USATF XC Championships Recap

    I have had the USA XC Championships on my race schedule since the day after USATF Club XC championships in mid December.  I got that passion for xc again from that race and was not satisfied with my performance in Charlotte... I knew that with more consistent training, i could build on that race and pop a nice one a few months later in San Diego.  Obviously, a huge motivator was the fact that 60 degree weather is MUCH more ideal than 25 degree weather.  My cousin Blake and his fiance Jamie also live only 2 miles from Mission Bay (in Ocean Beach), so I was definitely making the trip upon the offer to stay with them. 
   Coach Jerry decided a few weeks prior that he would make the trip as well.  I very much welcomed this as it would be a big advantage having coach there to guide me, motivate me and to simply have someone in my corner for the entire 12k event.  We arrived in San Diego around 11:30am pacific time.  We were welcomed by a gorgeous sunny day and 65 degrees.  Palm trees hung above us, people walked around in Hawaiian t-shirts, it was great.  We checked into Jerry's hotel at the Hilton on Mission Bay Park (400 meters from the starting line).  I quickly got dressed into summer running garb (shorts and my Maryland Track and Field t-shirt- Thank you Danielle!).  The course was a very interesting setup.  I knew going into the race that the course would be a 2000meter loop run 6 times for the 12k race.  However, i did not expect the course to be in such a tight area.  At first i thought it was ridiculous... but once i began running, i knew this course was my type of course.  You opened up with a 350 meter straightaway followed by a 90 degree turn.  From there you made a gradual right turn running along the Hilton swimming pool.  After that, you made a sharp left turn and ran along mission bay.  I smiled during this stretch as to the right of me (about 60 feet from the course was the beautiful, sparkling bay).  The course ran about another 400 meters which included the 1000meter checkpoint.  This is where it got fun, you made a long gradual left turn that wrapped up up a semi steep hill.  You then went down a gradual hill for 50 meters before making a sharp right turn up a short steep hill.  After the 30 meter hill, you made a quick left turn down a very very short and steep hill.  You ran a round the playground, in which the turn was like an indoor track turn on a 200meter flat track.  From there you hit a quick uphill followed by a quick downhill... you went back up a short steep hill and ran along the stands.  100meters later you were making the sharp turn which dumped u into the 2000meter mark.  That x's 6 was the 2011 championship course.
    After 4 easy laps, I strapped on the spikes and went to the starting line, only to find elite athletes:  Jason Hartman, Jorge Torres, Brett Vaughn, Sean Quigley and Brooks runner Andrew Carlson.  I had some small talk and began to hit 4 striders.  I left the course feeling very good!
    That night i hit a nice Italian dinner with Blake and Jamie.  We talked about their upcoming wedding, the fun things we would do post-race... and how they had a crew and a half of rowdy hippies coming out to cheer me on for the race.  Due to jet-lag, i was out like a light at 9:30pm. 
    Race day morning came and I woke at 7:30am.  I rolled out of bed, put on some running garb and headed out for a shake out run of 2 miles.  I ran out to the pier at Ocean Beach.  I watched surfers pulling off some crazy stuff on 8ft waves.  There were SOOO many people out exercising which was really neat to see.  I came back to the house, showered and walked down to a highly recommended diner for a nice big breakfast...  I ordered two pancakes, 2 eggs and 2 slices of wheat toast (thinking that this would not be enough food to hold me over till 2pm).  My food took some time to get to my table but i was content talking to the locals at the breakfast bar while i waited.  When my food finally arrived, i was shocked to see two GIANT pancakes on one plate and my eggs and toast on another.  These were THE BIGGEST pancakes i have ever had in my life.  I was nervous to see this but only for a second...  Before i knew it, i dug in... I ate the entire meal and i felt great after.  I felt at the time that this was great because my race was 5 hours away and i now did not have to eat anything prior to the race...
    Alas, the 1pm beep sounded on my watch and i had a dull but noticeable stomach ache.  I had yet to be able to take care of the usual pre-race duties (literally) i am accustomed to.  I warmed up 3 miles about 50 minutes before the race.  I came back and felt i had a brick in my stomach.  I took a tums, shrugged it off and knew it would all dissipate when the gun sounded.  I laced up the shoes and after some nice words from Coach, I toed the line.  I was positioned between some top tier runners, which was nerve-racking for sure.  I look to my left to see Brooks runners Andrew Carlson and Ryan Vail.  Ok, to the right I have Abdi Abdirahman.  The gun was up and we blasted off... I took a deep exhale and thought... 12k here we go.  I positioned myself in the back end of the lead back which was scorching from the start.  by the first turn, people were already racing competitively... I noticed this and backed off and dropped into a second back.  New york native Jon Phillips was one of the runners i was positioned with and our pack keyed off of the top pack just a few seconds back of the lead back through 1k... We were OUT for sure... We settled and the top 25 or so continued pressing like a runaway herd.  We entered the roller coaster inter loop of the course and our pack continued to fly but we were controlled.  6:05 through 2k... i was fast... I was shooting for 6:10's... i guess this is expected.  We settled some more and had a few others join with us.  One in particular was Navy's Will Christian.  He came up on my shoulder and about 200 meters into lap two made a strong charge up towards to leaders... he came and went.  We got to 3k and slowed to 9:16.  The pack began to move quick and as we re-entered the roller coaster section, off the first downhill... my stomach dropped and i felt i needed a bathroom break... "Crap!", i said to myself.  I let the pack go knowing that i had to slow through the Rolly section of this course and see if my stomach would settle... It began to, but i lost ground... about 50 meters from the chase pack of 8-10 runners.  I knew this could be a long day on the course at this point but was optimistic it would all go away.  It started subsiding but my next 2k was much slower... 6:18.  this is still in reach for a great race and we still have 8k to go!  I had a 3rd pack catch me and I went with them.  This is when the struggle came however, i began to press with these fresh runners and felt my stomach again... I slowed... gathered myself and tried pushing again... This basically continued through the race.  8k came and i was a mess.  I hit a 6:48 for that 2k, and my stomach at this point was a pure wreck.  I got through the lap but got passed by at least 12 runners.  I came into the 10k point in 33flat still however, which was almost 2 minutes off goal through 10k  but still not bad considering what was going down... I did not however get much faster... I closed in a 6:25 at 12k plus the extra point for the finishing stretch that they added to the course.  39:48 was well off my goal... However, in hindsight i never quit and felt after 3k, my hands were tied behind my back... there was nothing i could do.  I wish i would have just ate what i always have eaten before a race in the AM... and then did that again but only half the dose 2.5 hours before the race, like i always have done... You cannot assume anything and definitely not try new things in a big time race like that.  "Coulda, Shoulda, Woulda", I can say that all I want, but in all honesty, I will take that effort as a sure positive.  On an off day to run 5:18's over a tough course in temperatures over 50 degrees over my norm, there is nothing to be ashamed of.
    After getting out of the chute and running over to the bathroom, I was approached by Abdi.  He asked me, "Did you have a tough one out there today."  "Ohhhh yeah, i told him."  Abdi said he had a tough one out there and what he said to me i will take to my next race, "He man, it is only one race, you have another one coming up right?, get it then!"  It is the truth, there is always other races.  It is not the end of the world, it is a lesson to take into the next one and go for it then.
    the remainder of my weekend was a lot of fun, minus my continued issues with my stomach.  My stomach finally began feeling better last night (tuesday night), I don't know if it was solely the food i ate and the race that irritated it, or if i had some sort of stomach-bug.  Blake, Jamie and their San Diego/Penn State buddies and I all watched the Superbowl together.  Watching the game at 3pm was different but really cool at the same time.  At one point, there were 5 dogs in the living room due to the high abundance of dogs in the neighborhood that nobody keeps on a leash.  the dogs literally just walked in the house and chilled... I thought this was weird until this one dog kept coming up and chilling near me.  His name was He-Man, which i thought was hilarious.  he was a little jack russell/chihuahua mix.  the next morning was an early one.  My flight left at 7am.  On the flight i thought about a lot of things.  Running, missing football, teaching, relationships, how josh cox never got back to me about the sunday long-run, etc.  Awesome trip, would do it again this year, though the race is in St. Louis... ahhhh i mean, St. Louis (in a waynes world voice)....