CA State Meet 3200m. reflection with Rachel Mitchell...

Today we chat with American HS runner, Rachel Mitchell, who just completed quite a senior year as she qualified for the state meet in both xc and track and field. Mitchell finished 7th last year at the NCS MOC in the 3200m., running 11:20.06. This year, she improved her time and place to 2nd place and 10:51.15. She then went on to record another personal record at the state meet finishing in 13th place and 10:44.48 just behind her fellow NCS competitors, Jacque Taylor and Colleen Lillig

1) What did you do training wise (day by day) following the NCS final on Saturday to the 3200m. final yesterday?
Every year, my coach is pretty good about making me peak at the end of the season. However, my coach adjusted my workouts because my legs were a little tired from NCS finals. On Monday we worked on my speed by doing 10 200s at 75% then a 25 minute easy run after. Tuesday was a 6 mile run at a medium pace and Wednesday my coach repeated the workout from Monday. Thursday I ran a 6 mile run at a faster pace then I did on Tuesday and Friday was my recovery day (only 25 min). My legs were feeling better and ready to race by Saturday's finals.

2) What was your race plan going into the 3200m. final? Where there runners you were focusing on or where you focused on running certain splits?
The past races I have been playing catch up. My coach wanted me to run a controlled race and move up. "It's all about the last two laps" like he said. I wanted to be around a 5:25 split mile but there were so many girls going at a fast pace the first mile that I ended up running a 5:20. But I didn't let that discourage me, I just told myself I have to run this fast to pr. I started moving up when there was only 800 meters to go and just went for it. I wanted to break 10:50 going in and ended up running a 10:44 because of how fast of a race it was. I was really excited about my time and thought it was the perfect end to my season.

3) Tell us a little how your race progressed from the beginning and how it unfolded as it got into the second 1600m.
I thought I got an okay start. It's kinda hard to not get elbowed in the beginning when there is 31 girls in your race. I was in the back for the most part of the first 1600 then on the 5th and 6th lap I passed 3 girls. The last two laps I improved my position to 13th. I am not quite sure how many girls I passed, but this year there was so many fast girls in the race it was hard to dictate where I should be.

4) What was the toughest part of the race?
Before every race, I try not to think too much and just go out and run. My goal was to make it to the state meet and I did. The hardest part of the race was deciding when I should move up but overall I wanted to have fun and pr.

5) During what part of the season did you feel like you had a great shot to make the state meet?
When I ran my pr in the 1600 at Sacramento Meet of Champions (she ran 5:03.42), I realized my times were getting substantially better to put me in position to make the state meet if I stayed healthy and trained hard.

6) Any races coming up for you this summer?
No, I am going to focus on training for cross country at Sacramento State and the difficulty that comes with running at the next level.

Thank you very much Rachel!

CA State Meet 3200m. reflection with Philip MacQuitty…

Today we hear from Palo Alto runner Philip MacQuitty who just recently finished 18th, at the CA state meet in the 3200m., with a lifetime best time of 9:07.23. Philip had a few break out efforts this past season, including an impressive 1:55.99 in a duel meet 800m. He really started to roll late in the season starting at the CCS semis (as he mentioned below) and continued that momentum by recording a PR to qualify for the state meet, finishing 3rd in a ultra competitive CCS meet.

1) What did you do training wise (day by day) following the CCS final on Friday to the 3200m. final yesterday?

I ran on average 4 miles a day after CCS. I had one work out on Tuesday and some 200s on Thursday after an easy run.

2) What was your race plan going into the 3200m. final? Where there runners you were focusing on or where you focused on running certain splits?
Going into the race I didn't want to look at the clock. I wanted to run with the pack for the whole race.

3) Tell us a little how your race progressed from the beginning and how it unfolded as it got into the second 1600m. I felt really good during the first mile and was in the front half of the field for the first 5 laps. As I got ito the second mile, I started falling off a little. Lap 6 and 7 were the laps that made me fall of the pack and the pace i wanted to go (both 71 seconds). I was luckily able to regain some lost time on the last lap (63).

4) What was the toughest part of the race?
The laps 6 and 7 were the toughest for me.

5) What race during the season do you think gave you the confidence to run so well at the end of the season?
CCS semis. I felt really good running 9:11.

6) Any races coming up for you this summer?
I am going to Golden West, I will be running the mile there. I might do an all comers meet just to run a fast 800 and try to break my pr.

Thank you. I wanted to add that CCS ran very well especially Garrett and Mitch. They both ran an extremely smart race.

Thank you very much Philip.

CA State Meet 3200m. race reflection with Colleen Lillig...

Today we hear from California distance runner, Colleen Lillig. Before her state meet effort this past Saturday in the 3200m., she was recently crowned as the NCS champion in the same event as she rolled to a 10:43.95 victory. At the state meet, Colleen finished in 12th place in 10:43.54, trailing only Jacque Taylor in the race for the top honors for Northern California runners.

1) What did you do training wise (day by day) following the NCS final on Saturday to the 3200m. final yesterday?

I just ran easy the day after to loosen up. I took Monday off because I had been suffering from a really nasty cold and needed to lay low. I came back teusday and did a few 800s at pace. The rest of the week was just easy runs and strides.

2) What was your race plan going into the 3200m. final? Where there runners you were focusing on or where you focused on running certain splits?
This was my first race at state for track, my coach told me to just go out and run and go for a medal and a PR. We're hoping to use this as experience for a more tactical race next season.

3) Tell us a little how your race progressed from the beginning and how it unfolded as it got into the second 1600m.
I went out at about 5:17 which is around what I wanted to come through at. I felt good, but on the sixth lap something happened, my legs just gave out and I died for a moment, the whole pack passed me. I got a second wind later, but it wasn't enough to move back into medaling position.

4) What was the toughest part of the race?
The toughest part of the race was watching that whole pack pass me so quickly on that sixth lap. I have the confidence I can run with those girls so I'm pretty mad I couldn't get myself to stay with them when I shut down for a moment.

5) What do you feel like you learned at this state meet that will help you next year?
I've learned to be more patient. I took the risk of leading that big pack through the first mile. I don't regret doing so, but if i had been more patient and sat a little longer I think the second mile would have gone a lot better for me.

6) Any races coming up for you this summer?
Nothing serious, just some fun local runs. I'm mostly focusing on training for cross country.

CA State Meet 3200m. race reflection with Matt Petersen...

As promised, I will post a couple of short interviews with runners from this past CA state track and field meet. I will start with a few of the competitors in the epic boys' 3200m. The first will be Matt Petersen of Davis HS who ran a lifetime best time of 9:01.45 to finish in 11th place.

1) What did you do training wise (day by day) following the SJS final on Friday to the 3200m. final yesterday?
Bill has always been able to peak us perfectly for our big races. We understood that "the hey was in the barn" and all the real work was done. So this week we scaled it back to make sure we were fresh. Saturday and Sunday did not consist of the usual long run but instead just two easy shake out days of 7 miles on Saturday and 5 on Sunday. On Monday Trev and I did a threshold work out within the run. It was 40 min run with 15 mins of threshold pace. Tuesday was a recovery day (30 min) and Wednesday was our last Vo2 max day. At this point in the season we were running at 94 % of goal pace. So we did one mile on the track at 4:34. Thursday and Friday were both easy recoveries. We usually work out on Thursdays but the week before Masters we changed it to Wednesday because Bill could see we were a bit beat up. I felt super fresh for the masters race so we decided to workout on Wednesday again this week.

2) What was your race plan going into the 3200m. final? Where there runners you were focusing on or were you focused on running certain splits?
So we've tried to play the split game the whole year, trying to negative split and going out in a controlled first mile. That for some reason or another just wasn't getting the times down. So going into the state meet, I knew there was going to be a big pack behind Olsen, the plan was to be in this pack and in the mix and not off the back. I payed very little attention to any of the splits, in fact I didn't see a single one. My main focus was to compete, kind of to turn it into more of a cross country race mentality. I knew if I could compete well, the time would come. I thought that 9:03 or 9:04 would get on the podium, but this race was just too deep. I wish that that time could have gotten a podium spot, and it would have almost any other year, but I thrilled about the fact that I was able to drop 15 seconds, especially in my last race for the Blue Devils.

3) Tell us a little how your race progressed from the beginning and how it unfolded as it got into the second 1600m.
So like I said I tried to be in the mix. I got off to a great start and was comfortable from the beginning. I had a good spot, I wasn't boxed and I wasn't running in lane three either. I constantly stayed in about 9th place or so for the whole first mile. I saw no splits so I was constantly checking the position of the other competitors and maintaining contact. I was feeling like my body could respond to anything I asked it to, so I made a slight little move on 6 to get up a few spots, this was when people really started going though. I pressed on 7 and 8, knowing it was the last shot I had in high school running. I found my 2nd gear coming around the turn, but it just so happened that everyone else had theirs too. I still didn't know what time I ran until a few seconds after I found my teammate Trevor.

4) What was the toughest part of the race?
Well once the gun went off, I was fine. My body responded to almost anything I asked it to. Definitely the hardest part for me was before the race. I was just trying to keep my nerves down. Physically, I really started hurting the back stretch of 8, but that's when you're supposed to really feel it.

5) Was there a point this past season when you thought you had a shot of running as fast as you ran yesterday in the 3200?
My goal the whole year has been to break 9. Until last week though, I thought I might be falling short. Last week at masters I felt really smooth and relaxed and ran my second fastest time to date (at the time). After that I knew I was in 9:05 shape but the 9:01 still came as a bit of a surprise when I saw it on the board.

6) Any races coming up for you this summer?
I'm not sure, maybe a few road races with the guys, but I'll have to see what the training is like.

If you have any questions for any of the competitors, please let me know at albertjcaruana@gmail.com or ask them directly in the comment box below.

The incredible '09 boys' 3200m. race

As I waited for the results to show up on my screen, there was one event that I was really looking forward to and that was the boys' 3200m. Besides the fact that the 3200m. was my best race in high school, this race stood out for me this year in the way so many of the top distance runners chose to solely focus on this distance. While some people use the 3200m. races as the time to get a bathroom break or something to eat before the 1600m. relays, I enjoy watching the 3200m. like Nascar fans enjoy watching cars making constant left turns on a race track.

When the 3200m. results finally showed up, it was like WHAT!?!? PRs galore down the list.

 1 Chris Schwartz               Foothill/ce            8:51.60   10      
2 Collin Jarvis             12 Rnch Buna/sd           8:53.78    8      
3 Heyden Wooff              10 Camarillo/ss           8:55.16    6      
4 Garrett Rowe              11 MountainV/cc           8:55.71    4      
5 Matt McElroy              11 Edison(HB)ss           8:56.44    2      
6 Dan Mitchell              12 Del Campo/sj           8:56.56    1      
7 Erik Olson                11 Novato/nc              8:56.56           
8 Isaac Chavez              12 Barstow/ss             8:57.40           
9 Sam Pons                  10 S Pasadena             9:01.05           
10 Sterling Lockert          12 Petaluma/nc            9:01.32           
11 Matt Petersen             12 Davis /sj              9:01.45           
12 Ammar Moussa              10 Arcadia/ss             9:03.26           
13 Wyatt Landrum             12 Liberty/nc             9:04.06           
14 Adrian Rafiee             12 Ptrck Hnr/sd           9:04.83           
15 Mitch Moriarty            11 Aptos/cc               9:05.78           
16 Western Nelson            12 Burr Bur/ss            9:06.68           
17 Reesey Byers              11 Santa Rsa/nc           9:06.93           
18 Philip Macquitty          11 Palo Alto/cc           9:07.23           
19 Daniel Rosales            11 Apple Vl/ss            9:07.34           
20 Jonathan Sanchez          12 Buchanan/ce            9:12.91           
21 Zack Torres               12 Cres. Vly/ss           9:15.18           
22 Heath Reedy                  Buchanan/ce            9:19.29           
23 Cody Schmidt              12 Redondo /ss            9:19.30           
24 Chris Brewer              10 Rnch Buna/sd           9:20.44           
25 Zack Kaylor               11 Enterpris/no           9:21.17           
26 Trevor Halsted            10 Davis /sj              9:22.86           
27 Mewael Ogbai              12 Oakland/ok             9:23.98           
28 Lance Wolfsmith           12 Sobrato                9:24.47           
29 Noe Ramirez               12 Vis. Murrieta          9:30.58           
30 Javert Solorzano          11 Granada H/La           9:31.22           
31 Pablo Rosales             11 San Pedro/la           9:37.42           
32 Jorge` Mendez             11 Monroe/la              9:48.66

If you want to see this race, here is the video from flotrack.org.


Here is the race covered by dyestatcal:


Looking back at state meet history, there appears to be one race that is comparable to
yesterday's race but is still not as deep.  That would be the 1981 version.  Here are the times
that I could find for that race courtesy of "The California State High School Track and Field
Meet 1915-2006" by Tom Casacky and Bill Peck.

1.  Jon Butler Edison 8:46.78
2.  Jay Marden Mission San Jose 8:51.64
3.  Jesse Torres Independence 8:52.11
4.  Mike Carlton Northview 8:52.80
5.  Harold Kuphaldt Bella Vista 8:54.78
6.  Mike McCollum Palo Alto 8:56.11
7.  Dave Shea Castro Valley 8:58.49
8.  Aubrey Wilson Berkeley 9:00.42
9.  Eric Reynolds Camarillo 9:00.71
10.  Tyrus Deminter Jefferson 9:01.08
16.  Brian Abshire DeAnza 9:08.6

For a historical perspective, the 3200m. race was first held in 1965 at the CA state meet
and at the time, the distance was 2 miles.

I will see if I can get the perspective of the some of the runners from the above race.

In the meantime, here are a few articles that mention the 3200m. (and other events as well).
Prep state track finals: Novato's Olson tires, finishes seventh in 3,200 meters (marin IJ)

Gradiska second in state meet 200, fourth in 100 (Palo Alto online)

Wheeler's leap leads off strong Bay Area showing (SF Chronicle)

Casa's Taylor comes up short in bid for state title (Santa Rosa Press Democrat)
Taylor boxed in, finishes fourth in 1,600-meters; Lockert, Stone set Empire records

Any thoughts on the race?  Most surprising finish?

Newspaper articles covering the first day of competition at the CA state meet...

Pinewood's Gradiska has top mark in 100 (mercurynews.com)

Del Oro's Landry qualifies for state pole vault finals (sacbee.com)

Pressure no problem for De La Salle's Wheeler (contracostatimes.com)

Live Blog: CIF State Track and Field Championships (contracostatimes.com)

Purvis false starts in 100 but wins 200 heat (contracostatimes.com)

Defending champ Purvis DQ'd in 100 qualifying heat (SF Chronicle)

State Track and Field Championships: Sanders off to good start, earns Santa Cruz High's first finals appearance in 40 years. (Santa Cruz Sentinel)

Pinewood's Gradiska advances in state track (Palo Alto online)

Live Results from CA State Meet...

http://www.sml1.com/recordtiming/cif2009

Who are the Northern California athletes with the best shot of winning a state meet title(s)?

What I did was include athletes whose marks are in the top 3 on the performance list of the trials events. One athlete whose section mark did not make the top 3 in her event but is included in the poll is Justine Fedronic who currently has the fastest time in the state. Feel free to add any athletes who you feel belong in the conversation in the comment box below. (It's been confirmed that Justine Fedronic will not be racing this weekend as she has been diagnosed with a stress fracture)

You may vote for more than one athlete.

You can explain why you voted for a certain athlete and why you feel they have a great shot to win in the comment box below.

Who is a lock to win? Is there such a thing from Northern California? Are there athletes who are locks to win from anywhere in the state?

Can anybody identify what year the picture above was taken and who is the winning athlete?

Thank you in advance for taking part in the poll.

Pre State Track and Field Meet Newspaper Articles...

As we head towards the state meet this Friday and Saturday, here are a few newspaper articles detailing some of the competitors in one of the top track meets in the United States. I will post more as I find them.

Sprinting for an enduring legacy (SF Chronicle article about Ashton Purvis)

Sean Combs has designs on state medals (insidebayarea.com)

Local girls get it done at CCS meet (Los Altos Town Crier)

High school track’s biggest stage calls 13 local athletes (granitebaypt.com)

Metro area track and field leaders (SF Chronicle-top area times before state meet)

Northern Section track champs decided (willows-journal.com)

High schools: Memorable moments at sectionals (SF Chronicle)

Tracy Sports Notebook: A member of state's discus elite (insidebayarea.com)

Catching up with Burlingame HS runner, Rogan Meza...

Today's interview is with recently graduated Burlingame HS runner, Rogan Meza, who just recently finished in 4th place in the 1600m. at the CCS finals (Rogan is 3rd from the left in the adjoining picture). As disappointing as 4th place can be to any CCS track and field athletes, Rogan's 4th place finish was anything but disappointing as he completed a senior season with many accolades and achievements. If CCS gave out a most improved award for any of it's athletes, Rogan would have been one of the leading candidates as you will see below.

1) How did you get started in the sport of running (xc and track and field)?
Freshman year I didn't run cross country, only track. My family gave me the push to run.

2) What other sports did you participate in besides those two?
Freshman year I tried out for football and soccer but got cut from both. In sophomore I played basketball.

3) When do you feel like you made the decision to crank up your training and succeed in both sports?
The summer going into senior year.

4) Looking back at your senior season in cross country, what do you feel was your best race of the season?
I am going to say the state meet because I ran my personal best pace wise which was 5:27 pace. I ran that smarter than most other runners by going out slower and not going out with the leaders. My teammate, Max, went out in 5:00 and I went out in 5:10 but i came back in 16:54 and he came back in 17:16.

5) Before the summers before your junior season and senior seasons, what were the biggest differences training wise between the two?
I ran more consistently over the summer in senior than junior year. Not a lot of miles but a good base which really helped.

6) What were your PRs on the track following your junior season in the 800, 1600 and 3200? What are your PRs for those races now?
Junior year in the 800 I ran 2:13, 1600 was 4:46, and the 3200 was 10:28. Now in the 800 I run a 2:02, 1600 is 4:21, and the 3200 is 9:39.

7) You qualified for the state meet in cross country. Following that season, did you feel like you had a shot at the state meet in track and if so, what event?
I never felt like I had a chance to make state in track until league finals in the 1600. But in January and February I thought the 3200 was going to be my best event and be able to CCS finals.

8) What race during this past season really gave you the confidence that the state meet was a real possibility?
My league finals (PALs) 1600 meter victory over Daniel Filipcik. I ran a 4:24 while leading most of laps 1, 2, and 4. I never led lap 3. To see Obbie's (Rogan's coach) face of how proud of me was amazing and gave me confidence.

9) What were some of the workouts that you did on the track this past season that you feel helped you achieve your success in league and CCS?
I did a lot of 400's. I would do anywhere from 12 to 20 of them at a time. Mostly by myself. I had teammates who would run their lasts one with me but I would keep going by running usually 75's or faster and then getting in the low 60's in the last few.

10) What was your game plan going into the CCS 1600m. final and how did the race unfold for you?
I had no plan but to just try and get third. First lap, I went out in a 65 or a 66 while everyone went out in a 62, 63, 64. I was relaxed. i was back in 10th place after lap 1. In lap 2, I surged up to about 5th or 6th and just relaxed running a 2:11, 2:12 for the 800. Lap 3 was just the same, I was relaxed I let some people pass me but not enough where i couldn't catch them, running a 3:19, 3:20. Lap 4 all hell broke loose. I was in 4th or 5th starting the lap and was about to go. Then about 3 to 5 guys crashed in and almost knocked me out of bounds. I got really scared and started to run in lanes 2 and 3. Greg Innes from S.I. passed me with 300 meters to go and I went with him knowing that we were the two competing for that number 3 spot. We passed about 4 to 6 guys on the last lap. With a 100 meters to go he swung out to lap 2 and I swung out to lap 3. We were sprinting down the straight away knowing that one of us was going to go get that third spot. I missed state by .6 of second but did get a PR. I am happy with what happened during my senior year of track. Going to state would have been icing on the cake.

11) Tell us a little about your coach and how he has helped you develop into the runner you are today.
Obbie. Wow, one of the greatest persons I have ever met in my entire life. He works hard for those who work hard for him. He treated me like a son and I have no problem calling him second father. He has helped me become the runner I am today by motivation and confidence. There are not enough words to describe this man. The one that comes to my mind first is amazing. I could write an essay on how this man changed my life.

12) What are your running goals for the future?
I don't have to many goals right now. I will be running for Chico State next year. I plan on competing in the 5k, 10k, and 3k steeplechase. No times are set yet I always do those the season before it happens.

13) Anything else you would like to add.
Missing graduation to run CCS finals was one of the best choices I have ever done. I live to run.

To follow up on Rogan's last statement, here is a link talking about that situation and the wonderful act of the Burlingame principal:
http://www.dyestatcal.com/ATHLETICS/TRACK/2009/bhs_grad.htm

Thank you very much Rogan. AJC