On my run today, I listened to the second part of an interview with British running legend Chris Chataway. Great interview across these two parts, and really fun to hear Chris recall races, including climb to race the best of the age (Zatopek), and his 5k WR.
In the interview, you can feel him grit – over a half century later - at a race that he did not win that he think he could have. Interviewer Martin Yelling catches this and asks, “so if you were asked could you go back and race any one person any one time, that would be it?” Chataway answers clearly affirms he would and he’d like “to make that right.”
The question got me thinking: what race would I go back and “make right?” I certainly have had more races where I have come up short of my expectations than having exceeded them (or even meeting of them), but there are a couple that I still chew on that I might have let get away.
Some are races where the competition was great, and I was not able to dig in to pull it off. I look at the 2007 Mount Evans event as a race where I had a chance to beat Dave Mackey, but I let him slip by a bit in the middle miles, and then I could not catch him in the later higher altitude miles. Part of me says I went pretty hard to the well that day and that I could not do much better, but part of me thinks …what if?
The 07 PPM, my first is one I definitely feel I jacked. I felt so fit going into that race, but I had a lousy ascent – getting up much slower than I was capable of that day, but I had one of those days on the mountain. I feel I was ready to go sub 4:20 that day, but … well, I didn’t.
Woulda, coulda, shoulda. Interesting to hear that even 80+ year old guys still bristle at some races. But hey, it is part of why we race, right?
I guess if I had to pick one, it would be the 4 x 800 relay indoors from my senior year of HS. I got passed by 2 guys in the last stretch as I, the anchor, tied up bad. Our team still secured a spot to the state meet with our performance, but as I crossed the line I stumbled a few yards, dropped the baton and exhaled an f-bomb to myself. I thought it was quiet, but it was loud enough for a nearby official, eager to make a point, go ahead DQ our performance for the team. It was bad enough that I botched the anchor position with the team, but then I screw the whole team's chances to go to the state meet with my post line "performance." Yeah, I’d like to make that one right.
So what about you? What performance would you make right if you could have another shot at it?
2002 Ironman Hawaii. I came off the bike in a dismal 44th. Furious at myself. I ran the first mile in 5:38 and went through 13.1 in 1:19. I ran in to 10th place and then died and ran 2:58 when I was capable of running 2:45 on that day by simply pacing smarter. I should have been 4th or 5th. 9 years later there are mornings when that race is the first thing I think about when I wake up.
ReplyDeleteWish i could go back and run some of my races as well as some of my workouts,had some time-trials that would make my best races pale in comparison./sigh.
ReplyDeleteWorld Championships in 2010. I was trained with that special mix of speed and endurance. I'd PR'd for 10K just the day before, but my legs felt ready for 29M and my lungs were comfortable with the thin air. I had a willing burro ready to go the distance. We settled in on the leader's shoulder for the opening sprint and were confident that we'd be positioned up front all day long. Unfortunately a gear malfunction saddled as back in dead last on the sport's biggest stage.
ReplyDeleteIronmans and World Championships...I fail to even come close to anything so spectacular...but I guess it's all relative, we all have races where we should have done something differently for a different outcome no matter what our abilities are. I think for me, I wish I could go back to Big Sur 2008 and NOT try to secretly BQ at one of the hilliest marathons out there, just to prove to my then-trainer that I could. I went out like a bat out of hell and was puking by mile 18. I learned then that I will never race to prove myself to anyone other than myself! Was a pretty expensive lesson to learn...but I needed to be I guess.
ReplyDeleteIt was Seaside Heights, NJ. Memorial Day weekend my Junior year in HS.
ReplyDeleteI would have worked on endurance...and drank more. I prematurely finished in :59 much to the disappointment of. Monique? (I think)
Some things never change eh, Rob?
ReplyDeleteThe moral of the story is that you should have played baseball. Once, I was called out on a absolutely horrible call. I turned, looked the umpire in his face and told him, "that's fucking bullshit." Didn't get tossed.
ReplyDeleteI don't have a race that I feel so shitty about that I'd like another shot. Brownie would like to say that it was Canya Canyon 6K, but I drank all his beer and won $100, so I could care less if he DNF'd that race.
Rob,
ReplyDelete59 seconds is generous for what you did that day.
Monique
My senior year XC at regionals. Our team had 12 guys who went sub-17 in high school. We were ranked top-25 nationally all year, with only one loss all year to Wasson (led by two or three of the Ricks brothers, I believe), and even that loss was by three points. Our whole team ran awfully, and we didn't even qualify for state. Our best runner got an asthma attack and wouldn't have made our girls team that day. Our second-best runner got in a car accident the week before and could barely run. Three, four (me), and five ran like crap. Our 6th guy made it to state individually, and the rest of us got to watch. Just an inconceivably bad day.
ReplyDeleteIn track we went 1-2-3 mile, 1-2- 3 half mile, and 1-3 two mile and set a (then)state record in the 4x800 at regional qualifiers and would later as a team get 2nd in State. We probably should have won state in XC, too, or at least got 2nd, but instead, we didn't even make it.
And yes, we are all still bitter about it.
First trail race ever in 2009. A 7-mile jaunt. Ran in first for 6.9 miles. Didn't know the trail well, the guy behind me did. I thought we had more like a mile or two to go and lost it with a tenth to go. He pushed when he knew he had to. I didn't. Always try to do recon on courses now. You learn the hard way sometimes.
ReplyDeleteGood stuff all.
ReplyDeleteLucho, I imagined you'd say something like that. He is a flip on the question ... had to accomplished it all on that day, would you still be driven like you are today? In other words, does your failure that day drive you today? And would success at that day end in the opposite?
Randy - all to true for me as well.
Justin - now that you are like president of the Denver Post are you going to do the TC this year?
Jill - comparing the IM WC and the Burro WC is to be expected. The level of competition is as deep in both. HA! Great story on the Sur!
Brownie - good thing you got Amanda at PPA last year, otherwise you'd have a different song.
Patrick - I played baseball. I sucked. I stole second base when a fellow runner was on it. Hence I went to running. I'd be curious if you feel the same way about your races in a decade, or if you will have a "big one that got away" story too.
Kieran - glad to see you are over it. Seriously, that story is awesome. That is like Patriots vs. Giants when the Pats had the undefeated season going into the Super Bowl.
Justin - Good lesson!
Every 100 I have done...those things never seem to go perfect. Though HR probably takes the cake - nothing like a couple hour detour followed by submersion in a stream at 12k ft in the late night hours to make things a little less than ideal.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, is it no longer possible to subscribe to further comments?
ReplyDeleteJunior year of HS at the Idaho XC state championships in Boise. I was in 5th place with 1/4 mile to go and gaining on 3rd and 4th, caught my toe and went down hard, got passed by 5 in an instant and finished 10th.
ReplyDeleteYikes. Have heard and been threatened a DQ for swearing when I was coaching high school track, but never had anyone follow though. What an idiot your official was!
ReplyDeleteI’ve had many redo’s. Probably mostly track when I was younger. The most recent though was Haliburton Forest 100 in 2009. Gled Redpath won in a new course record and I was about 30mins back. Problem was I got too competitive at 50miles, blew through an aid station trying to make up ground and forgot to stop for gels and S-caps…causing cramping and puking shortly thereafter. Decorated many trees with projectile vomiting in the next 90+ minutes. Always wondered since...what if?
Maybe mine's a bit different than most. I ran my first 50K in February 2011. I ran pretty poorly but had some lingering fitness and finished ahead of the almost 50 other people who ran. Apologies in advance to any "little people," but I might call myself the tallest midget in that race.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, for a while it was hard for me to remember that I ran poorly. Instead I kept thinking about how I won.
That race made me think I actually knew what I was doing with running. It probably set me back for a year.
If I could make one race right, I would choose to finish somewhere other than first in that race.
It's been tough to turn away from Pikes this past year. Watching someone like Kim put up a 2:34 while I crawled to the finish for a second consecutive year still embitters me. I was specifically trained for the high altitude, had a bigger base and more speed (BTMR 3 minutes faster) and went out more conservatively than my 2:44 year in 2009. I'm still sorta scratching my head over it.
ReplyDeleteI have no regrets from HS - I'm sure our team caused more than one or two other squads to have their share of lifetime regrets. :) College - the only year I was good/healthy enough to run varsity, my role at the big meets never allowed me to run to my own potential, but I got to contribute nonetheless.
I regret allowing myself to get fat and lazy in my 20's. Although the sense of urgency I feel at 36 trying to squeeze in some good performances before father time catches up to me surely has been a motivator I may not have otherwise had.
What the hell on Google and now comment notification? I am gonna have to see how to play with that. Crikey.
ReplyDeleteSean - you don't have to turn away from Pikes. And guessing on what you registered for today, I think you are hedging some bets.
Will - love it. One of my favorite themes is that we learn more from failure than success. That story is right in there.
Derrick - tree decorating is the way to go down in flames man. Well done!
Ward - I recommend less toes. Even so, I trip a lot.
Nick - as we have discussed ... I think the allure of the 100 (or maybe one of the allures), is that constant wondering of what could be done to tweak here or there. That certainly occurs in races of all distances, but it is profoundly obvious in the 100 given its length. By the way - what is your race sched this year?
My race was 2007 Mt Evans.. I won but held back so the guy behind me would feel better upon finishing closer to me. I should have put the nail in the coffin and taken the extra 20 minutes off my finish time, which I knew I had in me and could have easily shaved off with a tiny bit more effort. :)
ReplyDeleteDave - I feel the same way about the 2006 Bolder Boulder.
ReplyDeleteWell played bud.
Great topic, one I was just thinking about just last week. Of course for me it has been consistent sub par performances on Pikes Peak and I could drone on and on, but I HATE "coulda, woulda, shouldas", so I don't really let it bother me (OK, it would bother me for a week or so after the race in the past). Until I actually DO better, all I have is what I have done and I have to be accepting of that. I also need to be realistic with my expectations when I consider my relative lack of commitment to the sport.
ReplyDeleteSpecific races though, 2006 PPA comes to mind. Although it was my PR year (a PR that I am not particularly satisfied with), I really screwed up. Even though I knew the course well, I was not paying close attention and while running in ~13th position, took a wrong turn (along with GZ). Cornelius B called us back on course and we probably only lost 45 seconds at the most, but I was pissed about it and annoyed to have lost 2 positions, so I hammered it for a bit to gain those places back and then later paid for my stupid surge. Ughh.
Dave, funny stuff. I'll never forget that day on Evans in 2007. I have never seen anybody as worked over as you guys on that day. It was hours before you got your wits and could get some food and drive home, I thought that was so cool that you just left it all out there on the mountain. I was feeling a bit guilty because I felt fine and went mountain climbing afterwards (questioning how much I really gave of myself).
All said though, it is all just a fun hobby for me and it is more about the journey. If I never raced, I would probably be doing the EXACT same thing throughout the year (aside from the annoying taper that I always feel is depriving me of fun times on the mountain trails). I simultaneously want to give it my all and perform at my best, yet realize that what really matters is being a good dad, good husband, good friend and not letting any frivolous athletic goals get in the way of that, or diminish my experiences doing the outdoor activities I love.