Thursday Track Report: "Train To Maintain" Season Is Coming!

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Written by Bwana Bwana

June 20, 2013

Wow, we've got a nice crew of youngsters who are becoming regulars. Maybe Bwana can retire! The Crew headed to the track under hazy skies and early Summer humid warmth. Joining Geezers …I mean "veterans"… Jim Myers, Tom Cali, Judd Michael,  Andy Cunningham, John Wilcock, Fred Wright, Dana Todd, Jim Laudermilch, Rob Shaver, Andy Maguire, Kevin Becker, Rob Peterson, George Lesieutre, David Lloyd, Jim Maras, and Marty Mazur were relative pups  Jeff Welsh, Andy Aumiller, Jen Naymick,  and 2nd timer Paul Evangelino (sp?).

Bwana gave a welcome to a couple of muscled marvels whom he thought were "trying out" for Thursday Track. It turned out that the "try outs" they were training for were the Radio City Music Hall Rockettes. Well, try as they might doing kicks and jumps over track hurdles, Bwana recommends that they head to New York and take a Rockette workshop like Bwana's daughter did about a dozen years ago. Meanwhile, back at the workout, Bwana figured the next thing for his Crew was for them to do some kicks. That is, work themselves into minor oxygen debt and then do a hard push. So, the workout was 3X3X300 at mile+ (but not sprint!) pace. Run your 300s hard, faster than quarters, but not sprinting, then take a short (100m) rest, and do it again, twice. After a set of three, go easy for a quarter mile or so, then do another set, or two.

We've been outside for over two months now. Anybody getting faster? Are you testing it? There are still a couple of opportunities for fast races before the weather gets REALLY hot. After that, it's just "train to maintain", so that coming out of the other end of summer you'll be able to survive the Nittany Half, or get a burst of speed in a 5K when the cool days of late September come!

Thursday Track Report: Rockin' It Old-School

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Written by Martin Mazur Martin Mazur

June 6, 2013

It was drab and drizzly as Judd Michael, Lance Bland, Ken Davis, Costas Maranas, John Wilcock, Rob Shaver, Fred Wright, Mike Martin, David Lloyd, and Marty Mazur headed for the track. Actually, for those not yet of the "hard core" rank, this is perfect weather for a track workout, especially during the summer. And David Lloyd graduated to the "hard core" rank by showing up today, though he was certainly overdressed for the occasion. A sweatshirt when it's 61? What, are you Greg Fredericks?

Speaking of Old Guys, some of the 3rd Degree Hard Cores decided that it was perfect weather for the Old Guy Workout, particularly since there were no girls, young or old at the track. So Bwana, who had originally thought 5X600 would be good, decided to have the rest of the Crew tag along. The origin of the Old Guy Workout is lost in the mists of a time when giants roamed the earth, and came down to Bwana through Old Guy John Domico. It's a 3 mile downward ladder run in the outside lane (where there are old-school, non-metric mile marks). Unlike a regular downward ladder where each step gets shorter, in this one each step is the same length, but broken into more and more pieces. Today's OGW was 1 mile - 2 x 1/2 mile - 4 x 1/4 mile. There are longer variations of this, and you can change the rest between each rep, and with it the intensity of each rep, to suit your workout goals. If you rest half of what you just ran, then run them pretty hard (5K+ race pace). If you shorten the rest, do the reps between 10K and 5K race pace.
 
The Crew left the track as the athletes that would be participating in the Special Olympics and their families were arriving for the start of this year's Pennsylvania Special Olympics. At the track early to help out were Kim Wagner and Old Guy Extraordinaire, Father Time, Dave Eggler, to help out. The Special Os usually get pretty good help from the NVRC. If you have never pitched, consider it.

Thursday Track Report: June Is Bustin' Out All Over!

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Written by Bwana Bwana

June 13, 2013

The wacky Winter and Spring weather is continuing till the last days of Spring. It was sunny, then cloudy, and definitely windy as Tom Cali, Judd Michael, Lance Bland, Mike Casper, Costas Maranas, John Sheakoski, prodigal returnee Mark Traband, John Wilcock, Mike and Melissa Martin, Kevin Becker, Rob Peterson, Jeff Welsh, David Lloyd, newcomer Andy Aumiller, Jen Naymick, Sara Noss, and Marty Mazur headed for the track between bouts of bursting skies.

Regardless of how the weather breaks, June is busting out all over, though some of it arrived with the hot spell we had back in May. Next week will be the last Thursday Track workout of Spring, and Summer is expectantly anticipated. Speaking of expectant anticipation (though that may be redundant), Mike Martin came to the track with his two-day overdue wife Melissa (who was definitely bustin' out all over) to try to "walk her into labor". Mike and Melissa did the track carousel at walking pace while most of the rest of the Crew did Bwana's workout: N X 5 X Mad Minutes. A Mad Minute is an element of another one of Bwana's deceptive workouts: 30 seconds easy jog, 20 seconds of 5K+ pace (our usual pace for longer reps), then 10 seconds of all out sprint - knees lifting, arms pumping, all the things we almost never do in a track workout. The first time through, that 30 second of easy running seems a waste of time, then 20 seconds (!?) of the pace we usually sustain for 2 or more minutes? Come on! But it's that last 10 seconds that starts ganging up on you. By the 5th Mad Minute, the 30 seconds of recovery starts seeming more like 10! With N = 2 times, this workout is a "sampler", to let you know how it feels, but you probably won't feel it tomorrow. With N = 3 times, you'll notice soreness the next day. And N = 4 times should only be done by people who have done this workout before. It's that 10 seconds per minute that gives you 90% of the benefit of this workout, testing gears and muscles we normally leave dormant.

Bwana gave his blessings to the Martins, hoping he won't see them walking the track next week. The coming baby is a girl and her "top secret" name will be revealed to the public very soon, we're hoping. Other "babies" are coming along well: Young Jen is becoming a real regular, newcomer Andy acquitted himself well on his first day, and "Baby Face" Mark Traband got Bwana's OK for more regular  return visits.

Thursday Track Report: Returnees

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Written by Bwana Bwana

May 30, 2013

The heat of the early part of last week, which was shooed away for almost a week by a crazy late May cold snap (I hear they had snow in northern upstate New York!), returned as Jim Myers, Tom Cali, Judd Michael, Lance Bland, Costas Maranas, Mike Casper, Andy Maguire, Frank Zaffino, Kevin Becker,  Jeff Welsh, Rob Peterson, John Wilcock, Andy Arndt, Meghan Mason, Jaimie Wright, Jen Naymick, Dana Todd, Jim Laudermilch,  David Lloyd, newcomers Jim Maras and another guy, recruited by the Kevin Becker Combine (and whose name Bwana has misplaced), and Marty Mazur headed for the track under "early July conditions". Dean Capone and Mike Renz stopped in to check the box before heading out on a different run. It's good that late Spring weather returned, otherwise how would we ever get used to running in the heat before Arts Fest?

Bwana welcomed the newcomers, and welcomed back a few other returnees. Costas Maranas, whom Bwana has seen of late with the Rec Hall lunchtime group exploring the western provinces of town, returned to make a statement, even if it was just a fashion statement. Frank Zaffino has been MIA for awhile, but dropped in for the first time in about a year. DItto Meghan Mason, SCHS track and cross-country alumna, class of '05. Meghan makes it back about once or twice a year, even though she's a busy grad student living in Minnesota and her family now lives in Alabama. Meg is back for a friend's wedding, but might be able to squeeze in a run with the gang on Friday.

Before the cold weather returns, Bwana decided the Crew would profit from a "get used to the heat" workout. This is a set of long repeats that are run at a pace that, while not inducing heat stroke, is a bit faster than your average summer slog. Today it was 4X800 at 10K+ race pace with a generous 400m slow recovery. When temps in the 90s return, be sure that Bwana will shorten the intervals, but then you'll appreciate having some long, slow, hot repeats under your belt!

Now that the Spring Marathon/Memorial Day/Campus 5K season is over, everyone can start the long quest to stay in shape through the summer. The prize at the end is good times in whatever you choose to run in the late Summer and Fall: The Nittany Marathon, Fall Campus 5Ks, the mOUnTaiNBACK. The best way to keep in shape for these is not to let up on your running, just slow it down a little as high temperatures return. Run the last two Tussey Teasers in the shade of Rothrock (the one on Father's Day is a doozy!) Do the Arts Fest 10 Miler (returning after a 25+ year hiatus!). And just….Keep Running!