What a change from early in the week! It’s almost like September is here already: temperatures in the high 60s, dry air, and fluffy clouds. Arts Fest Weather is all gone. At least for now. It really has been a mild summer so far, with the underside of the 90s barely a close call. Can we hope for a mild Mt. Nittany Marathon? Newcomer Adam Ilgen sure hopes so! He’s been training pretty hard for his maiden marathon voyage, and with some luck it could be an easier run than last year’s event. Judd Michael, Lance Bland, George Lesieutre, Mike Casper, Costas Maranas, Mark and Nikita Fedkin, Jaimie Wright, Mike Zimmerman, Dana Todd, Jim Laudermilch, John Ake, David Lloyd, Adam Ilgen, Amy Blake, Sara Noss, and Marty Mazur all too advantage of the mild day to head for the track. Not a bad turnout for mid-summer.

 

Speaking of weather, Jaimie observed that Bwana seems to be the weather guru, since his posts always start out with the conditions of the day. But writing these reports as I have for over 20 years (!), it’s gotten to be just a habit. After going-on-1000 Track Reports, it’s hard to stay away from a formula! I can write these in my sleep, but I don’t want them to read that way. Gotta try to keep it fresh! Well, Bwana didn’t want everyone to sleepwalk through the workout. So today’s was a challenge, and a new one for some: the Double Mini-Front Loader. Run an 800 at a 5K race pace. (That might seem slow if you do it right.) But that just front-loads you for the back end. Take a very short 100m rest and do a 200 at “race kick” pace.  Follow that with 2 more 200s, each following a short 100 rest. You should be recovering from our 800 as you run your 3X200, and each of those should get faster as you go. Then….do another full set just like it!

 

One thing Bwana has dropped from the Track Report formula is the 3rd Paragraph Diss. If you were a no-show, you got called out. You didn’t want to end up there. (Unless you were Bob Cornwall, who pointedly didn’t give a rat’s patootie.) Paragraph 3 is more like a Miss America contestant’s boilerplate. Another sign Bwana has gone soft hearted in his old age. Shall I re-animate the old Bwana?