KIMbia Athletics

After hearing James Carney’s comments on his strong 10.000m effort at US Champs, we wanted to open up the lines and let you pick the brains of the rest of our athletes, with regards to their efforts at Nationals.  You asked, now they respond:

Matt, how do you focus during a race, specifically on the last couple of laps? –Jacob McRoberts

Preparation for a race always starts in practice. (That sounds simple enough, right?) But this has been a very tough year of training and our races actually seem a little easier because of it.  It is always harder to get mentally prepared for practice, so we really try to concentrate on showing up to practice ready to put in the hard work.  Once in a race setting I just try to focus on competition!  If I worry about competing against the other athletes and forget everything else, it allows me to hurt that much more.  I don’t want to get in a situation where another athlete is able to run away from me so competition allows me to push through the pain as the race progresses. In the 5k, the race doesn’t really start until the last 1200m and we have worked on staying very relaxed until that point, trying to waste as little energy as possible. That allows me to stay mentally fresh and really get ready for the grind to the finish line. That last 1200m of the race has been a real work in progress the last few years and I am very confident in my finish. You just have to compete!!!

Evan, having made a WC team your first year as a pro and running fast enough to be one of the top college guys, do you feel like giving up the chance to win an NCAA title has been worth it? –Kent Eckstein

Looking back on my decision, I definitely think turning pro and moving out to Portland was worth it. I think that I might have been able to do big things this year in the NCAA but there is no way I would be at the level I am at right now without moving out here. I also think that I have another level I can achieve this year and if I had stayed in the NCAA system it would have been really hard to maintain this level of fitness up to this point. So yes, I think it was definitely worth it.

Rebecca, 2 questions. 1-Do you regret at all leading early on in the race seeing that you faded a little bit at the end? Did you do that because you were going for the B standard? And 2-What are your plans for Europe and possibly chasing a spot on the world’s team? Do you have specific races lined up yet? –Brian

I do and I don’t regret leading for almost half the race. Typically I tend to be a front runner, I’ve always felt quite comfortable leading races. I sat in second for the first four laps which were pretty slow. Then the woman leading dropped back and I was next in line. It was pretty windy but I didn’t think it was too bad at the time. I slowed the pace a little more thinking someone else would lead for a while; I even swung wide in Lane 2 figuring someone would take it. No one did, so I just continued, but my workouts indicated that I’d be able to really switch gears when necessary, so I was confident. However, fighting the wind for so many laps proved to take its toll on me and I didn’t have quite enough left at the end to place higher. I was still able to close with about a 4:50 which I was pleased with, but had I not led for so much laps I’m confident that a top 3 finish would have been realistic.

As for your second questions, this is my first time racing in Europe and I’m very excited to have this opportunity. Right now I’m in Holland getting ready for a 1500m in Belgium tomorrow night. I ran a 4:13 1500m at a New Balance Twilight meet in Boston a couple weeks before nationals which was a big pr and feeling really strong the entire way. So I’m looking forward to trying it again. I’m also scheduled to run a 5000m next week and possibly another 1500m and 5000m. The goal is to take advantage of my track speed right now and post some fast times. If I hit a time as fast as the World standard for the 5000m that would obviously be a huge plus. [Ed. Note - Rebecca ran 4:14.76 in Kortrijk. She will run the 5000m in Liege on July 15th.]

Matt, with your win at USA’s, your 13:04 5k PR, and 3:34 1500m speed, you have to be thinking about bringing home some hardware from Berlin. What do you think you have to do the rest of the summer to bring home a medal? What are your plans for the rest of the summer? –Jason

First, I realize those PR’s are from 3 years ago but I finally feel that I am back to that form/fitness!!!  I will be racing the 5000m in Heusden (July 18) and that will be my only tune up for the World Champs.  I’m feeling great and don’t want to waste fitness so we are looking to run a good fast race.  It will be an excellent tune up for Berlin.  I think I’ve shown that I have a great kick that will allow me to finish well in a slow race, but I have been working on the aerobic side of things this year, so I feel I can run a low 13 5k and still kick.  I am close to being able to run any style race and looking forward to the challenge this summer!!

Sean, do you come away more negative or more positive after race where you were in the lead pack at the bell and just came up a little short, but still had your highest finish at a US championships? And do you think either outlook is more beneficial in helping your training? –David

After USA’s, I came away looking at that race as a positive experience.  Prior to that race I was hoping that I could have the opportunity to be there with a lap to go, and what I learned was that my speed is not at the same level as my fitness and strength at that moment.  For me to close those type of races, I need to get faster.  If you go off of mile/1500 PR’s, all those guys ahead of me have probably run 4-8 seconds faster in either of those events, that’s hard to compete with my more modest PR’s (comparatively, of course).  Although I didn’t close that last lap well, I felt comfortable that entire race — I just could not get my turnover going.  This year I had my focus set on the 10k, but made a late decision to run the 5k, feeling I would have a better opportunity to chase the A standard if necessary.  So my training really wasn’t geared towards a championship 5k but I have no regrets in my decision and I’m looking forward to my upcoming races and the possibilities of what’s to come.

Brent, it seemed like you ran a lot of shorter races this year, especially Miles and 1500′s. Was this more part of chasing your 5k goals, or chasing Mile/1500 goals while you still have your best wheels? –Tom Whitworth

I ran shorter races with the intention of improving my speed and working on what has been my weakness in the past.  It probably hasn’t gone exactly as I had hoped but I still have a lot of season left to make something happen, and I am optimistic for the upcoming races.

[Ed. Note: Brent's next "upcoming race" is a 5000m at Heusden on July 18th.]

So, Solinsky… what’s the story with the socks? At first glance, those look like ordinary compression socks, but I’m beginning to believe they might be something else. Are they actually covering up some new and risque tattoos on your calves or more likely, are they woven from a magical alter-G thread that lifts up your legs and makes them feel lighter than air in the last 250 meters of your race? –Chad Powell & Matt

Well, ever since I tore my PCL, when I got back into training I had been having issues with my calf being either tight or in pain. I tested out a pair of the socks in a workout to see if they helped with the support that the compression provided and sure enough they helped in the workout and actually in my recovery after the workout.  This led me to try them in a race and they cut my recovery time after a race to virtually nothing — I can resume running as normal the next day.  Before this year my calves would be tight and tender for days after a race.  So, there is no fashion statement going on with them and they are not to cover anything up… just purely for function!