Vaultin

I watched both the 2008 and 2009 Boston Marathon's on tv today. Granted I fast forwarded a good bit, but the finishes to both of the women's races were amazingly close. It was strange also to watch Kara Goucher run seemingly so strong for her debut marathon in 09, yet I knew she would place 3rd. There was a good article in Runners world last year about her career. She seemed so strong in the last 5 miles. It made me sad to see her victory slip away.

I'll prolly watch the 2010 marathon this weekend since the finish in it is supposedly down to the wire as well. I'll have to catch the 2011 Boston Marathon next week though since Monday we leave for Pickleland! At least that's what I'm telling my daughter. Hopefully she will explode with excitement when she realizes we are going to Disneyland!

Watching the elites run on tv is great mental imagery for me though. Today on the treadmill, I felt the best I've felt in a couple of months. I thought,"I feel strong enough to pole vault right now". Odd since I've never vaulted. However, picturing the elites gliding down the road was just a great image to replay over and over in my head while running hard. I felt like my form was smoother, my foot placement lighter, my stride easier. I mention this because I've spent so much time thinking about form, stride length, and body position that it just seems counterproductive after some point. All I needed was some good imagery of smooth body mechanics to mentally chew on.