Matt Tegenkamp and Chris Solinsky opened their outdoor season with a 1500m at Saturday’s Sun Angel meet in Tempe, Arizona. Matt ran 3:40.12 to finish second behind Lopez Lomong. Chris was fourth in 3:40.68, with their training partner Jonathon Riley squeezed between. (See for yourself.) Matt’s post-race take:
So, flying home from the race, you’re feeling _____ about it?
Satisfied. Where we are in training right now, I am very pleased. Last year at this time I opened up with a 3:43.
How much of what you would consider mile-relevant training have you done?
Training has been going great, especially since spring is coming to Madison. This week I came off a month at 90 Badger miles, and two weeks of that we threw in 4 workouts. This week we still did four workouts (Tuesday being 10K worth of work) and Thursday being a little play day. Thursdays are the only day we get a taste of mile-specific work, so we have had 3 days of it so far. 57 for the first 400m didn’t feel so hot.
Did you have that feeling of not being able to switch gears, but that you could have kept going at near that pace for a little longer?
From the 800 mark to about 1275 was really nice, but that is because we slowed down. That is the thing in the early season, is that you have to know in the back of your mind that at some point the race will get easier. However it does take a few races to really remind yourself how to dig in and finish; that’s why it was nice to be in a quality field this early. I think if I had to do it over again, here is my thinking: Solinsky took the lead with 300 to go and went pretty hard. I went with it, but I should have gotten pole position before the turn. That was the biggest issue. But at this point I was thinking that I don’t know if I want to hurt; do I really want to dig in and hurt, and by the time I decided it was too late. Then once we got to the straightaway I got could smell the line and was like, “Okay, I can make it.” At the end I played into Lopez’s strength, but it is early and things will come around. Already off to a better start than last season.
What’s the meet like?
Congrats to ASU on a great meet. More people should head to Tempe. It was perfect race conditions and they had the one thing Stanford doesn’t, a crowd!! I think this meet could continue to get better in the years to come.
Did the kids in sunny Arizona laugh at your pale Wisconsin-winter legs?
Well, my wife says that I have permatan, so it must not be all that bad. You know I spend around 5 months a year running around in the little short shorts and no shirt; it seems to make up for no sun the rest of the year.
Great job this weekend Matt! As a big Wisco fan, it was fun seeing how past and present Badgers are doing. Keep up the great work!
A promising opener, and not just for you, but the whole Schumacher crew. The pro’s in 3:40.xx and the younger college crew in 3:42-3. Can’t wait to see how your base training treats the rest of your season(s). Good luck to you and the rest of the crew.
[...] (Arizona State). His 3:40.12 earned him a second place finish behind Lopez Lomong. He kindly shares his thoughts on his season opener with Kimbia [...]