So i got the first month of training out of the way. Things have been going well so far. Been doing a lot of technique work and I started working on a 7 step approach to the first hurdle.
So far things are looking pretty good. Here are a couple things we are working on as far as technique.
1) Taking off closer to the hurdle.
2) Getting into position before the hurdle. The goal is to be in hurdle position before reaching the hurdle, so when we get to it, we can focus on coming down. This requires the trail leg to come into position as soon as it leaves the ground, rather than having it "trail" behind as most coaches teach.
3) Bent lead leg into the hurdle. We want to keep the lead leg bent as long as possible, not opening up and extending towards the hurdle, this takes up room and forces us to take off too far away from the hurdle.
That is pretty much it. Sounds weird and different, and it is, but it isnt at the same time.
It actually feels better than the old way. I no longer lean to one side, and my hips dont open up when clearing the hurdle. I should also never have problems with hitting hurdles again. I also feel like i run off the hurdle a lot faster.
But of course only time will tell. I have big goals for this indoor season, and i think its going to take this drastic change in technique to achieve them.
As far as running, i have been doing the most i have ever done since College. I do hurdle technique once a week, and saturdays i work on my 7 step approach. Every other day of the week i have running workouts and a Plyometrics day.
Last week (last week in September) we tested in the 150 meters and the 60 meters.
in the 150 meter test i ran 16.04 and in the 60 meter test i ran 6.80 and 6.73 seconds. We test again in another 4 weeks so ill update the blog when that time comes.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Monday, September 7, 2009
Back to training
So World Champs didnt go as well as id hoped. I did not make it out of the first round. I got out well and with the pack, was in the mix until hurdle 5 where i smacked my trail knee then landed off balance over 6 and was out of the race. If i had 10.1 speed i could have easily gotten back in the mix, but i dont.
I was not disappointed though. I trained on my own since early January minus the 3 weeks i trained with McGill before WCs. So there was not much to be upset about.
My teammate Javier Culson on the other hand, had a tremendous World Champs. He became the first Puerto Rican to make a World Champ Final, and then went ahead and became the first Rican to win a World Champs medal when he finished 2nd in the 400 hurdles. We all went nuts when he won the medal. I was extremely happy and proud of him. He has come a long way and it felt incredible to see his hard work finally pay off. He will now be one of the 400 hurdlers to beat in the future and i am very excited for him.
Its funny though, because last year when he didnt perform as well as the Puerto Rican Federation had hoped, they begged him to switch coaches or change events. They just didnt see him progressing with the same coach. LOL. Now his coach is claimed to be the greatest track coach in PR history and they act as if they were always there supporting him.
But we know the truth. Javier and his Coach Hector Cano achieved success on their own. They put in the work over the years, and didnt quit when the world told them to hang it up. They have come a long way and i am extremely happy for them.
I am sure we will see much more from them in the future.
AS far as myself. I start training for the 2010 season tomorrow =D
i am extremely excited. I will be learning to hurdle with a different style. I will elaborate on the new technique as we get going in the next couple weeks but it is something we feel will have me in the mix with the very best hurdlers in the world in 2010.
Expect to see a leap frog, as i drastically drop my times in 2010
I was not disappointed though. I trained on my own since early January minus the 3 weeks i trained with McGill before WCs. So there was not much to be upset about.
My teammate Javier Culson on the other hand, had a tremendous World Champs. He became the first Puerto Rican to make a World Champ Final, and then went ahead and became the first Rican to win a World Champs medal when he finished 2nd in the 400 hurdles. We all went nuts when he won the medal. I was extremely happy and proud of him. He has come a long way and it felt incredible to see his hard work finally pay off. He will now be one of the 400 hurdlers to beat in the future and i am very excited for him.
Its funny though, because last year when he didnt perform as well as the Puerto Rican Federation had hoped, they begged him to switch coaches or change events. They just didnt see him progressing with the same coach. LOL. Now his coach is claimed to be the greatest track coach in PR history and they act as if they were always there supporting him.
But we know the truth. Javier and his Coach Hector Cano achieved success on their own. They put in the work over the years, and didnt quit when the world told them to hang it up. They have come a long way and i am extremely happy for them.
I am sure we will see much more from them in the future.
AS far as myself. I start training for the 2010 season tomorrow =D
i am extremely excited. I will be learning to hurdle with a different style. I will elaborate on the new technique as we get going in the next couple weeks but it is something we feel will have me in the mix with the very best hurdlers in the world in 2010.
Expect to see a leap frog, as i drastically drop my times in 2010
Friday, July 24, 2009
Sticking with the Old
Ok so we decided i wont be "learning" to hurdle just yet. Coach and I decided that we dont have enough time before World Champs to ingrain the new stuff and so for now we will stick with the old, only make sure we do things better.
so for the rest of this year, i will still look like everyone else. which is pretty much lead leg dominant and running sideways down the track haha.
The plan now is to throw out the old way and go with the new stuff in time for World Indoors in 2010.
Things are still feeling pretty good though and i plan on big things in August. I have about 9 days left before i fly to Berlin, so i have to learn as much as possible, because once i get to Berlin ill be back on my own.
The Federation is too cheap to fly Coach McGill out to Berlin so we just gonna hope i can retain as much in these next few weeks as possible.
so for the rest of this year, i will still look like everyone else. which is pretty much lead leg dominant and running sideways down the track haha.
The plan now is to throw out the old way and go with the new stuff in time for World Indoors in 2010.
Things are still feeling pretty good though and i plan on big things in August. I have about 9 days left before i fly to Berlin, so i have to learn as much as possible, because once i get to Berlin ill be back on my own.
The Federation is too cheap to fly Coach McGill out to Berlin so we just gonna hope i can retain as much in these next few weeks as possible.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Learning to Hurdle
I finished 4th down in Cuba at the CAC games. Dayron Robles, the world record holder, was there running in front of his people and ran away in a comfortable 13.18. I ran 13.63.
I then came to Raleigh and trained with Coach McGill for a day before heading to NYC for Club Nationals. I am learning to hurdle a new way and im pretty excited. i actually didnt run very well in NY because i am trying to ingrain this new technique and ran a bit scared. Im still not comfortable with the new things ive learned and so i held back alot at the meet.
But i am officially with Coach McGill now. I have known him for 7 years now but have never been able to work with him one on one. Every time i was ready, something would come up that would prevent it from happening. But im finally here and we can FINALLY get to work.
He is one of the best hurdle coaches in the world in my eyes. He has coached 3 of the fastest high school hurdlers of all time. Johnny Dutch, Malcom Nunley, and currently Wayne Davis. All three have broken 13.50 in HS, Johnny also ran 50.xx in the 400 hurdles under coach McGill, and Wayne Davis broke Terrance Trammells indoor 60 hurdle record, Liu Xiangs 110 hurdle youth world record, and recently ran 13.16w, and 13.30 legal over the 39" barriers.
Its clear coach McGill has been doing something right down here, and now its time to show the world that he can do even more with a post-collegiate guy.
so im excited. ive been un-doing alot of bad technqiue so far with him. my trail leg lags way behind, my lead leg kicks out instead of down, i dont lean enough and i dont hold my lean coming off the hurdle.
Coach has a real eye for picking up on the little things, and ive been feeling really great training with him so far.
I have one more meet before i head off to Berlin for World Champs. I run in Bogota, Colombia in 2 weeks. I will be doing as much as i can to ingrain the knew techniques coach is teaching me, and hopefully it will be enough by August 19th to run some fast times at Worlds.
Coach feels that once i fix the minor issues in my hurdling i should be in the 13.3/13.2 range, and he feels it is still very possible to get there before Worlds.
so we'll see what happens. I'll update the blog after my meet in Colombia and before Worlds.
if you are interested in getting to know Coach McGill more check out his website at HURDLES FIRST its without a doubt the best hurdling website on the internet.
I then came to Raleigh and trained with Coach McGill for a day before heading to NYC for Club Nationals. I am learning to hurdle a new way and im pretty excited. i actually didnt run very well in NY because i am trying to ingrain this new technique and ran a bit scared. Im still not comfortable with the new things ive learned and so i held back alot at the meet.
But i am officially with Coach McGill now. I have known him for 7 years now but have never been able to work with him one on one. Every time i was ready, something would come up that would prevent it from happening. But im finally here and we can FINALLY get to work.
He is one of the best hurdle coaches in the world in my eyes. He has coached 3 of the fastest high school hurdlers of all time. Johnny Dutch, Malcom Nunley, and currently Wayne Davis. All three have broken 13.50 in HS, Johnny also ran 50.xx in the 400 hurdles under coach McGill, and Wayne Davis broke Terrance Trammells indoor 60 hurdle record, Liu Xiangs 110 hurdle youth world record, and recently ran 13.16w, and 13.30 legal over the 39" barriers.
Its clear coach McGill has been doing something right down here, and now its time to show the world that he can do even more with a post-collegiate guy.
so im excited. ive been un-doing alot of bad technqiue so far with him. my trail leg lags way behind, my lead leg kicks out instead of down, i dont lean enough and i dont hold my lean coming off the hurdle.
Coach has a real eye for picking up on the little things, and ive been feeling really great training with him so far.
I have one more meet before i head off to Berlin for World Champs. I run in Bogota, Colombia in 2 weeks. I will be doing as much as i can to ingrain the knew techniques coach is teaching me, and hopefully it will be enough by August 19th to run some fast times at Worlds.
Coach feels that once i fix the minor issues in my hurdling i should be in the 13.3/13.2 range, and he feels it is still very possible to get there before Worlds.
so we'll see what happens. I'll update the blog after my meet in Colombia and before Worlds.
if you are interested in getting to know Coach McGill more check out his website at HURDLES FIRST its without a doubt the best hurdling website on the internet.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Back to Puerto Rico
Ok so i went back to NC but things werent working out as well as i wanted there. I'd go to the track and wouldnt have access to blocks and such, or i wouldnt have a ride to the track. I was supposed to by my friends car off him, but when i retured to NC with the money he acted as if he no longer wanted to sell me it and drove off with it to Fayetteville. haha
So i decided to up and visit my brother in Florida. My mom was down here so i thought it would be a nice surprise to see her, seeing as ive only seen her once (Grandmas Funeral in Jan.) in two years.
I came down to Florida and saw my mom and borhter, his fiance and their cute baby boy Adrian. Things are fine down here but there are no facilites in the area to train.
Most schools around here in Ft. Lauderdale are either private, or gated public schools. I was training at one HS around here but there are absolutely no hurdles and its tough to run faster times when i can not even get over hurdles.
This past weekened i flew down to Cali, Colombia to run in a Grand Prix. I lead from the gun until about 1 meter from the finish line. I had a very clean reace, but scrapped the 9th with my trail knee, and then smashed the 10th with my lead leg. I tried to keep my balance after smashing the tenth but couldnt and went into a front flip and just barely made the finish line. I went from winning by at least half a second to losing by 4 hundreths of a second in 1 hurdle. I finished 3rd in 14.14 to a 14.10. But that is the way it goes in the hurdles, and its a little tougher when you cant get over hurdles in practice haha.
So im heading to Puerto Rico tomorrow and i will be staying there at the Albergue Olympico in Salinas until we (Puerto Rico national team) depart for Cuba the 1st of July for the CAC games.
The Albergue Olympico is the most boring place on the planet, and its usually around 100 degrees at 9am, but there is a nice track, a million hurdles, blocks to start with, and ill finally be able to start lifting weights again. They also have a training room, and ofcourse a cafeteria with wonderful spanish food :)
So ill be living there for the next month and a half in an effort to fix this season before its too late.
My plan is to head to Raleigh NC after the CAC games and train with Coach McGill for the month before i head to World Champs in August.
Ill update the blog if anything changes.
Here I am with the Cutest boy in the world Adrian Cotto :)
So i decided to up and visit my brother in Florida. My mom was down here so i thought it would be a nice surprise to see her, seeing as ive only seen her once (Grandmas Funeral in Jan.) in two years.
I came down to Florida and saw my mom and borhter, his fiance and their cute baby boy Adrian. Things are fine down here but there are no facilites in the area to train.
Most schools around here in Ft. Lauderdale are either private, or gated public schools. I was training at one HS around here but there are absolutely no hurdles and its tough to run faster times when i can not even get over hurdles.
This past weekened i flew down to Cali, Colombia to run in a Grand Prix. I lead from the gun until about 1 meter from the finish line. I had a very clean reace, but scrapped the 9th with my trail knee, and then smashed the 10th with my lead leg. I tried to keep my balance after smashing the tenth but couldnt and went into a front flip and just barely made the finish line. I went from winning by at least half a second to losing by 4 hundreths of a second in 1 hurdle. I finished 3rd in 14.14 to a 14.10. But that is the way it goes in the hurdles, and its a little tougher when you cant get over hurdles in practice haha.
So im heading to Puerto Rico tomorrow and i will be staying there at the Albergue Olympico in Salinas until we (Puerto Rico national team) depart for Cuba the 1st of July for the CAC games.
The Albergue Olympico is the most boring place on the planet, and its usually around 100 degrees at 9am, but there is a nice track, a million hurdles, blocks to start with, and ill finally be able to start lifting weights again. They also have a training room, and ofcourse a cafeteria with wonderful spanish food :)
So ill be living there for the next month and a half in an effort to fix this season before its too late.
My plan is to head to Raleigh NC after the CAC games and train with Coach McGill for the month before i head to World Champs in August.
Ill update the blog if anything changes.
Here I am with the Cutest boy in the world Adrian Cotto :)
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Back in NC
Im back in North Carolina. I ran 13.82 at the Ponce, Grand Prix. Not as good as i wanted, but im still working out lots of kinks with the second half of my race.
I dont have anything set up right now but im sure something will come up. My next mandatory meet with Puerto Rico is the CAC championships in Cuba, the first week of July.
I will probably head to Europe withing the next couple weeks, and when i do i will update the blog.
I dont have anything set up right now but im sure something will come up. My next mandatory meet with Puerto Rico is the CAC championships in Cuba, the first week of July.
I will probably head to Europe withing the next couple weeks, and when i do i will update the blog.
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Happy Mothers Day!
Happy Mothers Day to all the lovely mothers in the world, especially my beautiful mother of 43! Sadly i was not able to see my mom today but i sent her some flowers and a card and of course called to say I love you :)
I am currently in Puerto Rico and i have been here for a little over 2 weeks. Ive ran 3 times so far this season. My first meet was in Greensboro, NC about a month ago where i ran 14.05 in the prelims and 14.10 in the final. Both were Calendar PRs.
my Second meet came last weekend here in Caguas, Puerto Rico at a local track meet and i ran 14.03.
Friday and Saturday (yesterday) i ran at my national meet in Carolina, Puerto Rico and ran 13.89 (-0.8) and 13.71 (+0.8).
So far im happy with the season. I consider my season to have officially started yesterday, seeing as it was the first meet of the outdoor season that i took seriously and first meet of the season where i actually ran hard for a full 110 meters.
I have yet to run against real competition though but will get a chance to next weekend at Puerto Ricos Grand Prix. In attendance will be David Payne (Olympic Silver Medallist) and Dexter Faulk who has ran 13.30 this season already. I will be looking to improve upon yesterdays performance (where i hit 5 hurdles) and my national record of 13.61.
In other news im happy to announce that Puerto Rico has an athlete in track and field who has the fastest time in the world. Javier Culson ran 48.42 to win the 400 hurdles last week at the Jamaica Invitational and is now surely on his way to making the World Championships final in Berlin this summer. We are all very proud of him here in Puerto Rico and i am personally very happy for him. He was my roommate in Beijing last summer and ive known him for 5 years now and have seen all the hard work he has put in over the years and im glad its finally paying off. Congrats Culson! keep it up!
Anyways i am resting today and i will hit the track again tomorrow to knock out some 200s.
I will update this later this week with the meet line-up for Ponce.
Friday, March 20, 2009
March Madness
The title does not refer to college basketball because im not a big fan, though i am rooting for Chapel Hill. Instead it refers to the sitiation i am still in. LOL.
Things have not gone as planned since moving back to NC. i am trainging very day at my old university but i am still not sure when ill be making my move to Raleigh.
Last week i decided i would probably not run many meets this year. Instead i will run a handful meets in order to qualify for WC and just look forward to the only real goal i have for this year which is World Champs in August.
I will no longer be running at Mt. Sac Relays. I could run there, and im sure i would run decent, but im looking to run better than "decent" this year. I am certain i can train the way im training (on my own) and run 13.6s and 13.7s but im looking for more. So until i am settled into my place in Raleigh and training full time with Coach McGill i will not compete.
I may run at Raleigh Relays in a couple weeks but if i do so it will be to simply stay in the competitive mode.
As of today there are 2 meets i am certain i will run at. 1. Puerto Rico Nationals in May. and 2. World Championships in August.
If anything changes i will update the blog.
Things have not gone as planned since moving back to NC. i am trainging very day at my old university but i am still not sure when ill be making my move to Raleigh.
Last week i decided i would probably not run many meets this year. Instead i will run a handful meets in order to qualify for WC and just look forward to the only real goal i have for this year which is World Champs in August.
I will no longer be running at Mt. Sac Relays. I could run there, and im sure i would run decent, but im looking to run better than "decent" this year. I am certain i can train the way im training (on my own) and run 13.6s and 13.7s but im looking for more. So until i am settled into my place in Raleigh and training full time with Coach McGill i will not compete.
I may run at Raleigh Relays in a couple weeks but if i do so it will be to simply stay in the competitive mode.
As of today there are 2 meets i am certain i will run at. 1. Puerto Rico Nationals in May. and 2. World Championships in August.
If anything changes i will update the blog.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Back in NC
I competed at Boston Indoor Games and finished 3rd again behind Trammell and Hicks. I was in 2nd place until i hit hurdles 3 and 4 with my lead leg hamstring. I shoulda have set another PR but instead ran 7.74.
I am now back in Greenville, NC and training at my old university. Last Weekend i ran at UNC and ran a 7.77.
I have no more indoor meets lined up so i am going to start getting ready for outdoors. I plan on my first meet being MT. Sac Relays, but i May jump in the hurdles at Raleigh Relays. It really depends on how my training goes.
The plan for now is to train in Greenville until i gather the funds to head to Raleigh and train with Coach Steve McGill. We got alot of work to do and errors to clean up and the sooner i can move to Raleigh the better.
I also started lifting for the first time this week. Its been over a month since i lifted weights and i could definitely tell. I am surprisingly still pretty strong. I power cleaned 198x2, 220x2, 242x2 but missed 264.
I also lost all the hard earned weight over these past weeks. i was 181 at the begining of the week but i finallyt started eating properly again this week and today weighed in at 183.5. The goal is to get back to 190 and stay there for the entire season. I think gaining the weight should be easier this time because my body has been there before but we'll see.
if anything interesting happens in these next couple weeks ill update the blog. If not ill update befoer my first outdoor race.
O yea. Puerto Rico is excited about the way ive been running but still are not trying to tell me about funding for 2009. Im reaching a point where i may have to pick up a job like i did last January....
I am now back in Greenville, NC and training at my old university. Last Weekend i ran at UNC and ran a 7.77.
I have no more indoor meets lined up so i am going to start getting ready for outdoors. I plan on my first meet being MT. Sac Relays, but i May jump in the hurdles at Raleigh Relays. It really depends on how my training goes.
The plan for now is to train in Greenville until i gather the funds to head to Raleigh and train with Coach Steve McGill. We got alot of work to do and errors to clean up and the sooner i can move to Raleigh the better.
I also started lifting for the first time this week. Its been over a month since i lifted weights and i could definitely tell. I am surprisingly still pretty strong. I power cleaned 198x2, 220x2, 242x2 but missed 264.
I also lost all the hard earned weight over these past weeks. i was 181 at the begining of the week but i finallyt started eating properly again this week and today weighed in at 183.5. The goal is to get back to 190 and stay there for the entire season. I think gaining the weight should be easier this time because my body has been there before but we'll see.
if anything interesting happens in these next couple weeks ill update the blog. If not ill update befoer my first outdoor race.
O yea. Puerto Rico is excited about the way ive been running but still are not trying to tell me about funding for 2009. Im reaching a point where i may have to pick up a job like i did last January....
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Boston Indoor Games Line Up
So the official Line-Up has finally been posted and it is as follows.
Antwon Hicks
USA
Hector Cotto
PUR
Jeff Porter
USA
Aries Merritt
USA
Ron Bramlett
USA
Terrence Trammell
USA
Aubrey Herring
USA
Ryan Fontenot
USA
After my 3rd place finish at Millrose last week i am just looking to improve upon what i did. I have a couple things to work on this week, and if i stick to the game plan things should go well.
Ill be looking to set a new Personal Record. Be sure to tune in to ESPN at 4pm on Sunday to watch the meet.
Antwon Hicks
USA
Hector Cotto
PUR
Jeff Porter
USA
Aries Merritt
USA
Ron Bramlett
USA
Terrence Trammell
USA
Aubrey Herring
USA
Ryan Fontenot
USA
After my 3rd place finish at Millrose last week i am just looking to improve upon what i did. I have a couple things to work on this week, and if i stick to the game plan things should go well.
Ill be looking to set a new Personal Record. Be sure to tune in to ESPN at 4pm on Sunday to watch the meet.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Back in Boston
A lot has happened since i last posted a blog.
When i last posted, i was leaving Boston. I did leave Boston but decided to run in a meet i entered before i left. That meet was run at Harvard University, i ran 7.95 in the prelims and 7.80 in the finals. I smashed into the 3rd hurdle but my start was pretty good.
They day after the meet i flew down to NC. I stayed one day and then got word that my grandma passed away and her body was being flown from Rochester, NY to Puerto Rico.
My broke behind had no money so a couple family members had to put money together to get me a flight. after spending less than 24hrs in NC i had a flight scheduled to San Juan Puerto Rico.
The funeral was very nice, if you can say that. I am certain my grandma would have been happy to see most of her family show up. My grandma had been sick for years and although i was sad to see her go, i was at the same time happy that she would no longer have to suffer. I did not cry much. Not because i dont miss her, but because i was honestly happy that she could finally rest after 86 years.
The funeral also allowed me to see my mom for the first time in over a year. She is of course still beautiful so i was happy to see that haha. I saw my sister, whom i hadnt seen in over a year as well so i was happy to see her all grown up too :)
They day after the funeral i went and stayed with a teammate Felix Martinez and begun training. My plan was to stay in Puerto Rico until Feb 5th and then fly out to Boston in time for the Indoor Games.
Early in the week though i received an email asking if id like to fly up to NYC to compete in the Millrose Games. Ofcourse my response was yes and so i changed my flight to fly to NYC.
I went and competed and i am happy with the results. I finished 3rd in a time of 7.72 seconds. The race did not go perfect but i was happy to have finished in the medals (which i didnt even know they gave out at Millrose)
I false started for the first time ever in my life. I honestly dont think i false started, but the computer on my blocks showed that i left in a reaction time of .90 which is .10 under the legal limit.
I still got a decent start when we were reset. I felt i ran up on the first hurdle again, but i got back into rhythm sooner than in the past and was able to run a new PR.
I am now back in Boston and will train here until the Boston Indoor Games this weekend and then fly back down to NC.
When i last posted, i was leaving Boston. I did leave Boston but decided to run in a meet i entered before i left. That meet was run at Harvard University, i ran 7.95 in the prelims and 7.80 in the finals. I smashed into the 3rd hurdle but my start was pretty good.
They day after the meet i flew down to NC. I stayed one day and then got word that my grandma passed away and her body was being flown from Rochester, NY to Puerto Rico.
My broke behind had no money so a couple family members had to put money together to get me a flight. after spending less than 24hrs in NC i had a flight scheduled to San Juan Puerto Rico.
The funeral was very nice, if you can say that. I am certain my grandma would have been happy to see most of her family show up. My grandma had been sick for years and although i was sad to see her go, i was at the same time happy that she would no longer have to suffer. I did not cry much. Not because i dont miss her, but because i was honestly happy that she could finally rest after 86 years.
The funeral also allowed me to see my mom for the first time in over a year. She is of course still beautiful so i was happy to see that haha. I saw my sister, whom i hadnt seen in over a year as well so i was happy to see her all grown up too :)
They day after the funeral i went and stayed with a teammate Felix Martinez and begun training. My plan was to stay in Puerto Rico until Feb 5th and then fly out to Boston in time for the Indoor Games.
Early in the week though i received an email asking if id like to fly up to NYC to compete in the Millrose Games. Ofcourse my response was yes and so i changed my flight to fly to NYC.
I went and competed and i am happy with the results. I finished 3rd in a time of 7.72 seconds. The race did not go perfect but i was happy to have finished in the medals (which i didnt even know they gave out at Millrose)
I false started for the first time ever in my life. I honestly dont think i false started, but the computer on my blocks showed that i left in a reaction time of .90 which is .10 under the legal limit.
I still got a decent start when we were reset. I felt i ran up on the first hurdle again, but i got back into rhythm sooner than in the past and was able to run a new PR.
I am now back in Boston and will train here until the Boston Indoor Games this weekend and then fly back down to NC.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Leaving Boston
For reasons I will not discuss in this blog, I am leaving the Boston area. I have decided it would be best were I to move and start elsewhere.
Coach and I are still on decent terms (as decent as they can be when his number one athlete gets up and leaves). We did not have some huge argument and cuss each other out, but after speaking about a couple issue over the course of some days, I came to the conclusion that it would be best if I moved on.
This is very hard for me to do, because i saw myself living in Boston for the next 4 or 5 years. I had it all planned out and coach was a part of that plan, but now i feel different. I prayed many nights, that i would be guided in the right direction, and morning after morning i woke up thinking it would probably be best to relocate. So I am doing so. It really is crazy how things can change so drastically in such a short period of time. But that is life.
Id like to thank everyone who helped me over the past year in Boston.
My bff (no homo) Dominik. If you know me, then you know Dominik. He has helped me out more than anyone. Not just this past year, but pretty much since i met him in 8th grade. He is a great friend and proves so everyday.
Id like to thank John and Rebbecca from Excel Sport and Fitness, the Gym i have trained at for the past year. John and Rebbecca have always treated me with the utmost respect and were always very professional. They allowed me to train at their wonderful facility in Waltham, MA for free and anytime i wanted or needed. Often at random hours of the night when the gym was not even open. This would not have been possible at another gym so i thank them.
Thanks to Dave Callum and the entire Greater Boston Track Club. They are a good group of people and i suggest anyone thinking of joining a track club in Boston to join the GBTC. They work hard, love the sport and many of them are good friends outside of the sport as well.
Thanks to Dr. Marchese my Chriopractor over at Marchese Sports Therapy in Woburn, MA. He is the best Dr. Ive ever worked with, he actually "adjusted" my back only 2 or 3 times in the entire year i saw him. He is not the stereotypical crack-your-back chiropractor. He is very knowledgeable in sports injuries and was very important in my staying healthy last year. Without him i would prob have stress fractures in both shins right now.
Marlow and Stephanie. They were my two biggest fans up here lol. They both made things fun and made the sometimes stressful times easy. They are both grown women, but live life to the fullest and find ways to make the best of times. They both workout quite often, and for no reason other than to stay in shape, and run the occasional marathon. I love seeing people who train so hard for the pure joy of it.
Shane (muscly arms/legs). He was my training partner in the gym for the most part. Even though he is a little weak-ass he still helped push my workouts haha. We had some fun times outside of the gym as well, and he is a good friend. He will be starting grad school next Fall, and i hope he chooses a school in NC, which is where i think i will be moving next, so we can continue having good times together.
I have to thank Evan, he introduced me to Carl and also served as training partner during the summer. I never got to hang out with him outside of training, but he was obviously very important to my success in 2008, as he introduced me to Carl.
To all the countless personalities at the gym, Ben, Matt, Tom, Curt and the rest who made training enjoyable.
And of course last but not least to Carl Valle. He invested a lot of time and money into helping me reach my dream of competing at the Olympics last year. There are not many coaches who are as dedicated to helping athletes reach their potential, and i was very fortunate to find Carl.
I have learned lots working with Carl over the past year and i will make sure to put to good use the things i learned. I did not just learn how to run faster and train better, but also learned a lot about the other side of sport, and life in general.
Thanks for everything coach, you are i great guy and i wish you all the best in the future.
I wish everyone the best of luck in the future, I thank them for the good times in Boston.
I will be moving to NC in the next couple days to live with a good friend of mine in Greenville. I was debating on moving to FL to be closer to family or to NC. I decided on NC and Greenville because i can start training immediately. I still plan on running indoors so i must get back on the track as soon as possible.
From Greenville I may move again, and if i do i will update the blog. Until i have made that decision, though, i wil not be updating the blog.
Thanks again to everyone who helped me achieve success over the past year. I will see you all around.
Coach and I are still on decent terms (as decent as they can be when his number one athlete gets up and leaves). We did not have some huge argument and cuss each other out, but after speaking about a couple issue over the course of some days, I came to the conclusion that it would be best if I moved on.
This is very hard for me to do, because i saw myself living in Boston for the next 4 or 5 years. I had it all planned out and coach was a part of that plan, but now i feel different. I prayed many nights, that i would be guided in the right direction, and morning after morning i woke up thinking it would probably be best to relocate. So I am doing so. It really is crazy how things can change so drastically in such a short period of time. But that is life.
Id like to thank everyone who helped me over the past year in Boston.
My bff (no homo) Dominik. If you know me, then you know Dominik. He has helped me out more than anyone. Not just this past year, but pretty much since i met him in 8th grade. He is a great friend and proves so everyday.
Id like to thank John and Rebbecca from Excel Sport and Fitness, the Gym i have trained at for the past year. John and Rebbecca have always treated me with the utmost respect and were always very professional. They allowed me to train at their wonderful facility in Waltham, MA for free and anytime i wanted or needed. Often at random hours of the night when the gym was not even open. This would not have been possible at another gym so i thank them.
Thanks to Dave Callum and the entire Greater Boston Track Club. They are a good group of people and i suggest anyone thinking of joining a track club in Boston to join the GBTC. They work hard, love the sport and many of them are good friends outside of the sport as well.
Thanks to Dr. Marchese my Chriopractor over at Marchese Sports Therapy in Woburn, MA. He is the best Dr. Ive ever worked with, he actually "adjusted" my back only 2 or 3 times in the entire year i saw him. He is not the stereotypical crack-your-back chiropractor. He is very knowledgeable in sports injuries and was very important in my staying healthy last year. Without him i would prob have stress fractures in both shins right now.
Marlow and Stephanie. They were my two biggest fans up here lol. They both made things fun and made the sometimes stressful times easy. They are both grown women, but live life to the fullest and find ways to make the best of times. They both workout quite often, and for no reason other than to stay in shape, and run the occasional marathon. I love seeing people who train so hard for the pure joy of it.
Shane (muscly arms/legs). He was my training partner in the gym for the most part. Even though he is a little weak-ass he still helped push my workouts haha. We had some fun times outside of the gym as well, and he is a good friend. He will be starting grad school next Fall, and i hope he chooses a school in NC, which is where i think i will be moving next, so we can continue having good times together.
I have to thank Evan, he introduced me to Carl and also served as training partner during the summer. I never got to hang out with him outside of training, but he was obviously very important to my success in 2008, as he introduced me to Carl.
To all the countless personalities at the gym, Ben, Matt, Tom, Curt and the rest who made training enjoyable.
And of course last but not least to Carl Valle. He invested a lot of time and money into helping me reach my dream of competing at the Olympics last year. There are not many coaches who are as dedicated to helping athletes reach their potential, and i was very fortunate to find Carl.
I have learned lots working with Carl over the past year and i will make sure to put to good use the things i learned. I did not just learn how to run faster and train better, but also learned a lot about the other side of sport, and life in general.
Thanks for everything coach, you are i great guy and i wish you all the best in the future.
I wish everyone the best of luck in the future, I thank them for the good times in Boston.
I will be moving to NC in the next couple days to live with a good friend of mine in Greenville. I was debating on moving to FL to be closer to family or to NC. I decided on NC and Greenville because i can start training immediately. I still plan on running indoors so i must get back on the track as soon as possible.
From Greenville I may move again, and if i do i will update the blog. Until i have made that decision, though, i wil not be updating the blog.
Thanks again to everyone who helped me achieve success over the past year. I will see you all around.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
New Years Resolution
Today my lil hommie and teammate Carol Rodriguez started her own BLOG, and she spoke about her New Years resolution.
While i dont go crazy about making New Years resolutions, i did make one this year. I didnt sit and think about it for months, it kinda just came to me.
My New Years Resolution is to learn to cook 2 new meals every month. Its nothing track or training related (because i strive to get better all the time, not just for the New Year) but i think its a good resolution. Nothing that will haunt me at night if i fail to follow through, but a resolution that will be beneficial to my life haha.
At first i wanted to learn to cook a new meal a week, but i figured that might be a little much, and i probably wouldn't follow through with it.
I made the resolution because i like food, but lately I've gotten into the habit of eating the same thing.
But anyway, check out Carols blog as she get ready to blow up in the sport during her first professional season!
While i dont go crazy about making New Years resolutions, i did make one this year. I didnt sit and think about it for months, it kinda just came to me.
My New Years Resolution is to learn to cook 2 new meals every month. Its nothing track or training related (because i strive to get better all the time, not just for the New Year) but i think its a good resolution. Nothing that will haunt me at night if i fail to follow through, but a resolution that will be beneficial to my life haha.
At first i wanted to learn to cook a new meal a week, but i figured that might be a little much, and i probably wouldn't follow through with it.
I made the resolution because i like food, but lately I've gotten into the habit of eating the same thing.
But anyway, check out Carols blog as she get ready to blow up in the sport during her first professional season!
Monday, January 5, 2009
Running in NYC
My next meet will be this Friday at the Armory in NYC. It will be a 60 hurdle race and ill get at least 2 races so im happy. The goal is 7.75 and regardless of the competition i think ill get it.
I have to thank the David Callum and Greater Boston Track Club because they are the ones funding the trip to NYC. They have helped me out in the past and continue to do so today.
Im going to treat this meet as a "make-up" meet. This past Saturday didnt go as planned, but Friday i have a chance to make up for it and get back on track.
I have been confirmed for the Boston Indoor games in February and id like to be in the 7.6s by then. I know that with competition ill get there, but id like to be running 7.75- with next to no competition before then.
We will see what happens.
I have to thank the David Callum and Greater Boston Track Club because they are the ones funding the trip to NYC. They have helped me out in the past and continue to do so today.
Im going to treat this meet as a "make-up" meet. This past Saturday didnt go as planned, but Friday i have a chance to make up for it and get back on track.
I have been confirmed for the Boston Indoor games in February and id like to be in the 7.6s by then. I know that with competition ill get there, but id like to be running 7.75- with next to no competition before then.
We will see what happens.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Tiger Invite
Today i ran at a local track meet. It was run pretty bad. I thought the meet was at 4pm, So we got there at 230pm. At 3pm you can hear crickets in the place though because there were like 5 people in the gym. Come to find out the meet is actually at 5pm.
So i warm up and get ready to run, only to find out 10 minutes before my race that there arent enough people for trials and finals, so of course we only ran a timed final. I went and sat down for 45 mintues because i decided i didnt care anymore. I was just gonna run through and finish the race because i wasnt excited anymore.
We finally ran and i ran 7.32 for the 55 hurdles. It converts to a 7.85 which is decent i guess seeing as, by the time i ran, i no longer cared.
I was a bit dissapointed though. The times id been running in practice indicate i should be running 7.75 or better(60 meters) right now, but under the circumstances i wasnt able to show it. I tend to run a tenth faster in the final and maybe, had i been able to run twice, i could have ran the 7.22 that i was aiming for. Now i have to wait until next week (maybe) if i run down in NYC. I know i should be able to run my fastest in the very first race, and i believe i could have ran 7.25 during my first race had i still been excited to race, but i guess we'll never know.
So the meet didnt go as planned but i still ran decent. Not excited, but i cant really be mad either. Hopefully this will be the last bootleg meet for the year.
i would post the video of the race, but i dont want to waste another 7.32 seconds of your lives haha.
So i warm up and get ready to run, only to find out 10 minutes before my race that there arent enough people for trials and finals, so of course we only ran a timed final. I went and sat down for 45 mintues because i decided i didnt care anymore. I was just gonna run through and finish the race because i wasnt excited anymore.
We finally ran and i ran 7.32 for the 55 hurdles. It converts to a 7.85 which is decent i guess seeing as, by the time i ran, i no longer cared.
I was a bit dissapointed though. The times id been running in practice indicate i should be running 7.75 or better(60 meters) right now, but under the circumstances i wasnt able to show it. I tend to run a tenth faster in the final and maybe, had i been able to run twice, i could have ran the 7.22 that i was aiming for. Now i have to wait until next week (maybe) if i run down in NYC. I know i should be able to run my fastest in the very first race, and i believe i could have ran 7.25 during my first race had i still been excited to race, but i guess we'll never know.
So the meet didnt go as planned but i still ran decent. Not excited, but i cant really be mad either. Hopefully this will be the last bootleg meet for the year.
i would post the video of the race, but i dont want to waste another 7.32 seconds of your lives haha.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
A year in Review 2008
So the New Year is here and id like to take time to look at all that happened in 2008
After graduating from ECU i accepted a job offer in Lynn, MA to do Mechanical Design work at an Engineering firm.
so I...
-Moved to Boston on December 28th 2007.
-I stayed in the living room on a blow up mattress of my good friend Dominiks Apt.
-I officially gave up on track and field
-I searched for a coach in the Boston area because i missed track
-I met and started training with my current coach Carl Valle
-I woke up at 5am daily, worked from 7am-4pm. trained from 8pm-10pm and made it home by 10:30pm in time to eat dinner, shower and sleep.
-I showed up late for work and/or left work early in an effort to have more energy for practice.
-I was terminated from work due to the above problem.
-I started training "full-time" in March
-I lived off of $800 a month that PR would send whenever they were in the mood (on average every 3 months)
-I had a very understanding Landlord in Matt Sarbanis whos sister was a former Olympic and World Championship athlete herself. I was very lucky here, as i was forced to pay my landlord on average every-other month because PR never sent checks on time and he completely understood
-I started my track season at Mt. Sac relay with an Injury, and a time of 14+
-I continued to run piss-poor until May when i ran 13.64 in Ottawa, Canada.
-Coach Valle and I got on bad terms and we parted ways.
-Instead of running in Europe for the first time, i ran in Colombia at the CAC games, due to what happened with coach.
-I posted another PR at 13.61, and won Bronze at the CAC games with a 13.55w
-I decided to continue training with Carl, despite the nonsense that caused me to skip out on Europe.
-I won Gold at USATF into a very strong head wind (which for some reason is posted as a tail wind)
-I competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics.
-I ran like crap.
-I came home to another "late" check from PR and was not able to pay my landlord for August rent.
-I sold him my bed, my tv, my dressers etc.. for $700 and promised to pay him the final $100 (plus utilities) in the future
-I moved in with Coach Valle and others in Waltham, MA. Coach found some local sponsorships for me so i wouldnt have to worry about rent.
-I never received my August check from PR
-I started traing for my first indoor season since 2006
-Finally received a check from PR. Not Augusts check but a "to help you get by" check.
-I posted 2 Personal Best in 2 meets.
-I sit here hanging on by a thread but greatful for all that has happened.
WOW alot can happen in a Year.
I finally feel i am in the right situation to run fast though. I have dedicated my life to training for track and field and i am finally able to do so with no distractions. I dont have school, and i dont have work. I relax at home all day, train hard on the track and in the weight room, and repeat 6 days a week.
Ive been saying all year that 2008 was my "Get in there" year, and that 2009 will be my "Blow up" year. lol.
In 2008 I made the Olympics. This year i plan on establishing myself as one of the up and coming hurdlers in the world.
The year did not go exactly as planned, but i kept my eye on the prize and i accomplished just about everything i set out to accomplish. I am an official Olympian, which no one can ever take away from me, and im on my way to fulfilling my dreams.
I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason, and whatever is meant to be will be.
So Happy New Years to everyone, i hope your 2008 was as good as mine, and i hope 2009 will be even better for all!
Happy New Years!
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