worked my way up about twenty positions and now I was surely in the top 20. Josh was still leading the pack as the course took us for a loop on the track. Once retracing our previous steps, mile 2 was passed. On the second time on the track, with a half mile to go, I started to kick and attempted to make my way up through the ranks. With 300 meters to go, it was a race for 5th place as I duked it out with a couple - you guessed it - Lake Brantley kids. The familiar ending repeated itself as I was passed as if I were standing still. Little did I know, I crossed the line in 19:38, a new PR which got me 8th overall. Luke and Alex followed 10 seconds later, finishing in 9th and 10th respectively. Brad rounded out the top 5 in 21st place while Luis and Kyle finished in 34th and 37th, respectively. As you can tell, a common trend is exhibited here: everyone PRed. I stop at the 7th spot for writing purposes but the rest of the JV all had excellent showing; great job Grinder, Joe, Tim, David, Alex and Jeremy! To wrap up, Nease JV took four spots in the top 10 and came home with 2nd Place, losing slightly to the elusive Lake Brantley squad. Needless to say, it was a job well done by every member of the team.

Bale N Trail

October 10th brought us what is considered by many to be the state's fastest course. It was the Bale N Trail Invite at Bartram Trail High. Due to SATs coinciding with the race, three varsity runners were absent from the meet thus catapulting me into the team's number 6 spot. Being on varsity, I felt obliged to run fast against teams that were close to us in ability.

Everyone arrived at the meet at around 6:30 AM, giving the varsity runners ample time to lounge around before heading into their pre-race routines. At the Ponte Vedra Meet the week before, it seemed that our first spell of cool weather was here. But after lingering around for a few minutes at the team tent, I already detected the omnipresent humidity. Once the sun was up, the mercury was pressing 90 degrees and didn't seem to be going down anytime soon. Due to pre-race nerves, I sought a bathroom only to find to my dismay that the line was literally making it's way into the parking lot. A few minutes later, the seven of us started our warm up, running on some of the course. We passed by a bathroom that had a line that was about one tenth as long as the previous one, so a couple teammates and I decided to wait. Thirty minutes later and the three of us finally emerge, rushing to finish our warm up and get ready to race.

The whole team arrived at the start with seconds to spare before the gun sounded. After a loop behind the baseball fields followed by a loop around the lake, we passed by one mile. The heat and humidity had reached an unbearable point and it was dramatically affecting everyone's performance. The second mile looped back around the baseball fields while the third mile looped around the lake and then towards the finish. I suffered across the finish line in 20:08, falling short of my goal time, which also was true for most of my teammates. The team finished a disappointing 14th out of 32 teams. But, little did we know, that we would have an excellent showing the following week.

Cross Country Race Wrap-Up: September 19th and 26th

Nease JV took home 2nd at the Bob Hans Invitational

After a short hiatus from the blogosphere, I am now immersed in the cross country racing season, back on my blog to chronicle the races that occur week in and week out. I will post bi-weekly wrap ups about the races that occured.

Katie Caples Invitational

This race kicked off the cross country season and I was able to don my Nease singlet for the first time in my four-year stint as a member of the team. Three weeks prior, our team designated one of the all-comers cross country meets to serve as the team's time trial to determine varsity. I missed out on varsity by two seconds, meaning I'd start off my season toeing the line at the Junior Varsity race. I had two main goals in mind; first I wanted to improve on my time that I ran at the time trial (20:31); second, I wanted to break 20 minutes, the elusive barrier that I now felt was in my grasp. As for place, I wanted to be in the top 20, or at least relatively close to it.

The Katie Caples Invitational was held at Bishop Kenny (BK) High School, which is situated right along the St. Johns River in Jacksonville. The series of races were held in the evening, providing cool weather for all those competing. The course is one of the fastest in the state, host to great times every year.

After warming up and stretching with my JV teammates, I stripped my warm up gear and headed to the starting area. The starting line was packed with runners from many schools, and looking back on the results it turns out that 279 runners finished. After moments of standing around, the starter prepared to fire his gun. With a bang, 279 runners sprinted ahead as I held my position in the middle of the pack. The first turn of the course took us onto the track, where I jostled for position. After a jam-packed first mile I cruised over the low cut grass, clocking my first mile in 6:10. The course traced back much of the first mile, but then took us along the river. I slowly moved up in the field, but I was a far cry from top 20. My second mile was in 6:31, and once again the course looped around on previous ground. With a half mile to go, I dug deep and made my way towards the finish. Once on the track, I quickened my stride only learning to my dismay that I had nothing left. A couple runners here and there whizzed by me as I crossed the line in 19:53, putting me in 40th place overall. The rest of my team crossed the finish on my heels, with the next four runners coming in 20:06, 20:07, 20:58, and 21:17, respectively. As a team, the JV boys squad finished 8th of 22 teams with an average time of 20:29.

Girls' Varsity and JV both placed 17th, while the Boys' Varsity finished in a thriller, taking home 5th place. All in all, a very memorable and successful meet.

Ridgeview Bob Hans Invitational

With another good week of training under our belts, the team traveled to Ridgeview High School in Orange Park for the Ridgeview Cross Country Invitational. Confidence running high, the JV squad and I were prepared to match our times from last week and possibly take 1st Place in the JV team competition. Still, we were unaware of what challenges the course would pose for us.

The whole squad arrived at Ridgeview bright 'n early, most of us arriving there at 6:00 AM. Varsity Girls raced first followed by the Varsity Boys and then the JV squads in the previous order. I couldn't figure out much about the course from the confines of the team tent so I guess I'd figure if the varsity ran good times then the course wouldn't be half as bad. Varsity girls had a great showing, many of them setting PRs in the process. Varsity Boys followed suit, taking 4 of the top 10 spots. The varsity boys ended up winning the meet. Many though had mixed feelings about the race, saying that some parts of the course were notoriously slow. Still, I felt I had the ability to whittle a couple seconds here and there from my Katie Caples PR. After a quick 15 minute warm up with the rest of JV, I stripped off my outer layers and prepared for battle.

Once at the starting line, we did a couple of strides before squeezing in to our assigned box. I was already soaked with sweat as was everyone else, the humidity high and temps close to 90. The starter prepared the pistol then raised his arm. Within seconds we were off, quickly funneling in. I stayed in the middle of the pack, creeping up slowly towards the end of the first mile. I crossed the first mile in 6:07 and was among the top 20. The course now started to get sloppy, going through high grass and sand. The second mile took a lot out of me as I clocked a 6:30 split. The third mile wasn't much better, meandering through segments of trails as well as more sand. The third mile was the most miserable, but I pushed towards the finish line determined to better my time. I crossed the line in 19:52, a 1 second PR. I received 10th place and my teammates took 5th, 13th, 14, and 19th, which rounded out those in the top 20. Mostly everyone PRed minimally or was off their time by a little but all in all it was a good team performance. Our team average dropped to 20:09 and we took home a 2nd place team trophy for our efforts. Stay tuned for next week's wrap-up as Nease takes on the fast and flat courses at Ponte Vedra and Bartram Trail, respectively. So long and keep running!

Tour de Pain 5K

There is no better feeling than falling asleep in your own bed in own room. I say this because it has been a whirlwind of travel these past two months. After one month in CT it was time to get even further from home as we hopped across the pond and began a 12 day cruise through Europe. Upon our return in the States, I took part in the 5-day Princeton Cross Country Camp. Needless to say, I was a prime candidate for DVT (Deep Vein Thrombrosis) as we immediately began the tedious and grueling 16-hour drive down the Eastern Seaboard. We arrived to a still fully intact home in the wee hours of the morning (4 AM). But it never felt so good to be back home in good ol' Ponte Vedra.

And now that I was back home, I also had to suffer through the unbearable heat and humidity in my training and racing. Still, I wanted to see where my fitness was before Cross Country (XC) season was underway. So I decided to sign up for just the Tour de Pain 5K and see if I could take a stab at my PR set in July in CT (in perfect conditions to boot). Once at the Baymeadows venue for the day's 5K, I quickly reevaluted my goal to be sub-20, which would be a Florida PR. I got a decent warm up and was quickly soaked with sweat as I lined up at the starting line. The start was delayed a bit but eventually the cannon fired and many runners took to the concrete, hazy jungle that unfolded before them. I got into a good position and held a decent pace at the beginning. I came through the first mile in 6:10, as my breathing became heavier, an indication of the oppressive humidity. The conditions taxed me more in the second mile, as I made an attempt to slog past runners. I clocked the second mile in 6:30 and it seemed my sub-20 hopes were leaving my grasp. With the home stretch in sight, I kicked with half mile to go. One last turn I would be done, so I sprinted with 200 to go and slipped under 20-minute milestone with a 19:49. I lost my balance briefly but quickly regained it as my parents came over to congratulate me. Despite unfavorable conditions, I prevailed and ran my fastest time in Florida. Next race on my plate is the Bartram Trail All Comers XC Race, where I hope to whittle away some time and get closer to my all time PR. After that it's my favorite, the Summer Beach Run, where I can hopefully bite off a large chunk off my weak 5 Mile PR. It's hot out there but summer is coming to a close. To check out my training, take a look at my new training blog where I post a weekly wrap-up of training and occasionally discuss training methods as well as some miscellaneous information as well. So long and stay tuned!

Not Your Typical 5K

Boy, was this race a nightmare. I guess they weren't kidding with the name "Not Your Typical." The course and weather were unbearably bad. Mind you -- we're from Florida -- so the CT heat at the 6:45 PM start of this race should have been something we could laugh off, but not today. It was 85 degrees at the start and somewhat humid, conditions that were more challenging than virtually all of our races in Florida, which are held in the early morning with temps ranging in the 70s. But wait, that's not all. The terrain of the course certainly was not "typical" and it was a painful reminder that "We weren't in Jacksonville anymore." The course took us on a treacherous journey up long, steep hills followed by more long, steep hills. I pushed hard in the first mile but only mustered a slow 6:33, and it only got worse from there. After climbing another steep hill (10% grade), I reached the halfway point and took the effort down a notch so I could at least salvage a decent tempo run. The second mile was utterly miserable, giving me a record slow split for 2009 -- a 7:18. Now my quads were feeling like ground beef, so I welcomed the "too little, too late"downhill with half a mile to go. I finished in 21:23, running a 6:49 last mile. I was more mad than exhausted, yet still a little content that I had a PR from last week. Dad, on the other hand, looked more pissed than ever and his time demonstrated how miserable the course was with him running a 23:28, his slowest time for a road 5K in years, and two minutes slower than his PR from March of this year in Jacksonville (on a flat course with temps in the 60s). At the finish line, and for the next few hours, Dad was consumed by a spontaneous and "Not Your Typical" bout of Turret's Syndrome, swearing like a sailor and hating life. Both of us were in PR shape, each of us having logged our highest mileage of the year on killer CT hills for the past two weeks (with some speed work) and yet we managed to find the only course on the Eastern Seaboard where our hard work did not yield the results we deserved. Since we had no reason to stick around and stew in our misery, we got out of there lickety split after snagging some cold and hard pizza and warm watermelon. And once we got back to the car, we saw the finishing temperature was 83 degrees at 7:30, a painful punctuation mark to our futile and frustrating outing. All in all, a waste of $50 and an especially tough setback for Dad who is trying to rebound from his two-week illness in June and regain his race-day confidence.

Next race on the calender for me anyway is the Tour de Pain 5K, a precursor to cross-country season where I will be gunning to improve my PR. The race comes on the coattails of my week at Princeton Cross Country Camp (Aug. 2-6) so I should be primed and ready to PR. As of now, it's the day before departure for my vacation and I'm planning for two weeks of higher mileage in the mid-40s. So long and feel free to comment!

Glorious Gallop 5K

Just like the title suggests, this 5K was glorious in many respects. At first sight, it seems like your typical small town 5K: no chip timing, a small field, bottled water as the only post-race refreshment, and no T-Shirt. But if you hold this race under the microscope, you'll discover many desirable attributes: the course is flat and fast, the field is highly competitive, and the weather is cool. I selected this 5K on an impulse after many CT runners told me that it had multiple downhill segments. After a six-month drought of no 5K PRs, I wanted the perfect conditions so I could destroy my previous mark of 20:18. The race boasted a late start time of 7:15 PM, which offered plenty of time to ice and stretch, and allowed the sun to sink deeper toward the horizon. Once my Dad and I arrived at the race (Dad had to watch this one from the sidelines to accompany my grandfather as a spectator, who is still recovering from neck surgery), we went to the gym and paid the small entry fee of $15 and in exchange I was given a race number and a cute souvenir pedometer. I quickly pinned the number to my Jacksonville Running Company tech shirt then scurried off and ran a mile warm up. Once I felt warmed up, I laced up my racing flats and headed over to board the bus, which whisked runners up to the start and offered a preview of this point-to-point course. Upon arriving at the start, I began a methodical and thorough warm up, including running another mile and conducting strides, plyometrics, and stretches. For this race, I was not donning my usual flashy singlet with matching shorts. Instead, I took a different approach and sported a tech shirt with some normal Nike shorts. At about 7:10 PM, everyone started to line up on the cramped residential road, and I tried to snatch a spot up near the front. I don't remember any cannon but just a squished mass taking to the streets. I got a great start and cruised down the numerous downhills. Although the race course was nestled in a a typical Connecticut rolling hills environment, the first mile featured a series of consecutive downhill segments. However, half of them were steep enough to roll down, so my quads were reacquainted with the "pulverized into ground beef" feeling I've been encountering after my training runs on some major CT hills. Good thing I was wearing my Garmin watch because there was no mile marker, let alone a clock. I clocked a fast first mile in 6:08. The second mile brought us around to a lake, which included many less steep and gradual hills. I pushed harder into a headwind, trying not to fall off my pace too much in the second mile. I picked off several runners in this segment and it seemed that I was the one born and raised on hills. Again, there was no mile marker for the second mile, which I ran in 6:27. Once I passed water and gulped it down between breaths, I pumped my arms and charged up a long hill. At the apex I reached into another gear, leaned forward, and again used my arms to propel myself. I passed the 4K mark in 15:40, which was a 20 second PR for that distance en route to this 5K finish. With half a mile to go, the course spared the runners with a gradual downhill to the finish, which I strided down. One last turn put the finish in sight, and a moment later I crossed the line in a major PR of 19:20, a full minute faster than my previous best. Dad came over to congratulate (and envy) me. But no age group award for me, as Dad saw many older teenagers ahead of me who likely snagged the top spots in the ever competitive 14-18 age group. Checking results the next day, it showed that I finished 43rd out of 337 runners and 16th in my age group -- a very competitive field! To celebrate my achievement, Dad and I headed over to the festive local carnival held in conjunction with the race and got some hot, hand-cut french fries and then headed out, topping off a great day and a great race. Stay tuned to my blog as my next race is to be contested on Wednesday. I'm determined to prove this PR was no fluke and might even shave some seconds of it. So long runners and keep PRing!

Bethel Firecracker 8K

July 4th brought me to a race in a different neck of the woods. No, not Florida, or even the South. Instead, I returned to my roots in Connecticut, which is where I was born and spent the first three years of my life. What brought us up here was helping my Grandfather recover from a neck injury he recently sustained (see my Travel Blog for more information on our stay in CT in June/July). But it worked out well for my training since it spared me two weeks I otherwise would have had to train in the nasty Florida heat and humidity. Up here in CT, it's hilly and cool, so I couldn't ask for any better training conditions. To gauge where I was with my training, Dad and I decided to sign up for a 4th of July 8K located more than an hour away across the state. Little did we know that the course was notoriously hilly and was not a spot for PRs. Still, my goal was to break my weak PR from February, hills or not. Dad and I began the hour and 30 minute trek at 6:30 AM, along with my sister, Tania, who decided to tag along and take pictures. Another prospect that attracted me to this race was the 11-14 age group, one that you seldom find in the local races back home. So, to say the least, I had my hands full for this race. After our arrival to the small and quaint downtown area, I picked up my packet and got a decent warm up in on the course. Once it was 10 minutes before the start of the race, I lined myself up near the front and waited for gun. After a little delay, the runners bunched up then took to the streets. I didn't dart off as usual and felt strong leading up to the first hill, a short and steep one. The first mile was otherwise smooth and easy, as I clocked in at 6:50. I picked more people off during the second mile as more hills encumbered the runners around me. The second mile split was slower but nonetheless a hillier mile, giving me a 7:00 minute split. After a quick and flat downtown loop, the course wandered through residential hills, which took more out of me despite the fact I gained on more runners. My third mile was a steady 6:53, but it felt harder than the previous two. Few runners were in the vicinity so I tucked in behind a runner carrying a large American flag, which turned out to be a big mistake. The fourth mile was a painful one, tracing back our path to the finish. I started to begin a kick, following the flag bearer. I was knocked out of my painful haze when I heard a voice about 20 meters behind me. It was a fellow runner, calling us back because the navigationally challenged flag bearer had taken a wrong turn. A few censored words later, I was back on the right course trying to make up lost ground. Too bad there was a challenging hill ahead of me, slowing down my progress towards the finish. Once the finish was ahead and in sight, I sprinted towards it crossing the line in 34:42. My last mile was in 7:07. Although it was a PR for me, I was expecting something faster but that was impossible on a course as challenging as this. Dad finished in 38:27 (two minutes slower than his 8K PR in February and comparable to his pace for a half marathon in FL), which was a sign that this course wasn't challenging just for me. Dad had just completed two consecutive 30-mile weeks on CT hills with me leading up to this race, so he was reasonably well prepared for this race. We hung out on the nearby town green for a little while, waiting for the awards. I was happy to learn that I took first place in my division and was awarded a not-so-impressive drawstring bag embroidered with the race logo for my efforts. Still, I ran a decent PR with little speed training geared towards the race. In the upcoming weeks (and for the rest of the summer) I'll keep piling on the miles, and will be looking for a long overdue 5K PR at the Not Your Typical 5K on July 15th in Middletown, CT. So long and keep up the summer running!

Run for the Pies 5K

Alas, the Run for the Pies 5K has come. It is one of the South's most prestigious and fun races in the summer, featuring apple pies to all men who break 20 and women who break 24. If you can remember back to last year, I had a decent showing in this race, running a 22:01, but it was an effort not worthy of a pie. Run for the Pies is a benchmark for me, signifying the beginning of my summer running campaign, both in racing and training. This summer I will be gearing up for cross country season in the fall and I'm looking to amass a lot of mileage, which will hopefully lower my times as well. But I digress -- back to the race. What made this race unique was its 8:00 PM starting time, poising all running for PRs in favorable conditions. I arrived there with more than enough time to spare and began a long warm up with my teammate, Eric. Once our warm up was complete, we found a spot on the sidewalk and got ready to watch the elite race. My dad was sidelined yet again, due to a bout with viral bronchitis that he was recovering from that kept him bedridden for two weeks. From his spectator standpoint, he pointed out that the conditions were perfect, but I questioned the credibility of his declaration because there is never one waking moment in Florida where it is not humid. As we watched the elite race, Eric and I both got excited about the performances the top runners were throwing down, giving us hope that a PR was in store for both of us. Once the last few runners finished, the runners taking part in the open race assembled at the starting line. The temperature rose another 10 degrees while waiting at the starting line and I was anxious to just get the race over with. Once the cannon shot off, the crowd lurched and I dodged some weekend warriors, beginning my quest for a sub-20 finish. I hung around Eric for the first mile and tried not to get sucked into a fast first mile. But my speedy-start habit persisted and I clocked my first mile in 6:12. Alarmed by the pace, I subconsciously slowed down. I knew my 2nd mile was my weakness and hoped the negative splitting I had done in training would help me with a steady 2nd mile. Turns out my second mile split was a painstakingly slow 6:51. My chance at a pie was slowly slipping out of my grasp. I used the rest of my energy reserves to push through the last mile, but I could not dig out of the hole I was in. The finish was in view as I charged down the road, gasping for breath as I gained on the Run for the Pies banner. But about 30 meters from the finish, the digital clock read 20:00, and I knew that my chance at a pie had evaporated. I didn't make note of my finishing time, too dejected to care, but later learned that it was a 20:18 (which tied my PR from the Memorial Day 5K). I walked around like a chicken with its head cut off, in a confused haze due to oxygen debt. Finally, I met up with my parents and we made our way to the Jacksonville Landing, the site of the post-race party, where I consumed two pieces of pizza saturated with rain. I thought it was a waste of time waiting around, and I was essentially out of contention for an award so we left, capping off a crappy performance. But I looked to the future, thinking of the great weather and training that awaited me in Connecticut. As I finish up this entry, I am in Connecticut, getting in some great training. My easy run pace has plummeted while my endurance has skyrocketed, so I feel that I will able to achieve my goals in my two upcoming road races in CT. On another note, the weather here beats the oppressive heat and humidity in Florida, since it has been in the mid-60s and overcast for the majority of my stay so far. So long runners and keep training well!

P.S.- As most of you know, the summer means family vacations and this year we have decided to take a cruise of the Mediterranean Empires. Stay tuned to my travel blog, which will be updated weekly.