Thursday Track Report: No Place For Just Spectatin'
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- Written by Bwana Bwana
June 9, 2011
The Thursday Track Crew broke with tradition today. On the opening day of Special Olympics, the Crew in the past has for at least the last 10 years taken their workout to the State College Area High School track. But Special O Track Honcho Dave Eggler let me know it was OK to do our track workout at the PSU track today as long as we were done by 1. With today's hot weather, Bwana knew we'd be done on both sides by then. So Tom Cali, Jim Moore, Costas Maranas, Ken Davis, John Sheakoski, Judd Michael, Meira Minard, Jon Oatley, Andy Maguire, Michael Goldfine, Mark Traband, Greg Luna, Dana Todd, Jim Laudermilch, Kirk Rager, Kevin Becker, Rich Harter, Rob Shaver, Steve Shisler, Rob Peterson, Steve Olson, and Marty Mazur headed in the heat for the track.
When we got there, erstwhile track regulars Dave Eggler and Julie Grubb were marshaling a small army of volunteers getting ready for opening ceremonies and afternoon events. And parents and family of Special Olympics athletes were arriving. Bwana had the crew do 2 miles of Indians with a 4 minute rest between miles. Despite the heat, everyone acquitted themselves well, with two groups each doing 2 miles in about a 7 minute pace. That may not sound blazing fast, but the half dozen 30-40 yard sprints you mix into your mile make all the difference! Bwana thinks some of the Special O kids were impressed, or at least amused, by our efforts.
I believe Dave invited us to the track to see what Special Olympics was all about and to encourage at least a few of us to sign up and help out, if not this time, then somewhere down the road. Special Olympics is a great event for the participants, and for the volunteers!
Most people come to the track to workout. Steve Shisler likes to orbit the outside edge and make promises about jumping in. Bwana will hold him to that. Anyway, he had good company in Mark Traband. But there's the rare and strange breed of the Thursday Track Spectator. Today's Track Spectator was Nick Downs, who was there for some unknown reason. He should know you don't come to the track on Thursday for an unknown reason unless you have a well-rehearsed excuse. Everyone else who wasn't there will only have to pull their excuses out if Bwana runs into them at Wegman's, Herwig's, Otto's or Five Guys.
Thursday Track Report: Gorgeous Georges
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- Written by Bwana Bwana
June 2, 2011
After the first real heat wave of the season, it was mild, dry, and gorgeous as Jim Myers, John Domico, Tom Cali, Judd Michael, Lance Bland, Jon Oatley, George Lesieutre, John Sheakoski, Jim Moore, Ken Davis, Jon Thurley, Andy Maguire, Michael Goldfine, Rob Shaver, Mike Renz, Frank Zaffino, Rich Harter, Dana Todd, Dean Capone, Kevin Becker, Rob Peterson, Steve Olson, and Marty Mazur headed for the track.
Actually, it was gorgeous because the Penn State women's track team was at the track doing their warm-ups. They're getting ready for the National meet. Bwana and his dirty old men (yes, all men today; none of our gorgeous Thursday Track ladies came out today) stayed out of the girls' way and did 6 X 1 lap relays in lane 10. The far outside lane (unnumbered, actually) is just about 480 meters. The stiff breeze added a bit more work to the already lengthened workout.
As Bwana mentioned, all the gorgeous trackers were otherwise occupied. Tara Murray was in a tiara and licking stamps provocatively for the cover of next month's "Revenue Stamps of Latin America". Bree Studenka was doing a Runner's World cover shoot. Ashley Hill was touring with Wanda Jackson in a Bad Girls of the Bible Belt revue. And Costas Maranas was getting a bikini wax for his upcoming article in Chemical Engineering Times.
Thursday Track Report: School's Out!
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- Written by Bwana Bwana
May 12, 2011
Thursday Track is building back up to some solid numbers. Even without most of the ladies, and two of our most regular knuckleheads, we still had a respectable (?) showing of 27 runners: Jim Myers, Bob Cornwall, Jim Moore, Randy Jepson, Costas Maranas, Judd Michael, Lance Bland, Meira Minard, Greg Luna, John Sheakoski, Marty Klanchar, Mike Casper, Ron Cunfer, Jon Oatley, Michael Goldfine, Mike Renz, Mark Traband, Dana Todd, Kirk Rager, Dave Agler, Andy Maguire, Adam Smith, Jerry Steffy, Rob Shaver, Kevin Becker, Rob Peterson, and Marty Mazur all passed within spitting distance of the track and nearly all of them stayed for the workout.
Well, Marathon season is (almost) over until the fall, as is 5K time. But there are still plenty of races of all kinds: crazy trail races, 4Ks, 10Ks, 3.8 milers (?), etc. Bwana has no idea who's getting ready for what. So he gave the Whitman Sampler Relay: 2-person up and down ladder (200 through 1K in increments of 200). Each person in the pair gets to run each distance once. It's a tough workout, especially since you get some good rest between runs and so should run each rung of the ladder hard! It's like a final exam, where you have to remember something from each of our workouts. Bwana will send today's class home with good grades.
We should crack 30 at one of our coming workouts. That is, if the knuckleheads (Cali and Domico) show. Teacher-in-Training Meira made it on her first day away from the little brats with her own fresh summertime playground injury. She had been out trying to skateboard the Mid-State Trail. What about our professional scholars? Esther Prins was celebrating her promotion to Associate Professor, and tenure. Ashley, Bree, and Jen, on the other hand, toiling away in some grad student / post-doc cave somewhere, chipping away at blocks of salt. And the rest of you? Toss your books in the corner and enjoy the pollen-laden air!
Thursday Track Report: Sandbag Detail
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- Written by Bwana Bwana
May 19, 2011
Are we having the rainiest Spring in years, or what? Tom Cali, Bob Cornwall, Jim Moore, Judd Michael, Costas Maranas, John Sheakoski, Michael Goldfine, Jon Thurley, Greg Luna, Mike Renz, Jon Oatley, Esther Prins, Rob Shaver, Jim Laudermilch, Kirk Rager, Dave Agler, Ed Thompson, Kevin Becker, Rob Peterson, and Marty Mazur were all wondering if it rains this much in Seattle as they headed for the track. Thankfully, the Crew was working out between two extended periods of rain, the latter of which started almost as soon as they finished the workout.
Which was...progressive 400s. 6X400 starting in lane 2 and increasing one lane each rep out to lane 7. The catch is you have to match or better your time from the previous lap each repeat. Don't sandbag. But don't start too fast!
Bwana felt like he succeeded by just not getting lapped by the fast guys. But there's a whole bunch out there who seem to be making sandbagging their workout regimen. Great for the upper body, I'm sure. And Bwana is sure all those people down in Natchez and Vicksburg and New Orleans appreciate y'all going down and pitching in. At least that's the story Bwana is telling himself.
Thursday Track Report: Mama's Boys
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- Written by Bwana Bwana
May 5, 2011
Cool, cloudy, and breezy was Mother Nature's mood for the Mother's Day Weekend track workout. It was an all guy workout today as John Domico, Jim Moore, Bob Cornwall, John Sheakoski, Lance Bland, Judd Michael Jon Oatley, George Lesieutre, Costas Maranas, Jon Thurley, Mike Renze, Michael Goldfine, Adam Smith, Frank Zaffino, Greg Luna, Mike Casper, Mark Fedkin, John Wilcock, Mark Lee, and Marty Mazur headed for the track to try to make Mama happy.
Since the "Old Guy Workout" had worked out so well a couple of weeks ago, Bwana took Domico's suggestion again and gave a "lite" version of John's 2 sets of 400s: 2X(3X400) with low recover (200m) between each 400 in the set and longer recovery between the two sets. A few of the runners probably went with the full up version of 4X400 per set.
We're certainly full up of rain this Spring, but thankfully not as full as the Midwest. But some of Bwana's crew is full of it, at least judging from the excuses he's heard. It's been ascertained that Tom Hilands is running from Rec Hall. It's just that he is running as far from the track as possible, too. Ashley Hill needs to come up with some more imaginative excuses to get out of her lab work, rather than excuses for missing the track. Steve Olson, AKA Bassoon Boy, needs to man up when it comes to workout scheduling. And what about Tom Cali, Chestnut Boy? Hmmm...trying to think my way out of this one...