Jan. 21, 2014
Hello again Rambler fans! As I sit here trying to recount our latest meet, the Illini Classic at the University of Illinois, I cannot help but stare out the window and see the heaps of snow falling in Chicago. Being from Denver, Co., a big part of me loves the snow, but during the track season, I absolutely despise it. To us runners, snow means extra layers, slower paces, slippery trails, achy knees, and even the hated treadmill. But most of all, snow forces us runners to be patient.
We have to be patient with the weather, be patient with our training, and be patient with our results during these early meets because sometimes we are unable to do the prescribed workouts due to inclement weather. At first glace, being patient in a sport that requires you to finish first can seem a little counterproductive. But the more I am in this sport, the more I see that being patient is possibly the number one key to success in almost all events.
For example in the 60m dash, Chris Strup will be the first one to tell you that he has to be patient. Once the gun goes off, he must try and elongate his acceleration and drive phase of his race, so that he will be the last one to hit max velocity to carry him through the last 15m the fastest. In the latest meet, I was not nearly patient enough in my 600m race. When running on a 200m flat track, it is vital to make a move to pass competitors quickly and aggressively but also at the right time. With 150m left in the race and with the tight turn fast approaching, I tried to make a run for the lead, but I got caught running into the outside lanes and fighting with my competitors for position so much so that I was unable to kick it in fast enough for the win. If I would have been more patient I might have been able to save my last bit of energy to pass my competitors on the home straight away, rather than trying to fight them around the curve and running extra distance.
Sam Penzenstadler and Kevin Glastetter exemplified perfect patience in their respective races, both bringing home victories against a stacked field and running incredibly fast times this early in the competition season. Even though we experienced some success this weekend at the Illini Classic, it is vital for us as a team to remain patient in our training and preparation while leading up to our inaugural Missouri Valley Conference Indoor Championship. We have another opportunity to become better runners and face great competition this weekend as we head to Indiana University for the Gladstein Invitational. Until then... AMDG.
-RVP
