Happy Halloween, Flotrackers!

David McCarthy, an Irishman and Providence Friar Sophomore, ran a great Pre Nats race with a sixth place finish in the blue race. He's going into championship part of the cross country with momentum on his side. Follow along with Flotrack to see how he does this season!

How's your training going right now?

The last few weeks have been really consistent. Keeping the mileage at a constant level. Not increasing it, just keeping it consistent. I came back this year, I had a few niggles in the leg after the summer. I redshirted indoor season and outdoor season here last year because when I went home for Christmas I got injured. My knee came at me. Then I came back here and got training in for two weeks, then my other knee came at me. Ray (Treacy) decided to redshirt me both indoor and outdoor and keep me for the fifth year. That was going to be the plan anyway. Whether or not I redshirted, he wanted me here for five years. I got back to training right at the end of February and trained right to the end of May and I went home to Ireland for the summer. I ran a track season at home. I had my first race, which was a mile back home. That went well and I just ran a few races over the summer. But I'd keep the mileage up, kind of racing track but focusing on cross country to keep the strength going. So that went well. But come the end of Summer, I took my break and got a few little niggles. I think that's what my problem was. I jumped back into it too quick at times. I talked to Ray and I could take it a little more relaxed and take things easier. Once the week's behind you with the consistency...that's what benefits you in the end. I know every runner is looking for this quick-fix to get in shape, but I think that brings more problems than any good, you know?

What kind of time did you run for that mile?

I ran a 4:01.

Is that the closest you've come?

Yeah, that's the closest I've come. It's the only mile I've ever ran. I went home and that was my first race since the European Cross Country Championships back in December of 2007. I'd be basically been training the whole way through. James Nolan, the top guy from back home, was in the race. Liam Reale and Mark Christe, and a lot of guys from back home. Going into the race, I was expected to go fourth or fifth, which suits me down the ground because there nothing better than being the underdog going into the race. If you don't do well, well, there was nothing expected of you. But if you do do well you shock everyone. There's no pressure on you—which I love that. The race went well. I sat in behind the guys for the first three laps and then two guys made the move on the bell and I just sat in behind them. Even with it being my first race, they kicked with 300 meters to go. I just wasn't sure of myself at all. I didn't know where I was. I was feeling good, but thinking, “God, I could hit the wall with 150 to go.” I just sat in behind them and coming back around the bend, I thought “jeez, I have another gear in me.” They had went too far ahead but I caught one guy and was just one one-hundredth of a second behind the other.

You obviously ran a great Pre Nats race this year. What are your individual goals for this cross country season?

To be honest, it was a shocker to me. I feel like my goals have totally changed now. Last year I was looking like, “you know it would be great to get All-American.” That was the aim for this year. And it would be great. Last week, we thought it would be great to be going in the top 20. That's what I was expecting. The morning of the race, Ray comes up to me when we're have breakfast and he goes, “I was looking through and going through the starting list last night and I think there's only about eight guys in the race who can beat you.” That got me thinking. I didn't want to start thinking, “oh, I'm expected to do something now.” It played out how we were supposed to do it. I started off in the top 20 and was to see how the body felt and move up. One thing about this year that I find so much easier to last was last year I started with such a shock to the system. I was being thrown into a race and in the back of a pack in 100^th position. I find when you're running there, you're running a lot harder than when you're running at the front. Instead of seeing where you are, you're being dragged along with the pace. But this year I got out. I was up there with the leading group and I was feeling really comfortable. I was going into the second lap and I think the guys had a bit of a gap on me going down the hill. It came to a stage where the main pack split into two bunches and I was leading the second. The top ten guys moved ahead and I was like, “no, I've got to go with these guys. If I'm feeling good, I might as well go with it. I might finish a lot higher and I'd feel disappointed if I didn't go with them.” So, I started closing the gap gradually, I didn't panic. I was going down along the flat in the back. Do you know that area?

Yeah, I know it.

Down around the hill. I basically said, “when we start swinging up around the incline, I'll start picking a few guys off.” But, I wasn't making a big burst. I was was gradually picking them off. Then I remember getting up behind Patrick Smyth, of Notre Dame, and I thought, “jeez, I'm seeing the front leaders. I'm getting close here.” For a split second I thought I was going to throw it in with those guys. Plus the fact that I was already feeling strong, I was coming through strong. We went through around the third loop and I actually passed Patrick Smyth and then he passed me. I wasn't in any hurry to get at him again. I said, “I'll sit in behind him. He's obviously pushing it.” There's a big, long straightaway ahead of us on the bend and that's where I'll come out and see how I'm feeling. I passed another guy or two up there and crossed the line in sixth and I wasn't expecting it at all.

Are you going to key off of Smyth at NCAAs?

I tend to not think of people like that when I'm racing. A lot of people judge, like, “run with this guy.” But, a lot of times that guy could have a bad run or an amazing run. I always work off my own body. I'm pretty good at that too. I could be thrown into a field where I don't know the competition, but I'll not get carried away with the pace out front if I think it's getting too quick. If I know I can go with them, then I'll go with them. I just try to listen to my own body. That's my judgment.

How did you find Providence in the first place?

Obviously the coach here is Ray Treacy. My home place is where he grew up, maybe 20 minutes from where my house is. There's a strong connection there. I've been running since the age of seven, competitively. From the age of ten, I knew if you were good enough you go to America. The colleges like Providence, Villanova. As I came to my final year of high school I'd been in contact with Ray. My coach from back home, Brandon Quinn, also went to Providence and he graduated here. He is very good friends with Ray. They trained together as well. That was a helping factor as well. I had great confidence because my coach back home had a lot to say about Ray. I came over here on my recruiting trip and that really nailed it for me there. I just said, “this is a place I could feel at home.” I got along well with the team. I know Ray had produced a lot of athletes and known about his coaching abilities. I came over here last year and have had an even better year here this year just because I'm settled in here a lot more and I know the routine of things.

Did you know Keith Kelly at all?

I know of Keith. I never really spoke to him, just because he was so far ahead of me age wise that when I got into competing at home he was gone to America. I'd heard of Keith and that he'd won the NCAAs and he'd done a lot as well. So, I'm up to date on Irish athletes and how they're doing over here.

Who were your running idols growing up?

You have the likes of our own great runners like John Treacy and Eamonn Coghlan. I mean those guys did it for me too. But, I like to see the white guys come out there. And I love watching Mottram run and those guys. But, my own terms, I'd have to say John and Eamonn. Especially John. He was from my hometown and brothers with Ray Tracy.

What are the biggest differences between running over there and running over here?

A huge factor is the weather. (Laughs) The weather back home is shocking, just because it's raining all the time. The real reason I wanted to come to America and not stay at home too. There's really only one place you go at home in Ireland if you're staying there and that's The Dublin City University, the DCU. It's great up there and they look after you, but I wanted the competition and the guys to train with. That's the reason we come to America, because the competition. We don't have it back home. If I stayed back home, I'd be racing the same guys, I'd be winning the same races and I wouldn't be going against the likes of the NCAA system here. I feel like you have to travel to Europe to get races. I think Europe is great during the summer, but apart from that...it's not during cross country season.

You've run some pretty fast middle distance times. Do you have a preference...cross country or say, the 15?

I'll tell you what. Coming over here when I was in my final years of high school, I probably seemed like a track runner, an 800-meter guy. At the age of 17, I ran a 1:49 for the 800. Everyone then thought I was an 800 guy. I was with a coach before I was with Brandon Quinn. Malcolm McCausland, he was from the North of Ireland. Under him we were training more towards the 800. Obviously my training was geared towards that, so I was running great 800s and not so much at the cross country races. When I moved, Brendan, who said when he saw me as a kid running that I was going to be a distance runner. We changed the training, upped the mileage, totally lost a lot of muscle and totally slimmed down and just got really good at it. I knew at the young age I was always a good cross country runner. I like to put it this way: I love cross country season and when it's over, I'm ready to leave it and look forward to indoor season. And the same with indoor season and ready to go to outdoor. I must admit I love cross country just because you don't care about the time, you go to the courses and the courses change so I feel it doesn't get boring. One thing I love is the distance. I love being out there for a good 23 to 24 minutes in an 8K race, pushing it hard. I mean, my favorite workout is a tempo run. Just a six-mile tempo run. Being out there a good, steady pace. I just love being out running. The longer I'm out there, the more I'm enjoying it.

The longer the better?

In terms of that. Even though I'm saying that. I love the track season too. I love cross country because there's time to—I know you don't want to be saying this but—I like to enjoy the race too. As much as it hurts, you still enjoy the fact that it hurts and you enjoy that you're out there. You're picking guys off, hopefully they're not picking you off while you're dying. Come track season, I'll be dying for that too. I love the mile or the 3K, or I love when we've got a great group of guys in the Summer and we're all out on the track doing workouts together. It's hard to pick something in specific. It's kind of like after you've had enough of one thing you move on to another.

That's the good thing about this sport.

That's right. I haven't even had a proper indoor season, because indoors isn't big back home in Ireland. We don't have the facilities for it. I redshirted last year, but watching it here...the atmosphere looks just amazing. I'm so excited for that, but I'm trying not to think about that now and keep my mind on cross country for the moment.

Is it true that the Guinness is better in Ireland than it is in the United States?

Oh, God! I'll tell you what. I haven't had one here yet. I couldn't answer that. They talk about it like it's the way you pour it. They say they're good at pouring it back home, so it all depends on that. You know you're getting the good stuff back home and you don't know what you're getting other places.

Maybe after the cross country season, I'll contact you and you might have tried one?

Exactly. Good for the old iron levels too!

What's the hardest workout you've ever done?

It's funny, I've been asked that question a lot of times. Even with Ray running us so far, I feel like he never runs us to the ground. I feel like I've never done a session where I'm just bent over heels, absolutely wrecked afterward. When Ray is training us and he sees we're pushing it too hard, he holds us back. And that happens to me a lot. I'm always trying to keep the pace under control. That's one thing, I don't think the guys like tempoing with me. I can just get a bit carried away with it. That's like I said, though, I've had to learn from when I come back from injuries to keep it under a lot more control. Like go a little bit slower today and it will allow you to go injury-free in the weeks behind you. The hardest sessions I don't think are cross country ones, just because I think they're more of a controlled race. I think when you get out onto the track and you start lashing out like 600-meter repeats off of 90 seconds, that's when it's tired going. 600 meters in 90 seconds and I'm definitely hitting the wall on the last one or two. I would definitely say the 600-meter repeats on short recovery are definitely a hard one.

Definitely.

400 and below, you find pain in it, but it doesn't last as long. I find with 600-meter repeats, it's just as fast as the four, but you're really suffering through it.

It's one of those in between distances.

Yeah, anything between 600 and 800 meters on the track are the hard ones where you're just really grinding it out. Oh, God, there's nothing worse than when you hit them on a bad day.

What do you do when you're not running?

What do I do when I'm not running? I'll tell you. I like to do absolutely nothing. Relax. Go to sleep. I love my afternoon naps, I tell you. I try to take one every day. Other that that...hanging out with the guys, relaxing, maybe not even think about running and leave it to when I am running. I keep going with schoolwork and all that, but I just love relaxing with the guys or heading out for a coffee. I love my coffee. Afternoon naps and taking it easy. I know it's a runner's lifestyle and people look at us and say, “how do you do it and keep running the whole time?” I tell you, when I'm not running, I'm the laziest guy going.

Well, you earned that.

That's right. That's why I don't feel that bad when I'm doing it.

Can you give me a crazy running story?

It was one of my first national track championships. The day before the national U15 track championships I was cycling around on some rough ground near home, banging along at the usual 100 miles per hour sort of thing, and got my foot and pants got caught in the pedal of the bike and it threw me over the handlebars. My foot stayed trapped on the pedal though and I got dragged along about 10 meters, slicing open my shin and knee. Perfect, just what I wanted! I traveled up to Dublin in the evening thinking I may as well go and watch the event, when we reached the hotel though I couldn't walk and had to get Mam to pretty much carry me inside. I was in agony.
I woke up the next morning to see that my leg had stuck to the white sheet in middle of the night, and there was blood all over them. I had trouble getting out of bed, let alone getting down for breakfast!
I limped around at the track and when my race was called I knew I couldn't run so I didn't bother warming up, when the final call came to the start line though I couldn't resist I threw on my spikes real quick, the adrenaline took over as I toed the start line and just smiling as I listened to the other guys shouting, "look at the size of McCarthys knee, its disgusting!", maybe it distracted them though I don't know, 'cause the rest is history! I won one of my first national title in the most painful sprint finish I've ever had. Of course after the race and when all the excitement had gone the knee totally seized up again. You get those moments, I mean I never want to be sitting in a stands thinking "what if"... just get out there and do it. Well, when you're that age if that was now I’d probably have taken the week off!(Then again, I don’t know...maybe not!)