Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Catching up with College Prep senior, Brianna Bourne

Today we chat with College Prep senior, Brianna Bourne. This past Saturday, Bourne qualified for the 99th California state meet by finishing in 3rd place in the 1600 meters with a new personal best of 4:53.85. Last year, Bourne ran a best of 5:01.04 at the NCS Trials as well as 11:08.87 in the 3200m final. In the fall of 2015, she finished in 6th place at the CA state XC meet Division V race with a time of 18:33.0 on the Woodward Park course. She will be representing the North Coast Section this Friday/Saturday before continuing her education and running at Williams College.

1) What was your plan going into your race this past Saturday? Did the race go as expected? What was the most difficult part of the race for you?
Going into Saturday, I was really just going for 4:55.96 (qualifying to the CIF state meet by time), so I was quite shocked when I found myself in third place. About 600m into the race, I started getting very boxed in, and I also felt the pace slowing down, so going into the 800m mark I had to make a move to break the box and give a surge to reignite the race.

2) What was your first reaction when you realized you were going to the state meet on Saturday?
Qualifying for state had been my goal for the entire season, so when I realized I had done it, I was filled with relief and joy, and again, a fair bit of surprise that I had actually done it.

3) When did you first realize during the season that you had a shot at the state meet in the 1600m?
I first realized that I wanted to go for it at MOC last year actually, when I was watching the 1600m finals and noticed how many girls managed to qualify by time. At that point, my PR was a 5:01, so I thought shaving five seconds off that time would be a simple process. But of course, little did I know then about prelims/finals racing, which became a cornerstone of my training this season.

4) You ran 5:08 earlier this season at the Dublin Distance Fiesta. What do you feel were the keys to getting to under 5 minutes and ultimately your time on Saturday?
I remember that at Dublin I also got boxed in and relied on the other racers to set the pace. For me, getting under 5 meant not being afraid to take the reins in a race, putting myself out there and remembering that the race is always over before you know it. Also, I focused a lot more on my stride this season and tried to develop a balance of power and efficiency. In terms of Saturday’s performance though, the keys to my training were definitely learning to run on tired legs coupled with immediate, yet thorough recovery.

5) When did you first start running and what led to you doing cross country and track and field in high school?
I come from a “running family” so it had always been in the background as I was growing up, but I played soccer going into high school. I gave cross country a shot because that was the norm in my family, but after my first season freshman year, I told my parents that I was never going to do it again because I really didn’t enjoy it. But, in training for club soccer, I ran almost everyday in the summer leading into my sophomore year. After our team intensive camp, I realized that I preferred the drills when we ran without a ball, so I decided to quit soccer and return to cross country. That season went well for me and the team, and I decided to give track a shot as well and I’ve been doing the two sports ever since.

6) What were some of your highlights and proudest achievements during your first three years in high school in both cross country and track and field?
In terms of cross country, it’s always exciting when the team qualifies for State. I was pretty excited to make podium and place sixth at the D5 CIF state cross country meet in my junior year. My team also won the BCL-East league title that season, which was the result of everyone’s hard work. This past track season, however, has probably been the most rewarding for me. The girls’ team won the BCL-East league title. In terms of personal success, at a league meet in late April, I solo’ed the 3200 and broke 11 min, which I really couldn’t have done without my teammates lining the track and cheering me on. Aside from that, I am obviously very proud of my performance at the NCS MOC this past Saturday. I could never have imagined placing third!

7) Did you do anything differently over the summer or winter as you prepared for both senior seasons?
I ran a lot of mileage to set up a solid aerobic base for myself going into my senior season of cross country. Going into the track season, however, I incorporated more strength training along with a running base. I focused on logging in lots of relatively easy miles and keeping my heart rate low.

8) What does a typical week look like for you with a Saturday invitational? Typical weekly mileage? Mileage of longest run? Any morning runs? Typical workouts?
Typical is a little tricky because there’s so much fluctuation over the course of the season, but here’s a rough overview. Typical week with a Saturday invite: Monday is a fartlek, olympic lifting then a post-lifting short run; Tuesday is a speed workout (shorter intervals) on an all-weather track; Wednesday is a recovery/steady-state run and mobility+core training; Thursday is longer intervals on a dirt track; Friday is a pre-meet practice, a short run with a couple of strides; and Saturday is the meet (of course), along with a post-meet run, so that Sunday is completely off. Typical weekly mileage can range anywhere from 30-40 miles, but usually hovers between 35-40 miles. This past season, I really haven’t been going for very long runs, so my longest are no more than 7-8 miles. Saturdays are usually double days, so I’ll usually get in an easier morning run along with an afternoon workout that day. I’ve also done morning runs before Thursday long intervals. Typical short-interval workouts include anything with 200’s, 400’s, 600’s and long intervals are usually 800’s or 1000’s; my coach always mixes them up for various medleys.

9) Who are the coaches that have coached you in high school and how has each of them helped you get to your current status?
My current track coach, Kiet Tran, is very knowledgeable about all things running and training in general, so he’s really helped me grow as an athlete by developing my physical and mental strength. He knows my strengths and weaknesses really well, so he is incredibly thorough when it comes to developing training/racing plans. Also, Jack Coakley, who coaches cross country (and is also my AP Chemistry teacher), reminds me to not take myself too seriously (whether it be athletically or in the classroom), and he constantly makes sure I’m having fun.

10) Favorite XC course? Favorite XC invitational? Favorite XC workout? Favorite TF event? Favorite TF invitational? Favorite TF workout? Favorite long run? Favorite free time activity?
My favorite XC course has to be Woodward--gotta love that mixture of a loop and an out-and-back. Favorite XC invite is Stanford because it’s always warm and it offers that last taste of summer before we plunge into the fall season. I really like any type of fartlek run; having to keep moving heavy legs really helps my mental toughness. I definitely enjoy the 1600m, but I love relays, in particular the 4x400, because they’re so team-oriented. I really like the Stanford invite because it’s always exciting to run on a college track, and I’ve done 3000m the past two years, which is just a nice change from the 3200m. Since we haven’t really done the same track workout twice, I don’t really have a favorite, but I have come to like 1000s. We did an 8x1k workout earlier in the season with descending paces, and it definitely helped me build my strength. We also did a 5x1k workout in the post-season at faster paces, and both of them were real confidence-boosting workouts. I live right next to Tilden Park in Berkeley, so I usually run out in Wildcat Canyon or along Nimitz Way, two lovely rolling trails with some awesome views and lots of wildlife. When I have free time, I like to hang out (explore/hike) with friends or family, learn a new song on the ukulele, read the news, watch Netflix, or else try out a new recipe.

11) Now that you are going to the state meet, what are your goals for that meet? Any ideas of what to expect at the meet?
My biggest goal is to not pass out from heat stroke! Really though, qualifying to Saturday would be amazing, but I feel lucky enough to just be in the mix. I have no clue what to expect.

12) Anything else you want to add.
Firstly, thank you so much to everyone who’s supported me over the years and this past season: my family, coaches, teammates, competitors, coaches from other schools, friends and the whole College Prep community! You all are the best! And thank you, Albert, for reaching out to me and giving runners this space to share their knowledge.

Secondly, I recommend that everyone, but particularly female runners, reads Lauren Fleshman’s letter to her high school self, found here: http://www.milesplit.com/articles/211759/dear-younger-me-lauren-fleshman. Lauren reminds us to not get caught up in the more surface-level aspects of the sport (like the accolades or your appearance/weight), but to enjoy every element high school running because, like any race, it’ll be over before you know it!

Thank you very much for your time Brianna! AJC

2017 California State Track and Field Championship Meet: Running Events Preview

You can check out my preview of all the running events at this LINK. Feel free to comment on any of the events including any athlete or team I may have missed that will be contenders for either a state title or a podium finish. Field events will be posted next.

Sunday, May 28, 2017

2017 99th California State Track and Field Meet

Performances Lists
http://static.psbin.com/4/v/7ga0rb90yi8yv6/2017_prelim_performance_list_2__column.pdf

Prelims Time Schedule
http://static.psbin.com/u/d/efz165mqc93fem/2017_State_Track_Meet_Prelims_Time__Schedule.pdf

The forecast for 93 for Friday and 94 for Saturday. Not quite as hot as last year but still pretty hot, especially for the distance runners.

Anything stand out when you look at the performance lists? Any surprises? What will be the most competitive race this year? Northern California runners could claim 5 out of 6 distance races this year which is fairly unusual. I might have to go back and see if that has ever happened before.

Section Meet videos and photos

Wednesday, May 24, 2017

CCS, SJS, OAK and NCS meet previews

We will start with the Oakland Section and you can find the preview at this LINK.

You now now check out the CCS preview at this LINK.

SJS live results from today's semis can be found at this LINK. Tomorrow's final linked as well. You can check out my top 6 storylines from tonights SJS Masters meet at this LINK.

Central Coast Section Results:
http://soqueltrack.com/results/

North Coast Section Results:
http://diablotiming.com/results/2017-05-26/

Sac-Joaquin Section Results:
http://timerhub.com/get_web_index.php?page=redcaptiming.com/2017/sjsmasters/

Oakland Section Results:
http://atwresults.com/atwupload/20170524/

Southern Section Results:
http://royalresults.com/liveresults2/

Tuesday, May 23, 2017

North Coast Section Meet of Champions Performances Lists

http://diablotiming.com/results/2017-05-26/

Any surprises? What is the most competitive event? What athletes have the best chance to have podium finishes at the California State Meet one week later?

Monday, May 22, 2017

NCS Tri-Valley and SJS Division I videos


You can check out all the NCS Tri-Valley videos at this LINK.

You can check out all the SJS Division 1 videos at this LINK.

Friday, May 19, 2017

Northern California Live Results links

Sac-Joaquin Section Division I
http://timerhub.com/get_web_index.php?page=redcaptiming.com/2017/sjsd1/

Sac-Joaquin Section Division 4/5 Results
http://www.rtspt.com/events/cif/2017Meets/sjsd45/

North Coast Section Tri-Valley
http://diablotiming.com/results/2017-05-20/

North Coast Section Bayshore Results
http://fordtiming.com/Results/2017/NCSBAYSHORE/Results.htm

North Coast Section Class A Results
Boys: http://www.redwoodempirerunning.com/2017-boys-ncs-1a-area-meet/
Girls: http://www.redwoodempirerunning.com/2017-girls-ncs-1a-area-meet/

North Coast Section Redwood Empire
Results LINK

Central Coast Section (Live results for today and Friday)
Soqueltrack.com/results
http://static.psbin.com/f/v/xmvwt64tlp0920/Track_and_Field_semis_-_2017_results.pdf

San Francisco Section Trials
Results LINK

More to come. If you have other links for any of the NorCal section meets, post them below.

DQ or no?

It's that time of year when athletes get disqualified for rules that perhaps would be overlooked earlier in the season. Read the article below, if you have not done so already, about two SCL runners who were DQ'ed for holding hands at the end of a 1600 trial. By the letter of the law, it's an instant DQ. Was it the right decision? Are you covering such rules with your athletes as a coach? Definitely up for debate.

Benefield: Debate swirls over SCL runners' disqualification

Monday, May 15, 2017

Jim Ryun 3:58.3 mile at Kansas State championship on May 15, 1965

Still the fastest high school mile with only high school competitors.

Here is the fastest mile ever run by high schooler Alan Webb at Pre Invite with his 3:53.43.

Thursday, May 11, 2017

10th Annual Cross Country Coaches Clinic

You can find all the information for this clinic at this LINK

The Clinic will take place at Dublin HS on Saturday, June 24th and the clinicians will be Alex Mason St. Joseph Notre Dame, Chris Williams Dublin and Timo Mostert American Fork HS, Utah. Deadline to sign up for this clinic is June 1st.

Monday, May 08, 2017

Payton Jordan Invite 1500m victory for former Aptos runner, Nikki Hiltz

One of the all-time CCS great distance runners, Aptos 2013 grad Nikki Hiltz, won section 2 of the 1500m at Friday's Peyton Jordan Invitational with a time of 4:12.09. That time ranks her 5th best in NCAA Division I competition.

In high school, Hiltz had bests of 2:09.50 and 4:42.45 in her two best events. She qualified for the state meet in the 1600 all four years. In the same event, she was a 2-time (soph/junior) section champion in 1600 and finished in 2nd as a senior. In the 800 meters, she was a 3-time section champion. At the state meet in the 800, Hiltz finished in 3rd place as a senior the only time she chose to compete in that event. In the 1600, she finished in 3rd as a sophomore, won as a junior and was 2nd as a senior.

She started her collegiate career at University of Oregon as a freshman before transferring to Arkansas as a sophomore.

Photo courtesy of Kirby Lee.

Thursday, May 04, 2017

Girl's SCCAL Track & Field: Aptos shuts down Zlatunich after leg injury

One of the top distance runners in the Central Coast Section is out for the season.

https://register-pajaronian.com/article/girls-sccal-track-field-aptos-shuts-down-zlatunich-after-leg-injury

8th annual "5 Star High Jump Camp" with CAL HJ record holder, Jeff Rogers

The 8th annual  "5 Star High Jump Camp"  will take place on June 15th & 16th at Saint Mary’s High School in Berkeley.  It is designed for intermediate and advanced high jumpers who are looking for improvement.  The 2 day camp will cover all aspects of high jumping... the approach, take-off and layout... as well as general and high jump specific plyometrics, drills, and specific weight-training exercises. Video will be taken of very athlete and an analysis of the video will be used to provide the best possible recommendations for each jumper.  Athletes will be presented with an instructional manual and DVD, complete with personal written evaluations, analysis and recommendations.  

         The camp will be limited to 8 - 10 jumpers to insure that every athlete is afforded specialized time with the coaches.   Admission to the camp is on a first come - first serve basis.   All participants must fill out a questionnaire and sign a liability waiver.  The camp is being run by former U.C. Berkeley All-American (and school record-holder - 7'5¾") Jeff Rogers, who is currently the coach at Saint Mary's High School .  Coach Rogers' former pupil, 2004 California State Champion and 2012 Olympic Trials 5th place finisher Ed Wright will be the other camp clinician. For more information about the camp, go to:
 
http://sites.google.com/site/5starhjcamp/  

Wednesday, May 03, 2017

The Complete History of Cross-Country Running

The Complete History of Cross-Country Running: From the Nineteenth Century to the Present Day


It's being shared as a "cross-country runner's dream book" - a large, comprehensive volume that tells the full story on where the sport came from and why it's relevant for the future. Among elites and industry professionals, Craig Lutz, 2009 NXN Champion and 2016 U.S. XC National Champion called it "a genius account." Kenny Moore, best-selling author of Bowerman and the Men of Oregon said, "I have only praise...Well, well done." Doris Brown Heritage, one of the first female national and international cross-country pioneers wrote "Thank you for this fascinating well-researched story."

If you've ever wanted to know why we run cross-country, where history was made, and who made it, this book will tell you that, and more. It covers the years 1800-2017 (from high school through elites, worldwide), has 25 high resolution photos, specialty "Event Spotlights" for every decade, and standalone sections on XC in the Olympic Games, footware attire and technology through the ages, and female pioneers with the sport. Craig Virgin, the only U.S. runner to win the senior men's title at the World Cross Country Championships (achieved twice!), wrote the foreword.

The only one of its kind, and perfect for any athlete, coach, or fan of cross-country, the book will retail for $49.99 and be released by Carrel Books on January 2nd, 2018. You can pre-order it today to have it shipped the moment it hits the shelves. 


More info can be found about the book at this link.

Tuesday, May 02, 2017

Top 10 Moments from this Track and Field season to date?

Before we approach the league championships that will take place in the next two weeks, let's reflect on the season to date. What has been the the top 10 moments from the 2017 season? You can consider Northern California athletes or the entire state if you like. I have a few moments that I can think about but would love to hear your thoughts on what moments/accomplishments stood out for you.

Go!

Monday, May 01, 2017

Bellarmine DMR team wins at Penn Relays with a time of 10:06.10


Official splits as relayed by Matt Richardson
Meika Beaudoin-Rousseau 3:11.42
Tommy Rocha 50.41
Benjamin Micalleg 1:54.84
Alex Scales 4:09.45

Nice article by Erik Boal about Bellermine's effort at this LINK.

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