10 Keys to Being a Good Pace Maker / Rabbit

On Sunday I am the pace setter for the 800m at the Prefontaine Classic. The field is arguably one of the best group of 800m runners ever assembled on US soil. Below are my 10 Keys to Pacing a Ridiculous 800m Field. Hopefully this will help out runners of all events that are going to or are thinking about pacing a race.

1. Don't forget your spikes. Running fast and in the front wearing your trainers will only turn out bad. You'll feel like you're running in sand on the beach before its over. It will also make your feet look huge compared to the other runners.

2. Check the meet schedule the night before the race. Sometimes things change and event staff will be worried most with the athletes that are competing before they think of the pace setter. So it's best to check on this yourself. Being late to the start line or missing the race all together is not good for your career.

3. Don't lean across the line at your stopping point. Not only will this look awkward but studies show that 15% of time runners that lean/lunge across the line fall. If you fall as a pacer you will definitely be trampled by everyone behind you. That can get very ugly ... and bloody.

4. Get off the track quickly. Remember that other runners are right behind you the whole time. So don't slow down in lane one, or lane two for that matter. When your job is done move so far out of the paths of runners so that the only possible way you'd get in the way would be on the winner's victory lap out in lane 8.

5. Keep to the time. Just do your job and run the pace. If the pace is 60 sec laps, don't go out in 56 and come back in 64. For one, that makes the real runners look bad, and two, you're not helping anyone. Also people may start referring to you as Kevin Elliott..

6. Keep your eyes forward and pay attention. We all know you could go farther and you feel comfortable with the pace. So don't showboat like you are winning or try to make it look extra easy by waving to your girlfriend while you're rounding the curve. Again, that can only end badly with a fall or pissing off the meet director.

7. Look presentable. Yeah, you aren't out there to set a personal best or try to beat people but you will still be the face of the race for a while. If the meet is on TV your face will most likely be front and center. So shave your face, shampoo your hair, wear your race makeup (for girls), or do whatever you need to look presentable. Who knows, you may start getting fan mail.

8. Don't put your hands on your knees or lay down on the track after you pull out. If you didn't notice, everyone else in the race ran just as hard as you and kept going farther. In fact, the race is still going on so act like it didn't hurt. Stay upright, sign some autographs, and pretend like you aren't breathing hard. This will help you get more pacing duties and even more fan mail.

9. Be prepared not to be thanked. Everyone in the race is there to win and only one can. So there may only be one happy person after the race and he/she may be giving media interviews afterwards. That leaves a bunch of other runners meandering around the post-race tent, most of which probably could find something you did wrong that hurt their race. If you want a pat on the back, call your mom afterwards.

10. Don't finish the race. If you do it may be your last pacing job ever. Stick to the plan.

Last weekend I was fortunate enough to spend the weekend in the Carribbean in Ponce (pronounced Ponse-say) in Puerto Rico. The meet hotel was a Hilton resort, golf course, and casino, definitely a vacation destination hotel. It was sort of out by itself on what had to be at least 60 acres of land so I didn't get to do much outside of that area. But the hotel was right on the coast so there was almost no need to go anywhere else.

The day before the meet I went to the stadium to get credentials and do my pre meet workout. In the van on the way over was Dwain Chambers; he seems like a nice guy. I did the first half of my pre-meet in the rain. The difference is that this was 75-degree rain, not Oregon's 40-degree rain. So it wasn't too bad. It's very humid here too. I can definitely tell I'm in the tropics. The scenery and landscape here are amazing too. Looking one way I can see the sea and the other the mountains on the inner part of the island. I can see why people vacation and honeymoon to the Caribbean.

That night I had the hotel seafood buffet. It was pretty amazing. They had alot of different kinds of fresh seafood. The crab was probably the best. There was also whole fried snapper... it was definitely whole, eyes and all. I should have taken a picture of that. I also had probably some of the best clam chowder too. Clams and muscles deserve an honorable mention as well.

The weather on the day of the race was perfect. We ran at 8:45pm so the wind had died down and the humidity was very low. They had tried to find us a rabbit but by the time the race came around we learned that there wasn't one. And partially for that reason, the raace wend out in a pedestrian 52.5 for the first lap. I was in the middle of the pack so was probably about 53.0 for my first lap. Then I started a string of stupid mistakes. I started picking it up around the first curve of the second lap. That is ok but I probalby moved a little too hard from getting panicked about the slow pace. Then with 300m to go I let myself get sucked into a couple people's moves. I am usually not strong enough to start kicking with 300m to go. This race was no different. At the 200m mark I thought I still felt pretty good and made my real move to try and catch Jonathon Johnson, who was 5-6 meters in front of me. Again, not a good idea when it is my third move in a 200m span. I should have kept my pace and kicked with 120m to go. But I didn't and because of that I started running out of gas with 30 meters left and got passed a few meters before the line for a 3rd place finish.

My time was 1:48.02, which to be honest, isn't good at all. I feel like I'm in 1:45 shape right now. But I can only do so much with a 53 first lap. So I didn't really care about the time, it is irrelevant. What was important was being in the race mentally and being competitive, which I was. What I wasn't happy with was my tactics. I've been beating myself up for the last several days for not racing smarter. But, you live and you learn and hopefully I learned and won't make that mistake again.

Check out some of the photos I took over the weekend here.

This week I have a more legitamate excuse for not writing a blog on, say, Monday. The fact is that I actually did write a blog on Monday and I was about to add one more link to it and press submit when my Firefox browser crashed and I lost it. This time I wrote it on my Stickies App on my computer and then just copied and pasted into the blog. Much safer! So without further delay, here goes my blog.

Last weekend was my triumphant return to the 400m at Hayward Field in Eugene, OR. The last time I ran a 400 at Hayward was when I won the Pac-10 Championships in 2006 with my still lifetime PR of 45.19 (video below). I have ran a hand full of 400's since that time but none at Hayward.

My main competition for this race was 4x400 anchor aficionado Chad Barlow. I was actually a little nervous about racing him head to head. At the Oregon UCLA Dual meet he set a PR at 46.7 or so and I hadn't ran sub 47 for over a year. But on Friday, the day before the meet, I took 6-7 block starts and my confidence was back. I got out of the blocks extremely well and the race was over in about 15 meters. I powered through the final 100m to cross the line in 46.59 (video below) - about 1.25 seconds ahead of Barlow and a new meet record. What I enjoyed most about the race was my victory lap. It was almost like a homecoming for me to hear people clapping and cheering for me as a 400m runner.

i also ran a pretty non-chalant leg of a non-chalant 4x400 relay. I split 46.9 as our team won in 3:12.13 (video below). Even though we weren't out there running really fast it was still good enough for a new meet record. I thought that was strange until I remembered that while at Oregon we never ran this meet because Pac-10's is the following week.

In all it was a good day. The objective was to get in a really good speed workout and I definitely did that. Now I am looking forward to this weekend where I am running the 800m in Ponce, Puerto Rico. It should be a fun little trip except the weather forecast shows rain the entire time I'm there. The picture to the right is from the Hilton hotel website where I am staying. Pretty nice huh?

Check out my website Saturday/Sunday for updates on my race. And also be sure to vote on my poll to predict what time I will run. Here are some links of interest:

VIDEO - Oregon Twilight 400m - 46.59

VIDEO - Oregon Twilight 4x400m relay - 3:12.13

VIDEO - Oregon Twilight Interview

VIDEO - 2006 Pac-10 400m - 45.19

LINK - Ponce Grand Prix de Atletismo (Meet Website)

I am definately a week late in updating my blog with a recap of last Saturday's Penn Relays. Each time I thought about writing this over the past week something else entered my mind. Here is my list of 5 reasons it took me 9 days to write a blog:

1. I got back from my trip and had almost no food in my house so I spent the time trying to create new foods by combining whatever I had left. A few of those meal creations included tuna tacos, pancakes and rice, nesquick-flavored pancakes, and instant potatoes and toast. Eventually I did go to the store and am back eating normal and healthy now. i may keep the nesquick pancakes.

2. It has been raining non-stop in Eugene since my return so I've been unmotivated to do anything but watch B-Movies on free On-Demand. I was really surprised about how many of those movies Dennis Quaid is in!

3. After a great run at Penn I got so motivated to continue training that I've been sleeping in the weight room so that I can get to work sooner in the morning and don't waste time getting ready in the morning and driving to the weight room. I did find that neither the plates or the med balls make good pillows. I ended up putting two padded benches together for a bed. It has paid off though. I am now dead lifting 300 lbs in 2 sets of 5.

4. I volunteered at a local soup kitchen last week for 40 hours to fill a community service order from a jaywalking ticket crossing the street to the courthouse to go to jury duty. Pretty ironic huh? I made a few friends though. Jay is a war vet and has had a hard time with alcoholism for the past 30 years. He is really smart and I like discussing the economy with him. I invited him over for pancakes and rice but he passed for some reason...

5. I spent over an hour every night on the phone with one of my friends explaining what a DMR was and why it looked like I was jogging around the track not catching up to Khadevis Robinson and Gary Reed. My friend couldn't grasp the concept that I ran an event that wasn't in the Olympics or the fact that since I'm bigger than all the other 800m runners, why I couldn't catch all of them like Usain Bolt can. It was very hard to try to explain why running relaxed works in a distance race to run your best time. Even after almost 8 hours of conversation I'm not very positive that I got the point across, and I have a feeling that I'll get the same questions again after my next race.

So there are my reasons for postponing this blog until tonight. Now I'll give you the recap of my Penn Relays experience.

This was my first time competing for Team USA. That in itself made it a very special experience and hope there will be many more of those times over the next several years. The travel to Philadelphia went really well after my one-hour delay out of Eugene was cancelled. That was the first time I've ever had a flight go from a delay to on-time.

Friday, the day before the race, I picked up my Team USA gear kit at the hotel and discovered that they had mistakenly given my the little distance running shorts instead of my requested half tights. There was a team meeting that night to go over teams and logistics so I took my shorts to exchange them after the meeting. During the meeting I found out that I would be on the USA White team with Christian Smith (1200), Kelliw Willie (400), and Lopez Lomong (mile) - a pretty darn good team. After the meeting we rummaged through the uniform boxes to discover there were no half tights. There are also only red and blue colored speed suits so I was stuck with the little distance shorts. Even though I run the 800, I definitely do not have a distance runner's body. To say the least, I was not very excited about going out in front of 40,000 people in my short shorts. I took that night to just relax and the next morning I decided to man up and accept my short shorts and just go out there and do my thing.

Being part of the USA vs the World part of the Penn Relays gives you some VIP treatment. One of those is you get to warm up on the infield. That was especially cool since I was in the middle of my warmup when they ran the boys high school 4x100 championship race where a team from Jamaica ran 39.91 and the crowd just went crazy, especially the 15,000+ Jamaicans in the crowd. The warm up went well and I was pretty relaxed for the race until I got onto the track. I watched the first lap of the 1200 and started to feel myself get a little nervous. So I stopped watching the race until I was on the line and saw Kelly Willie about 50 meters away. By that time I was in my race zone and was anything but nervous.

I got the baton in 3rd place about 10-12 meters back from USA Blue and Canada. I take off with the intention of maintaining the gap to the two 1:43 800m runners in front of me. About 200m into the race the Kenyan runner moves in front of me. That gave me someone to pace off of and so I kept on his heels until about 200m to go and tried to put the hammer down. I passed him back on the turn and gave it all I had the last 75 meters. By the time I got to Lomong, I could barely lift my arm to give him the baton. That thing felt like it weighed 40 pounds. At that point I moved off the track and tried to find some water and recover a little bit. I looked up with two laps to go to see Lomong in the lead. I thought that would give us a chance at the very least so I was happy I had kept it close enough. The Canadian and Kenyan anchors rand around 3:51 miles and was just a little too much for Lomong but he still split around a 3:54 and we finished 3rd, beating the other USA Blue team.

After the race I cooled down and had to go straight to the airport to catch a flight back home. At the airport I talked to my coach over the phone and he told me that I had split 1:45.79. That time is .3 faster than my personal best. So to run that fast in April is a great sign that Coach Rowland and I are on the right track. I am still in a pretty tough training phase now so when I start to taper in June I don't think I'll be so surprised when I'm running even faster but for this early in the season, that is great.

Of course I was super pumped and told a bunch of people but in reality it doesn't mean much in the scheme of the season. There will be many other times when I'll need to run at least that fast. If I'm not running fast in June, July, and August then this race won't matter at all. But it does give me a big confidence boost right now and I feel like I should be able to go out and run at least in the 1:46's my next race out.

Here are some things you might find interesting from my Penn Relays weekend:

Race VIDEO of my 800m leg

Results

PL	Affiliation	Mark	Athletes	ID
1	Kenya	9:22.04	Frederick Musyoki Ndunge (2:57.53), Thomas Musembi (46.10), Jackson Kivuna (1:45.62), Josephat Kithii (3:52.79)	KEN
2	Canada	9:22.05	Matthew Lincoln (2:56.64), Tyler Christopher (45.34), Gary Reed (1:45.73), Nate Brannen (3:54.34)	CAN
3	USA White	9:23.65	Christian Smith (2:57.51), Kelly Willie (45.84), Matt Scherer (1:45.79), Lopez Lomong (3:54.51)	USA-w
4	USA Blue	9:24.43	Leo Manzano (2:57.40), Xavier Carter (44.94), Khadevis Robinson (1:44.04), Evan Jager (3:58.05)	USA-b
5	Australia	9:36.64	Craig Huffer (2:58.39), John Steffensen (45.20), Nick Bromley (1:49.12), Ryan Gregson (4:03.93)	AUS
6	France	9:50.66	Jamel Aarass (2:58.73), Bruno Naprix (46.89), Driss Yousif (1:55.43), Nouredine Smail (4:09.61)	FRA

Photos

This past week has been a little bit rough for me training-wise. It began last Saturday at the Arizona State invitational where I ran the 400m and anchored the 4x400m relay. I guess actually it started earlier than that. In the 3 weeks leading up to that meet my training has been very base heavy. I was basically training like a 1500m runner, doing lots of tempo and aerobic based workouts. So going into the meet I was better prepared for a 1200 than an 800m. But, it was a good opportunity to get a great speed workout in.

In the 400m I got every bit of speed I could handle in running a 47.06. My hamstrings were toast after that. I had over an hour until the 4x400 so I did what I could to make sure my muscles would be ok. I got a massage from Frank, an ASU trainer (who did a great job, thanks!), and did the heating pad routine before warming up agian for the relay. Our relay's goal was to stay competitive and not get blown out of the water. The other 3 guys did a great job and I got the baton in 4th about 10m behind Illinois and 15m behind Arizona State. I am like a kid with candy when I get the baton in a 4x400. I went out and caught up to both of those teams at the halfway mark and on the curve I moved around ASU. The last 100m was pretty uneventful except ASU came back on me in the last 20m. I split 45.7 which I was completely surprised with. Evidently all I need is a little adrenaline and somebody to chase and I can still run a decent relay leg. We ran 3:08.6 as a team which is a club record by 2 seconds. 3:08 is a really good time for a college time this early in the season, so for 4 800m guys who have been doing mostly strength work, that is an excellent time.

Ok, so back to what I was originally writing about. After the meet I was dead. I slept like a baby that night and the next night, and really ever since then. Each day I had to drag myself out of bed in the morning. Workouts have gradually gotten better throughout the week but I have definitely had a rough time getting my body recovered from the races. Aerobic workouts haven't been much of a problem but my muscles weren't lasting long in anaerobic work. It wasn't until Friday when I finally felt 100% again. Then I came back strong Satturday with very solid double day of workouts.

Looking back, I know I ran faster than my body was ready for but I definitely don't regret it. I go out in every race with the intention of leaving it all on the track. I mean, why go out there if you are going to coast in and jog across the line? That's not me anyway. The good news is that I got some amazing speed work in for early in the season. With all the improvements I'm making in strength over the past year, all I'll need is a little bit of speed work to draw on that 45.1 speed I used to have to have a breakout year and do some special things. If I were to run that hard again this weekend it would only take a couple days to recover. By the time the season comes into full swing I'll be doing a workout after running 1:46's. So even though I ran faster than my body was ready for this past weekend, I can say that I'm right on schedule in my training and am on pace to have a great year.

This Thursday I'll be leaving the beautiful weather of Tucson, AZ and heading back to the hopefully dry Eugene, OR. Then a couple more weeks of training before heading to the Penn Relays to run an 800m leg on the USA Distance Medley Relay Team. Check out the Competitions section of my site for my full outdoor schedule. I am updating it as soon as I get confirmations from meets.

Arizona State university Videos:

400m

4x400m Relay

After taking a few days off from USA Indoor Nationals at the end of February I came down here to Tucson, Arizona with most of the rest of the Oregon Track Club Elite for a 5 week stint of spring training camp. I am living in an exteneded living apartment that is fully furnished with everything from furniture, kitchen supplies, and towels.

I'm approaching the end of the third week and so far it has been incredible. The weather is 75-85 degrees every day and I've only seen clouds on two occasions. I'm getting quite the tan as well. Luckily I've been smart with the sun so haven't gotten sunburned. What I have really enjoyed though is having time to just train without the normal distractions I find in Eugene. Most days here go like this: Wake up, eat, run/workout, eat, nap, second run or workout, eat, relax for a couple hours, and sleep. Its so nice to only think about running and training. Even though it has been tough physically, I've had a chance to refocus my mind and get back in touch with my running and competitive side. The University of Arizona has been kind enough to allow us to use their facilities pretty much whenever we want. I've been working out all over Tucson though. One day was a fartlek at the park, another was hills out in the middle of the desert, and then the tempo runs along the river wash.

I love Eugene and wouldn't want to live anywhere else to run, but being away from all the track happenings going on there has been a nice break. I would love to live here in Tucson for the winter and spring and Eugene for the summer and fall. I may seriously consider that for next year.

I've got to see alot of cool scenery here so far. There are huge cacti everywhere along with little reptiles too. I haven't gone on a run yet without seeing at least 5-6 little lizards. I keep thinking I'll run into a snake though, and I don't like snakes. Actually, I porbably spend 1/3 of my runs thinking about that I would do if I saw and got bit by a rattle snake. I would have to stop running (obviously) but would still have to get to someone for help. I would have to focus on slowing my heart rate while still moving toward a road or house. Man, I hope that doesn't happen. Now I'll probably start thinking about it twice as much on my runs.

On a lighter note, I am opening up my outdoor season this weekend at the Arizona State Invitational in Tempe. For the past 3 weeks I've basically been training like a 1500 runner so Saturday I'm going to drop down to my roots and run a 400 and a 4x400 relay leg. Normally I would be stoked to run a 400 so I can show off what little sped I have left. But this time the 400 is the speed. So I'm not sure what to expect as far as time. I don't have the slightest clue as to how my speed is right now. I am confident of one thing. However fast I'm going when I cross the finish line I bet I can keep that pace for another 100m at least.

I will, however, have the opportunity to run fast. The heat I am in is loaded for an early season meet like this. There are at least 5 names I recognize as NCAA All-Americans, several of which just competed at the NCAA Indoor Nationals. In any case it should be fun. I'm pretty sure RunnerSpace will have all the videos from the meet so check back on SchererSpeed.com for my races.

The Good News:
This weekend I placed third in the 800m at the US Indoor National Championships. It was my first time making a final at a US meet and the first time, I think, in any final since NCAA's in 2006. It is also the highest I have finished at a national meet. (8th indoor 2008; 12th outdoor 2006 & 2008)

The meet we really well for me. After running a bad tactical race at the Tyson Invite two weeks ago I told my coaches and agent that it was probably for the better since I learned several key things about running the 800m on a 200m banked track. That held true this weekend. I ran probably the two smartest races I've ever ran on a banked track, in the prelims and finals. I made sure to get myself in a good position off the break and utilize one of my strengths, the size of my body, to help dictate the flow of the race. On a 200m banked track, position is everything. A person typically has to use a lot of effort to pass someone when the straights are only 50 meters long. So simply by running in the outer part of lane 1 on the straights I make someone have to go almost to the outside of land 2 to try and pass. And if they don't get around me they are stuck in lane 2 for the curve, having to run a longer distance.

But anyway, I finally had a couple tactically sound races and it paid off. In the prelim I got out in the 2nd position for the first 400 where I took over the lead from 400 to 650. Then my teammate made a good move to come around me to get the lead. I swung even farther out at that point, into lane 2 so no one else would get around. Mark and I finished close together and both easily advanced to the finals with the 2nd and 3rd best times of the day. That race felt really good and I was relaxed for almost all of it, only having to press in the last 100m or so.

The field in the finals was probably as good or better than it has been in a long time (across the board). It included 2 Olympians, the 3rd place finisher in the 1500 from the day before, myself, and my teammate Mark who has had a terrific indoor campaign this year and ranked 2nd going in to the meet. The race got out exactly how I thought with me in the 2nd position. The field cruised along through the half way at 54, a very slow start. When I saw that I knew things were going to get interesting. I was surprised to see Steve Sherer move so early with 350 to go but stayed patient. With 250 to go everyone was making or starting to make their move. At some point I dropped back to 4th and decided to make my move up the inside with 150 to go when everyone was wide. I moved past a couple people but got road blocked by the leader who, to my disappointment, didn't swing wide to hold people off. Had that move worked I would have been in the lead with 100m to go with a lot left in the tank. But instead I had to slam on the breaks, drift back to 4th again and make a second move coming off the last turn to pass one more guy and take the third spot at the finish.

I'm pumped and excited about finishing 3rd in the US. And maybe even more excited about my tactics and how my body felt. My body felt great for that last 200m and great afterwards. I am really happy with how the indoor season as a whole panned out. It is a great springboard into the outdoor season. Times weren't important for me for the indoor season this year. I wanted to get some good races in, while working on my tactics and feeling that competitive drive I get when I'm trying to run somebody down. So in all, I accomplished those things and now I'm hungrier than ever to get on the track for outdoor season.

The Bad News:
This weekend I placed third in the 800m at the US Indoor National Championships.

If you're actually reading this you noticed that the bad news was also the good news. Why? Because I got 3rd. There were two people that I didn't beat. One being my teammate who I train with almost every day. I guess it's just the competitive side of me but I don't like to lose. I especially don't like to lose when I feel like I could have won. I can point out things in the race that had they gone different the outcome might have been different. But how I really felt was that I was running well enough and was in good enough shape to win it, and I didn't. So even though I am happy with the outcome overall, I know I could have done better and I can still improve in a lot of ways. With that said, I can use the experience to jump into outdoor season, to continue to motivate me to train hard and do the little things right so next time this situation comes up I will win.

What's Next:

I'm going to take a short break through most of this next week to rest and recoup before heading down to Arizona for a few weeks to get away from Eugene for a bit and get some really good, uninterrupted training in. As for competitions and meets for the outdoor season, I really don't have any idea what my schedule will look like. Over the next few week's I'll sit down with me coach and figure all that out.

By the way if you didn't catch the race on ESPN this weekend you missed me sporting the Oregon Track Club's new uniforms. They are pretty sweet so look for more of that this spring! And thanks to everyone for the support. I got a lot of calls, texts, and messages from a lot of people keeping up with me. Thanks!!

I have now ran I don't know how many races at the 800m distance over the past 3 years, and still I seem to learn so much with every race. Training for the 800 is a much easier process than actuall racing. In training, there is always a coach there to talk to you, adjust your pace or workout, and teammates that want to see you succeed. On the track there is no one but yourself. Your coach is in the stands timing 200 splits or at home waiting to see the video on RunnerSpace. Your training partners are no longer your teammates but just another competitor out there trying to make a living. You are all alone with yourself. So it is up to you make decisions and adjustments on the fly to get the best race possible from yourself. This is what I continue to learn and build on, especially this weekend in Arkansas at the Tyson Invitational.

Two weeks ago I ran a qualifying time for the US Indoor Championships. So I really wanted to get a good experience in Arkansas on a 200m banked track, as Boston has a similar track. Historically I have not ran well on 200m banked tracks. In 2004 I strained my hamsting in Arkansas during the 4x400 finals of NCAA's and went down hard. A year later in the 400m NCAA final, I didn't hit the break in a good position and ran the whole race in lane 2 to finish a disappointing 9th. Last year at US Indoor Nationals I couldn't get in a rythm in my prelim and sputtered out to 4th in my heat and did not advance. All of my good indoor races have come on 300m oversized tracks.

So for this race I had the goal of mixing it up with the other runners to get some valuable experience on a banked track for Boston in 2 weeks. Going in I wasn't concerned with running a fast time but thought if I get in the mix and just compete, the time would take care of itself. What happened was alot of bad things for the race but alot of good things for the future. I got out in the with the pack and had to slow a little on the break just to slide into lane 2 before the curve. Then I found myself not being able to move into lane 1. I couldn't find a rythm because I was constantly working to keep up from lane 2. I came through the 600m mark in 1:21 which isn't bad but it was a 1:18 or 1:19 effort. I'm probably not ready to come through at a 1:18 right now and ended up just not being able to close of of that (still in lane 2) and just tried to get to the finish line.

I finished with an embarassing time of 1:51.30 - a 29.6 last 200m. Oh and last place too. BUT, after the race I was not collapsing or even bending over to put my hands on my knees. Physically I actually had ran well. I put out what I thought to be a 1:49 effort and felt great. Tactically I just ran stupid and never got into a relaxed rythm. So what does this tell me? It tells me I'm still fit and ready to run fast. it tells me I need to come up with a good plan to race in Boston in 2 weeks. It tells me I'm still learning my event.

Of course I'm disappointed with the time and I hope people just write me off for nationals but I'm pretty sure I will be in the finals in two weeks. I feel like I got that bad tactical race out of the way and was lucky enough to get by to the next round.

There are several things I could or would have done differently if I were to run that race again, but I'm not sure I would have gained as much experience from it. I am still ready to run fast and as long as I know that I will be confident in the upcoming couple of weeks and will be ready to toe the line in Boston.

2/2/2009

Well, it's a new season, and frankly, it's a new me this year. When I decided to turn professional ater my career at Oregon was over, I made a two year commitment to myself to take a shot at the 800m and at the 2008 Olympics. I made no promises to myself about anything beyond. In my last blog (after the Olympic Trials last summer) I stated that I had a new drive, new motivation to succeed in track and field. Since that blog I have had alot of things change but that new, stronger drive is still there and now even stronger. Let me catch you up on all the things that have changed since the end of the 2008 season.

A New Coach:
After the trials, my coach, Frank 'Gags' Gagliano, announced he would be retiring from coaching the Oregon Track Club Elite. The move was not a surprise to most of his athletes but was still a little hard to take after all that he had done for us, me especially. He had pretty much single handedly transformed me from a 400m sprinter into an 800m middle distance runner, and a fairly successful one (at least by my standards). I had complete trust in Nike and Vin Lannana that I and the rest of the OTC team would be put in good hands with a new coach. And after just a few months of training under my new coach, Olympic medalist Mark Rowland of Great Britain, I am certain that we are in great hands. The coaching styles of the two differ is some ways and are very similar in alot of ways. But one thing I know is that I will continue to improve under Coach Rowland.

A New Agent:
Without getting into any reasons in any direction, I decided to get a different agent. In December I signed on with Total Sports Managemen, Inc. and Chris Lane. I really liked the reputation they carried and their exciting wilingness to take a chance on me. If you check out their website you'll see that they have several alot of world class athletes, including one of my training partners and 2008 Olympian Nick Symmonds. I am definitely excited to start working with Chris and the rest of the team.

A New Contract!
After teh 2007 season ended, Nike exercised the option year in my contract that took me through the 2008 calendar year. In early January I signed a new two-year contract with Nike that will take me though the 2010 season. I am super excited to stay in the Nike family. Over the past 2 and a half years they have been absolutely great and nothing but supportive. There is no way I would still be a competitive athlete without their help and support.

A New Website!
I have switched over SchererSpeed.com to be hosted by RunnerSpace.com software. It makes it alot easier for me to update content and add photos, videos, and bogs. Hopefully you like the new setup. And with how easy things are to manage now (since I'm on RunnerSpace half the time anyway) I will do a better job of keeping things up to date!

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Now on to the present:
Training has never been better, I've got a great living arrangement with only mild partiers for neighbors and the best housemate I could ask for in Louie Luchini, I made a new friend last week :), and RunnerSpace is continually growing, expanding, and becoming more popular!

I had my season opening race this past weekend in Seattle, WA. I placed 3rd in the 800m in an indoor personal best 1:49.16 (Video), currently 4th in the US. I led through 500m but still finished well in the last 150m. I did accomplsh what I set out to do which was to have a solid race physically and mentally and to get a good qualifying time for the US Indoor Championships at the end of February. One of my training parnters Mark Wieczoric ran a great race and finished in 1:48.43. I mention that because I'm excited for him to run so well. So now with no pressure to get a time I travel to Arkansas in two weeks to compete in the Tyson Invitational, a Visa Championship Series event. I believe that two of last year's Olympians, Nick Symmonds and Christian Smith, may be in the race, a very exciting opportunity for me.

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I hope to keep this year's blogs a normal and regular thing. If I start slacking the please send me messages to get with it!

Final thought: I want to commend Keith on a valiant effort this past month in the RunnerSpace Arcade. Keith came very close to avenging his 2008 award of the Most Hopeless Gamer when he almost snuck one in on me. I just squeaked out a victory by 8 points. But good try Keith, "Congratulations,you *almost* won. Of all the losers-you came in first of that group. You're the number one *loser*. No one lost ahead of you!"

After what I think was a sucessful season this past year, I have been not doing anything physical the past 2 weeks since I returned from Europe. The time off has been really nice and relaxing, well for the first week. The last week I have had alot of internal dialog with myself about when to start training again. With this being an Olympic year, me not making Team USA, and with events and competition starting in Beijing I've definitely got the itch to workout. So Sunday I started with some basic strength and core and today I went to the pool to swim some laps.

After watching Natalie Coughlin and the men's 400 free relay win gold over the past couple days I was itching to get into the pool. In the past I've mostly done aqua jogging and once in a while some breathing exercises. This year I want to do alot more of lap swimming to get my body a little more used to working with smaller amounts of oxygen. I like free style because of the rythm you have to develop of breathing.

The Olympics

Ever since the amazing opening ceremonies I, like many other Americans, have had my eyes glued to the tv. So far the 400 free relay has been the most exciting but for the first time I find myself emotionally invested in any event that USA is in, and track and field hasn't even started yet. The urge I have for all of Team USA to do well has developed over the past few months with my experiences with the Olympic Trials in June and the feelings I've had during and since my races.

After I failed to qualify for the finals of the Trials I was upset but it was the upset that I've had any other race that I didn't accomplish what I wanted. But after watching perhaps one of the most exciting races I've ever seen, the finals of the 800m, where the 3 Oregon guys made the team, the emotions came. At that point I realized a couple things. One, I didn't realize just how bad I had wanted to become an Olympian and two, I hadn't realized how good of a shot I had had I only made the finals. I watched and trained with Nick and Christian all year and knew where I was compared to them. I was super stoked for both of them, and Wheating, but I knew that it could have just as easily been me diving across that line to claim the third spot.

The important part of what happened at the Trials and since, is that I've taken away so many positives for my future in running. Up until this point I have been taking things year by year but now I have found a new level of determination and motivation. I have committed to myself to run for another 5 years, which will take me through 2013. Throughout my life I've always been able to accomplish anything I've really set my mind to. And now I have my mind set on Eugene 2012 and London 2012. I want to be an Olympian and I'm prepared to do whatever necessary to do that.

The Oregon Track Club is in the process of making several changes for next year, including a new coach. However things turn out, ultimately I know that it comes down to the athlete. I have 2 years of experience now on the pro circuit and I think next season will show my full adjustment not only to the 800, a new event, but to the differences between the college and pro lifestyles. It is such a different kind of transition than from high school to college and I've been lucky enough to be under Nike's wing and with all the support I've gotten because of that it has been a fairly easy transition.

I am so excited for next year. I am ready to run every workout better than I did last year. Tempo runs, hills, repeat K's, a better supplemental program, everything is going to be better this year. I already have my number one goal for next year: 1:44. Even though I haven't even ran a 1:45 yet I felt that I was ready and capable to do it this year, the right race just never came. Because of that I already feel like I am a 1:45 guy. So it only makes sense to set my sights on 1:44.

Go Team USA, Go Nick, Andrew, and Christian. And Go ME for 2012!