Holdmeyer Blogs About USA Junior Championships
June 26, 2008
BLOGGIN' WITH BRIAN Saint Louis freshman cross country/track and field runner Brian Holdmeyer will be in action on Saturday at the USA Outdoor Track and Field Junior Championships in Columbus, Ohio, at Ohio State University. Holdmeyer became the first Billiken ever to qualify for the event when he reached the 10K qualifying standard at a meet at Washington (Mo.) University earlier this season with a time of 32:06.96. He will run in the 10K at the USA Juniors at 7:45 p.m. (CT) Saturday. For the complete meet schedule, and to view official results immediately following the race, click here. Brian has been participating in the first Student-Athlete blog on the all-new www.slubillikens.com. Following Saturday's race, he will recap the event on this page. Simply bookmark this link to check for updates, or click the "Bloggin' With Brian" button located on SLU's Track and Field or Cross Country page. Entry #7: June 26, 2008 The race itself ended up going very well. The race was delayed about an hour due to storms that passed through Columbus, but by the time the 10,000 started the weather was perfect. I went out slow my first lap being a little more conservative than I have in past 10K races, I didn't really want to get caught up in all of the jostling for position and waste energy that early in the race just to run a 75 first lap. Since I positioned myself toward the back for the first lap I came through in about 78. After that lap, though, I immediately began moving up and by the end of the second lap I had moved up to about the middle of the pack. This is where I wanted to be early in the race and the pace was what I wanted to run. I came through the mile at 4:57 and felt very confident with how the race was playing out, I wasn't supposed to go through the mile any faster than 4:56 so I was almost perfect through a mile. Over the next couple of miles I just moved from group to group always staying with at least one other runner to help with the work. Over the last couple of miles, I started to have to make pushes to catch people on my own though and staying a bit conservative that first mile really started to pay off here. As others in my group really started to slow I was able to hold on, and even though I still slowed over the last two miles I did not slow as much as they did. The splits I ended up running were 4:57, 5:05, 5:02, 5:08, 5:12, 5:12, and a last lap of a 70. This ended up giving me a 31:46.91, just .13 seconds slower than my PR. Although I just missed my PR I still finished sixth and was able to beat a couple of people seeded ahead of me.
Overall, I was a little disappointed with the time, I had been hoping to run closer to 31:30, but placing sixth was enough to make up for that disappointment and it really showed me what Coach Bell has been telling all season. If you just run the time that got you qualified for a race you will usually finish higher than you are seeded because there are always those who don't run well at the bigger meets. The race was a good finish to the weekend and I was happy that I could run well because so many people came out to support me. My family and some of my teammates drove to Columbus to watch the race and I am glad I could at least make it as fun it can be to watch a 30+ minute race around a track. Entry #6: June 20, 2008 Entry #5: June 19, 2008 Once we got into Columbus we stopped at the hotel before picking up the credentials and other information about the weekend and heading to the track. I ran 15 minutes easy this morning so when we got to the track I just ran another 15 minutes pretty easy and did a couple of strides afterward. I am starting to get the feeling back of what it is like to be at races with all of these schools. It was a reminder just how prestigious this race is when I was doing my 15-minute run and there were athletes from Baylor and Arkansas on the track at the same time. From here on out I just have to take trust in my training up to this point and remember my strategy once the race starts to make sure I don't go out over my head and make a big mistake early. Entry #4: June 18, 2008 The workouts that I have been doing have given me the confidence that I need going into the race. Last week I had two workouts, a repetition workout to get used to a faster pace than what my race pace will be and to help in that last mile with my kick. I also ran my longest interval workout of this training period of 3 x 2 miles. The repetition workout went well, it was not a workout that I expected to be too difficult. It was 4 x 200, 1 x 800, 2 x 400. I ended up running 30.9, 32.2, 32.1, 30.6 2:13.2 61.3, 60.6. I hit the splits that I wanted to running the 800 in a negative split of about 67., 65. The real test came on Friday when I ran 3 x 2 miles at race pace. This workout was one that I went into worried about. I knew that it was going to be the toughest workout of this training block, and I also knew that I have never really felt comfortable running two miles, whether in a race or a workout. That nervousness ended up hurting me in the first two intervals where I only ran 10:13 and 10:16 (my goal pace was 10:04-10:08). The last interval I was finally able to overcome the mental roadblock and ran 10:05. So although the workout did not go exactly how I had wanted it to go, it served as another barrier that I have broken through during this training period. Closing that workout made me realize again that the race was not that far away and I had to remember how it would feel those last two miles of the race where I will need to make a push for the finish. This week my legs have really started to come around. I am beginning to feel the benefits of the taper and as a result I can feel the speed and pop returning to my legs. We only had one workout scheduled this week, 4 x 1 mile at tempo pace. The workout went great; we ran it at Vianney again after the Big River Tuesday Night Speed Sessions. I found out quickly on the first mile just how good my legs were feeling as a result of the taper. I ran 5:08 for the first mile having to slow down after the halfway mark, which I came through just over 5:00 pace. Even though I came through fast I felt comfortable and I didn't feel that I was working any harder than I would have been on any other tempo run. I ran the second one in even splits to another 5:08 before being told by both of my coaches to relax and run the next two slower. I finished the last two miles in 5:13 and 5:11. With only a couple days left I am feeling prepared and I am hoping that the race will play out to not only help me run a fast time but also place well. Anything can happen in a 10K and since it such a long race it is important to bide your time and follow your race plan. That is what I am hoping to do and if I do follow the race plan, the fast time and a good place should come. Entry #3: June 10, 2008 The repetition workout was four sets of 2x200 and 1x400. It went pretty well with my average 200 being right around 31 and the 400s being 64 mid. Later that week I tried the 5 x 1 mile interval workout for the second time this training period. That workout went much better than the first time I attempted it and I was able to run splits of 4:57.3, 4:55.5, 4:57.5, 4:55.9, 5:04.5. The last one was a little slow, but I was able to run my fourth interval as one of my fastest, which was the goal of the workout. Last week I had a five-mile tempo run on Wednesday at Vianney track. That workout was a pretty successful one. I was able to run my fastest time for that workout beating the time I ran while preparing for my 31:46 at the A-10s. The total time was 26:17 with splits of 5:19, 5:13, 5:15, 5:18, 5:12. Saturday I ran 6 x 1000 meter repeats at interval pace. Since this was a shorter workout we wanted to run about 5,000-meter race pace. This workout again was really successful with splits of 3:02.9, 3:02.2, 3:02.2, 3:01.5, 2:58.2, 2:58.2. This workout also gave me a pretty big confidence boost. In my past workouts since the A-10s it has seemed that I will get a certain point in my workout and not be able to mentally push myself beyond a certain point to run the times I was supposed to. In this workout I got to the last 1000 and I came through the first 400 a little slower than I had the time before. In the past when this would happen I would still run fast but not mentally be able to get myself to push past the barrier and make up the deficit. This time, however, I was able to dig in and remember what it feels like to push myself late in the race, and by doing that I caught back up to pace and finished the workout with a faster average than originally planned. Originally we wanted to run 3:07, 3:05, 3:03, 3:01, 2;59, 2:57. With just under two weeks left I am starting to gain the confidence I will need once I get into the race, and I hope to hit these next couple of workouts to gain a little more confidence in my fitness.
Entry #2: May 27, 2008 It all started on Friday when I had another workout on the track. I was scheduled to run 5 x 1 mile at tempo pace. The goal pace going into this workout was 5:10-5:15. Friday also happened to be the day I started work, so I met coach Tim Bradley at 4 p.m. at Vianney High School's track to run the workout. I felt a little tired going into the workout, but I was not too concerned since this was supposed to be a little bit easier than the other workouts. When I arrived I found out that coach Bradley was going to pace me through the first 800 of each mile. Once I got onto the track I was feeling good again, sitting behind Coach really helped me get used to running hard but in control again. It was nice being able to sit and relax the first half of each mile, and I found that after the 800 I was able to slowly increase my effort and remember what it feels like to run fast. The workout ended up being really successful as I hit the miles in 5:12.6, 5:11.9, 5:12.8, 5:12.7 and 5:09.8. Saturday and Sunday were just easy days. I ran nine miles on Saturday, mostly around the Big Driver cross-country course, and Sunday I had two runs scheduled. I ran four miles easy in the morning and another nine in the evening. The nine miles in the evening ended up being a little bit faster than I wanted to go, but about three miles out it started to rain so I picked up the pace and made it back about 10 minutes before it really started to storm. The week ended at 70 miles. Monday was a longer run; I ended up running for 91 minutes, which translated into about 13 miles. For that I ran a couple of loops around the Big Driver cross-country course again to stay on a softer surface and save my legs. Tuesday was another easy day to prepare for my repetition workout tomorrow. I ran nine miles but it ended up being at a faster pace than I expected. It was a great day to run with the temperature in the low 60s, and I picked an out-and-back route to a trail that runs along the riverfront. The first 1.5 miles are mostly downhill so I got into a good rhythm early into the run, then once I got to the trail it is completely flat for six miles before heading back up the hills that I ran down on the way out. Once I got to the trail, I was feeling smooth and I was thinking about getting this entry written and the upcoming cross-country season and wasn't paying too much attention to my pace. When I hit the mile marker I realized I was running just around 6:50 per mile pace, but I was feeling good so I just continued to run. My pace stayed right around there the rest of the run, dropping to about 6:40 for a couple of miles before I made a conscious effort to back off and save some for tomorrow. Today's run made me realize that I am back on the right track to prepare myself for Juniors, which is now just under four weeks away. I just have to be careful to not get too excited now and burn myself out or run too hard and injure myself. Because of today's run, I will have to back off the pace quite a bit on Thursday to make sure I fully recover for Friday's workout. Hopefully I will have another post up between the workouts this week. I know it has been a while since the last one, but I am going to try to update this more often now that I am back into a routine with work and running. Entry #1: May 22, 2008 This week started off with another long run, this one being just a bit longer than last week, and Wednesday was another chance to get in my first good workout since conference. Wednesday went better than the workouts last week, but it still wasn't the workout that I wanted to run. It was 8 x 1000 at interval pace again, this time I was able to make it through five on pace, but after that fifth interval I couldn't increase my speed any more and I ended up running 3:01 for the last three intervals (the goal time for those were 2:57, 2:55, and 2:55). Although it wasn't the workout I wanted, I am pleased with the first five because those show that I am moving in the right direction again. Next up is Friday's workout, which is 5 x 1 mile at tempo pace, the goal pace for that is 5:10-5:15 per mile. This workout hopefully will go well, it is one that I have run well in the past and on paper is the easiest workout out of all of them that I have done so far. Thursday was an easy recovery day. I easily ran nine miles around my hometown of Washington, Mo. I saw Borgia High School's new track coach Mitch Figas and ran the majority of my run with him. It was nice running an easy day with someone again, and it really helped me keep my pace under control. The past couple of weeks I have had a little bit of trouble finding an easy, controlled pace to run on my easy days. Today I was really happy that I could find a pace that wasn't too bad because my legs were still a little sore and tight from the workout yesterday. Hopefully keeping today under control will translate into a better workout tomorrow as I try to get my first good workout in. |
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