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Lead Stories: Sunday, July 20, 2008

Michael Fout: I Told You So
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry 8)

Posted June 26th, 2008 at 4:01 PM by Michael Fout

Section: News & Results, Olympics, Elite Athlete Blogs, Michael Fout, College, High School

Welcome to the official blog of 2007 Footlocker Cross Country National Champion Michael Fout! Make sure to bookmark the link http://michaelfout.thefinalsprint.com and check back every other Thursday for Mike’s latest entries as he completes his senior year of high school running and begins his NCAA career at Florida State!

What a weekend this past weekend was! There were jaw-dropping performances from both the NON meet in North Carolina and the Junior Nationals in Ohio. I am sure that the news has been broken to you about those performances, but I just wanted to congratulate all of those who had the opportunity to compete in those races and especially congratulate the winners and All-Americans. A huge congratulations goes out to German Fernandez for his uncontested performance of the week in my eyes and many others’. His national record in the 2 mile run was truly incredible, and even though he is a competitor of mine and I will race him in the seasons to come, credit must be given where credit is due. Congrats man.

While last weekend was nothing short of amazing and entertaining to follow, starting tomorrow the athletes that strive to represent the United States in Beijing will toe the line (throw, jump, etc.). This is really the first time I will closely follow the trials and the Olympic Games, and I am extremely excited.
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Michael Fout:
Recovery and Beyond!
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry 7)

Posted June 16th, 2008 at 1:44 PM by Michael Fout

Section: News & Results, Announcements, Track & Field, Elite Athlete Blogs, Michael Fout, College, High School

The road to recovery has been undeniably long. It has been a struggle to watch as the state finals here in Indiana came to a close and to sit back and see all of the jaw-dropping results that runners across the States are throwing down. But, I am extremely happy to announce that I am well on my way back to being and feeling like the runner I should be.

Sure, right now it is nothing major … run 2 days, take a day off, run 2 days and take a day off, and so on. This has been going on for a couple of weeks now. And as much as I would like to be able to go out for a 15 miler on Sunday, I know that I have to remain patient. It is nice to have my coach, Bob Braman of FSU, preaching that to me. Because of him, I feel more grounded already, and to me that is a good thing. This coming up week, since all is going well, I hope to run each day, just 30 minutes. But after being kept from the sport I love for 2 dreadful months, some is certainly better than none.
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TFS News Briefs: 5/31/2008

Posted May 31st, 2008 at 1:00 PM by Jimmie R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Columns, TFS News Briefs, College

TFS News Briefs Walter Dix Advances To 100m and 200m Finals at NCAA East Regional
FSU senior Walter Dix has been hampered by a hamstring injury all season so it’s no wonder he coasted to the finish line in both the 100m and the 200m heats at the 2008 NCAA East Regional Championships. In fact, he finished 3rd behind his FSU teammates. With Dix’s help, the Seminoles are in good position to win their 4th straight NCAA East Regional team championship.
More: Tampa Tribune

Aussie Tamsyn Lewis Prefers Stiff Competition
Surprise world indoor 800m champ Tamsyn Lewis of Australia begins her outdoor campaign by facing 2007 outdoor champ Janeth Jepkosgei of Kenya at the DKB-ISTAF 2008, an IAAF Golden League meet in Berlin . Her reasoning? “I’d prefer to be in a field like that than an easier race. The only way to get ready for the Olympic Games is to race against these women some time. It might as well be now.”
More: The Age, Australia

Kara Goucher Aims For Olympic “A” Standard Tonight
The USATF recently announced that all Team USA athletes must have met their Olympic “A” standards either before or during the Olympic Trials, not after. It is much easier to achieve that standard without the added pressure of having to claim one of three spots in a major competition. That may be why Kara Goucher has decided to go for her “A” standard of 31:45 in the 10000m at a low-key meet in Oregon tonight. Galen Rupp will be running the 5000m.
The Oregonian
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Michael Fout:
Not Just A Runner
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry 6)

Posted May 29th, 2008 at 6:30 PM by Michael Fout

Section: Elite Athlete Blogs, Michael Fout

Talk about the excitement in the air. The post season is finally here in Indiana and in many states across the country. Collegiate regionals will even be run soon. Yeah, yeah, it kills me to watch, but I am a huge fan of the sport in general, so being that it is time for people to start rolling, I am excited. And, as time has gone on and my injuries are beginning to heal up, I have learned even more and appreciated even more than I thought possible.
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Chris Derrick: An Unusual End
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry #2)

Posted May 29th, 2008 at 12:30 PM by Chris Derrick

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Elite Athlete Blogs, High School, Chris Derrick

TFS Elite Athlete Blog Series CHRIS DERRICK 425x75 Welcome to the official blog of Chris Derrick; the 2007 Gatorade High School Cross Country Runner of the Year and 5k record holder! Make sure to bookmark chrisderrick.thefinalsprint.com and check back every other Tuesday for Chris’ latest entries as he completes his senior year of high school running and begins his NCAA career at Stanford!

chris derrick gatorade cross country runner of the year The last month or so since the Arcadia invite has been for me a really low key time in my racing. I haven’t really had any races to get worked up for or to treat as anything more then glorified workouts. This was supposed to be my downtime to train hard and charge up for my final glorious exit from high school track. My last chance to test my limits, set records, place my mark, etc. But then I got mono and, instead of a fitting climax, I just kind of hit the rising action and petered off somewhere to a denouement.

My symptoms began last Wednesday or Thursday when I began to get abnormally tired and just generally feel like dog doo-doo. I ran the 3200/1600 double at my sectional meet where I had been hoping to run around 8:45 for the 3200. When I nearly fell asleep a little over an hour before my race and doing strides was a serious labor I knew I was in trouble. I didn’t push extremely hard in the race, although I did push, but still it was one of the worst races of my life. Not so much because of pain but frustration at running slower than my 5k pr pace and feeling like I was struggling. I ended up running 8:58 which is actually faster then I had run the year before but was also completely demoralizing. I seriously considered scratching the 1600 but at the time I thought that this was just a passing bug that I would be over by the time state came so I thought I would just gut it out. I ended up feeling much better the second half of the 1600 and actually ran 4:14 (2:11-2:03) to win by 3 seconds. That got me in a better mood (one that was interrupted when Danny Pawola played a practical joke and told me Kevin Havel had just run 8:44/4:14), but I was still ridiculously tired.
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Be True To Your School

Posted May 18th, 2008 at 11:30 AM by Jesse Squire

Section: News & Results, Cross Country, Track & Field, College

“I got a letterman’s sweater
With a letter in front
I got for football and track
I’m proud to wear it now
When I cruise around
The other parts of the town
I got a decal in back

So be true to your school now
Just like you would to your girl or guy
Be true to your school now
And let your colors fly
Be true to your school”

I did not go to a track meet this afternoon.

This is an unusual situation for me on a Saturday in May. There’s always a meet going on somewhere, and my previous blog wasn’t written under the name of “The Track & Field Superfan” for nothing. But this wasn’t just any Saturday, and not just any track meet that I didn’t attend.

I ran at Bowling Green State University in the early 90s, and while I wasn’t particularly good for a college runner I thoroughly enjoyed taking on the extreme physical challenge of training and competing in the NCAA’s highest division. I liked my experiences in Bowling Green so much, I remained in the town for fifteen years after graduation, only leaving six months ago when my wife’s career took us away. I bled burnt orange and seal brown.
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Chris Derrick: Perseverance
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry #1)

Posted May 13th, 2008 at 2:22 PM by Chris Derrick

Section: News & Results, Elite Athlete Blogs, High School, Chris Derrick

chris derrick gatorade cross country runner of the year I’d like to begin my blogging experience by sharing one of the most epic runs I’ve ever had, and one that encapsulates my team as well. First a little background. Like most distance runners, we at Neuqua Valley are pretty weird. One of our more minor quirks is our belief in the Interval Gods*. The Interval Gods hate us. They have cursed us and given us crappy weather at all of our meets and interval workouts this track season. What’s more they are trying to kill us: right after we left the NTN meet in Portland there were mudslides and now, just weeks after we left Arcadia, it is threatened by wild fires.

Fortunately we’ve managed to stay (for now) one step ahead of them. We only got a break from the interval Gods wrath at the Aracadia Invite. Arcadia doesn’t really count as we are fairly certain the Interval Gods live there. We tried to appease them by feeding some squirrels in a local park and it was going swimmingly until Danny Pawola offered them extra-sour-rye bread, which they hated. I’ll let that little tidbit set the scene for our tale…
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Michael Fout: Looking Back, Looking Forward
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry #5)

Posted May 8th, 2008 at 2:00 PM by Michael Fout

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Elite Athlete Blogs, Michael Fout, High School

Yesterday, May 7, I officially became a man. And by that, I mean I turned 18 years old. As you could probably guess, I do not feel any different than I did when I was 17. Another year, another two seasons of running almost complete. Along with my birthday celebrations came reflections on the past. Those reflections dealt, of course, with running. And what a year it has been.

This time last year I was a healthy body, running everyday and incredibly excited about the track season I was putting together. I was beginning to think that I could be a national caliber runner. My first goal: Winning the state championship in the 3200 meter run. As the days until the state meet quickly passed, I was beginning to feel very anxious to see if I could reach that goal. In my head, I knew I could do it. The day came, and there was no way I was going to lose. It turns out, I didn’t! I had done it. It was, however, by no means easy. I won by just over a second as a hard charging, now freshman IU runner, came on strong. But as I crossed the line, an unexplainable feeling of excitement rushed through my body. Next stop: Nike Outdoor Nationals. I ran a 9:03 3200 a few weeks prior to NON and my goal on that chilly night in North Carolina was to run sub 9 for 2 full miles. As everybody knows, the 2 mile field that night was ridiculous as far as talent goes. I knew I had a good chance and that I could just hop on the end and “go for a ride.” I wound up finishing 11th and ran 8:58 for the full deuce! I knew I had to now put together a great cross season so that people would not think my run was just some fluke. Let the work begin.
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Michael Fout:
Let Me Be Fearless
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry #4)

Posted April 24th, 2008 at 6:06 PM by Michael Fout

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Elite Athlete Blogs, Michael Fout

Someone once said, “Let me not pray to be sheltered from dangers, but to be fearless in facing them. Let me not beg for the stilling of my pain, but for the heart to conquer it.” For those who do not know, I have been dealing with injury for some time now. Up until last week, I had not run since March 22. I had, and am recovering from, a stress fracture in my right tibia. Sure, injuries are no fun, but the fact is that most of us will come across one at some point in time. I have had my fair share of injuries, and they never really get any easier to deal with, but you learn to deal with them in different ways.
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Michael Fout:
A Chance To “Hammer”
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry #3)

Posted April 10th, 2008 at 3:26 PM by Michael Fout

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Elite Athlete Blogs, Michael Fout, High School

Outdoor season has officially arrived! I am waiting for my chance to really “hammer” a 3200 or 1600 outdoors. With a lot of the guys around the country running blazing times this early, I feel that when I get my chance I can do the same. I am really looking forward to going after that state record held by Mr. Rudy Chapa. I recently had the opportunity to speak with him and he seems very excited about me going for it. It is awesome to have him cheering me on. He is an Indiana legend and I also hope to leave behind some kind of a legacy.
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