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 Wednesday, February 26, 2025


That's me running my 400 race--at the curve, having completed my first 200 meters.


I'm home from Indoor Nationals in Gainsville, Florida. I had a great time at the meet--it was a lot of fun! I ran a PR in the 400 meters, and I placed 4th in M60 (I got a ribbon, not a medal, but it's all good!). My time was 1:00.89 (1:00.887, to be exact, which is important, because the guy who placed 5th [who was in the fastest heat, not my heat] got 1:00.889!--VERY tight! Actually, that was Owen Barrett, the guy who beat me in January at my first indoor race ever in Providence--he got 1:02.70 there, and I got 1:02.90). I guess it's fair to say we are pretty even at this point. 

I arrived in Orlando last Wednesday, and I drove up to Gainsville with teammates Alison, Lorraine, and Julie. We stocked up on food at Whole Foods, and I checked into my hotel, which was about a ten minute walk from the track. Thursday I went over with Alison to pick up our packets and watch some teammates race. Thursday night I started to get nervous--nerves that would continue into Friday morning up until race time, which was just before noon. 

I got lane lane 4, and next to me, in 5, was Donald McEvoy, from Mass Velocity Track Club. I knew going into the race that he would probably be the stiffest competition because I could see his recent indoor races on the ranking website, so I knew he was running a second or so ahead of me this season. He ran a great race, and so did I (my only complaint looking at the video is that my stance at the blocks looks way too low, but other than that, I think I ran my best). I came up on his shoulder at the end of the last turn, but once I finished the turn, my legs went completely lactic! It felt like I was running in water, and I really thought I might not make it to the finish line, but I did. McEvoy made it there first, however, and he collapsed (or fell?) at the line. His time was 1:00.26, which was, I found out later after chatting with him, a PR for him as well. He's a really nice guy, and I felt genuinely happy for him. He's been racing pretty regularly since he was 50 I believe he said, so the fact that he ran faster at age 61 than in his fifties was wonderful to hear. 

The fast heat produced the gold and silver: Francois Boda at 57.81, and Oscar Fabra at 59.08. I was a little disappointed that I didn't break 60 seconds . . .  but honestly, I think I pushed all that I had at this point, so I have to accept it. I am SO GRATEFUL, though, that my hamstring has healed and that I didn't re-injure it! The long, slow recovery impeded optimal training for this indoor season, but my times are on a good "downward" trajectory, so some of it worked. 

I ran the second leg of the 4x200 relay on Saturday (we placed 4th in M60). The three other teammates are all 65+, so I knew it would be a tough race. Sunday I ran the first leg of the M60 4x400 with the same teammates. We got the gold! I had the privilege to race against David Craig (the first leg for SoCal Sprinters), who was #1 in the world last year in the 400 meters M70 at the age of 72. He ran 1:02, which is INCREDIBLE. He is a really, really nice man. I was thrilled to meet him. He's my new idol. 

Here's a pic of my relay team (from left, me, Tim Conheady, Paul Brock, and Tim Sullivan--great guys and great athletes!):




Here's a pic of me on the starting line at the Millrose Games:


I got the Strava app, so I am inputting my track workouts there. I've had a few great workouts at the Ott Center with teammates Alison, Lorraine, and Kate. Maybe in another post soon I'll list some of the workouts. Thanks for reading my blog, track fans!


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