Race Report: Bennett Blazer Invitational Meet, May 17, 2026

I ran the Bennett Blazer Invitational Track Meet in Towson, MD this weekend - running the 3000m in 13:21.8 and the 800m in 3:25.4.

Towson is 70-80 minutes north of my home by car if there isn't any traffic, and so I left my house around 6:25 am (meant to leave at 6:10 am) so that I would arrive and have sufficient time to check in, stretch and mobilize, put my shoes and numbers on, and warm up before running the first race of the morning - a 3000m at 8:30 am.

I arrived about 7:30 - perfect timing, though I was surprised that nobody else was there yet and the doors to the stadium were still locked.  About 20 minutes later, someone clued me in that I was in the wrong place - I was currently parked outside of the baseball diamond, not the running track.  

So, the morning ended up more rushed than I would like.  I fortunately found a parking place at the real track quickly, yanked my racing shoes on, grabbed my bib and pinned it, and hit the track for an abbreviated warm-up.  

I usually warm up with 20-25 minutes easy, 3 minutes at tempo effort (90 second jog), 4x30 seconds hard with 30 seconds jog, and then 4x10 second strides with 20 second jog. I cut the initial easy jog to 10 minutes and managed to fit in the rest of the routine, but I very much felt not-quite-ready as I walked over to the start line for the 3000.

***

There were four athletes in this race - two ambulatory and two wheelchair.  Usually ambulatory runners and wheelchair athletes are in separate heats, but since there were only two athletes of each type and this race takes over 10 minutes to run, it made sense to combine the heats and conserve time in the schedule. 

I had some safety concerns about sharing the track with racing wheelchairs, but I was assured that it would be fine, so I put that worry to the side and focused on my race. The ambulatory runners - my friend Casey and myself - were in lanes 1-2, while the wheelchair racers were in lanes 5-6.  

The gun went off, and I actually wasn't in last place for a moment - this because wheelchair racers always need some distance to get up to speed. Wheelchair racers tend to be slower at the 100m distance than ambulatory sprinters.  But by the time you get to 400m, that difference has reversed, and then the gap grows as the distance lengthens.

About 80m into the race, both wheelchairs passed me and began to pull away slowly.  Casey tucked in behind me initially before dropping back (he had a specific time goal that he was trying to hit without destroying himself for later races).  And then I was alone, trying to loosen up and work into my rhythm, with the wheelchairs ahead.

For the first mile, I was pleasantly surprised that the wheelchair racers weren't too far ahead. This gave me something to chase, though I knew that the chances of me catching them were nil. 

7 1/2 laps went by both quickly and slowly, as I worked on staying as relaxed as possible while also using my lungs correctly and keeping my eyes up and rotating my torso (it likes to stay stiff and locked if I don't think about it).  I had no idea what pace I was running - I wasn't wearing a Garmin (to comply with US Adaptive Track & Field rules) and there was no clock in sight. But the fact that the wheelchairs weren't too far ahead of me told me that I was probably running pretty well.

Eventually both wheelchairs pulled far enough away that I couldn't see them without turning my head to the side and looking across the track. As the bell rang for my last lap, I heard the wheelchairs coming up behind for their finish and realized with a bit of satisfaction that they had never lapped me.  Excellent.

I pushed the last lap as hard as I could without straining and then hobbled around on the back side of the finish line, gasping for air. Upon request, one of the track officials informed me that I had run just over 13 minutes. I didn't know whether that meant 13:01 or something higher, but either way I was happy with it for a rust buster.  

***

I had about 12 minutes between the end of the 3000m and the start of the 800m.  Some people thought this was unfortunate, but I actually preferred it this way and had signed up for the 800m (rather than the 1500m to be held later) for just this reason.  Once I had mostly caught my breath, I checked in for the 800m (conveniently, I was in lane 1 for both, so no need to swap hip numbers) and then jogged on the infield with some strides right until we lined up for the 800m.

Standing on the line of the 800m, I could tell that my mind was not quite ready for another race effort.  But that was too bad, 'cuz we were going anyway.  I comforted myself with the knowledge that it was only two laps. And then the gun went off.

I was the only woman in this heat of the 800m - it was me and four male athletes in their mid to late teens.  I was expecting to be completely destroyed in this heat, and so was pleasantly surprised when my body and legs felt smooth, fluid, and strong from the start.  I've been joking for a while that I would run my best 800m if I could tack it onto the end of a longer race, and this certainly seemed to support that idea.

I stayed in contact with most of the other runners, and even traded places with some- pulling ahead on the straights and then tucking in on the curves.  As we hit 200m to go, I was in fourth place with second and third right ahead.

In retrospect, I should have swung wide at that point and just pushed all the way to the finish.  But instead, I tucked back into lane 1 for the final turn before beginning to kick to the finish (I suspect this decision was driven by mental fatigue). This essentially meant that I, a post-menopausal woman whose last race 4 weeks ago was a marathon, was now trying to outkick some teenage boys who primarily ran the 400m and 200m.

It played out exactly as you'd expect - I pulled ahead of one briefly and then got left in the dust of others' spikes to finish fourth out of five.  But, as I crossed the finish, I was still pretty happy with my race - I hadn't expected to be able to stay with the other runners at all in this heat.  And I'd given it my best shot.  And I was now done for the day and could relax and be social and cheer for others.

***

The meet was both short and efficient and was done by 11:30 am.  At the conclusion, certificates were handed to each athlete noting their times, and I finally got to see my times - 13:21.8 for the 3000m (so, on the slower side of "just over 13 minutes") and 3:25.4 for the 800m.  While the 3000m was technically my better performance, I was more excited about the 800m time.  That's my first time running a race of any distance in under 7:00 pace in about two years.  And doing that in my first race post-marathon is an indication that I have some room for improvement this summer.

Other notes:

• I really enjoy doing these para-athlete meets.  They are universally very well organized and held on high quality tracks.  And they have free food and snacks - rather than having to line up at a food truck or find a water fountain to fill a bottle, I could grab a cold water bottle out of cooler by the track entrance anytime I wanted, and grab chips, fruit, rice crispy treats, etc from a table of free food.  And these races also offer goody bags full of sunscreen and snacks - a very nice touch that you don't see at most races anymore.  These meets are retro in all of the right ways.
• The weather was decent for this meet - a bit hot for the 3000m at 75 degrees with bright sunshine and some humidity, but that same weather was perfect for the 800m.  
• I was the top T36 woman in both my races, and so in one sense won both.  Of course, I was also the only T36 woman in both races.
• I actually ran faster here than my official 3000m record of 13:57. However, this meet doesn't meet all the requirements for setting a record (type of timers, etc) so it didn't count. Not a problem, I knew this going into this meet.  it's still a fun meet to do.

Race Report: Potomac Valley Games, August 30-31, 2025

I ran the 10,000m and the 3000m at the Potomac Valley Games last weekend, finishing in 47:36.73 and 13:57.22 respectively.

I had entered the 3000m several weeks ago, thinking that it would be an opportunity to update the 3000m time I ran at the Hartford Nationals. A few days before the meet I reviewed the meet schedule and noted a 10,000m was on the schedule - first thing Saturday morning. 10,000m races on the track are pretty rare around here, and this one was both the first race of the morning (a plus) and scheduled on a day with unseasonably cool weather.

This was an opportunity that I couldn't pass up, especially since there was currently no American record for female T36 athletes. I'd run the 10,000 and try to set the standard as high as I could for others to hopefully chase in the future. As for the originally planned 3000?  I'd play it by ear.

***

Saturday morning dawned just as predicted - temperatures in the low 60s with low humidity. With the race scheduled to start at 8 am, arriving at 6:45 gave me enough time to pick up my bib and hip number and warm up on the track.  Wonderfully, this was one of the meets that allowed runners to warm-up in the outside lanes right up until about 3 minutes before their race started.

There were five entries in the 10,000: me, a guy in his 30s who listed a seed time of 34 minutes and change; and three 50+ men, each targeting a bit over 50 minutes.  I expected to run anywhere from 46 to 48 minutes, so I'd likely be solo for much of the race.  Fine with me.

We lined up at the waterfall line for the 10000 (me on the outside), and the gun went off.  Just like always, everybody dropped me. I've learned that it's really best for me to start slow, get my running gait in line, and then pick up the pace. Everything proceeded as expected - Mr. 34 minutes was way ahead, while I reeled in the other three men over the first lap.

***

I was roughly 300m into the race when I noticed my shorts were falling down.  I was wearing an older pair of split shorts with a drawstring, and it seemed like the drawstring had come loose, resulting in the aged fabric of the shorts sagging uncomfortably close to the camel toe zone.  

I eased up on the pace and fumbled with the drawstring (nobody was near me on the track) and fixed things.  Only to have them sag again about 200m later.

I repeated this process twice more and then realized that the drawstring had broken on the shorts.

Well, this was awkward.  Or, at least, potentially awkward.

I debated dropping out and then nixed the idea. I really couldn't justify dropping out because my shorts might end up around my ankles.  Dropping out because my shorts had fallen around my ankles, on the other hand, would at least be a great story.

So I tugged at my shorts and managed to roll the waistband a little bit (all while still running) which made the shorts sit slightly higher and more secure.  With that temporary fix in place, I decided that I would run until either I had clocked off 25 laps or my shorts fell off my butt.

The laps clicked away, punctuated by Mr. 34 minutes lapping me a couple times, me occasionally lapping the other runners, a n annoying headwind at one corner of the track, and me tugging on my shorts.  

I have never done 25 laps at a steady continuous pace on the track, though I regularly do 16 and occasionally do 20 lap tempos (and I've certainly done track workouts with the intervals/recoveries totaling to more than 25 laps).  All of which is a lengthy way of saying that I was in new racing territory. When I passed 20 laps and didn't get to stop, I realized that 25 laps is a long way to count down - mentally it's much closer to 13 miles than 6 miles.

That's another way of saying that the last few laps were a real grind. But I managed to hang on and even pick it up a bit for the last lap. I crossed the line officially at 47 minutes and 36.73 seconds and called it a good morning.

***

I woke up on Sunday morning and felt tired, but surprisingly not sore. My coach had (surprisingly) recommended that I take a shot at the 3000 if I felt OK. So I decided to head over to the track for day 2 of the meet, warm up, and then decide whether I was racing the 3000.

My warm-up went OK - I was still (unsurprisingly) tired, but my legs were notably less stiff than the day before.   Once again demonstrating that taper for me has to be a careful balance between too much taper (less tired and more stiff) and too little (more tired and less stiff). I had to beat 14:31 to lower my 3000m record, and that seemed eminently doable even on tired legs.  So what the heck - it was only 7 and a half laps, right?  After yesterday's 25 laps, that seemed like almost a sprint.

I lined up once again, this time in a group of six - four men and two women.  The gun went off and once again I dropped behind everyone else into last place while I eased into my gait, before starting to pick up the pace.

There were two key differences between yesterday and today.  The first was that my shorts were not an issue.  The second was that when I pulled next to the other woman to try to pass her, she picked up her gait to match mine. This was a challenge in other ways beyond the obvious. When I first start running from a standstill, it can be really hard to run very close to someone else.  The best way to put it is that I'm really focusing fully on staying on my feet, and having someone next to me is a distraction. And every time I lose a bit of my focus, my gait goes to hell.

However, I'm not very good at changing gears anymore, so dropping behind her to gather some steam and then surging past on a straightaway was not an option, even though we were both running side by side at a pace that wasn't too hard for me. So, I just ran in lane 2 as best I could, reasoning that a) this was good for me and b) at some point she'd get tired and fall behind and then I'd have my space.

The "at some point" happened about 700m into the race. After pulling ahead, I shifted over to lane 1 and felt my stride really smooth out. From there on, it was just a matter of counting down laps and reminding myself that 4 laps to go wasn't very far (although it really was).

When I hit 3 laps to go, I glanced at the clock - it was just changing to 8:30, which meant I had to do 3 laps in 6:00 - about 8 minute pace - to take down my record.  Cool.  I focused on relaxing my quads and ankles and keeping my body upright and my feet striking under me and endured another lap.  10:20 - so now I had another 10 seconds of room. 

At the bell lap, I noted 12:10, and realized I could possibly duck under 14 minutes. Since I had room to experiment, I decided to relax my quads and ankles as much as possible and see where that got me on the last lap. As it turned out, that got me to the finish officially in 13:57.33 - good enough to knock some time off of my previous record.  I was happy with that, and also very happy to be done racing for the weekend.

Splits were:

10,000m
Mile 1: 7:50
Mile 2: 7:38
Mile 3: 7:40
Mile 4: 7:35
Mile 5: 7:34
Mile 6: 7:29
last 400 - 1:49 (7:19 pace)

3000m:
Mile 1: 7:36
last 1400: 6:21 (7:18 pace)

[all miles were obviously 1600s, not full miles]

Other notes:

• This time I actually remembered to bring my records forms to the meet to get them completed that day. Of course, what I failed to do was send an email in advance, advising that I was going for a record, which meant that they had to do a "Zero Gun" test on Saturday that they hadn't planned for.  Next time I'll have my act totally together.
• One of the nice things about track meets is that you can show up by yourself and leave with several new friends. It reminds me a lot of the DC dark music scene in that way.
• I had an interesting chat with a racewalking coach during the meet.  Apparently, my tendency to heelstrike and my leg stiffness would work very well for racewalking. So I guess that's always an option if I decide I need to move on from running (note: I am nowhere near that point right now).
• Someone actually complimented me on my running gait!  It's been a while since that happens. More evidence that PT works.
• This was my last track meet for the year, so time to get used to the roads again.
• Next year, I want to try to get that 3000m time down some more.  I ran 13:39 earlier this year, but it didn't count because the meet wasn't set up with the right kind of timers/officials, etc.

The Hartford Nationals, July 13-14, 2025

I ran the 1500 and the 3000 at the Hartford Nationals meet in Grand Rapids, Michigan on July 13-14, with times of 7:09 for the 1500 and 14:31 for the 3000 - finishing as top female in both heats.

The Hartford Nationals are (using their own words) the "largest and longest-running national sport championship event for athletes with a physical disability, visual impairment or intellectual disability." The full event covers multiple sports over 8 days, including track and field, swimming, archery, weightlifting, triathlon, tennis, and several others. 

I went last year and really enjoyed the event even though I had to withdraw from my races due to injury (I did hobble through an 800, but I decided that didn't count as a race). This year, I resolved to come back healthy.  

At last year's Hartford Nationals, I planned an ambitious schedule - targeting the 400, 800, 1500, and 5000 over two days.  Since I'm a marathoner, this didn't seem very intimidating.  However, I learned over that summer that warming up and racing a short distance two or three times in the same day with a gap of several hours between each was very hard on my body. I suspect that doing so at several meets in a row was why I got injured. So this year I planned for just one race each day.

I also chose to enter the first race of each day at the Hartford Nationals.  I thought this would give me my best chance to perform well. To explain why, I first have to go into the differences between Move United meets and the USATF meets in my area. (Move United is the governing body for adaptive sports in the U.S.)

In my experience, meets sanctioned by Move United are much more formal than USATF meets. At a Move United meet, the track is open for warm-up for a specified period of time, and then closed, and there's generally not any other good place to run while awaiting your race. Move United meets also want the athletes to check in well ahead of time.  And once you've checked in, they keep you on a fairly short leash. 

In contrast, the USATF meets I've done have always had some place to run besides the track and also allow athletes to do laps on the track infield while waiting for their heat. USATF check ins also seem more casual. I tell them I'm there, get my hip #, and then I'm free to head off wherever while awaiting the start. If I miss my race, it's my own damn fault.

For a number of reasons (age, Parkinsons, and being a marathoner), I need a long warm-up before a short race, and I need to time it so that my warm-up finishes shortly before the race starts. Thus, at Move United meets, it's a lot easier to time my warm-up correctly if I'm in the first race of the day.  

So, back in March of this year, I pulled up the preliminary schedule for the Hartford Nationals and noted that the 1500 and 3000 were the first races on each of the two track days. I found a Move United sanctioned meet in May where I could snag qualifying times for the two distances. Once I had those, I submitted my entry and booked my trip to Grand Rapids, Michigan.

***

I flew out of BWI to Grand Rapids. While waiting to board, I noted that most of the other passengers appeared to be going to the Hartford Nationals as well.  I was surprised at first and then recalled that there's a significant para-athletic/adaptive athlete program associated with the Kennedy-Krieger Institute in Baltimore.

Unsurprisingly, there were a LOT of pre-boards.  I idly wondered if I would read something on social media later complaining about how many people took advantage of pre-board. In this case, a good third of the passengers on board really did qualify for and need pre-board.

***

The flight went smoothly. Once in Grand Rapids, much of my time was dedicated to standing in line.  This was because I did the same thing everyone else did - I booked my car rental through the airplane, and I stayed at the hotel where all the official meetings were held.  So that was a 20+ minute wait for a car, and another 20+ minute wait to check into my room. Clever me also decided to pick up my bib numbers and other stuff at the same time as everyone else later that afternoon, so that was another 30 minutes.

The moral of the story - next year I need to be more original in my planning.

***

Friday evening was the "track and field coaches meeting" to go over the rules of the meet.  Since I was there on my own, I attended.  As someone who really wishes that track etiquette rules were posted at my local track (this comment aimed at the woman who does her recovery jogs in lane 1 clockwise...) the slide presentations warmed my heart a touch.

***

I slept in Saturday morning and then headed over to Calvin University - site of the track and field competition. The track itself was closed to runners because the field events were being held on the infield, but I was able to get a general sense of the venue and do a brief shake-out on some trails on the University campus before getting lunch.  It was warm, but the dew point was refreshingly low after a few weeks in DC - it felt great and my legs felt zippy.

The track was open to runners from 1:30-3:00 that afternoon, so I returned for about 15 minutes of jogging to see what the track felt like. It was a surprisingly soft track - almost like running on an astroturf infield. I had brought two pairs of race shoes with me - the Saucony Sinister and the Reebok FloatRide RunFast Pro.  A few minutes jogging in each convinced me that the Reeboks were the better, more comfortable choice for this weekend.

***

Sunday morning was my first race - the 1500.  Unfortunately, though I was in the first race of the day, I was not in the first heat of the day. Rather, I was in the 6th heat (of 10) for the 1500.  Oh well, I knew that I probably wasn't going to be lucky enough to be in the first heat, and it was what it was.  I warmed up on the track during the scheduled time (6:30-7:15 am). With my heat estimated to start at 8:30 am, I then tried to keep walking and stay limber, before starting to jog on a slip of road near the call tent around 8 am.

I didn't feel great, unfortunately. Just sluggish and a bit dull. Which surprised me as the air was still relatively dry and the temperature was in the low 70s - perfect for a summer 1500. But whatever, I was here, and I would race as best I could.

My heat of the 1500 was a mixed ambulatory field - meaning men and women (all 18 or older), with different impairments. Most were in the 18-21 age range, including another woman with a coordination impairment. And then there was a female lower leg amputee in her 30s and me.

We lined up for a waterfall start - men on the inside, women on the outside.  I noted that the amputee was to the right of me, with her left leg being the prosthetic.  I've noted that prosthetics tend to swing outwards slightly. Given my balance issues, any contact between my leg and her prosthetic would mean a possible fall for me.  I made a mental note to let her cut to the rail ahead of me, and then hopefully pass her on the outside.

The gun started, and just like always I was in last place.  I took a few breaths to try to relax my gait and then started working on that weird blend of "running hard but not running too hard." Over the next 3 and 3/4s laps I reeled in both of the women. It wasn't pretty, though.  Every time I would try to aggressively pass my quads would lock up, and I'd have to ease up and re-establish my rhythm and relax the tense muscles. I ended up swinging out to lane 2 and passing each very gradually (no surges).

 I would have liked to have run down some of the men as well, but I just had no oomph and they were too fast for me.

I crossed the line in 7:09.  Good enough for top woman in my heat and a win in my division.  I wasn't very happy with how I had run, though.  I was frustrated by both my rough gait and how off I felt.  The gait clearly needed more work, which was fine - it's always nice to have room and potential for improvement.  But why did I feel so rough?

I figured it out later that morning when I checked the weather on my phone.  We were under a code red air quality alert due to forest fire smoke from Canada that had rolled in overnight. It wasn't affecting me enough to make my asthma super obvious, but how I was feeling was totally consistent with a mild asthma flare.  

Unfortunately, the smoke was predicted to linger through tomorrow morning (the second and final day of track) before dissipating.  Of course it was.

Normally I try to avoid running outside in smoky air to protect my lungs. But, I was here and tomorrow's 3000 would be a short race. So rather than hang around at the event for the rest of the day to cheer others on, I took a quick tour of the vendor area and then headed back to the hotel.

***

The vendor area was pretty cool.  Several businesses that cater to adaptive athletes - primarily those with wheelchairs or prosthetics - had set up shop.  Some pictures:

This tent had the wheelchair equivalent
of the "trainer" used by cyclists.

If you zoom in on this picture...

You see a fancy carrying case 
for a prosthetic.

***

Sunday afternoon was Chipotle + stretching + reading.  I wasn't running a marathon, but why mess with my routine?

I went to bed fairly early so that I could get up around 4:30 to do my full routine of mobilization/stretching before heading over to the track to warm-up for the 3000.  Unfortunately, I somehow either slept through or didn't set my watch alarm with the result that I woke up at 5:15 am instead.

Not how I wanted to start the morning.  Fortunately, my original plan had been for a leisurely morning.  Sleeping in just meant that it was a bit less leisurely and more rushed, but I was still able to do everything I needed to before heading over.

***

When I arrived, I noted how hazy the sky was - almost like it was a foggy morning (though it wasn't).  My warm-up confirmed that I didn't feel any better than the day before. Which was disappointing, as I thought the 3000 was my best chance for a good performance, given a) the distance and b) the fact that it was scheduled to be the first race of the day. But whatever - I was here and I'd give it my best effort.

Unfortunately, when I checked in for the 3000m, I learned that the 5000 was being held before the 3000, so I no longer had the first race of the day.  (When I had registered, the 3000 had been listed first on the schedule). Oh well. Such is racing. I waited until the 5000 had about 6 laps left, and then began jogging again, trying to stay limber. Then we were called to walk to the start line.

I approached the 3000 with a different strategy.  Given the air quality, I didn't want to be pushing things too hard, lest a subtle asthma flare become less subtle. So this was the perfect opportunity to practice staying as relaxed as possible while racing.  No TENSION.  This strategy might backfire and cost me the race, but the air quality was already limiting me, so this was the perfect time to work on this.

When the gun went off, my legs were definitely stiff from the wait for the race, and so I very delicately eased into what felt like the fastest pace I could maintain while staying completely relaxed and smooth.  Fortunately, this pace was fast enough to gradually close the gap between me and the female amputee from the 1500 (this was another mixed race, with men and women from different classifications combined). Every time I felt the slightest bit of tension, I backed off the pace.

Focusing on smoothness, I eventually pulled up next to her.  She threw in some surges trying to keep up, but I did my best to ignore her and the fact that I was racing her and just keep my gait smooth.  We went around like this for two laps - her in lane 1 and me in lane 2 the whole time (yes, I know, but dropping behind her on the turn and then attempting to pass on the straightaway wasn't an option - my legs would just lock when I tried to pass).

Then things began to loosen up, and I started to pull away.  Eventually I had enough room to move into lane 1 comfortably.  From then I was running by myself, with a male runner about 50-75m ahead.  I spent the next laps negotiating with myself, because I knew I wasn't running at full race effort and I had someone ahead of me.  But my biggest goal for the morning was to run the entire race with absolutely no tension, so I held steady.

I finished in 14:31 (I don't have intermediate splits because I wasn't allowed to wear a smart watch for this race). Significantly slower than what I had hoped for when I entered, but I had finished as top female, won my division, and run a much better race (from a gait perspective) so I called it a good morning.

I won two gold medals - aren't they pretty?

Other notes:

• This was my second time at the Hartford Nationals, and I'm really glad I came again.  Overall, it was a really good experience and I hope to return next year.  I do think I need to focus on competition and forget about running my best times at this meet. With the big gaps between warm-up and race starts, The meet is just not set up for me to run my fastest. This is not a complaint at all, just an observation, in the same way that I'd never use a hilly marathon for a PR attempt.
  
  
• The New Jersey Navigators (an adaptive athlete team from....wait for it....New Jersey) have informally adopted me and let me use their tent when we're at the same meets. It is very much appreciated.
  
  
• I had optimistically booked a flight for Monday night back to BWI.  That flight was cancelled about 10 hours before takeoff, due to a predicted storm that actually did happen.  Fortunately, I had planned for this and packed everything I needed for staying an extra day as well as going into the office straight from BWI, so I declined Southwest's offer to rebook me that evening and just swapped to the 5:30 am flight on Tuesday morning. This was a good decision. 
  
  What was not a good decision was trying to save money by clicking on a last minute Trip Advisor deal for a hotel right next to the airport.  The hotel had 2.5 out of 4 stars and was a national chain, so I assumed that $50 would get me a clean safe bed and a shower for the evening. 
  
  I was so very wrong. I ended up checking out roughly an hour after checking in, skeeved out by the non-working door bolt, the pot smoke everywhere, the vague warnings from staff to avoid the back or side of the building, and the clerk's willingness to dispense a key card for any room to anyone who wanted a card for that room without confirming identity. I went back to my previous hotel and gratefully paid another $150 for another night of clean sheets and clean air.
  
  Lesson: never book a hotel "deal" without reading the reviews.

Race Report: Bennett Blazers Invitational, May 18, 2025

 I ran the 3000 and then the 1500 at the Bennett Blazers Invitational track meet last weekend (yes, I'm just now finding time to write up this report).  I ran 13:39 for the 3000 and 7:04 for the 1500, which were both enough to qualify me for the Hartford Nationals.

My summer plans include competing at the Hartford Nationals in Grand Rapids, Michigan in July. To do so, I needed to nab qualifying times for the 3000 and the 1500 - the two events I've chosen to target there. I could qualify at either a Move United (organization for para- and adaptive athletes) meet or a USATF meet, but I preferred to do so at a Move United meet (less paperwork). Conveniently the Bennet Blazers Invitational offered both distances. The meet was just under 4 weeks after the Boston Marathon, which meant that I would just be returning to training.  But that was fine - I was confident that I could qualify without being in top shape, and racing the two distances would work well as a rust buster.

The meet was in Towson, just north of Baltimore, so I was able to do it as a day trip, leaving my home around 5:40 am. I arrived at the track a bit after 7 am and immediately found a good spot for my yoga mat.  I spent the next 30 minutes stretching, foam rolling, and otherwise getting ready to run before grabbing my bibs (two for front and back). Then I headed out to jog laps around the track to warm up. I was wearing a pair of Reebok FloatRide RunFast Pros from 2018 as they fall within the stack height limit of 20mm for para-athletic track and I was pleasantly surprised by how good they felt.

The 3000 was the first race of the morning.  And I was the only one in it.  This wasn't totally surprising - adaptive/para-athletic meets tend to emphasize the sprints, and many of the competitors there consider anything longer than 800 to be a long race. Being the only one in the first race of the morning meant that I could warm-up, check-in, walk over to the start line, and casually wait for the gun. The starter and I grinned at each other as he formally advised me that I could take the inside lane from the gun, and then we were (meaning I was) off.

***

The next few minutes were oddly fun. I was not allowed to wear my Garmin and there was no clock visible - thus I had absolutely no way to know what splits I was hitting. Without anyone else in the race, I couldn't gauge how fast I was running. Fortunately for me, I've done a lot of solo tempos on the track, not checking my watch until after I'm done, so the lack of information didn't bother me. I also knew that I only had to dip under 20:40 for the 3000 (11:05 pace) to qualify for the Hartford Nationals, so I didn't have any worries there.

Essentially, the race became a hard tempo/solo time trial, with the added benefit of somebody counting down laps for me and a crowd cheering. I simply relaxed into the rhythm and worked through my mental form cues, and seven and a half laps went quickly.

After finishing, I caught my breath and then asked the officials what my time was.  "13:39" was the answer, which I was more than satisfied with. Previously I had told the meet director that I planned to be under 15 minutes and thus not add too much time to the meet. I was glad to be significantly under that threshold. 13:39 was also significantly faster than my Tuesday track workout had indicated - it's always nice when you race better than you train.

***

I had a wait of about 2.5 hours before the 1500, which was the last race of the morning.  I suspect that events were arranged to give me as much space as possible between the two.  The irony there is that I would have much preferred to have jogged for about 4 minutes and then rolled into the 1500 - thus doing a slightly harder version of the 3200, 1600 tempo workout. 150 minutes was enough time to get really stiff and rigid.  I tried to find an area to jog around outside of the track but had no luck.  So I settled for repeated strides on a strip of the outside lane (with the meet's permission).  It was something, but not enough.

There were three other runners in this race (all different divisions, and so technically not my competitors), and I fully expected to finish last due to both stiffness and lack of fitness. So I was pleasantly surprised when the gun went off and I found myself in second, with the leader in reach.  However, that feeling only lasted for about 100m, and then everything started tightening up.  When I'm not loosened up, I often have to manage this annoying....thing (for lack of a better term) where I can't selectively contract muscles. Trying to accelerate hard means that everything locks up - I can't step on the gas without also stepping on the brakes. So...I have to try to trick myself into running fast without trying too hard.  Which is tricky when you are in second place in a 1500 with first place in reach and third place just behind you.

I worked through things as best I could but was outkicked in the home stretch to finish third overall in 7:04 (7:35 pace).  So not the way I would have liked it to play out, but it was a good reminder of what I need to work on, and I snagged another qualifying time.

All in all, it was a successful morning - I got what I came for, got my rustbuster out of the way, and figured out what I need to work on in the next few months.

Other notes:

• We had great weather for the meet - mid 60s with low humidity.  It was windy, but still much better weather than one usually gets for a summer track meet.
• I really like the Reebok Runfast Floatride Pros, and I am now glad that I was never able to sell them on Ebay.  I bought them in around 2018, but quickly decided that I preferred the Vaporfly for racing all distances.  But now things have changed, and my shoe hoarding tendencies have been reinforced.
• I do have my work cut out for me, fitness wise.  7:35 pace was my goal marathon pace last summer, and now I just ran a 1500 at that pace (of course, I did run the 3000 faster :))  I don't think this is any sort of disease progression - I just need to train consistently and work on my coordination hiccups.  Mission accepted.

Race report: PVTC Track Meet, June 8, 2024

I ran the 3000m and the 800m at a PVTC (Potomac Valley Track Club) all comers track meet this morning, running 13:11 and 3:19 by my watch (unofficially).

This was the next episode in my summer of "work on your weaknesses."  In my case, there are three weaknesses I'm focusing on.  The first is a lack of speed altogether, the second is difficulty managing my running gait for the first 1-3 miles of a race, and the third is a tendency to stiffen up any time I get competitive or want to pick up the pace.

All three weaknesses can be managed during longer races, which is probably a lot of the reason why I prefer and am much more competitive at races that are 10 miles or longer.  But my weaknesses limit me even at those distances, so there's a lot to gain by improving here.  Additionally, that majority of para-athletic competitions focus on 5000m or shorter, meaning that I really do need to figure out how to run the short stuff better if I want to compete regularly in my para division.

Finally, it's believed that working on power and speed is extremely good for people with Parkinsons, as it combats the slowing of movements that is one of the hallmarks of the condition. 

So...doing these races is hard on my ego, but good for everything else.

***

I was pretty casual about this meet. I had selected the 3000m and the 800m as the two races I wanted to do, and both were scheduled to run in the middle of the day.  This meant that I could show up around 9 am, register on site, and then get a feel for when I'd be racing.  

The whole meet was on a rolling schedule, which reminded me of my horse showing days (your class went when it went).  As I registered, I ballparked that we were at least an hour away from my first race, which gave me enough time to do my standard 3 mile warm-up on a nearby roadway (15 minutes jogging, 3 minutes at half-marathon effort, 4x30 seconds at 5K effort, and 4x10 second strides) before stopping by my car to grab a bag with my racing shoes (I went with the Takumi Sen 7), sunscreen, and some bottled water, before heading back to the track.

(the bottled water was important, as the area was under a boil-water advisory from a recent burst pipe)

The ad hoc nature of the event did create an additional challenge for me: since I have to take my Parkinsons meds several times a day, I try to plan ahead and time my doses around when I need to feel best (i.e., during the race).  That's easier to do when you know exactly when you'll be racing.  Fortunately, the timing worked out here - I was due for a dose of meds around 10:30 am, so I just took them a little early, at 10:15 am, which ensured that I was right where I needed to be medication-wise when we were called for the 3000m at roughly 10:45 am.

They gave us a first and second call for the 3000m, with enough time between the two that I could do some fast running laps on the infield to get my heart rate up a bit.  At the second call, we lined up at a tent to give our names and numbers for the heat (there were about 10-12 runners in the heat), and then we were walked over to the start line on the far side of the track.  No lane assignments here, just a waterfall start. I placed myself near the outside so that the first curve would be a bit gentler as I cut in towards lane 1.

***

The gun went off and I actually wasn't dropped by everyone this time.  Which was great but also meant that I had to navigate around some people to get myself to lane 1.  I did this surprisingly smoothly (if I do say so myself) and merged into lane 1 with a group ahead.

From there, I could see a group ahead that I wanted to catch up to.  But of course, every time I tried to do so, my gait stiffened up, and I had to back off a little and try to loosen up.  7 laps went by too quickly, and so I was never quite able to reel in the group before the finish line, making me both sad and happy that I was done.  My finishing time was 13:11, meaning that I basically ran a 3000m race at the same pace I raced 10 miles last spring, but heck, that's how things roll for me right now.

***

There was only one event - the 200m - between the 3000m and the 800m.  I got into a conversation with a friend and the 20 minutes between my two events went quickly.  I was a bit surprised when we were called to the line again.

I have to admit I was a bit checked out for the 800m - in a "let's just get this over" mindset.  I was pretty casual and unfocused as I ran the first lap, with my mind wandering all over the place - would I have time to stop by the grocery store after the race, etc.  And then I came through the first lap in 1:38 with plenty of energy in the tank.  

At that point I woke up, focused on the task at hand, and decided to pick it up for the second lap to get below 3:15....and my legs locked up again.  I fought my way to the finish with a second lap that felt much harder but was 3 seconds slower.

About 30 seconds after finishing, as I reflected on my 800m, I realized that while it wasn't a great race, it was a very USEFUL race.

More specifically, I've been trying to manage the "I get stiff whenever I try to accelerate" issue by thinking "tempo" when I race (since I seem to hit faster paces in tempos than in intervals) or focusing internally on my rhythm.  But those haven't worked well in shorter races.  So I need to find another trick - a way to stay very casual and loose and checked out.  Sifan Hassan always looks like she has no idea why she's at a starting line, and it works for her.  So perhaps something to emulate.  Definitely something to play with.

Other notes:

• I wore the Takumi Sen 7 for these races - it worked as well as anything else under 25mm - so I suspect I'll stick with that shoe for the rest of this season.  Some of the track meets I am running do NOT have restrictions on stack height.  However, since the meets I care the most about do have these restrictions, I think I'm just going to stick with the Takumi Sens for all track meets so that I can stay relatively comfortable in them.
  
  
• Even though my 800m was much faster here than at the last meet (3:19 v. 3:43) it is the 3:43 that is still the national record for the T36 division.  This is because national para-athletic records can only be set at meets and races recognized by either Adaptive Track & Field USA (ATFUSA) or World Para-athletics (WPA).  USATF sanctioning is not sufficient, even if I have a classification.
  
  
• It was warm for this meet (low 80s) but not humid, so the weather really wasn't an issue given how short the races were.  The pollen was miserably high, though.
  
  
• One other thing I played with during this meet was noise reducing earplugs.  As I've mentioned before, I've developed an "exaggerated startle reflex" - meaning that my body tends to spontaneously jerk at sudden loud noises, even if I'm expecting them.  It's not a brain/anxiety thing, but a neurological spinal reflex-type thing, similar to touching a hot stove.  I can manage it once I realize it's happening, but the initial (very annoying) jerk happens before I realize it.
  
  Someone noted on a message board that they had found that wearing noise reducing earplugs helped, so I picked up a pair and have been testing them during runs.  So far so good - I can still hear everything I need to hear (conversations, instructions, cars or bikes approaching) but the sharpness of the noise is blunted enough to mostly avoid triggering the reaction.  Meaning it's much easier to run near other people or be passed from behind.  I had very little trouble running near other people during this meet, and the starting pistol wasn't an issue at all.
  
  And yes - noise-reducing ear plugs are totally legal under USATF rules.  Headphones are not, of course, but the language of the rule makes clear that the issue is with "audio, video, or communications devices" (USATF Rule 144.3b).