A Result and some talking points

The result first. In the Open Graded Meeting at Grangemouth on Wednesday, Johnathan Farrell was first in both the 100 amd 150 metres races in his season's best times so far. In the 100 he was timed at 11.49 seconds and in the 150 he ran 17.34 seconds. The intention is to peak for the Scottish Championships which means that he will require to get faster and faster as the year goes on. So far, so good!

There are several things in this week's "Athletics Weekly" that deserve a wee look - well more than a wee look. I'll mention two of the letters this time. Bill Adcocks, one of Britain's best ever marathon runners has one responding to an earlier correspondent who said that criticism of the current crop of marathon runners was just maligning them. He refutes this and goes on to say that if runners are really doing 120 miles a week, then their times are not showing any effect from that. It may be that the content of the 120 mpw needs looking at. Even more important is that there are fewer good quality races and fewer international fixtures for those at the top. Omitting the second point becuase not all are up to it, his point is that there are more races but not of the appropriate standard. There are many rungs missing on the competitive ladder. Here in Scotland we know all about that with the loss of the District Championships this week. Read his letter and see what you think. Maybe more controversially there is a letter from a Yorkshireman lamenting race ageism. He is an Over 70 runner and complains that race prizes stop at Over 55. His request is for awards at 5 year intervals right up to the oldest competitor in the race. A wee bit over the odds I think! Ten year age groupings are maybe appropriate but when vets now start at 35 the additional expense is considerable. In the current situation when up to two thirds of a field is made up of vets of various categories and at times the first three vets are the first three finishers, should it be the case that the first vet gets the first vet prize even if he wins the race?

Finally, Doug Gillon in the "Herald" today talks about scottish athletics persuading a New Zealand athlete to compete for Scotland. Not just any NZ athlete but the best shot putter in the world! OK, so she competed in the Scottish Championships as an U15 and U17 but has since declared herself for New Zealand and although she is a bit peeved at her national association, it doesn't seem to me to be any reason to poach her. Poaching is rife nowadays in international athletics. Kenyan distance runners now run for at least five other countries as well as Kenya - I'd exempt Wilson Kipketer from the criticism because he married a Danish girl and lived there for three years before competing as a naturalised Dane. But Scotland in the past poached Alice Butler from Canada, tried to get a Cuban triple jumper and is currently trying to get Stephanie Twell from England. To try to talk another country's athlete into competing for us seems to me to be just immoral although everybody's at it! England (US 400 metre runners for a start), USA (Bernard Lagat), Qatar (anybody Kenyan) and so on. Comments on any of these welcome!

Paul's Comment - Part Two

It is interesting and encouraging to see two responses to the last reply to Paul's query. This time, I'll go round the subject like a crab before answering it. If we look at what makes for success as a runner my own philosophy is basically that the best training for running is running. As a Scottish National Coach marking examination papers a few years ago I had a chap who wanted to be a club coach for 5000/10000 metres answering a question which asked for a weekly programme in October/November for an athlete who wanted to race 10000m the following summer. The marking was 3 points for every day's training that was appropriate for the event and time of year and 21 for a good week's work. Well he had the athlete doing short hill reps one day, weight training on another, circuits had their place and so on. The longest single run was 5 miles. Not one of the days was wrong but the totality was useless for the purpose of developing a 10000 metres track runner. So, you can be doing everything right and still be wrong! A distance runner needs to run distances.

As you run distances, the body soon finds out that two short steps are more efficient and get you further than one long step. On the other hand if you do lots of trackwork, you tend to have a longer stride and run higher up on your foot. The function determines the form of the stride. If you do the running you gradually perfect your own most efficient way of running for your own events. Graeme Getty was a Bellahouston runner I coached to a sub 2:20 marathon. He had the most unusual running action - if you look at the back cover of 'Bridge Over Troubled Water' by Simon and Garfarkel, the picture of Simon on the back cover walking with Big Art was a dead ringer for Graeme sprinting flat out. When he went to England he was told by a guy from one club - 'Your action is wrong - it's because of your weak back. I can give you exercises to strengthen it.' and another said that the problem was that one leg was stronger than the other and he could give him exercises to change his running action that would make him even faster. And you get the picture - what they had in common was that they wanted him in their club.

A Scottish National Coach once told me that the Institute had discovered that a very well known Scottish sprinter (ie sub 10 seconds) was not extending a particular tiny muscle right at the top of his thigh and they were working on changing his style to cure it. The guy was soon injured and didn't race much afterwards.

Back to Paul: If you have a running action that you have developed over the years that works for you, and the build that you have inherited from your parents and altered by your daily work over 30 years, don't try to change it immediately without a lot of thought. Sometimes in trying for a tiny improvement you lose a whole season. Now ask me what's an active foot?

STUC A CHROIN HILL RACE

Sat 2ndMay- Stuc a Chroin hill race (British championship), Strathyre, near Callander:

John Kennedy - 77th, 2:41:06: Michael Diver - 161st, 3:06:47

(No pic. available of John)

Young Athletes League 1

The first Young Athletes League Meeting was on Sunday at Wishaw. At times it was sunny and at times it was rainy but it was always windy which affected the times. As well as that, it was the Bank holiday weekend and the numbers competing were so small that in the Under 17 hurdles there was only one competitor when there could have been 16! Every club was seriously short of competitors. Our youngsters all did well. Not all results were available on the day and in any case that is not the job of the blog.

The first pb of the afternoon was from Peter Bowman who recorded 2:06.6 for the 800 metres after a very competitive race. The first, second and fourth 200 metres splits were easily on track for two minutes but he had a wee sleep on the third 200 and once he gets that right he will have the barrier beaten. The best debut run was by Connor Ewing who ran in his first ever track 1500 metres. Under 13 Connor started in a very cautious fashion before picking up the pace and finishing very positively in 5:34. The more experienced Tony Dolan had a good run to finish in 5:13. Connor Shields also set a pb, this time in the Long Jump where he cleared 4:08 metres to finish fifth in a very close competition.

In the girls events it was good to see many returning faces - the Nicholson twins from Boclair Academy for a start with Gillian racing to 15.8 seconds in the 100 metres and Diane being timed at 3:07.4 in the 800. Roisin McShea who was unfortunate not to be given one of her stronger events at 800 and 1500 nevertheless had a good day in the 75 metres where she ran 12.9 seconds. Mirren Wright had a pb in the 1500 metres when she ran 5:38.6. Under 13 Rachel Busby had a long wait for her 1200 metres but when it came she ran well to be third finisher in 4:40.2 - just outside the club record for the event.

The truth is that they all had a good day with athletes like Lewis Wood, Keir Martin, Lauren Butler, Kirsty Kelly, Kirsty Alexander, David Newton (with a good 800 in 2:42.2 - just six seconds in front of Connor Shields) and Mark Busby all doing their part.

It was a good day and results will appear on the Results page as soon as they become available. It should not however be forgotten that Donald Macleod and Phil Dolan as well as all the parents worked hard to make it take place. Next time with all the missing athletes available it will be even better.

Stuc a Chroin

The Stuc a Chroin Hill Race was the British Championship as well as the Scottish Championship as well as an open hill race this year. Held in brilliant sunshine for most of the day with only two short showers there was a massive turn out. The race starts with a long fairly serious climb up out of Strathyre on a flinty forest road before dropping down over the grassy ridge at the top into Glen Ample. It then climbs up onto Beinn Each and along a rocky ridge which involves some scrambling to the top of Stuc before coming back again to Strathyre. As usual I went down to Strathyre to park my car but the place was bung fu' of cars and vans - they filled every car park, covered every grass verge and cluttered up the roadsides. So I went to the Glen Ample layby but it too was filled to overflowing so it was go to a wee forestry layby and take a track up to join the race trail after about 1.5 miles. I went about three quarters up the road to Glen Ample and waited for the runners and well up in the first third of the field was John Kennedy looking quite comfortable and then a bit further back was Michael Diver who always enjoys this race with a big smile on his face. Two hours later I was making my way back down when John passed - he said his legs were done in but he looked OK otherwise. Michael hadn't passed by the time I came to my wee track but I had no doubts about his welfare. They both did well and the club can be proud of them.

Scott and Isobel Givan and Betty and I used to go to some of the hill races on a random basis to see the runners competing and also to get in a reasonable walk in the hills on trails not usually accessible. Stuc was a favourite as was the Merrick in Dumfries. I can recommend it - it's a better day out than football spectating or shopping in Glasgow! Shelagh King always ran it as well - has anyone seen her since her move?

Whangie Whizz Hill Race Tuesday 22nd April

Michael Diver and John McArthur in action!

Highland Fling Ultra

Here is a picture of Aileen Scott running in this event.
Aileen finished 93rd place in 10:45:25.

Date of event - Saturday 25th April 09

Peter Halpin and John Foley also took part

Details on results page on website

Paul's Comment

First off, well done Paul! Most comments on the blog are down to you - where are the rest of the guys/gals? Anyway the initial response to your query about running action are as follows. The athlete's foot plant depends on three factors as far as I can see. First, your skeletal make up will affect your runing action. If you see a runner running along the skyline at dusk then without seeing his face, vest or anything other than his silhouette, you will know who he is simply by the running action and body position. Alex and Andy Brown of Motherwell YMCA had the same running action, Colin, Harry and Brian Martin of Dumbarton all had the same action. That was down to skeletal composition and other hereditary factors. That's the first determinant. Second, the distance you are running will help determine your running action. The athletes in the Highland Fling at the week end were running slowly compared to runners in a 10K or marathon. The front markers were doing 9 minutes a mile and further down they were doing 15 or 16 minutes a mile. Of necessity their action would be different from that of sprinters doing 10 seconds for 100 metres. If you look at sprinters finishing a race, then they cross the line and sink down to walk away; if you look at distance runners crossing the finishing line, they often stand up to walk away. It is also true that runners may employ different foot plant and action at different points in the same race - the 800 metres man will usually start up on the front part of the foot for the first 100 metres, run the next 600 metres using a midfoot plant and end up back up on his toes for the finishing sprint. Third, as I hinted above, the speed you run at will vary the action. SO - skeletal make up, the distance of the race and the speed you are running at will all help determine your running action.

So there's a start Paul, I'll come back and be more specific tomorrow or the next day (Saturday or Sunday). Meanwhile how about some other comments on the subject using the comment facility below?