Track and Field Blogs - Flotrack Blogs

The most exciting single race of the season for runners is only days away and there looks to be some awesome performances and battles you will not want to miss. Below I look at many of the top contenders for Monday with four titles up for grabs. I did not make any concrete rankings, or predictions as to not influence anyone who still may not have posted their picks for the Saucony NCAA Prediction Contest. Women's Team Race - 2008 Champions: Washington On the Podium: Oregon, Florida State, West Virginia This decade has been all about the repeat champions and… more »

November 1st, 2009 – New York City 10:56am – All I can hear is my steady breathing and Pat Tarpy’s footsteps. Its quiet up here, almost eerie. *beep* I hit the split on my watch at the 15 mile mark; 5:11, slow, but not bad considering we’re heading up the Queensboro Bridge. I can feel a strong crosswind pushing us from right to left. I’m not looking forward to this inevitable headwind heading up 1st Ave. into the Bronx. Doubt starts to creep in. My legs start to feel sluggish. I need to regroup. I look up ahead I can… more »

In his work Walden Henry David Thoreau writes about his experience living in natural seclusion: “…I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived….” He goes on to emphasize the importance of maintaining simplicity in life, and how individuals have become caught up in details and distractions from technology and the rest of society. In this day and age running has become an outlet for… more »

There are only two events where runners of all abilities get together to test their true grit. One is cross-country and the other is the marathon. The most talented, fastest, and toughest runners can be brought to their knees in these two great events. Yes cross-country is amazing and yes the US Champ in Cross is also the US Marathon Champ but the marathon is what I know so this is what my blog is about. The greatest public stage for runners to display their talent is the marathon. This stage, this grand example of the struggle of man's willingness… more »

Hey guys, this is a blog I wrote for The Huffington Post and thought it would be cool to share with you. Standing on the awards podium, I look out over the Berlin Olympic Stadium. I am on a promontory that juts out over the stands, the same space where Hitler spoke during the 1936 Olympic Games and where Jesse Owens' received his four gold medals, each of which shot a hole in the myth of Aryan supremacy. The power of this spot is palpable and, with only the blue track below me and the blue sky above, I feel… more »

Women's South Central Regional – 2009 Ranked Teams: SMU #25, Arkansas #28, Baylor Others Receiving Votes 2008 Automatic Qualifying Teams: Arkansas, Baylor 2008 At-Large Teams: Rice, SMU 2008 Individual Champion: Nicole Mericle, Rice Team Outlook in 2009: Similarly to the Men’s South Central Region, the women’s is rather weak this year. The top ranked team in the region is SMU. They are new to their perch atop the South Central and did not move up there until last week when they won the Conference USA title with an impressive 28 points. They were solid all season, placing fifth at the… more »

I'm stepping away and hanging up my spikes officially. When I entered this sport at the age of 14, because of a girl, I never thought it would take me as far as it did. This has been a grand journey. What I think back on the most are not the great races I had. I think back to all the people and experiences that came as a result of my circumstantial existence in this world. I will truly miss all the friends I've made over the years. Thank you all for your friendship, kindness, and inspiration. Thank you to… more »

Men's South Central Regional – 2009 Ranked Teams: Arkansas #22, Texas Others Receiving Votes 2008 Automatic Qualifying Teams: Texas A&M, Arkansas 2008 At-Large Teams: None 2008 Individual Champion: Shadrack Songok, Texas A&M Team Outlook in 2009: The South Central Region is by far the weakest region for men’s teams this year. Not surprisingly, many teams in this region are strong in track & field, but less scholarship money seems to be focused on distance runners in this region. There is only one top 30 ranked team in the South Central and it is Arkansas at #22. The Razorbacks have qualified… more »

Women's Great Lakes Regional – 2009 Ranked Teams: Michigan #23, Michigan State #26, Notre Dame & Indiana Others Receiving Votes 2008 Automatic Qualifying Teams: Michigan, Wisconsin 2008 At-Large Teams: Michigan State, Notre Dame 2008 Individual Champion: Nicole Bush, Michigan State Team Outlook in 2009: This region is a little weaker than usual with no teams ranked in the top 20, but there will be a good team battle between four teams that are closely matched. Michigan gets the ‘favorite’ role after edging out Michigan State at the Big Ten Championships by 15 points. The two teams were 4th and 5th… more »

Men's Great Lakes Regional – 2009 Ranked Teams: Wisconsin #10, Butler #26, Ohio State #28, Indiana Others Receiving Votes 2008 Automatic Qualifying Teams: Wisconsin, Michigan 2008 At-Large Teams: Butler, Notre Dame 2008 Individual Champion: Patrick Smyth, Notre Dame Team Outlook in 2009: Last weekend Wisconsin finally put all the pieces together at the Big Ten Champs and ran like a team that has been in the top 5 at NCAAs every year for the past ten years. They scored an impressively low 26 points, sticking all their scorers in the top 8 and their entire top 7 in the top… more »

Women's Northeast Regional – 2009 Ranked Teams: Syracuse #10, Providence #21 2008 Automatic Qualifying Teams: Providence, Syracuse 2008 At-Large Teams: Boston College, Stony Brook 2008 Individual Champion: Danette Doetzel, Providence Team Outlook in 2009: The Providence women’s team made their first trip to nationals in 1989 and they have not been absent at the championship since. That 20 year streak does not look like it will be broken this year, but they will not be going in to the meet as top dogs. Syracuse has been running great all season and is the favorite in the Northeast. They recently beat… more »

Men's Northeast Regional – 2009 Ranked Teams: Iona #9, Syracuse #11, Providence #23, Columbia Others Receiving Votes 2008 Automatic Qualifying Teams: Iona, Providence 2008 At-Large Teams: None 2008 Individual Champion: Mohamed Khadraoui, Iona Teams Outlook in 2009: For what seems like forever, Iona and Providence have had a strangle hold on the men’s auto-bids in the Northeast. The only team to have snuck in there this decade has been Dartmouth in 2001 and 2005. This year, both teams are major contenders again, but the favorite may be Syracuse. In 2007 the Orange just missed making the big dance when they… more »

My race with Nick Stanko in the Detroit marathon will obviously never be famous like Alberto Salazar and Dick Beardsley in Boston, but on a smaller scale it gave me a little taste of what it would be like. Even though I didn't win and it wasn't one the of major marathons I had a great experience. I still had pace vehicals leading the way through the city, good size crowds coming out the the tunnel from Windsor to Detroit, and all my Hanson teammates cheering me on on the bridge to Bell Isle. The day started off with a… more »

The segment wrap up! Well my 2009 racing season came to a close this past Saturday on the track on the campus of IUPUI. Many of my friends have asked to tell them about the race. What better place to do that than with a blog. The race was part of the Indiana Invaders track series. For the past few years, they have put on a 10,000 meters in the fall. To me it seems like a pretty good idea. You can get a qualifier early and then focus on training for Nationals, rather than chasing times all spring and… more »

I must have mistaken another sign for the last mile marker. No way, that was a 5:05 on the fifth mile. Wait! Was that last mile a 4:59!?! We STILL are only six miles into a recovery twelve miler. Is this how the group got so good? Can I hack it here on a daily basis if this is a “recovery” day pace? I have to surge right now or I am going to get dropped pretty decisively. Surge? On an easy day? Listen to me! I have been here for three days and I have yet to speak a… more »

Conference Weekend had the entire NCAA running, scattered all over the country. Some races ran to form, while others had some major upsets. A few teams like the Princeton women and Butler men scored a perfect 15, while a number of conferences have NCAA Top 30 teams fighting just to make the top 3-5 at their meet. I’ll get right in to it while you can also check out Part I and Part II for some background on the goal of this series; Finding the Way to Terre Haute. Teams Louisville Cardinals: 4th/14 in the Big East Championships This team… more »

http://www.leomanzano.com/blog/post Hey Everyone, So I'm finally back from Europe and Mexico. It has been a lot of fun and a lot of work, but I have enjoyed it every step of the way. All in all it was a great season. Thesolaniki is where I left off the last time I blogged. I did really well. It was a very competitive race but i beat out the world champ and the world leader in time, which was really exciting and finished in second. After the competition we headed back to England and got ready to go home to the US.… more »