An Interview with David Berdan

Photo by Clay Shaw

David Berdan’s experience at the Baltimore Marathon made for an interesting story. Not just because the 30-year-old school teacher from Owings Mills, Md., ran a personal best of 2:21:19, or because his 11th place finish made him the top local runner. What made the story interesting for TV news stations was how this year's Baltimore Marathon shaped up: Six hundred meters into the race, a local runner - not a professional from East Africa, in other words - had the lead. That local runner happened to be David Berdan.

“I felt like we were going really slow,” Berdan wrote to me in an e-mail. “I thought everyone would go right with me and we could all keep working together.”

Facing stiff headwinds, the dozen or so runners in the lead pack stuck together, letting Berdan go. Passing through 5 miles in 26:20, Berdan, who was shooting for a qualifier for the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in January, had a lead of 1:06. Around 11 miles, when the pack caught him, Berdan stayed with the group for almost three miles, going through halfway in 1:08:36 – “exactly what I wanted to do,” Berdan wrote.

I still felt good, but then they picked it up again. After a few 5:30s and a 5:40 I knew (sub) 2:19 was out of the picture. At that point, even though my legs were killing me, I still felt like I had energy. I was able to somewhat enjoy the rest of the race. I ran 5:40 to 5:45 pace from 18 to 25 miles, but ended up picking it up from 25 to 26 because I saw previous race winner Julius Keter up ahead and he looked like he was hurting pretty bad. I ran that mile in 5:02 and caught him at the 26-mile mark.

Now, consider this: Berdan’s 5:02 split from miles 25 to 26 is roughly equivalent to that of his high school track best for 1600. His 5:23 average at the Baltimore Marathon - a tough, hilly race - is about equal to his high school best for two miles.

Berdan’s running life began in earnest at Elizabethtown College in Elizabethtown, Pa., in a Division III program that was then in the process of transforming from one of the worst performers in the annual NCAA Mideast Regional Cross Country Championships to one of the best. Despite numerous injuries, which Berdan attributes to a six-inch growth spurt he had between his freshman and junior years, he qualified for nationals all four years and was a two-time Division III All-American in track. He notched bests of 3:57 (1500), 8:26 (3,000), 14:31 (5,000) and 30:14 (10,000).

On improving as a runner: I learned that in order to improve you have to train! But I also learned that you have to train smart. I didn't go out and hammer every day. I learned from Weldon Johnson (the founder of LetsRun.com), after living with him in Flagstaff, Ariz., that it was okay to go out and run 7:30 or slower on easier days. To this day most of my easy running isn't faster than 7 minutes per mile. We were a fairly high mileage program while I was at Elizabethtown; my junior and senior years I did get up to 90 MPW a few times. There was also a lot of focus on longer intervals (we never did workouts like repeat 400s), lactate threshold workouts, and a weekly long run over hilly terrain.

Berdan only decided to enter Baltimore three weeks before the race. A father of two and a full-time teacher, he said his summer and fall schedule was too full for a cycle of marathoning training. So he had geared his training around the Philadelphia Rock 'N' Roll Half Marathon, where hoped to qualify for the trials by running under 1:05:00. His time of 1:05:53 was a personal best; it even made him the top finisher from Maryland, Washington, D.C., or Virginia. But it still fell short of the standard. "I felt really strong at 5 minutes per mile," he wrote, "but 4:55 felt too fast."

Entering Baltimore: I'm friends with Clay Shaw, the elite athlete coordinator at Baltimore, and at first I told him I wanted to do Baltimore, but just as a long run in training for Philadelphia. He convinced me to just give it a go. He said, “You're fit now; take a shot at it.” I agreed. Ideally I would have had several long runs of 20 to 22 miles and I like to do one 26- to 28-miler, but my longest run for Baltimore was 18 miles. I guess I shouldn't be surprised that around 18 miles is where my legs just started to feel shot, really sore and Jell-O-like. The pounding on the first half, along with running in the wind by myself, had just caught up with me.

Berdan will take another shot at the trials in 25 days at the Philadelphia Marathon.

AFTER E-TOWN

After graduating in 2004, Berdan moved to Salida, Colo., where he worked as an assistant fisheries biologist with the Colorado Division of Wildlife. It was a six-month position, and Berdan spent his days hiking long distances at high altitudes to do fish sampling on a mountain stream. He still managed to get out for short runs in the morning.

When the job ended, Berdan moved to York, Pa., worked at Inside Track running stores and resumed serious training, lowering his best for 5,000 to 14:13. That summer, while on a road trip, he got a call from Zap Fitness’ Pete Rea, who invited him to join its training program in Blowing Rock, N.C. That fall, Berdan finished 18th at the USA 10K Road Championships and 28th at the USATF Club Cross Country Nationals. That winter, though, he tweaked his knee during an icy long run. Several visits to specialists later, his knee was not any better. The injury was similar to one Berdan had in college that had required surgery. Lacking health insurance, he decided to leave the program and move to Baltimore.

There, Berdan met his future wife, Amanda, at a running party. His knee, meanwhile, continued to ache. Painful 30- to 40-minute runs were the most he could get through. Berdan also tired of jobs found through a temp agency. These gigs were hardly what he went to school for. So he tried teaching, landing a job at Booker T. Washington Middle School (not to mention the health insurance that allowed him to get knee surgery).

After two years at Booker T. Washington, Berdan moved to Garrison Forest School, a college preparatory school that has a residential program for girls grades 8 to 12. This is his fourth year at Garrison, where he teaches science and coaches cross country. He and Amanda have two children, ages 3 and 7 months. The family lives on the campus.

It's a rewarding life, says Berdan, who now races for the Harrisburg-based Keystone Track Club. He admits, though, that fitting in the training it takes to run at a high level is not easy.

On his training schedule: Most days I find myself getting in a shorter run over my lunchtime and trying to get in another shorter run with the girls at practice. For harder workouts I get up at 5 a.m. to get it in before school. My wife is very supportive, and I usually am able to get in a longer run or workout on Saturday or Sunday, but then I'm playing with the kids all day. I'm not complaining. I absolutely love everything about my life right now.

AIMING FOR THE TRIALS

On the marathon: I knew in college that I would ultimately be a marathoner. I always seemed to get better as races got longer. I remember telling people in college that I wanted to qualify for the Olympic Trials in the marathon for 2008, so I was definitely thinking about it already. I ended up running 2:23:45 at the Steamtown Marathon in 2007. (It was in the 80s by the finish; Berdan finished second.)

Berdan had debuted the year before at the California International Marathon: I ran in the 2:27s. I felt awesome until 18 miles; at 21 miles I found myself sitting on a curb, contemplating whether or not I wanted to finish the race. I sucked it up and finished, but I wasn't crazy about the marathon after it. I spoke with Steve Spence later that year and he told me that his first marathon was similar. He told me it takes several before you figure it out. I still don't think I have it figured out. I'm hoping that all changes in Philadelphia.

Making the trials: Qualifying has always been one of my running goals and I know it will happen eventually. I also know that my best marathoning years are ahead of me. I'm 30 and really feel like I'll be able to run well at the marathon over the next 10 years. That leaves two more Olympic Trials after this one. I don't have any plans on stopping. I really love competing and running has been such a huge aspect of my life. I don't see myself giving it up any time soon.

The Chicago Experiment

The Chicago Marathon was today. Even though I was not racing, I woke up this morning feeling its presence. It's a marathon that sort of has a hold over me. This summer, when I was in Chicago for a wedding, I ran along Lake Michigan on a pathway across the road from Millenium Park and realized that my marathon life's highest and lowest moments had happened in the same spot: at a stoplight along Lake Shore Drive in a rather sketchy spot to flag down a cab. In 2006, I got in the cab there and, having run a PR, was nothing less than elated. Last year, after dropping out, it was the feeling of unadulterated defeat.

I woke up this morning thinking about my teammates and training partners who were racing. Among them, Karl Dusen, who had qualified for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials at Chicago (an even split 2:20) the same year I ran my PR, was poised to once again qualify. In the past several months, Karl had run an array of awesome workouts, one of which I helped pace him through, running six laps of his 8, 4 of his 6, etc. Media outlets reported that the temps today in Chicago, for elite runners, were in the mid 60s with low humidity; mixed in with that, though, was the following: "another unseasonably warm year."

Today, Karl was smart enough to know that the conditions were not going to allow him to qualify. The trials standard for men is sub-2:19, and after going through halfway in 5:21 pace, six seconds slow, Karl opted, wisely, to go into cruise control so he can take another shot at the Philadelphia Marathon in late November.

A training partner, Evan Jurkovich, who ran 2:31 at Twin Cities last year, was very fit going into today's race but struggled in the 20s to come home in 2:36.

In marathoning, training is just a part of it. So much else - especially for non-professionals, I would argue - needs to click.

Last year was hot, too. I am pretty sure, in fact, that the heat did me in more than the hamstring/sciatica issue I picked up 10 days before the race.

2009 was hot. 2008 was cold. 2007 was the disaster year. One thing, meanwhile, that I know about 2006 was that there was something going on that year that forced the marathon to happen two weeks later than it usually does. It wound up being cold and windy that year, but most people would say favorably so. No doubt, it would be a much safer bet - far as avoiding hot temps - to hold the race in the second half of October, but it does not appear that that will happen.

The Chicago Marathon is now a race that offers one of the fastest courses in the United States ... if.

Three in a row.

One runner died today in Chicago. One runner died in 2007, too.

DEALING WITH HEAT

Last month, I was struck by Nike Oregon Project coach Alberto Salazar's comments regarding his athlete Galen Rupp's performances leading up to his breaking the American record for 10,000 meters. Salazar said he knew that Rupp was making progress in his races leading up to the breakthrough because they had been run in warm weather, which he had dealt with, well, relatively well - for a Caucasian, anyway.

Rupp later told LetsRun this:

"I don't think it has anything to do with being white. His point is just that I'm bigger than these guys. My mom always laughs because she says it's easy to see me as I'm 4 or 5 inches taller than everyone else. When you're running in the heat, that can catch up to you. I agree with the sentiment (expressed by Salazar). Bigger people don't do better in running in the heat for longer distances - its' a scientific fact."

It definitely seems that way, anyway.

Interestingly, Russia's Liliya Shobukhova, who dominated today's women's race - winning in 2:18:20, one of the fastest times ever for this course - called the weather "absolutely gorgeous."

Men's winner Moses Mosop, in setting a new course record of 2:05:37, did say the conditions were "humid." But for a guy who came into the race saying he was only 80 to 85 percent, he did not seem to be much affected by it, nor did other Kenyan and Ethiopian athletes.

Look at race results in Chicago from the past half decade or so. You will see how much, during the hot years, that the results thin out after the sub 2:10 crowd.

As the article by the IAAF points out, Sammy Wanjiru, who died in May, really revolutionized marathoning in two ways. One: He encouraged young Kenyan runners to go straight to the marathon, where the money is. Two: He proved that heat was not a factor - at least for him and many other East Africans.

When you are on the starting line and the conditions are bad, you want to tell yourself something like, "Relax; everyone has to deal with it."

Is that true, though, when it comes to heat?

ONE GREAT AMERICAN MARATHONER

Ryan Hall, who finished fifth in 2:08:04, continues to show that he is an incredibly consistent marathoner, not to mention the only American marathoner who can truly tangle with the East Africans. He has an ability to finish strong. What he lacks, however, is the ability to maintain contact with the leaders after the crazy surges happen. Given that fact, it's hard to see how he will ever be able to win a major marathon.

"The pacers would see a slow split on the back of the truck then hit it," Hall told David Monti. "I think our splits were all over the place ... It was kind of taking me out of my rhythm."

Hall, honestly, impresses me a little more every time he races. His approach is to run his own race. Really, there is just no way you can knock it.

Still, what Mosop's coach, the renowned Renato Canova, says in the IAAF piece above is telling:

"If you want to be a top athlete you have to be a little bit wild, not be an accountant."

Let's end with a quote from Hall:

“There are not many American guys out there running 2:08, so I’ll take it."

Woodrow Wilson Bridge Half - Racing and Reporting

Moses Kigen Kipkosgei winning Sunday's Woodrow Wilson Bridge Half Marathon.

I ran the Woodrow Wilson Bridge Half Marathon yesterday and also reported on the race for the Washington Running Report.

I ran a very bad race at Sept. 18's Rock N Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon, where I ran 1:12:10, two minutes off what I ran there in 2009. I was concerned with the slower time, however, less than the fact that I had failed to execute a sound racing strategy. Yesterday I ran even slower - a minute slower, in fact - but I know I ran a much better race than I did in Philadelphia. More on that later, as I am developing a post specific to these two races that I hope will have some general value to fellow students of the sport. (I realize I have not written about my own running in quite some time. This has been partially due to my hectic schedule, partially due to a lack of interest, and partially because I have been wanting, for some time, to ball up everything I have been jotting down into an essay of sorts; I just can't figure out what I am trying to say.)

Yesterday was a fine opportunity to put on the journalist hat. Woodrow Wilson Bridge Half Marathon Race Director Steve Nearman put together a rather incredible field. Among the elites, I was able to speak with race winner Moses Kigen Kipkosgei, who finished third in last year's New York City Marathon, and two members of Team USA Arizona, a Flagstaff-based group coached by Greg McMillan.

Here's some bonus material from Kipkosgei. At New York last year, Kipkosgei in some respects executed a strategy that is the opposite of the more common Kenyan tactic of going for broke. Rather than roll with a pace he felt was too fast, the now-28-year-old decided, around 10K, to break from the lead group and run his own race. When rookie Gebre Gebremariam, who would win, and Emmanuel Mutai broke apart the lead pack, it appears (though I honestly do not recall this from watching the race) that Kipkosgei, who sixth months earlier finished 8th in Boston, was able to pick up the pieces. Based on Kipkosgei's comments to me after yesterday's race - his tuneup for a return to New York - he seems to feel it is important that he not be too influenced by what any of his competitors are doing. That's not necessarily a winning strategy for New York; but since most of the pros up front are going for broke, it's definitely a sound one as far as finding a spot in the money. As for his New York race plan, Kipkosgei said, "I cannot tell you that. It depends on how the race develops.” So, we'll see.

Kiposgei, meantime, bases his training in Eldoret. A week before his race yesterday, where he covered 13.1 tough miles at 4:46 pace, Kipkosgei told me he ran 15K in Kenya in 44:13, which is 4:44 pace.

The Team USA Arizona athletes I interviewed were Danny Mercado, a University of Oregon alum who sports a sweet stache, and Jordan Horn, who ran for California State University, Fullerton, and has been training with McMillan for four years. Both these guys grabbed U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials qualifiers yesterday; they both were also pretty pumped about their results.

Horn, for one, has been focusing on the mile the past two years (he said he cracked four minutes). Mercado, in turn, had never run a half marathon.

Mercado just graduated from University of Oregon, and is new to McMillan's program.

On his training, which currently amounts to 90 MPW: "I run the least, but it still feels bulky. At least, it feels bulky to me."

Horn is putting in about 110 MPW, but this figure also falls on the low end in comparison to his teammates, he said.

Mercado on decisions he faced post-Oregon: "I definitely learned from mistakes in previous seasons, as far as training goes. ... I didn’t qualify for the 10K final at NCAAs, so that was a pretty disappointing end to the season. So I was pretty nervous coming out of college, just as far as deciding what I’m going to do. I was really, really lucky that Greg wanted to talk to me. ... I’m happy just being able to complete the half. It’s really just a testament to the training I’m doing, being in Flagstaff, being at altitude, having a really good support system."

Unfair is Fair, and Vice Versa

The I.A.A.F is prepared to rewrite the record books. In late August, the world governing body of track and field decided that records in women's road races will not count unless they are set in a women's-only race, the New York Times reported yesterday. Talk about the rule change has been circulating since the decision was made - but yesterday's article by the Times (one) adds more context and (two) brings news of the change to people who are not regular visitors to LetsRun.

What does this mean? It means, for one, that the women's world marathon record will no longer be 2 hours 15 minutes 25 seconds, arguably the most impressive world record currently in the books. The world record, instead, will be Paula Radcliffe's third fastest mark: 2:17:42 at the 2005 London Marathon, a race in which elite women, as has become more common in major marathons, started 45 minutes ahead of the men's field. Radcliffe's 2:15:25 will now be known as the "world best."

This is interesting, though: Radcliffe told the Times that she intentionally ran next to the men in her pack, not behind them. She was not drafting, but racing.

Now, here's a quote from Mary Wittenberg, director of the New York City Marathon:

"The I.A.A.F. wanted to show that women can stand on their own two feet, that they don’t need guys to help them get to world records. There’s definitely a difference. Women run faster with men as pacers, about a two-minute differential on average."

That, in a nutshell, is what concerns the I.A.A.F. What put this rule change on the table, apparently, was Mary Keitany's world-record breaking half marathon run in February. Paced by a man, the Kenyan athlete lowered the record by 35 seconds.

But, back to Wittenberg's point of women running faster with male pacers. Well, of course they do. They do not, however, run faster because they are running behind men. They are running faster because they are running behind pacers.

Pacers, or rabbits, meanwhile, have become more than just ever-present in all word record running attempts; it has gotten to the point that they are considered entirely necessary to make them happen. We are not really talking about the affect of having assistance, then, so much as we are talking about how much assistance - and to what degree - is acceptable for a performance to still count as a world record.

What, however, is the reality? The reality, or the way things stand, is as Amby Burfoot of Runner's World wrote to the Times in an e-mail:

"We all understand that as long as you cover a fair, accurate course on your own two feet, then your effort should be eligible for a world record."

Should there be a distinction between mixed races in which women, unplanned, might happen to run within a pack of men, and "staged" world record attempts during which women draft behind a male pacer from the start? That, to me, might make some sense. As it happens, the argument against "staged" world records has become a fairly popular one to make; it's just that, for the most part, such races have involved men.

How can the I.A.A.F. be concerned about Mary Keitany but not about Haile Gebrselassie? More so, how can one possibly say that Gebrselassie's 2:03:59, set during a staged time trial, is legit and Radcliffe's stunning run was not? Perhaps it's time, then, to reclassify Geb's run as the "world best."

To Boston

On the East Coast, registration for the Boston Marathon opened yesterday at 10 a.m. I filled out the race application online yesterday at around 10:05.

With most races this is a process you try to get through as quickly as possible. The main thing you are paying attention to is unclicking anything that might result in more e-mails and not clicking on anything that might cost you more money. This process was different; it's hard to explain. I actually took the time to choose my real profession; I chose the shirt in my size, not my wife's.

This felt almost life changing. Like, I woke up yesterday morning and just thought, you need to start being better about things. About everything. You need to start living better in all ways. You need to really imbibe the lessons of Don Juan and start living like death is on your shoulder. Stop messing around. Focus. Be the person you really want to be; follow all the way through.

I do not want to say I will train harder for this race than I ever have before. What I want to say is that I will train smarter - with more focus, with more zeal.

My priorites will be family, work, school and running, in that order. In turn, I will, whenever possible, excise the intangibles (the distractions). That could make a huge difference.

I will write more about what I have been doing in training a bit later on - maybe after Sunday's Philadelphia Rock N Roll Half Marathon. But, in short, the purpose of everything I am doing right now in training has been to prepare myself to train as effectively as possible for Boston.

The new year can't come fast enough.

Frank's Story

"I threw a 4:33 surge between miles nine and 10, and from that point on I was out of sight of the guys trailing me—Mamo Wolde [of Ethiopia], Derek Clayton [of Australia], and Kenny [Moore of the United States]," Shorter says, recalling the Munich marathon. "The whole second half, I kept hitting my pace. I had the talent to go out fast, by myself, and ride the pain. I learned that from watching Clayton and Ron Clarke, but it was also something I internalized from my childhood."

Until John Brant's profile on Frank Shorter in the October edition of Runner's World, discussions of his gold medal-winning race at the 1972 Munich Olympics did not touch upon what the above quote addresses. That's because, for the most part, the details of Shorter's childhood was something only he was privy to.

News that our father of the American running boom's own father was abusive first broke in 1991, the first time Shorter shared this information with a reporter. The New York Times, based on a story that ran in a Florida newspaper, ran a brief. Shorter's father, who died in 2008, denied the accusation. The story dissipated.

With the publication of this article, Shorter tells Brant, his silence has officially been broken. With it, we have a new window into Shorter's soul.

This story is wrenching. This is a story you find out about, find it and read all the way through. Its length, or whatever is happening at work, are of no consequence.

In the picture above, Shorter, left, is racing against Bill Rodgers. It was a great rivalry. These are two runners students of the sport continue to both romanticize and study. I, for one, read both of their biographies while in high school. It was my first year of competitive running, and here's what sticks with me:

Rodgers: High mileage yet all over the the place training. Big eater.

Shorter: 17 miles a day, two track workouts, 20 miles or two hours (whichever came first) on Sunday. Barely ate. Few cans of beer per night.

This is to say that these were books about training, about the sport.

But there is something else, something more awkward. Everyone loves Boston Bill. Shorter? What I had always heard was that he was not a very nice guy - that he was kind of hard to figure out. "I'll have to see to believe it," I'd say.

This, meanwhile, was Shorter's secret. His training partners, his rivals ... no one knew.

Interview with Lynn Jennings

I had the pleasure last week of interviewing Lynn Jennings, by e-mail, prior to her appearance at the Chaptico Classic in Southern Maryland. The piece ran as a cover story in the weekend guide I produce for the Gazette's Southern Maryland Newspapers.

The video above shows the late laps of the women's 10,000 at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. Jennings was incredible in cross country, winning three straight world titles from 1990 to 1992. The bronze medal she earned in Barcelona, though, was her career-defining achievement. (You will find some great reading on Jenning's in Sports Illustrated's The Vault.)

I wrote to Jennings: "I watched the 10,000 from the 1992 Olympics on YouTube yesterday. One thing that grabbed me was the fact that Zhong Huandi of China gave you a serious challenge for the bronze medal. What was going through your mind in the final lap of the race, the final 200 meters, the final stretch?"

Jennings wrote, "Yes, it's true. She chased me right to the line and I had NO idea she was hot on my heels. In fact, I was so busy sprinting the final 100 meters that I neglected to look up at the JumboTron to ascertain I was safe. I knew I had put distance between myself and Liz McColgan [of Scotland] when I launched my kick. If I had slowed down prior to the finish line, I would have been pipped and would not have earned the bronze medal. I knew that Liz was unlikely to match me for a strong kick finish. My plan was to stick with her until 400 to go and then launch my kick, which I did at 300 meters remaining. I drove hard to the line and did not stop to think "I've won a medal" until a minute or two after I had crossed the line. I finished, put my hands on my knees and bent over. When I looked next to me Zhong Huandi was standing right there and I was stunned. Then I realized that I had actually earned the bronze."

Another cool thing about this video is that it introduced me to Derartu Tulu, who ran away with the gold. Tulu, then 20, was the first black African woman to win a gold medal.

Now get this: Tulu is still competing. In 2009, at 37, she became the first Ethiopian woman to win the New York City Marathon.

I somehow missed this story entirely - but I find it to be incredibly inspiring stuff.

Back on Dwight's Feet

This was my final project for Backpack Journalism, as part of my Interactive Journalism master's program at American University.



Runners will tell you all the time: Running, rather than something else, is their addiction. Running, they claim, is what holds off their demons.

That wasn't how when it went down in Dwight Scriber's first running life. But in the past few months since Scriber has reconnected to running through a nonprofit organization called Back on My Feet, the sport - and more so the community surrounding it - has proven to be transformational. The 45-year-old resident of Washington, D.C., is on a mission to stay drug free and claim his own place to call home.

Growing up in St. Mary's County, Md., the youngest of 10 siblings, Scriber fell into the wrong crowd at an early age. But for many years his talent - both in athletics and academics - kept him on a solid enough path. At Leonardtown High School, Scriber was most interested in basketball - but a falling out with the coach, he said, led him to pursue track and field his junior year. Scriber, in short time, became one of the best high school runners in Maryland; he would go on to earn Division III NCAA All-American status at Frostburg State University.

For most runners, reaching such heights in the sport requires a kind of eat-sleep-train focus that keeps them on the straight and narrow. Scriber, on the other hand, was able to train hard and party harder. By the time he left Frostburg his junior year, drug addiction was taking hold and his downward spiral was only beginning.

A couple decades later, attempting to evade arrest, Scriber found himself in a high speed chase with police. He was charged with first and second degree assault and traffic violations, and ended up serving six months in jail. It was not the first time Scriber had been locked up, he said. He had tried rehab before, too. But these days Scriber is serious: "It's my life," he often says.

In jail "I had looked at my age," Scriber said. "I had looked at what I had lost, what I had gained, what I didn't gain. I looked at the whole perspective. When you are in jail, there's things you can get into, and I chose not to be around the negative people; I chose just to focus on me. I chose to reflect on what I've done - and I just didn't like the picture, man."

After his release, Scriber left his native county and moved into the District. He lived for several months at La Casa, a transitional recovery program for men who seek to permanently end their homelessness. It's there, meanwhile, that Scriber found out about Back on My Feet, which engages participants in La Casa and other transitional facilities in distance running as a stepping stone toward recovery.

"I had always prayed to God that one day I would get back into running," Scriber said.

Although he has since moved into an apartment with his brother, Scriber has continued to attend Back on My Feet's three weekly 5:45 a.m. practices at La Casa. After 30 days in Back on My Feet, members with 90 percent attendance become eligible for educational and job training opportunities as well as financial aid.

"Things happen for a reason," Scriber said. "[God] is my director. He's going to lead my paths. But there are certain things I must do for him to meet me. He's put a hedge of protection over me, man. You're talking about a guy who had guns pointed at him, high speed chases ... I'm way ahead of the game to be honest with you. I'm grateful, truly grateful."

Scriber is not entirely back on his feet yet. Though he has found part-time work in telemarketing, the wages are roughly half of what he made before his last arrest, after which he lost his commercial driver's license.

"My goals are to go back to school," he said. "I want to be in the human services. I want to be able to help somebody who has been through my situation."

Michael Wardian Breaks Through

Photo by Jimmy Daly

Michael Wardian competing in June 19's Father's Day 8K, held on the C&O Canal Towpath in Georgetown.

This is a Q&A piece, which means this is the point where you should introduce who you spoke to and provide some background information and list some recent performances. My interviewee, however, is Michael Wardian - a mega-marathoner, to put it simply - and listing his recent race results would make for an intro that was the opposite of brief. According to Marathon Guide, which happens to be Wardian's sponsor, he has run seven marathons this year. Mind you, this does not include his performances in ultras - like his 11th place finish at the Comrades Marathon - or the numerous local races the 37-year-old athlete runs near his home in Arlington, Va.

So, according to Marathon Guide, Wardian's slowest marathon this year occurred March 13 at the Lower Potomac River Marathon in Piney Point, Md., where he won in 2:34:56. In a Spider-Man costume.

His best marathon, meanwhile, occurred Saturday at Grandma's Marathon in Duluth, Minn., where he happened to score a major breakthrough: a PB of 2:17:49 (his first time under 2:20) and a trip to the 2012 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, which will be held Jan. 14 in Houston, Texas.

I caught up with Wardian while covering our racing team's Father's Day 8K. Yes, a day after Grandma's Wardian raced an 8K (26:04, 3rd), which comes as no surprise, really, to anyone who races around D.C.

BREAKING: Wardian has been preparing for the Badwater Ultramarathon on July 11. The day also happens to be his son Pierce's fifth birthday.

DM: You have been trying to hit the new Olympic Trials standard of 2:19 since it opened and have gone through halfway in quite a few marathons now, as you did yesterday, right around 68 minutes. What was the difference yesterday? Why were you able to hold on?

Wardian: I felt really strong going into it. I had a really good feeling about my training leading up to it. I added some biking – biking to and from work – so I got an extra 14 miles of cardio a day, and I’ve been heat training for Badwater. So I’ve really been hammering during my lunch runs with a jacket on, often in 100-degree heat. I noticed it’s keeping my core body temperature a little bit lower, so I’m not fatiguing as easily. But then I’ve also been racing a lot. I did Comrades three weeks ago in South Africa and then I came back and ran the North Face 50 Miler – came in third there. I still felt strong and I was still doing my normal training in between. This past weekend I was going to do the Lawyers Have Heart 10K and then it shifted to a 5K [due to the heat]. Maybe that was actually a good thing, because I ran 15:15 and it was just, like, nothing.

DM: That had to give you a lot of confidence. So what’s your training like? Are you still training in the morning and at lunchtime?

Wardian: Yeah, morning and lunch - and a couple days I tripled. I’d run home or run with friends at night. Actually, the Tuesday before Grandma’s, I ran in the morning, biked to work, ran at lunch, biked home and then I did another run that night with the kids in the stroller.

DM: Did you rest at all for Grandma’s?

Wardian: I actually did. Well, kind of. I only did like 8 miles on Thursday and on Friday I did just like 35 minutes light - nothing, really.

DM: Have you been doing speed work?

Wardian: I have, man. I added a bunch of speedwork after the Two Oceans Marathon in South Africa [in April]. I’ve been hitting the track every Tuesday, doing repeats. That’s how you get faster.

DM: I think a lot of people would say that ultras are going to totally zap a runner’s speed. For you, though, that hasn't been the case.

Wardian: I PRed all year, including back to back weekends at 10 miles. I PRed - most everyone did - at Pike's Peek 10K [on April 17]. I ran 30:21; I was just crushing it. So, yeah, I just keep getting better.

DM: Honestly, do you ever have to take downtime?

Wardian: I’ve been lucky. I really haven’t had to so far. I’m not looking forward to that, really. I really just like running a lot. But I don’t run crazy mileage, like 200 miles a week - at least not yet. This week’s going to be a big week. I’m getting ready for Badwater, so I’m doing a 50-mile run on Friday. I don’t know if you are doing anything, but if you want to do a 50-mile run on Friday, or at least some of it [DM: laughing]. I think this guy who is training for [the] Leadville [Trail 100] and I are just going to run through the night - just start at 8 or 9 at night and run until we’re done.

DM: In your other attempts to qualify for the trials, at what point in the race did it start to fall apart?

Wardian: Usually around 16. And, as I started getting stronger and stronger, later. Like at the California International I ran my PR of 2:20:57. But that was two weeks after the JFK [50] Mile and four weeks after the 100k World Championship - and my legs just kind of gave out on me.

DM: How did you feel today? Did you run this morning?
I didn’t run this morning. We went on a little hike – my son and I. I ran around and I did all these chores that I’ve been putting off. So I fixed the lattice work around the house and I went out and found out my computer’s hard drive was busted - just did stuff I needed to do. I did a little shake out before this. I actually ran pretty decent. I was happy.

DM: Do you remember the point in the race yesterday where you knew you had it?

Wardian: I knew before the race. It was awesome. I was like, "I want the race to be over," because I just felt like it was going to happen. It was weird. I was like, "Just don’t miss your plane; just don’t do anything stupid." I ate right. I hydrated the whole way there. I brought snacks ... I saw somewhere where I could get sushi for dinner, and I got it before I went to my gate where all they had was crap food. It was like everything that I did was on. ... I stuck to my plan and just executed, and it was awesome. It was the greatest feeling.

Father's Day 8K a success

UPDATE: WRR race report.

We had more than 300 participants in last night's Father's Day 8K. That's up about 100 from last year.

Results and a quick report are available at our team's blog - but look for a full report tomorrow at Washington Running Report. I'll post the link when it's up.

Also, I had a cool chat with mega-marathoner Michael Wardian, who finished third at the Father's Day 8K just a day after hitting a huge marathon PB of 2:17:49 - a trials qualifier - at Grandma's Marathon.

I'll post a transcript of the chat after work tomorrow.

Father's Day 8K

Dear All Seven Of You Who Read This Blog,

If you are looking for a race, or would like to race, or would like to have some fun, please consider GRC's Father's Day 8K on Sunday night. The event is our racing team's chief source of funding.

We just announced our elite field.

I'll be there helping out and scribbling something for Washington Running Report.

The Sammy Saga

The news cycle these days is a rather fascinating animal. Big stories break on Twitter. Next, the scramble, during which reports - many half-baked - are filed as quickly as possible. Mistakes, of course, are made. Theories, of course, are posited and rapidly discredited. Finally, though, something sticks. The truth - or at least a very compelling story - emerges.

With the case of Sammy Wanjiru, the Kenyan marathon champion who died at 24 from a fall from his balcony, we probably never will get that dose of truth before the shock wears off and we move on to something else.

To that end, I think Running Times senior editor Scott Douglas' recent blog post, "Wanjiru: We're Never Going to Know What Happened," is spot on.

Marathon

FYI: This ain't mine.

#9 - A Rural Marathon

May 1, 2011: 1-mile warmup, Gettysburg North-South Marathon (1st, 2:37.12). 27 miles.

Splits: 6:05, 5:51, 5:57, 5:53, 6:02, 6:00, 5:59, 5:59, 5:54, 5:47, 5:48, 6:06, 5:47, 5:48, 6:10, 5:51, 6:01, 6:14, 6:14, 5:50, 5:48, 6:03, 6:15, 6:18, 6:10, 6:21

Elevation chart: It's in the lower right corner. Splits are here, too - though you will see that I forgot to stop my watching after crossing the finish line.

Slideshow: All the photos have captions.

Gettysburg College Sports Information picked up Cory Mull's article for the Hanover Evening Sun. 

In all of these videos - particularly with the fourth one - background talk is the best part. This picks it up at photo No. 4:



Russell Tavern Road, one of my favorites from college:



Halfway:




My mom took this video in the early 20s. Listen to the background chatter:



Finish (clock shows unofficial time):

Gettysburg North-South Marathon ...

Video and slideshow coming soon ... For now, I think this photo tells the story pretty well.

That's my dad on the side of the road. That's me down there yonder, following the lead bicycle.

Happenings ...

UPDATE - April 3 - training log post below

It's been a weird and busy year. There has even been some pleurisy involved. (Yes, pleurisy.)



I've run two not-so-great races lately: 26:38 for 14th at the St. Patrick's Day 8K; 1:13:50 for 16th at the National Marathon's half marathon. In the meantime, I'm focused on preparing for the inaugural Gettysburg North-South Marathon on May 1.

And yes ... some day soon I will write a proper blog post with recent training and hurried insights and all that jazz.

Recent training log

Monday, Feb. 21 - 10
T - 9
W - BCC Track - 4 by 1.5 miles with 4 minutes rest - 7:50, 7:40, 7:40, 7:50 - 11
Th - 9
F - 9, progression run on treadmill, got in 4-5 miles at 5:30 pace
S - 0, too busy with grad school
S - 15.5
Total - 63.5

Monday, Feb. 28 - 9.5
T - 10
W (3, 10) PM at BCC ... 2 miles (5 min. rest), 1.5 miles (4 min. rest), 1 mile (3 min. rest) .5 mile - 10:16, 7:38, 4:56, 2:23
Th - 10
F - 10 ... later that day went to a doctor to get diagnosed with pleurisy, got an anti-inflammatory
S - off
S - 11
Total - 62.5

Monday, March 7 - 11
T - 12
W - (5,10) PM ... BCC 4 by 1 mile 5:04, 5:00, 4:56, 5:02
Th - 6
F - 15
S - 9
S - St. Patrick's Day 8K - 26:38 - 5:08, 5:18, 5:11, 5:19, 5:13 ... Course long? - 10
Total - 77

Monday, March 14 - 11
T - 10
W - (5, 10) - PM BCC ... 2K, 1 mile, 1200, 800, 400 (400 jog for rest) 6:30, 5:04, 3:41, 2:25, 67
Th - 10
F - 10
S - 10.5
S - 21.5
Total - 88

Monday, March 21 - 12
T - 10
W - 12 - 4 by 1 mile at AU - 5:15, 5:15, 5:10, 5:04
Th - 4 - Was feeling busted, tried to rest for National Half Marathon
F - 3
S - 16 - splits
S - 10
Total - 61

Monday, March 28 - at gym, 60 minutes on bike, weights
T - 10
W -(5,11) 5 by 1 mile 5:15, 5:10, 5:10, 5:05, 5:02
Th - 10
F - 11
S - 8
S - 25 - data
Total - 85

Log: Jan. 10 - Feb. 20

Monday, Jan. 11 - 11

T - 6

W - BCC track iced-over: we ran 12 up-tempo in the dark on snowy, icy CCT

Th - 9

F - 12 - 8 by 3 min. on, 1 min. off in West Potomac Park

S - 11

S - 18 - Data

Total - 79

Monday, Jan. 18 - 12

T - 5

W - BCC - 4 by 1 mile - 5:05, 5:00, 4:58, 4:58 - 10

Th - 9

F - 11, 4 by 3,2,1 on grass, 4 by 20 seconds

S - 6

S - 18 - splits first 15 mile - 7:19; 6:57; 6:54; 6:48; 6:45; 6:42; 6:52 (turnaround); 6:37; 6:31; 6:24; 6:16; 6:10; 5:53; 5:46 -- last threes mile easy (6:45 pace)

Total - 71

Monday, Jan 24 - 9

T - 11.5

W - 12. Snowing. Did 8-mile progression run on treadmill, starting at 6-flat pace and working down to 5:10

Th - 9

F - 9 - 8 hill reps around the Capitol

S - 8

S - 10 - too busy to run long; unfortunate

Total - 68

Monday, Jan. 31 - 8

Tuesday - 10

W, Feb. 2 - Due to snow, we worked out in front of White House, doing mile reps around the perimeter of the blocked-off area on PA Ave. Lots of wind. Rest was btw a quarter- and half-mile jog. 5:15, 5:10, 5:10, 5:10, which is not too bad when you consider the U-style turns -- Ran there from my apartment; got in 14 for day

Th - 10 (5,5)

F - 9 in Florida

S - 10

S - 18

Total - 75

Monday, Feb. 7 - off, travel

T - 10

W - 11 - 4 by 1200, 2 by 800 with 4oo jog rest: 3:42, 3:41, 3:37, 3:44, 2:23, 2:22

T - 11

F - 9.5 - Grass - 5 min. cruise, 3 min., 2.5 min., 2 min., 90 seconds, 60 seconds, 5 by 30 seconds

S - 7.5 - starting get sick in the afternoon (cold/fever)

S - 10, and a bit of a stagger

Total - 59

Monday, Feb. 14 - 8, not good

T - off

W - off

T- 4, bad

F - 6, better

S - PM 6

S - 10 ... Real training will now resume.

Jan. 3-9

Monday - 9 (65 min.)

Tuesday - 12 with 5 quarter-mile accelerations mixed in

Wednesday - Workout at BCC - 6 by 1200 with 400 jog rest: 3:54, 3:51, 3:48, 3:49, 3:41, 3:41. 11 for day.

Thursday - easy 10. Not as sore as I expected to be.

Friday - Workout on grass in West Potomac Park. Two times 15 min. at tempo effort. Covered exactly 2.65 miles on both. 11 for day

Saturday - easy 11

Sunday - 16 with team on Millennium Trail in Rockville. DATA.

Total - 80

Comments: Consider this something of a blueprint for my training in prep for races this spring. I have a fast 5K in Baltimore March 13, the National Half Marathon March 26, Cherry Blossom 10-miler the following weekend and Pikes Peek 10K April 17. I don't expect to do much doubling, and I doubt my mileage will get higher than 90 MPW. In fact, once a new grad course starts up again next weekend, I will be lucky if I can keep it where it is now. Gary Cohen published a long skim-worthy interview this week with Jeff Galloway, a runner who became an Olympian in 1972 via working his ass off and in recent years has published books for beginners that have advocated walking breaks to improve marathon times.

Galloway on his training progression:

"In high school by my senior year my maximum mileage was 35 miles per week, though most weeks were 30 miles. In college I increased to 40-45 miles per week on average. When I went to train in Florida I was up to 80 miles per week. I had had a series of marathons where I hit ‘the wall’ so when I asked other runners why, they said my mileage wasn’t high enough. So I upped my mileage from 80 to 100 miles a week over a six month period and still hit the wall in my next marathon. So then I upped it to 120 per week for six months and finally up to 140 for six months leading up to the 1971 Pan American Games Trails marathon. After that race there was a party among the finishers and we were discussing and arguing about training. Well, I was proud to be the highest mileage runner in my corner of the room and discussion. One guy heard me talking about running and said, ‘I’ve never run a 100 mile week in my life,’ which was low for national class runners. I looked to see who it was and it was Kenny Moore who had finished second and had qualified for the Pan Am Games while I had finished eleventh. I went over and was giving Kenny the third degree about what he was doing since he wasn’t doing high mileage. It was obvious quickly what the big difference was – Kenny was running 30-milers every two or three weeks and my longest runs were 20 or 21 miles. No wonder I hit the wall and he didn’t."

Translation: There are no shortcuts.

Now - just for the hell of it - let's add a quote from Jon Parker's classic novel "Once a Runner".

Quenton Cassidy: "...The thing is that in track we are painfully and constantly aware of how we stack up, not just with our counterparts but with our historical counterparts as well. ... A basketball player can go out and have a great day and tell himself he's the greatest rebounding forward ever to hit the hardwood, but he'll never be troubled with the actual truth, will he? ... In track it's all there in black-and-white ... We all carry our little credentials around with us ..."

Translation: We all know our place. And, we all know what it takes.

Not everyone can make - or even wants to make - this commitment. I, for one, see the ability to make it slipping away. These days there is too much at stake - the family, the career - and running, even hard training, can feel as if I am granting myself some sort of luxury I don't deserve.

Ultimately, you have to believe in the journey. You have to acknowledge, too, how personal it is.

In 2011 I suppose I am trying to get the balance right. The running is something I really enjoy ... But I will be honest: I would not be doing this if I did not believe the future offers more PBs to claim.

Dec. 27 - Jan. 2

Monday - 0 - Travel, work

Tuesday - 13.5 (4,9.5)

Wednesday - 14 (3,11) PM - BCC - Mile cutdowns, lap jog for rest: 5:22, 5:18, 5:17, 5:05, 4:59. Felt comfortable.

Thursday - 10 (6,4) AM sore, 8-minute pace PM still easy

Friday - 10 - team run from Line

Saturday - PM 7

Sunday - Long run with team from Riley's Lock on C&O Towpath. Good group. Natural surfaces. Cool weather, some rain. ~16 miles (6:48 avg.) Got a Garmin watch for Christmas! Check out the data.

Total - 70

Comments: As far as running goes, 2010 was not a good year for me. I got injured in January, missed 5 weeks. When I started training again in February, I came back feeling surprisingly strong - but a warm day nixed any chance I had of running well at the Broad Street 10 Miler. Just to confirm that I was in decent shape, the following week I ventured home to New Jersey to run my hometown race, where I managed to run 26 and some seconds for five miles, solo, amidst huge winds. After that, I basically started cranking it in preparation for the Chicago Marathon; I put together a 20-week plan ... It fell apart 10 days before the race, when I came down with an odd case of sciatica I wasn't quite able to shake. DNF. In 2009 I won a marathon, ran my fastest marathon since 2006 and ran a personal best in the half marathon. 2010 brought no such luck, but I'm hopeful about 2011 ... With it, pretend training now comes to an end.