Blog

By Shannon Rowbury This past Wednesday I returned home from an altitude training stint in San Luis Potosi (SLP), Mexico. I guess I should say I returned home from my second home, because I actually had been living and training in SLP for 3 months, and this trip marks my 5th year training there. I keep going back again and again because the winter weather in SLP is 70 degrees and sunny, the training facilities at La Loma and ITESM Campus San Luis Potosi are top notch, and I never seem to tire of the trails. It looks like more and more runner ar...

By Jake Schmitt Two weeks ago this blog would have been impossible to write; however, sitting here in my kitchen as I mentally prepare for my 90-minute swim I realize that there is now a light at the end of the tunnel. “The tunnel” being a extraordinarily frustrating injury involving my hamstring, groin, and hip. This injury has now officially put me out longer than any other injury in my entire career and has sent me through a tailspin of emotions and… cookies as the Olympic Trials dream I had slipped away. With all that sa...

By Clara Peterson Since having my daughter this past April, I have talked a lot about how much stronger I have felt. Well, by stronger, I meant endurance strength. My speed has been a whole different story. Avoiding races any shorter than the half marathon was soon going to become a problem as the spring (and the start of track season) rapidly approaches us. Workouts that included 200’s scared the crap out of me, but workouts that had 2 mile repeats put my mind at ease. If someone told me that I would choose 2 mile intervals over 200 met...

By Michael Coe There are hardly few, if any, competitive distance runners who have not had to deal with a serious injury. It is an athlete’s worst nightmare: You push your body to its breaking point, soon to discover it will no longer function without a long period of rest and rehab. The mere idea of prolonged rest and rehab contradicts our nature of pushing ourselves when it hurts. I commend those runners who have dealt with the frustrations of injury and bounced back stronger from it. I have dealt with a few injuries in my roller coaste...

By Chris Chavez While watching the high school and collegiate XC seasons come to an end I cannot help but think about my own experience with the hills and mud of cross-country racing. I will not pretend to be some great XC runner projecting some secret to successful training or racing on the reader, but I will share one lesson that I learned all too late. That lesson was the importance of rest. No matter how my XC season ended I was always fired up for track. If my last race went poorly or our team did not qualify for the next race, I simply w...

By Steve Sodaro As I came down from the Bay Area Track Club’s first ever team altitude camp in North Star, Lake Tahoe, I certainly had a lot to reflect on—I realize that I accomplished my three major goals of attending. Goal number one: to have fun and get to know everyone involved with team. I got to live with almost all of the BATC members and got to run and relax with Phil Wharton, Brooke Wells, and Crosby Freeman, too. Goal number two: get some great runs and workouts in with my fellow teammates. Training with marathoners made ...

By Mark Matusak The sky was clear save a few wispy clouds over the Bay.  I stepped out my door around 6:20pm with only my shirt, shoes, shorts, and the all-important timepiece.  Warmth fills the November air.  I realize the cool ocean breeze as I run down the road towards the marina—perfect conditions for an evening run.   I only need to endure five minutes on unforgiving pavement until I reach the Bay Trail.  Along the bike path is a sandy trail that allows some reprieve for my legs.  Lighting conditions at...

Alysia Montaño recently returned from a month-long honeymoon in New Zealand. Below she reflects on her experiences far from home and the differences between the American and the New Zealand lifestyle. Talk about a refreshment of mind, body, and spirit! New Zealand is one of the most beautiful places in the world hands down, not to mention a great place for spiritual grounding. I embarked upon this journey for my honeymoon celebrating my March Nuptials. My husband had the brilliant idea of visiting this beautiful land, and if I wasn't ce...

By David Torrence That’s right, three weeks. Nothing. What’s that? Not even a little jog? NOPE. Sure I walk around a bit, and I’ll play some basketball or soccer…maybe throw the football around a bit. But once I’ve finished my last race of the year, I don’t do any type of track training for three…straight…WEEKS. At the end of a long season, athletes are often ending in good shape, but a bit burnt out and tired. It’s only natural. We train non-stop, pushing our bodies to the limit constan...

By Francis Gadayan Two weeks ago, I took part in a running event, which I realize now, I hardly knew anything about. EVENT BACKGROUND: The event was the Dick Collins Firetrails 50. The Firetrails 50 is a 50mile race that starts at Lake Chabot, runs 26miles out to Tilden (little farm), and then back. MY JOB: Help man the aid station turn-around at mile 26. (Sure it seemed pretty simple in theory, when the runners come by give them water and maybe a GU. Little did I know I was going to experience a side of running I never knew even existed.) RAC...