Stacking Money to the Ceiling

It's been a few weeks since I updated anything on here. Actually, more like a month. I originally wanted to put more thoughts up about the Olympics. Then I got caught up in my media blackout and was too tired at the end of the nights to write anything. Recently, I just haven't had anything to say.

But that's not to say there weren't some impressive results from you guys this August.

The BRRC wrapped up its season with its final two summer track meets. In Meet #3, miscommunication caused some frustration, but in the end we all got to run 5000m, with Dusty and Nate taking turns at the front. Dusty took the win in 15:51, a great time for a random Wednesday night, and Nate wasn't far back. One of the great performances from that night was Andy Thivierge's 4:35.8 in the 1500m, easily under 5 for the mile with the conversion. In the summer finale, he wasn't able to improve on that, though, and ran a par-for-Andy 5:01.97 in the mile.

Some of our August race winners included Bryn Burkholder (Sneaks Come Out at Night 15k), Christa Wagner (Founder's Day 5k), and Dan Miranda (Lums Pond Sprint Duathlon).

The Annapolis 10 Miler is always a big event, one that I have done - and have suffered in - due to its combination of humidity and hills. Last year's event was canceled on account of a hurricane that never materialized. This year, well, the hurricane was just a year late. Thunder, lightning, monsoon-rain were the conditions for the race, but that didn't stop Dan Miranda from putting down a very fast 57:19. Jackie Truncellito was 4th in 1:05:17, and Justin Gerbereux made his return to racing, running 1:06:13.

In the triathlon world, few have had more consistent results than Alyssa Godesky, who twice finished on the podium at REV3 events, both half iron distance, separated by just two weeks. Her 4:59:27 got her 2nd, and a new distance PR, at REV3 Dells in Wisconsin, and two weeks later she managed to take 7 minutes out of that already impressive time, dropping a 4:52:09 for 3rd. In each race she's run a 1:35 half marathon off the bike, which is great news for the Ironman World Championships. David Lee had a breakthrough race at Ironman Canada, where he put together a complete race, including a 4:02 negative split marathon to finish at 10:46:39. David has put in an immense amount of work since June's IM Coeur d'Alene to prepare for this one, and it paid off.

And now we're basically caught up to real time, of course I skimmed the results, but you can see them in the spreadsheet if you're so inclined.

Over the humid, rainy Labor Day weekend, Megan DiGregorio won the Knights of Columbus 10k on Saturday in 40:38, then finished 2nd to Jackie Truncellito on Sunday in the NCR 20 Miler. In the 20 Miler, Patrick O'Rourke finished 6th in 2:09:11, and Marci Benda and Bryn Burkholder ran 2:33 and 2:35, respectively.

This upcoming weekend is a big one for Ben Ingram, who will toe the line, or tread the water, in his first Ironman (Wisconsin).

This week our Purple Drink Athlete of the Week went to Bryn Burkholder, and in the previous two weeks it went to David Lee (IM Canada) and Dean Jagusch (Church Creek Time Trial). Prior to that they were Olympics-oriented, and the recipients were Allyson Felix, Galen Rupp, and swimmer Dana Vollmer.

In other news, Maggie Vessey is still racing late into this season, winning the 800m the other day in Zagreb, just ahead of Brenda Martinez.

Meeting Internazionale di Atletica Leggera

Results from today's track meet in Lignano, Italy

Men's 800m

That's a pretty competitive race all things considered. Wonder what happened to Jock. That's too decent races in 4 days for Kinyor.

1 Job Kinyor 1:44.39
2 Jeff Riseley 1:44.48
3 Tyler Mulder 1:44.75
4 Giordano Benedetti 1:45.34
5 Mike Rutt 1:45.35
6 Elijah Greer 1:45.47
7 Lachlan Renshaw 1:45.75
8 Mark Weiczorek 1:45.96
9 Andrew Kiptoo Rotich 1:46.34
10 Charles Jock 1:47.66
11 Mor Seck 1:48.62
12 Martin Ryan 1:50.52

Men's 1500m

Donn Cabral steps away from the steeplechase to build some speed with a 1500m.

1. James Magut 3:37.44
2. David Torrence 3:37.57
3. Geoffrey Barusei 3:37.84
4. Will Leer 3:37.96
5. Remmy Limo Ndiwa 3:38.84
6. Collins Cheboi 3:39.21
7. Donn Cabral 3:40.03

Splits: 57.2, 1:56.2, 2:56.3 (Matt Scherer was one of pacesetters)

Women's 800m

MAGGIE VESSEY RUNS

Still doesn't break 2 minutes.

2. Maggie Vessey 2:00.59
3. Anna Pierce 2:00.66
4. Jemma Simpson 2:00.72

Also, Maggie Vessey continues to be hot.

Women's 1500m

Race of the meet. Incredible times all around! Look at that list of names. And the cutie with the booty, Molly Beckwith, rabbited. That's cool. Great race for Gabriele Anderson, and huge PRs for a number of people in the field.

1 Gabriele Anderson 4:04.84
2 Lisa Dobriskey 4:05.27
3 Marina Muncan 4:06.48
4 Nicol Schappert 4:06.87
5 Sheila Reid 4:07.07
6 Elisa Cusma Piccione 4:07.55
7 Emily Infeld 4:07.77
8 Katie Mackey 4:08.09
9 Liz Maloy 4:08.12
10 Margherita Magnani 4:08.94
11 Treniere Moser 4:09.34
12 Eleonora Berlanda 4:13.43
13 Mestawot Tadesse 4:17.10
63 Molly Beckwith (Rabbit)

Olympic Trials: Women's 800m

Alysia Montano, Geena Gall, and Alice Schmidt Move Onto London

Maggie Vessey finishes last but first in attractiveness.

Montano led wire-to-wire, running 1:59.06. Gall had a great last couple of meters, passing Phoebe Wright and holding off Alice Schmidt. Schmidt, who we recently interviewed on The Runaround, still needed the A standard time, and just got under it by 0.04 seconds.

1 Alysia Montano Nike 1:59.08

2 Geena Gall Nike / Oregon TC Elite 1:59.24

3 Alice Schmidt Nike 1:59.46

4 Molly Beckwith Saucony 1:59.68
5 Phoebe Wright Nike 1:59.72
6 Brenda Martinez New Balance 2:01.67
7 Heather Kampf Asics / Team USA Minnesota 2:02.86
8 Maggie Vessey New Balance 2:03.44

Maggie Vessey: A Tribute

Today's Moment of Maggie:

We'll be watching as Maggie Vessey attempts to make her first Olympic team in the 800m. It's definitely a stacked field and she comes into the race with the 5th fastest time this season (among the field). With a field that includes Alysia Montano, Alice Schmidt, Geena Gall, Molly Beckwith, and others, it's a long Road to London for Maggie. In the meantime, you're welcome for the picture, and also this link to an e-magazine feature on Vessey.

UPDATED 8:07pm: Maggie Vessey finishes 2nd in 800m qualifying heat, moves on. Her time was 2:03.31. #TrackTown2012 #Eugene2012

How We Do

Fortunately I got to the bulk of the results over the weekend because most of the races were on Saturday, but there were a few on Sunday so here we go:

Father's Day 8k (Bullseye Running)

Less than 24 hours after winning the Baltimore 10 Miler, Dave Berdan was back at it, this time finishing 3rd in 25:49. His first two races of the year and he puts them back to back - beast! Tristram Thomas took 4th in 26:42. Tristram, in case you didn't know, is leaving us soon to head to the riva bello of Italy. I Google-translated that, it means beautiful shore. I didn't know how to pluralize it, and I also don't know if he'll be near the beach. But anyway, TT is at least making sure he backfills his position, so he's been actively seeking replacements. After the race he chatted with runner-up, Kent Pecora, who is moving here later this summer and we hope to see him come out. This comes just a week or two after TT met Charles Larsen, who is back in the area, and won the GBMC Father's Day 5k. Nobody can replace Tristram, but hopefully these two guys can take up some of his speed.

Georgetown Running Company Father's Day 8k

Our friends down the highway once again hosted their annual Father's Day twilight event on the towpath, and had over 200 people finish so I'd say that's a success. Dustin Meeker and Ed Aramayo went 4th and 5th in 26:47/26:52 or something.

Purple Drink Athlete of the Week

There were a number of impressive performances this weekend, with atypically nice weather yielding faster-than-normal results at Baltimore Ten Miler, and our PDAW this week comes from that group. Terry Decker, who celebrated his 30th birthday just days prior, ran another ten mile PR and continues to go faster and faster as he prepares for the marathon this fall. Cause that's just how we do.

Oh, and who noticed MAGGIE VESSEY responding to my tweet, thanking me for "thinking of her"? #MaggieVesseyIsHot #TeamMaggie

Maggie Vessey vs Allyson Felix

In the always-exciting USA vs the World at The Penn Relays, the USA put down some strong performances, winning the televised events. The men's Distance Medley Relay was particularly interesting as Leo Manzano outkicked Bernard Lagat. In the women's Sprint Medley, Maggie Vessey came from WAY back to beat the field. Meanwhile, Allyson Felix, on 2nd legs in both the 4x100 and 4x400, helped her team cruise to victory.

Felix is a versatile sprinter, often competing in the 100m and 400m to prepare for her main event, the 200m. Vessey, however, is 800m-focused. Vessey is known for floating off the back before attempting to kick. Felix has long, gazelle-like strides that have propelled her to 50 second 400m races.

What I would like to propose is a race between these two great athletes in perhaps a 500m race. Full make-up, extra points for best post-race interview. How can we make this happen?

Maggie Vessey, who is hot, is currently paired up with men's 800m medal hopeful Nick Symmonds. Each had a great race at Penn, with Nick splitting a 1:43.9 800m leg of the DMR. Felix, to the best of my knowledge, goes for football or basketball players.

Brand Yourself on Nick Symmonds

You may have seen the other day that multiple US 800m Champ and previous member of Olympic Teams, Nick Symmonds, has put his most valuable realty up for sale, to the highest bidder, of course.  And ladies, before you get any ideas, I'm not talking about his package (Maggie Vessey has dibs on that).
I'm talking about his shoulder.

Yes, folks, now YOU can stamp your name on this hot commodity for the ENTIRE 2012 season, which includes highly visible meets such as the Prefontaine Classic, USA Olympic Trials, the Monaco Diamond League Meet, and, assuming he makes it, the Olympic Games in London.  All you have to do is bid!  If you are the winner, Symmonds will temporarily tattoo your Twitter username on his shoulder.

After a highly publicized battle between athletes and the USATF last month, during which athletes fought for their right to earn a living from sponsors, the USATF let up on their rigid rules a tad.  And this is what resulted.  Symmonds was probably THE most vocal athlete during the proceedings, and earned William Wallace status among the other athletes.  With that in mind, it comes as no surprise that he would be the first to do something like this.

He shared the link on his Twitter account (@nysmm800) and bidders were quick to the computer.  The current bid sits at $1875 (50 bids), and with 8 days left in the bidding, it would be reasonable to expect this to go up.  The question is, how much is this kind of exposure really worth?

The short answer: a lot more than $1875.  People are probably looking at this as a novelty.  Say Symmonds pulls in $3000 for this bid.  Symmonds gets $3000.  The winner will have their Twitter name tattooed on Symmonds' shoulder.  In an average track meet, total exposure time for Symmonds is likely 5 minutes (2 minute race, pre/post-race interview, pre-race or pre-commercial promotions).  While here in America, our track and field viewership might be a little smaller than the rest of the planet, particularly Europe, that still amounts to 5 minutes on national television (NBC, Universal Sports, ESPN).  Not to mention the incredible amount of exposure he's going to receive for pulling this move to begin with.  Symmonds is a well-spoken athlete, attractive, and likeable.  The reporters gravitate to him.  His energy is contagious.  He doesn't even have to do well in the race, it doesn't matter.

If I were a company, a brand, any kind of marketer, I would be licking my chops to get a piece of this property.  Think about it.  Millions, if not a billion people, will be watching the Olympics.  Smaller numbers will watch the other meets, but they are still big events.  Every time the camera pans across his lane, you'll see the tattoo.  The camera will focus on it.  Then, every single person who is watching at home and has either their smartphone or laptop handy will go to that Twitter handle. 

For whoever wins this bid, you better be prepared to give the world something good.  I really hope some emo little girl doesn't win this and gain tens of thousands of followers. 

Nate Brigham weighed in with his thoughts:

"I think it's sad an athlete feels like he has to go down this road to support himself.  It's a shame that he's not sponsored better given the level of success he has achieved.

However, I do think it's brilliant.  I think Twitter's simplicity and mobility are [its] greatest strengths, and the idea of putting a Twitter handle invites viewers to learn more.  I know if I see a Twitter handle somewhere I wouldn't expect it, I search it.  I wonder how the IAAF, USOC, and USATF will all try to outlaw this, as we've seen in the past, they're not about protecting athletes; they're about making money.  If they're losing sponsorship/advertising dollars to individual athletes, this upsets their universe.  Imagine McDonald's pulling some of their ads because all of the USA Olympic basketball team has temporary tattoos of @mcdonalds on their arms?  Everyone would freak out!  Symmonds is ahead of the curve on this,  (90s reference coming here...) much like 'My So Called Life' was a show ahead of its time."

What do YOU think?  Sound off in the comments section.  Should we all chip in and get @BMoreRunning on his arm?  And, more importantly, why isn't Maggie Vessey (@maggiekicks) doing this??  Her body is a hot commodity, too!

Vessey, Still Hot, To Race Fifth Ave Mile

Actually, the women's field for this weekend's race is pretty insane:

#1 ranked miler in the world, Morgan Uceny
World Champion, Jenny Barringer-Simpson
WC Runner-Up, British hottie Hannah England
That girl from Duke (boo), Shannon Rowbury
#1 in our hearts, Maggie Vessey

In other news, here is a fun photo from the start of Philly Distance Run:

I am not really good with writing things so hopefully you can read what it says. 

Start Your Engines

"What's the NOS button?!" - Coach Amy

This is the NOS button, Amy.

As I mentioned in the email, it was as if Coach Amy Horst hit her NOS button in Friday night's Grand Prix 5k, running a 17:25 for 2nd place.  Due to delays all day Friday, the course was not able to be certified and apparently it was too difficult to measure an accurate 3.1 miles on a 1.5 loop course on closed roads using Google Maps.  For Amy, this was just 6 seconds off of her PR for the distance, although she knows it was short.  Just how short, we'll never know.  Other finishers included:  Mike Rady (20:05), PJ Anderer (21:10) and Jan Cook (21:51).  The race was a lap and a half of the course they used for the Baltimore Grand Prix.  If you don't know what the Grand Prix is/was, it's that thing that caused all the traffic all summer.  "Ladies and gentleman, start your engines..."  (that's how they started the 5k, I heard).

Saturday was the Kentlands 5k, one of the faster 5k races of the fall.  GRC's Joe Wiggy Wiegner finished 3rd just under 15 minutes and HCS' Carlos Renjifo was 5th at 15:39.  Arjun Majumdar, in his first race since Rockville Twilight (I mistakenly said it was his first race since Peachtree in the email), ran a very good 16:51 for 11th place.

Megan DiGregorio hadn't won any money in a while, so she went on down to Ellicott City for the Knights of Columbus 10k and scooped up an easy win in 40:25.

At Sunday's Virginia Beach Rock 'n Roll Half Marathon, Ed Aramayo had set out to run a confidence-building time ahead of next month's Chicago Marathon.  After a quick first mile, he backed off and then struggled to find his rhythm.  He finished 43rd with a 1:16:38, well off any goal he could have set for himself, but also realizing that he's in the middle of his biggest training weeks, so after he starts bringing it down, he'll find his legs again.

Garrett Ash won the Larry Noel Greenbelt 15k, which was Sunday night and had a small showing of just 68 finishers. 

At the Charm City 20 Miler, Dan Miranda finished 2nd in 2:02:02, and Patrick O'Rourke, who we haven't seen in results in quite some time, was 4th in 2:07:44.  Denise Knickman finished 2nd among women in 2:19:27, and Jackie Truncellito was 4th in 2:29:19. 

Our final racer of the weekend was Julia Webb, who finished 4th in 1:21:48 at the Eugene Women's Half Marathon.

For the week, our Purple Drink Athlete of the Week went to Jenny Barringer Simpson, who won the gold in the women's 1500m at the World Championships last week.  It was an amazing win, aided perhaps in part by an unlucky and untimely fall to race favorite Morgan Uceny, but nevertheless announced Simpson as a favorite heading into next year's Olympics. 

Earning a KC Masterpiece Award was American sprinter, Allyson Felix, whose 4 medals put her in rare air - she is just the 4th person to accomplish that a World Championships in history.  Her lifetime medal count is now at 10 (at WCs) and she is just 25 years old.  Hopefully she'll focus on the 200m for next year and get the gold finally!

Track tonight - weather looks iffy all day, but obviously we'll be there tonight.  The workout is going to be mile (1600) repeats, basically as much as you want.  If you don't feel like doing miles, you can do 800-400 with rest of about 90 seconds.  We will also discuss details for this Sunday's RM Classic 5k, and then I will post those to the blog.

Maggie Vessey is HOT

Just watched her run the 800m semi in Berlin. Damn she is fine. Of course, she did terrible, may as well not even have shown up as she was seconds behind. And Olympic champ Jelimo just dropped out. Weird.

Race results are on the right, here are some highlights:

Northeast Triathlon: Really psyched for Zero and Pat, as both performed very well. Great swims, great runs and Zero used his new cycling abilities to put himself into 7th place. That's pretty awesome. Pat was right there in 17th. Zero's goal at the beginning of the year was to do a 2:20 Olympic Distance race. Now, while I'll call that one a pretty soft goal, he still got it done and checked off another one of his goals this year. He's now 4 for 4 (sub 60 10 miler, 2:55 Boston, sub 5:00 half IM). Awesome job.

Lums Pond Tri: Barf was doing his first ever tri, which was something I absolutely had to see with my own eyes. On approximately 90 minutes of sleep, I headed up to watch this race in Delaware with Alyssa. Stanford really had a great bike and awesome run, and did really well. Barf had a terrible swim, but that was expected, and then a really good bike and a solid run. Really proud of you Barf.

Some other races, blah blah blah.

Purple Drink Athlete of the Week had to go to Barf. Like I said in the email, until you've done one, you haven't done one. So while many people say "oh that's so easy" it really isn't. I remember how tough my first tri was in the water, and I had been swimming and was prepared for it. Joel sucked it up, didn't complain, didn't freak out and just did it. He didn't represent a charity. He didn't go around telling people he was doing a race or how he did after. On Sunday he was just an athlete.

I put a suggested workout in the email this morning that involved some intervals on the track and some off. The workout was 1600m (2:00 rest), 5min off the track @ tempo (1:30 rest), then 1200m/5min/800m/5min/400m. The rest after the intervals on the track is 2:00 and those efforts should be pretty hard, and the 5 minutes around the fields should be at tempo pace and then 1:30 rest after them.

But I hear there may be a lack of interest in this workout. I really don't care what you guys do, as I said, I won't be there. Just make sure whatever workout you do, you all do the same basic thing (i.e. the same workout, if you need to do less that's fine). Communicate it to everyone, and make sure everyone understands the workout.