The ‘People’s Champion’ Comes to Boston

Posted on January 15, 2018 by Jon Waldron

Many years ago, when I was much younger and sprier, I entered a New Year’s Day 5M road race despite a forecast for high temperatures in the low 20’s. I wasn’t elite, of course, but I went into the race expecting a high placing, confident that I could run my usual pace and compete for a top place. But when the race started, I simply couldn’t get my body going. I had “warmed up” plenty but never really warmed up, and I struggled from the beginning. I gave it my best effort, but ended up running a couple of minutes slower than I expected, well out of the top ten.

I thought about that recently when I tried to make sense of Yuki Kawauchi’s record-breaking marathon on New Year’s Day 2018 in the unlikely town of Marshfield, Mass. Continue reading →

Posted in Japan, Marathon, Pro Runners, Weather and Seasons | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

The New (Old) Me

Posted on January 8, 2018 by Jon Waldron

old me new me

It’s hard to believe that we’re only a week into 2018; it feels like we’ve had hardship enough to fill an average month of winter: a deep freeze, a major snow storm, cancellations and disruptions, not to mention the typical colds and flus. Christmas is a distant memory. February is still a long way off, and when it finally arrives, it will still only be February. Continue reading →

Posted in Injuries & Health, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Impactful

Posted on December 11, 2017 by Jon Waldron

Joe Newton.jpgJoe Newton Continue reading →

Posted in Coaching, cross country, High School Runners | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Our Aging Brains

Posted on September 18, 2017 by Jon Waldron

Losing Brain Function
Image credit: ThinkStock.com

“[We] ought to know that from nothing else but the brain come joys, delights, laughter and sports, and sorrows, griefs, despondency, and lamentations. … And by the same organ we become mad and delirious, and fears and terrors assail us, some by night, and some by day, and dreams and untimely wanderings, and cares that are not suitable, and ignorance of present circumstances, desuetude, and unskillfulness. All these things we endure from the brain, when it is not healthy…”   — Hippocrates Continue reading →

Posted in Injuries & Health, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Running With the Enemy

Posted on September 11, 2017 by Jon Waldron

Mohawk Trail postcard

It’s hard to believe that it’s been over forty years since that late summer day when I took a chance and traveled far from home to run with the Mohawk Cross Country team at one of their pre-season practices. I’ve written about that day before, but recently felt motivated to tell the story again, filling in a few more details. I hope you enjoy it!  Continue reading →

Posted in cross country, High School Runners, My Back Pages | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

LeBron James Runs a Mile

Posted on August 28, 2017 by Jon Waldron

“…Let’s think about how much more work LeBron does every single day than your typical high school runner. Who do you know ran 4:40 in high school? Oh, literally everyone? Even the kid who was so small and sad-looking that his mom had to use a clothespin to keep his jersey from falling off? Excuse me, I’ve just upgraded LeBron James to a 4:20 mile.” – Ryan Sterner, Citius

“A very good high school runner can run 4:20 or faster and is a very average athlete by general metrics. James is arguably one of the best athletes in the world and so 4:40 should be no problem.” – Chris Chavez, Sports Illustrated

“Lebron? You out there? Aging hack runner who peaked in high school wants to race.” – Malcolm Gladwell, on Twitter Continue reading →

Posted in Attempts at Humor, Track, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Living the Dream (at Running Camp)

Posted on August 23, 2017 by Jon Waldron

NKRC_2017_Week2_Day5Wildflower
Kingdom Trails, across from the Wildflower Inn

Every time I mention to someone that I spent the first two weeks of August at running camp, I worry that this sounds juvenile and undignified… even for me. So I hasten to add that no, I was not a camper; the campers were mostly high school runners. I was a staff coach with actual adult responsibilities.

But still, you know, why would an old fart like me want to feel even older at running camp? Continue reading →

Posted in Coaching, cross country, High School Runners | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

London Postcards: Scenes from the 16th IAAF World Championships

Posted on August 14, 2017 by Jon Waldron

Screen Shot 2017-08-14 at 8.51.25 AMFinal leg of the men’s 4×100 relay

Has it been five years already since the Olympics returned to London?

In the wider world, a lot has changed for Great Britain and for the rest of us since 2012, but it seems like only yesterday that we were watching the planet’s best track and field athletes – Bolt, Rudisha, Dibaba, Farah – amaze and delight us during the Athletics portion of the London Games.

But impressions can be deceiving. The world of Athletics has changed, too. Although many of the same athletes were competing in the same Olympic Stadium over these last two weeks for the 16th IAAF World Championships, at some point, a few of these formerly invincible runners became mortal, yielding the podium to newcomers. At some point, other runners and jumpers and throwers stepped out of obscurity to win unexpected titles. Some fans called it the “Bizzaro World Championships,” and felt that the world of Track and Field had been turned upside-down. I wouldn’t go that far, but there were definitely events that shocked fans of the sport. Continue reading →

Posted in Pro Runners, Track, Uncategorized, World Championships | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Field Guide to North American Tracks: Bob Heath Track, Lyndonville Vermont

Posted on August 7, 2017 by Jon Waldron

Lyndonville_track Continue reading →

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What is happening to American Runners?

Posted on July 31, 2017 by Jon Waldron

Chart by Jens Jakob Anderson and Ivanka Andreeva Nikolova, runrepeat.com

When it comes to running, I live in a bubble. I spend some part of every day running, or coaching, or writing, or thinking about running. My social life revolves around running. I frequent running websites. I stream obscure races and meets from around the world to my laptop at odd hours of the day and night. I am writing this in my dorm room at a running camp.

All of this makes it hard for me to see the big picture: to see that people like me represent a very small fraction of the running population of this country. Vastly more people run for health or recreation than for prizes, and those people likely do not obsess over intervals, tempo runs, and weekly mileage.

The fact that I have spent a lot of my life trying to get better at running, and trying to help others do the same, also makes it hard for me to understand the following recent phenomenon: American runners are slowing down. Or, to put it more precisely, average race times across a variety of standard race distances have been slowing steadily for at least two decades. Continue reading →

Posted in Records & Statistics, Running Research | 9 Comments