Best times by american runners 08

These are the fastest times of american 10k runners.
There may still be some shuffling and new additions as another big week at the University of Stanford approaches Westly currently sits in the 19th spot.

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Stanford...Accomplished!

A late evening race with a very competitive field proved to be good and bad for Westly.

Good: The objective of an Olympic standard was achieved

Bad: The time was not as good as expected.

A 9th place with a PR of 28:23.09 was just enough to place Westly at the 19th spot of 24 who will qualify for the Olympic trials.

Could Westly have done better? Of course! If the problem leg would have cooperated a litle.

Still, a successful experience.

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Off to Stanford

Today, at 10:40am Westly took the first of two planes en route to Stanford.

He landed at approximately 10:45pm in San Jose, Ca. and checked in his hotel room one hour later.

He called me and told me that the weather was very cold and dry.

Cold and dry is what we need! Westly is always a better racer in cold conditions.

In less then 48 hours from the time I am posting, we will know if he has the Olympic Standard or the A-Standard!

I will post more regularly as the time nears.

In the mean time...

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Stanford Invitational - Heat I

The following is the group of athletes that will run in Westly's heat a the Stanford Invitational.
It's a strong field and it will most definitely help push the pace.

I have hilighted the stronger athletes and have added every runners known PRs.

Name	School – Team - Unattached	PR. Race
Keating, Westly	Unattached UT- Pan American (former)	10000 28:24.08
Araia, Neftalem	Sr. Stanford	10000 28:27.43
Braden, Forest	Brooks Team	10000 29:17.32
Briney, Trent	McMillan Elite	10000 29:14
Cheboiywo, Boaz	N.O. Project	10000 28:32.10
Dobson, Ian	Nike	10000 28:17.49
Driscoll, Joseph	McMillan Elite	?
Gotcher, Brett	McMillan Elite	10000 28:59.27
Hanlon, Mike	McMillan Elite	5000 13:55
Kanyaruhuru, Daniel	Jr. Queens	5000 14:12.85
Kilburg, Michael	Sr. Portland	10000 29:36.44
Klotz, Kenny	So. Oregon	10000 29:50.26
Koborsi, Rod	Unattached	10000 28:32.49
Korir, Jacob	Sr. Eastern Kentucky	5000 13:48.13
Kosgei, Peter	Sr. Arkansas	10000 28:08.97
MacPherson, Scott	Jr. Arkansas	10000 29:16.74
Diego Mercado	Fr. Oregon	10000 31:36.35
Mix, Hari	Jr. Stanford	10000 28:58.90
Morgan, Thomas	Zap Fitness	5000 13:40.55
Olinger, Chris	Team XO	8000 24:51
Powers, Jeff	Brooks Team	5000 14:03.92
Quigley, Sean	SR. La Salle	10000 28:53.84
Rodriguez, Celedonio	Unattached	10000 28:43
Sheeks, Matt	Unattached	10000 29:39.51
Simpson, Josh	NYAC	?
Songok, Shadrack	SR. TAMUCC	10000 28:16.47
Sundell, Steve	NYAC	5000 14:14
Withrow, Matt	Jr. U of Wisconsin	10000 29:50.7

Texas Invitational (3k - 8:03)

Hard work payed off once again for Westly this weekend at the Texas Invitational.

Westly chose to run a 3k race at a fast pace hoping that the popularity of the UT meet would allow for some good competition, a fun race, and a good workout.

The field had an interesting makeup. A few unattached runners, including Chris Layman - the fastest runner in San Antonio-, 3 Kenyans from Lamar University, a few UTexas, San Angelo, Texas State and UTPA runners.

Soon after the gun had been fired, and only after the first 200 meters, the race had been decided. Westly opened a 20 meter gap between him and the 3 Lamar University Kenyans. This gap would stretch and stretch to about 200 meters.

Westly finished in a time of 8:03. Only 5 seconds off his PR. Second place was clocked at 8:31.

The race included the "lapping" of more then half a dozen runners.

As Westly crossed the finish line, the announcers informed the crowd that "We will surly see more of this incredible runner during this Olympic year". I hope he is right.

While a nagging muscle on the inside quad has been a constant for the past few weeks, most everything else is in good order.

Stanford is right around the corner. A few more strength workouts should allow Westly to be sharper then ever.

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City of Pharr St. Patrick's Run (5k - 13:59)

Westly posted another good time (13:59) in a 5k road race hosted by the city of Pharr. After a week off speed work, due to a tender quad, he was able to step on the accelerator to cruise for 5k of lonely running.

While a few of the usual faces showed up, they never appeared to be interested in contesting the first place. Right off the gun Westly was 30 paces ahead of the pack and before the first mile marker he had opened a gap of about 100 yards.

The rest of the race was easy and uneventful. Finishing a full 2:30 minutes ahead of second place.

Cutting the tape without company has become quite common for Westly. And while running alongside other contenders helps push the pace, sometimes it feels good to smash the competition.


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What it takes

It takes a lot more then simply training to qualify for the Olympic Trials. When talking to people about Westly's progress, they often seem to be clueless to what it takes to make it at the highest level. It's obvious that they have no idea how hard it is to be successful and many times they underestimate the incredible effort one must make (many times alone) to be considered an Olympic athlete.

In this post I will attempt to shed light on some of the "behind the scenes" in the life of a training athlete.

1. No time for a girlfriend. If one is available she better be very patient, supportive and understanding (this also goes for a wife).
2. Very little time and/or energy to work. This means living on a very small budget and if any work is done, it is simply to share the water bill with a roommate and if possible cover the cheapest cell phone plan.
   
3. Regular visits to the chiropractor and massage therapist. This appears to be fun but it is not! Particularly when your visit includes separating muscles that have gotten stuck.
   
4. 9:30 bed time and 5:30 wake up. I don't need to add anything to this point.
5. Constantly at the verge of an emotional or physical breakdown. Most times the emotional follows the physical.
   
6. Many hours spent on the road traveling to find a quality race that will contribute in fine tuning the body.
   
7. Looking for sponsors/financial help. Few long distance runners with Olympic hopes have sponsors and those that don't struggle to make ends meet.
   

There are certainly many other details that one could add to this list.

Now consider this point:

Even if an athlete is fine tuned during training and his body appears to be ready for competition, a fraction of a second, a popping and clicking of a knee or one slow day could mean that he is simply a mere runner and not an Olympic athlete.

Westly has delt with many of these points in one way or another. Training has certainly taken its toll on his body, mind, and spirit yet he continues working, getting better, faster, stronger.

Truck on little champion!