Well, that was a bit of a crazy race. The way it works is there are 2 heats of 12 men in the semi-finals. From each heat the top 4 finishers automatically qualify, and then the next 4 fastest times after that. I had the advantage of being in heat 2. This is an advantage because you get to see what heat 1 runs and you just have to make sure you are faster than the 5th finisher in their heat.
Heat 1 happened pretty much according to plan. They went out fair slow and ended up coming home strong over the last lap and a half or so. The 5th place finisher was about 3:51. So now everyone in our heat who wasn't confident on being top 4 knows that they have to run at least 3:51 or better to make it to the final. Right off the gun Robert Jackson from Speed River took the lead. I knew it was definitely faster than 3:51 pace, but I felt really comfortable and was expecting somewhere around 63 through 400. You can imagine my surprise when I saw the clock and it said 60 seconds. It didn't really phase me, as I said I felt really strong and comfortable and had no problems with a bit of a faster time. Coming around the corner with just under 1000m left in the race, I got clipped pretty bad and almost hit the track. I was able to recover pretty well and maintained by composure and most importantly my position. Jackson maintained the lead through 800m where we slowed down a bit to 63, coming through in 2:03. With 600m to go the pace started to get a little quicker again and from here on out about 5 of us broke away. That group included myself, Taylor Milne, Justin Marpole-Bird, Geoff Martinson, and Charles Philibert-Thiboutot. Coming down the home straight we were all in a group, and I was sitting in 5th. I debated just staying there because I knew the time was much faster than 3:51, but I like to have a big "Q" beside my name rather than a small "q" so I worked my way up in to 4th to guarantee me a spot in the final.
I want to say thanks to everyone who came out tonight to cheer me on. I heard you all and it really helped me out. It was great meeting some of me new twitter followers in person as well!
Lets keep the cheering going. The 1500m final goes tomorrow, Friday, June 29th, at 2:25pm at Foothills Athletic Park. Be there or be SQUARE!
I am all eyes on the 1500m final right now. But just FYI I am entered in the 800m semi-finals at 6:55pm tomorrow as well.
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Time has Come.
Well, the time has come. The one meet everyone has been looking forward to all year is upon us. The 2012 Canadian Olympic Trials have begun.
My final preparations leading into the meet have been unbelievable. I have been doing a lot of change of pace sessions to get ready for the tactical races that are inevitable at championship races. In every single one I have surprised myself both with how fast they have been, but also how smooth and just utterly strong I have felt. I have also been getting verbal feedback from some of my peers to reinforce the way I have been feeling.
I would love to have as many supporters out as possible. If you are in Calgary and have the time, why not come watch Canada's best athletes compete for their spot on the 2012 London Olympic team. Tickets are only $15 available at the track.
My race schedule looks as follows.
1500m semi-finals - Thursday @ 6:20pm
1500m finals - Friday @ 2:30pm
800m semi-finals - Friday @ 6:55pm
800m finals - Saturday @ 3:15pm
Of course both the 1500m, and 800m final are tentative as I do need to qualify through the semi-finals.
My final preparations leading into the meet have been unbelievable. I have been doing a lot of change of pace sessions to get ready for the tactical races that are inevitable at championship races. In every single one I have surprised myself both with how fast they have been, but also how smooth and just utterly strong I have felt. I have also been getting verbal feedback from some of my peers to reinforce the way I have been feeling.
I would love to have as many supporters out as possible. If you are in Calgary and have the time, why not come watch Canada's best athletes compete for their spot on the 2012 London Olympic team. Tickets are only $15 available at the track.
My race schedule looks as follows.
1500m semi-finals - Thursday @ 6:20pm
1500m finals - Friday @ 2:30pm
800m semi-finals - Friday @ 6:55pm
800m finals - Saturday @ 3:15pm
Of course both the 1500m, and 800m final are tentative as I do need to qualify through the semi-finals.
Friday, June 22, 2012
Back on the Train.
Jeez, looks like I have a lot to update.
Non-Running
I can't really think of a whole lot that has happened. I'll just start typing and hopefully some things come up. I like to think I don't lead that boring of a life.
I got back with Amy and then broke up within 2 months. It was a pretty bad situation, but sometimes those are the ones you learn the most about yourself, and other people.
I'm back in Canada, so thats pretty cool. It's surprising how big of a cultural difference there actually is between the USA and Canada. I have been saying that since I've been back, and people ask me what the differences are, but I can't say really. It's all the small things. I used to think I could possibly live in the states one day, but after being back this time, I retract that statement.
I have been lucky enough to have had a few really cool people come into my life recently. They are the type of people you make and immediate connection with and can just sense that you are going to get along. That is my main goal right now, to surround myself with people that I have real connections with and have potential to stick around for awhile and not worry too much about the people who are just passing through.
Running
Man, tons of races. All of that have been pretty good, obviously a few I wish I could redo.
In April I had the Sun Angel at ASU, Mt. SAC relays in California, and I was lucky enough to go out to the 2012 Penn Relays as part of Canada's Distance Medley Relay team. ASU and Mt. SAC were both really good. 3:43 at ASU for a season opener was really exciting. That was by far the fastest I have ever gone for my first 1500 of the year. That excitement continued with a new PB at Mt. Sac running 3:41.13. My performance wasn't nearly as good at Penn Relays, but the experience was unbelievable. I really hope I get chosen for that team again. I'd love to experience the meet more and redeem myself a little bit.
After the April races we went up to Flagstaff for a yearly altitude training camp. It was a ton of fun and we had some really solid workouts. One of the highlights being 1x800 at 1000m pace where everyone ran WAY faster than expected. I ran 1:50.8, a PB by over 2 seconds in practice. Then we headed back to California for the USATF OXY HP meet. I really wanted another PB, but running 3:42.35, the 3rd fastest time of my life had to do. After OXY we headed back to good ol' AZ for one last meet in the US. In my previous races I had been going out pretty conservatively and then really coming home strong. This time I decided I'd just go for it. I split through 1200m in about 2:55, which is the fastest I had ever done, and then died a slow painful death over the last 300m finishing in 3:46. It was ridiculously hot, which made flying back up to Canada a few days later a lot easier. I went up to Edmonton for the Running Room Blue Mile. It's just a fun road race that I ended up second in.
That brings us to the current month of June, and the racing has continued. I flew out to the west coast for Harry Jerome and the Victoria Track Classic. Jerome wasn't that great, I had a really weird mind set going into that race. I knew it was going to be fast and I knew that I generally have a pretty good result there, so I kind of thought no matter what I do I was going to run fast. I figured if I just went out, didn't get caught up with a pace that was too fast and just ran my race, I'd come out of it with a good showing. But, I didn't run the race on the track or my race. I kind of just run around in circles for a few minutes and forgot to race. Victoria was a lot better for me. The race wasn't quite as fast but I was actually in it this time. From Victoria I flew up to Edmonton to race an 800. I ran a big PB of 1:49.11 and had a ton of fun doing it! I came home afterwards and registered to double at nationals because I had so much fun.
Now I'm back in Calgary putting in the final bits of training in preparation for the 2012 Olympic Trials here at Foothills Stadium. For anyone who is in town and looking for a way to spend their afternoons this coming weekend, I recommend coming to check out Canada's best track and field athletes try to qualify to represent the country at the 2012 London Olympics.
Thanks for reading, remember to subscribe to my blog to be alerted on updates, follow me on twitter. I encourage you to share my blog on twitter and facebook and to leave questions and/or comments. Feedback and interaction with my readers is always encourage.
Non-Running
I can't really think of a whole lot that has happened. I'll just start typing and hopefully some things come up. I like to think I don't lead that boring of a life.
I got back with Amy and then broke up within 2 months. It was a pretty bad situation, but sometimes those are the ones you learn the most about yourself, and other people.
I'm back in Canada, so thats pretty cool. It's surprising how big of a cultural difference there actually is between the USA and Canada. I have been saying that since I've been back, and people ask me what the differences are, but I can't say really. It's all the small things. I used to think I could possibly live in the states one day, but after being back this time, I retract that statement.
I have been lucky enough to have had a few really cool people come into my life recently. They are the type of people you make and immediate connection with and can just sense that you are going to get along. That is my main goal right now, to surround myself with people that I have real connections with and have potential to stick around for awhile and not worry too much about the people who are just passing through.
Running
Man, tons of races. All of that have been pretty good, obviously a few I wish I could redo.
In April I had the Sun Angel at ASU, Mt. SAC relays in California, and I was lucky enough to go out to the 2012 Penn Relays as part of Canada's Distance Medley Relay team. ASU and Mt. SAC were both really good. 3:43 at ASU for a season opener was really exciting. That was by far the fastest I have ever gone for my first 1500 of the year. That excitement continued with a new PB at Mt. Sac running 3:41.13. My performance wasn't nearly as good at Penn Relays, but the experience was unbelievable. I really hope I get chosen for that team again. I'd love to experience the meet more and redeem myself a little bit.
After the April races we went up to Flagstaff for a yearly altitude training camp. It was a ton of fun and we had some really solid workouts. One of the highlights being 1x800 at 1000m pace where everyone ran WAY faster than expected. I ran 1:50.8, a PB by over 2 seconds in practice. Then we headed back to California for the USATF OXY HP meet. I really wanted another PB, but running 3:42.35, the 3rd fastest time of my life had to do. After OXY we headed back to good ol' AZ for one last meet in the US. In my previous races I had been going out pretty conservatively and then really coming home strong. This time I decided I'd just go for it. I split through 1200m in about 2:55, which is the fastest I had ever done, and then died a slow painful death over the last 300m finishing in 3:46. It was ridiculously hot, which made flying back up to Canada a few days later a lot easier. I went up to Edmonton for the Running Room Blue Mile. It's just a fun road race that I ended up second in.
That brings us to the current month of June, and the racing has continued. I flew out to the west coast for Harry Jerome and the Victoria Track Classic. Jerome wasn't that great, I had a really weird mind set going into that race. I knew it was going to be fast and I knew that I generally have a pretty good result there, so I kind of thought no matter what I do I was going to run fast. I figured if I just went out, didn't get caught up with a pace that was too fast and just ran my race, I'd come out of it with a good showing. But, I didn't run the race on the track or my race. I kind of just run around in circles for a few minutes and forgot to race. Victoria was a lot better for me. The race wasn't quite as fast but I was actually in it this time. From Victoria I flew up to Edmonton to race an 800. I ran a big PB of 1:49.11 and had a ton of fun doing it! I came home afterwards and registered to double at nationals because I had so much fun.
Now I'm back in Calgary putting in the final bits of training in preparation for the 2012 Olympic Trials here at Foothills Stadium. For anyone who is in town and looking for a way to spend their afternoons this coming weekend, I recommend coming to check out Canada's best track and field athletes try to qualify to represent the country at the 2012 London Olympics.
Thanks for reading, remember to subscribe to my blog to be alerted on updates, follow me on twitter. I encourage you to share my blog on twitter and facebook and to leave questions and/or comments. Feedback and interaction with my readers is always encourage.
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