Shake Out/Schedule

Yesterday I did a 5 mile shake out and felt pretty flat. I intend to take it easy a couple more days and try to run well on Sunday at Pack Monadnock. Mentally I am ready for the hills and some faster paced racing but will have to listen to my body and just be patient (something that does not come naturally for me). I have decided instead of a track workout next Wednesday I will give the Hollis Fast 5K a shot. I suspect the fast course may give me some confidence and hopefully good prep for Rhody.

2010 Mt. Washington Lottery Bypass in return for providing rides for 2 Cranmore athletes

Bob Teschek has generously offered a spot for the 2010 Mt. Washington Lottery to someone who will pick up and return 2 Mexican athletes at the airport for the 2009 Cranmore Hill Climb. Most likely the 2 athletes will be coming in on Thursday or Friday June 25th or 26th and then returning to Boston on June 28th or 29th. If you are interested or know someone who is interested, please email me at pkirsch@roadrunner.com for complete details. It's on a first come first served basis.

Thanks in Advance,
Paul Kirsh

Tops in the State: Fyffe, Knapp Lead Vt. Contingent

By JAMES BIGGAM Staff Writer - Published: May 26, 2009\

BURLINGTON — For Justin Fyffe and Alexandra Knapp, local bragging rights and checks for $500 were sweet cherries on top of the 21st KeyBank Vermont City Marathon Sunday.Fyffe, a 29-year-old from East Dummerston, was the fastest male Vermonter in 2 hours, 27 minutes, 32 seconds, good enough to beat the old mark by more than 10 minutes. Knapp ran her second-ever marathon in 3:02:37, making the 24-year-old from Shelburne the top finisher from the Green Mountain State.The honor wasn't a huge shock to Fyffe, who placed fifth overall Sunday after logging roughly 100 miles per week for the last eight months. He did shave more than 20 minutes off his 2007 VCM result, but that potential was clear after a huge training load and a second-place finish at the U.S. 50-kilometer Championship on March 1."Three weeks ago I did a 16-mile tempo run at a 5:28 (per mile) pace just to make sure I had everything," said Fyffe, who ran 6 miles to and from his workplace at the Bradford Machine Company all winter. "When you do those workouts, you pretty much know where your fitness level is at. I was in control of the pace, I felt good and I knew it was going to be a good day if the weather was good and I was rested."According to Fyffe, the highlight of Sunday's race was the group of Taiko drummers playing at the base of Battery Street hill before the 15-mile mark."The drums were insane," he said. "They get into the rhythm of your stride and it's hard not to synch up with them."Fyffe averaged a pace of 5:38 each mile after running the first mile too slow (5:50) and the second mile too fast (5:19). He went through the 10-mile mark in 55:37, reached the half-marathon mark in 1:13:16 and logged a time of 1:52:07through the first 20 miles."For me, I generally feel pretty strong and it's almost like doing time up to about 18 or 19 miles," Fyffe said. "And that's when things start to sink in, because you're feeling pretty strong but you still have 6 or 7 miles left to go. At least for me, mentally and physically, around 20 is where I start to break down. And that's where training really works in — all those high-mileage weeks really pay off and carry you through there. Because it gets pretty tough at that point."Knapp only started training in March for Sunday's race and adhered mostly to a "go-on-how-you-feel" running plan while finishing her first year of law school at Cornell. She had never run more than 10 miles prior to racing the 2007 Sugarloaf Marathon, where she made the mistake of not eating or drinking anything and finished in 3:45.On Sunday, Knapp drank water at every other food stop and also ate four energy gels to maintain her energy."I was expecting the first mile I'd go out way too fast with the crowds, but I actually went out way too slow by mistake," she said. "It was a 7:20 (split) and I thought it would be more like a 6-minute mile, so I was really surprised. But then there were two people that I followed for a while and I just keyed off different people throughout the race.I felt pretty good at just under a 7-minue pace, so I decided to stick with that. At about 18 (miles) I thought it looked like I might be able to break 3 hours, so I was aiming toward that, and then at around 22 my legs were starting to cramp and seize. So I re-evaluated things and just tried to finish the best I could."Knapp hit the 10-mile mark in 1:08:28, crossed the half-marathon mark in 1:30:09 and took 2:17:28 to reach 20 miles. Her average of 6:58 per mile was fast enough to edge Kathy Provencher of Waterbury (3:09:15) for the top Vermonter prize.Looking ahead to next year, Knapp now has a new goal to shoot for: breaking a 3-hour marathon time.

Vermont City Marathon

Goal: 2:28:00

Result: 2:27:32 (5:37 pace)

Splits:

1-5:51 2-5:20

3-5:25 4-5:27

5-5:30 6-5:32

7-5:32 8-5:46

9-5:39 10-5:30

11-5:43 12-5:43

13-5:36 14-5:38

15-5:44 16-5:40

17-5:34 18-5:41

19-5:33 20-5:31

21-5:35 22-5:39

23-5:48 24-5:50

25-5:42 26-5:40

Overview: I can't complain about much. The weather was perfect and I met my goal. Now I just have to raise the bar a bit higher for Bay State this fall.

E. Dummerston Resident's Effort Produces Vt. Record

By Alex Abrami, Free Press Staff Writer • May 25, 2009

Four years ago, Justin Fyffe ran his first marathon in 3 hours and 38 minutes.“It was the most painful experience in my entire life,” the East Dummerston resident said.Fast-forward to Sunday’s KeyBank Vermont City Marathon where the 29-year-old, running in his 12th 26.2-miler, exercised personal demons. Fyffe, in crossing the line as the first Vermonter, ran a 13-minute personal best time of 2:27:32.

“I trained really hard for this race. I increased my mileage to 100 per week and I’ve been doing some speed workouts,” Fyffe said. “It’s paid off and I attribute that work to the 13 minutes.”Fyffe has steadily churned out better performances in the last four years. As he remembered his first marathon — “Instead of beating me down, I’m going to beat this marathon if it’s the last thing I do,” — there was no looking back.While a 2:40 time in a New Hampshire marathon last fall gave Fyffe confidence, the cool temperatures and rainy weather set the stage for a record-breaking run. Fyffe’s time was the fastest by a Vermonter in VCM’s 21-year history.
“I knew it was going to be a good day at the halfway point (1:13),” said Fyffe, a North Country Union High School graduate. “I felt in control of the pace, the overcast (weather) was ideal running for me."

“I felt like I owned the marathon, instead of the marathon owning me.”

12K Champs

Goal: Sub 38 minutes (5:05 pace)

Result: 38:19 (5:09 pace)

Overview: It was a lot of fun to see the CMS guys. It's great to be a part of such a good team. We placed third at the race and for the moment we are tied for first in the Grand Prix with BAA. I feel pretty good about my race. I wanted to go out fast to see what would happen. Fast it was! The only split I have is the "official" mile one split (4:48). I REALLY have to race smarter. I know I could have gotten more out of it if I was more conservative. But you can't be aggressive and conservative at the same time. I placed 4th overall, third in the open class, and am temporarily in second place in the Grand Prix. Next up, VCM!

Thanks for the picture Double-J

B-Day Track Work Out

Objective: 5 x mile with 400 jog recovery @ 4:50
Result:
1- 4:57
2- 4:57
3- 4:52
4- 4:49
5- 4:47

All efforts had a 400 jog recovery inbetween (no more than 2:20 for jog).

Overwiew: I am pleased with my effort. I managed to be disciplined enough to go slow on the first couple, which is hard for me to do. Maybe this skill comes with old age? As the workout progressed I felt stronger. This should be my last "workout" before VCM.