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Running Ahead, Racing BehindMediocrity is not a word that any runner relishes, but it is the state in which ninety-nine percent of us run. We dress up this word mediocrity with the hyphenated noun, mid-pack. This is not to say that us mid-packers do not give it our all during a race and feel satisfied when we achieve our best effort. But we all eventually stand in awe of those runners who surmount the victor's stand of a large road race. We wonder what it must feel like to be that fast. There are after all only a few shinning stars amongst the vastness of space. After years of dreaming of becoming a running star, I have come to accept my place in the Tornado finishing order. Last Spring I used to dream, usually during my slow runs, of breaking out of the mid-pack and joining the Tornado front-runners. But alas after my breakdown in the Space City Ten Miler, I am more mid-pack than ever. I need to get my whirl of a Tornado removed from my singlet and replace if with something symbolizing a gentle breeze! Oh, how the reality of it all hurts! From the world of the Tornado mid-pack there are new forces at work adding to my feeling of running forwards and yet racing backwards! The greatest force that is tearing right through the fabric of the Tornado mid-pack is Miguel Jr., Gerardo, Jr. and Pete. If you added their collective ages together you roughly get Victor (I mean his age not his speed!). All last year I had heard rumors that they were coming. I thought, maybe I can hold them off for a year or two until they get cars or better yet girlfriends! Isn't that the lethal combination that finally did in the Great Bambino or did it prolong his career? Rumors became reality as I spotted Miguel Jr. and Pete at the starting line of the Fired Up 5K last September. They were next to Miguel Senior. The whole trio went out really fast, and I thought experience and pacing always beats youth and a fast start. And even though it was an out and back course, I never saw them again until after I finished! I have to admit that I was in sort of a mental funk as I was desperately trying to keep ahead of my ATP training group. I went over and congratulated Miguel Jr. and Pete shortly after the race. I was really proud of their results, 18:04 and 18:08, especially in light of my 18:22. I also found out that Pete and I have something in common, we both want to break 18. My money is on him doing it soon, if he hasn't already. I know all of us Tornados are proud of the Juniors-plus-Pete's achievement in our beloved sport. I remember after the race thinking of their age and race times, just having the feeling of amazement. It was really kind of magical what they are accomplishing, the birth of new running stars. But may I enter one plea, whatever happened to children respecting their elders! My own limited machismo is lessoned when I ponder the kids beating me. I can sort of rationalize the Juniors getting me; at least I can see them when I look straight ahead! But when I look down and see Pete, I just cannot believe that I am getting dusted by a kid who hasn't even shaved yet! Leno, you may be sitting back there chuckling at my plight, but I got something to tell you brother: You are next! You better get out your wallet right now and buy those kids a sports car and get them some dates! Another shinning star that has come to light for me is Katrina Price. I hope that she is a Tornado in fact, for she is one in spirit. Leno or one of the guys got her to show up at our speed work sessions at St. Thomas last spring. Leno warned me that she was fast before I came to the track. But when I saw her she did not look fast standing still. She wasn't dwarfish or twiggy looking like the women who usually dust me in the races. But being a cautious person, I did not dare get ahead of her on the first part of any rep. And it was a good thing that I didn't, she was up there where Leno could hear her footsteps! It was great to have her in our midst, not only was she the only woman; she was by far the best looking! Furthermore, I noticed a similarity between her, Jose Lara and Joe Flores. They were all stellar fast, but they were always courageous and positive. It really set the tone for some of the hardest workouts of my life. Whereas it is a little hard on my psyche to be dominated by a rising 14-year-old star, I am quite comfortable with Katrina kicking my butt. First of all Alexandra got me used to the feeling a couple years back when we ran the marathon and then the spring series. My wife too has conditioned me over nineteen years of marriage in viewing women as superior beings! Some of your wives or girlfriends have probably told you some of the same facts, that women work twice as hard as men, have two jobs, are smarter, and can endure more pain (I really believe this one because they have to put up with us!). These of course are all key ingredients in powering great running performances. So when Katrina ran a 1:03 to my 1:06 at the Space City ten-miler, I said to myself, she sure is a great runner. Whereas some Tornados already come to us as great runners like Katrina or we can watch them start to take off like our youths, there are a few true mid-packers who break out and become front-runners. We all know that change is constant and that the world is heading toward entropy. The same is true in the fragile pecking order of the tornado mid-pack. We know who usually finishes just ahead of us and behind us, and all the way up and down the whole fragile organism. And we especially notice when one of our own is on that sure and steady rise. Back when I was injured from mid 2001 to mid 2002, I noticed this Kevin Regis guy in Ramona's results. I also noticed he was in my age group! So last year when I got back on my feet, I got a chance to meet him at the starting line of the 30K, you know the race where Kevin became an invited runner to the Houston marathon. We got more of a chance to talk after the Bayou City 10K last spring. Kevin is the nicest of persons and he told me his key to success was a trip to San Diego, where he moved his mileage up from something like 40 to 70 miles a week, all in one week! I could not believe that his body could survive this! Of course he does work around a lot of nuclear power! He clearly disproved Runner's World's ten percent mileage increase rule. Furthermore Kevin is not one of those scrawny, fast runners. He has one of those linebacker physiques. In fact, he has my vote as the fastest runner in Houston that might be able to take Ken Yanowski in more than just a foot race! But I admired him for not keeping his running secrets and sharing them with me. So I do not know what possessed me during the start of the Space City 10K, but I took off after Kevin! At first I used my stealth techniques of just following him from five paces back. But this seemed sort of cowardly after a little while. Would John Wayne sneak up on someone from behind, I think not! So I edged up and said hello. Kevin spoke to me without a hint of being out of breath. When we went through mile two, to my terror, he became concerned that we were falling off pace. So I next tried a little psychological warfare in reminding him that increases in speed at this point might cost us later in the race. I fancy this line of reasoning may have worked for a second, but after mile three Kevin's large frame was moving slowly but surely away from me. I found out later that he even got Jeff. From my mid-pack perspective, it was another great race by one of our club members that is doing a great job of working his way to the top. In my book, Kevin is a front-runner. Reflecting on the great performances of Miguel Jr., Gerardo Jr., Pete, Katrina and Kevin fills me with awe mixed with a bit of hope. I still dream of working my way up to the front, of getting age group awards in bigger races. Maybe I need to travel to San Diego? I know that I am putting in the work and I hope to race more often. I know that all of us in our club are working to become better. But its also important for most of us to stand up and say, "I am proud to be mediocre!" To me it is important to be honest about where I am, while still striving to be better. I do not want to become warped and frustrated like Antonio Salieri when he beheld the genius of Mozart. I want to celebrate the elite Tornado runners amongst us! |
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