One thing I can't stand

Petty, doofus, mean-spirited, vindictive, power hungery, idiot athletic administrators.


Okay, maybe that was worded a little strongly, but petty certainly applies, added with dollop of vindictiveness.

Too bad that 3/4 of them here appear to be that way.

2010 Equinox Marathon Age Grade Honor Roll

Here are the top masters age group performers from this year's Equinox Marathon, again using the World Masters Association age grade calculator.

I'll post up a new all-time ranking soon, but would like add that not only did Matias Saari shatter the men's masters record, he broke Frank Bonzanich's all time age group ranking. 2:52 on that course is very good at any age, and for a masters runner it's outstanding.

WOMEN
Name________________Age___Time______Age Grade Percent
Jane Lanford..............55.....3:55:31.....73.18
Dorlie McWayne..........58.....3:55:36.....75.66
Martha Brettell...........58.....4:36:47.....64.40
Monte Jordan.............67.....5:25:45.....63.66
Norma Haubenstock......56.....4:42:52.....61.26
Dena Doublex.............59.....4:58:57.....60.50

MEN
Name…………Age………Time……Age Grade Percent
Matias Saari …..40 ..…2:52:47 .….74.05
Wayde Leder …..53 ..…3:18:20 .….72.25
Dave Johnston…..40 ..…3:05:40 .….68.94
Greg Finstad …..56 ..…3:39:25 .….67.17
Rick Johnson..…56...3:41:54 .….66.12
Jim Madonna…..72 ..…4:22:57 .….66.12

10 or 12 is too young for a marathon!

I mentioned this last year and had many people come up and say that they agreed. Let's keep the Equinox open to runners 18 and up. There are very few marathons in the US that allow young runners and that's a good thing. Not to mention, the Equinox is one of the toughest courses anywhere.

This year there were nine boys (some under 10) and five girls under 17 years old who participated in the full marathon. The number of entrants has increased from previous years.

Why not add a new 17 and under division to the relay? Eight or nine miles is plenty for a young kid.

Nervous Exhaustion

They (the media) don't use term much anymore but 20 or 30 years ago, you'd frequently read about some celeb or rock star taking a breather from their activities due to "nervous exhaustion." Probably a euphemism for rehab.

I feel exhausted this weekend after several weeks of flurry. Nevetheless, the only OD'ing I've had lately is from ibuprofen or naproxin sodium. Just finished my 3rd round of 9 or 10 days of double dose. This one seemed to work, and the knee actually feels better. I even put in an impromptu 3.5 miler on Tuesday with the middle school xc kids because I forgot my bike that day. Knee didn't ache the next day, nor did it buckle. Good signs, although it's still not ready.

Then on Thursday we put on the middle school race, unoffically known as the Golden Leaf Invitational, where we had 7 schools and 100 runners doing 2 miles at UAF. How cool is that? I enjoy working with that age group, as awkward and unfocused as they can be. It's a great time to help them develop an interest.

On Friday Mikko ran in Salcha. He was on the bubble--had to place in top 7 to make the varsity team for regionals and state. Despite a very hectic day (5 tests and the admins almost didn't let him run due to a misunderstanding), Mikko took charge of his own destiny and went out with the 2nd pack and held on for 6th overall (17:28) and 3rd on the team for the day--so he's going to state!

So the Equinox is history and hey, didn't do too bad with the men's predictions: Matias 2:52, Strabel 2:55, and Dyer 2:56 (was off on his time, which was just 2 min slower than his debut on a much faster Mayor's Marathon course last June).

Women's. Well, I didn't realize Jane Leblond was running (agg, I wronglfully put her down for ca. 3:20 last year).

Congrats to racers, organizers, and anyone who participated. Quite a nice day.

Had a good time at the race yesterday cheering people on, including my son Tristan who ran the relay with some friends. And then spent the late afternoon at Sheep Creek crossing helping out traffic control for the last walkers. They were appreciative that we were still out there.

After the race I must have had half a dozen people ask if it was hard to be on the sidelines for Equinox...no and yes was the best I could answer. I like the Equinox and was looking forward to the relay, but missing it wasn't too bad. It's still fun to watch. What bothers me is the big unknown--whether I will even be able to even start running again by next spring or some future year. I can miss some Equinoxes and still feel like a participant. But maybe not being able to run or race much in the future; yes that bothers me.

Gotta Scoop the Paper on Equinox Preview

Just for kicks.

I dunno, but the women's race looks wide open this year. I thought maybe we'd see Melissa Lewis in there, and she could maybe destroy the course and masters record (Sue Faulker's 3:18), but didn't see her in the entries. Nor is last year's winner Laura Brosius. Davya Flaharty (2nd at Humpy's with a 3:10 in August) seems to be the strongest entry this year. But then again, I'm no expert of the Anchorage scene, but none of the Crow Pass leaders, or from their Trail Series (other than Saari), are entered.

The men's race should feature a good match up between 2 time winner Matias Saari (now 40) and Equinox newcomer David Dyer. Dyer has just run one marathon (Mayor's last spring), but he's young and has wheels (14:20s 5K speed in college). None of the expected Anchorage studs (Geoff Roes, Eric Strabel, Erik Johnson, or Tom Ritche) appear to be entered.

One thing almost for certain, the master's men's record of 2:58 by Frank Bonzanich set in 1984 should be going down. The weather looks good, if not too good this time. Could be warm out there this year.

Seems like it will be a good year to collect a plate!

PT Beatdown

I was hoping to be running and racing by now, but instead I'm calling it quits after 6 weeks of physical therapy that resulted in little or no improvement. I rested, cross-trained, reduced inflammation, and retrained my muscles. Every time I try to run, even just a mile or so, the knee pain has come right back. So I'm going to take the rest of the month off.

The good news is things feel pretty good after another couple of days, i.e., it's not chronically hurting. Will have a follow up physicians visit in October. So if things aren't better we'll try something less conservative, like cortisone or an injection of synthetic synovial fluid.

So it's living dangerously, vicarious cheering for my kids and runners I coach. Mikko has taken off "like a gangbuster," as my old college coach used to say, and has been running varsity as a sophomore. He ran a PR 17:22 5K last week and is now the fastest runner in our household. By the time I get back to 17:22, if ever, he'll be another minute faster. So the torch is passed.

Also exciting to see that Kuba, Peter, and Erich all of whom I coached over the summer, are also making big waves. Kuba set a soph record, with a 16:19, Peter ran sub 17 for the first time, and Erich just a freshman, is looking like a veteran right in there with Peter and Mikko.

Meanwhile, Tristan, an 8th grader now has been running at/near the top for middle school races, with a 1st at the Golden Heart race the other week, and a 2nd at an all schools race this week.

Trying to keep the faith.