Allison Grace's Journal

November 2008 Entry (Posted November 13, 2008)

Ramping into a New Year

With the Olympic Trials coming to a close this spring, there were two options for professional athletes: travel to Europe and race on the track, or hit the road circuit. I chose the roads. This summer until the beginning of the fall season proved to be an awesome opportunity for many runners, especially female distance runners, to race consecutively in a number of U.S. Road Championships.

My final two races of the year consisted of the CVS Caremark Downtown 5K (USATF 5K Road Championships) and USATF 8K Road Championships in Akron, Ohio. These races ultimately established the groundwork needed for this coming year. I had nothing to lose….but to go after it. I knew in order to race well in these road races, you have to put yourself out there, take risks and race with the leaders for as long as you can.

I played with a new racing strategy and it paid off. I chased the leaders and ended up finishing seventh in the 5K and 10th in the 8K, earning me a spot on the 2008 U.S. Chiba Ekiden Relay team this coming November. This is an amazing opportunity, and I’m jacked to represent the U.S. team in Japan.

The next few weeks are in preparation for the race. Other than that, I am training hard and getting ramped up for what is to come. With ZAP increasing the number of athletes in Blackberry Valley, it should be an exciting and interesting year for all of us. I am looking forward to seeing the success of the other zapsters, and to progress to a new level in my own racing and training.

July 2008 Entry (Posted July 22, 2008)

Bringing The Track Season To A Close

Everyone has heard the old saying “the hay is in the barn.” Well the hay was in the barn going into the Trials. For others, I noticed, the hay was scattered sparsely in the barn, outside of the barn, or trying to frantically make its way back into the barn for final race preparations. The thing about the Olympic Trials is that no matter what, if you have qualified, you have to race because this is a once in a lifetime opportunity that only so many athletes can be a part of. It was shocking to hear so many of the athletes competing were injured, but still going to compete. Through the hard work in training and racing all year and with all of the ailments and nagging pains that accompany it, it is worth so much in the end because of this amazing opportunity to race with the best athletes in the U.S.

I was thrilled when I knew I was going to be running in the 10K Olympic Trials final. I had some ups and downs this season, but the race that guaranteed my spot on the line was in Portland, OR, where I ran a 10K PR of 33:17. I felt like I had just started coming around and I was even more determined to achieve another PR going into the Olympic Trials, a few weeks later. Almost all of the Zapsters made it in, and it was going to be an exciting endeavor in Eugene, OR, to be part of such a monumental event.

The 10K final for women was on the first night (Friday), and the last event of the night. I was ready to go and see what the Allimal could bring. The race started out very slow, and within the first mile, various women were grabbing for water on the track. I guess the temperature that night was almost 80 degrees, and very humid. It was the type of race where you just had to race the others around you and see what you could do. Forget time…just race. I felt dehydrated the whole time and sluggish, but I fought through it. I almost caught a few people at the end….a couple being Olympians, but did not have enough in the ole tank to do it. I finished in 17th place and ran a 33:40. Even though I was pretty disappointed, there was nothing I could do about it. I ran as hard as I could, and competed in my first Olympic Trials. Despite the nasty weather for the race, it was an awesome experience. Racing alongside all of those accomplished athletes was crazy. I learned a lot from that race, and knew that this was only the beginning of my career.

It was hard to watch other athletes have amazing races, when I felt I had run poorly. I was dissatisfied in my performance and wanted more. I have learned over the years to be patient and to seek long term success. It can be a struggle wanting to be better than you are, and knowing you have to wait four more years to see improvement and success, but it is all worth it in the end. Watching the best women compete at the Olympic Trials was awe-inspiring. It gave me hope for the future. It was wonderful to see so many women who have been running for so long, finally be able to showcase their abilities and reach their potential.

As long as there is still belief and hope in our sport, truly anything can happen. I will keep on believing in myself and look ahead to the next four years of running.

May 14, 2008 Entry (Posted May 15, 2008)

Down To The Wire

So far, this season has been a building process. In the fall, I felt the strongest I ever have and everything was going well. The winter was a transition period, with a few good races, but I felt as though I had to come around all over again. It can be tough racing a few stinkers, especially coming off of one of your better seasons. I have learned to be patient with my training, and recovery is just as important to the overall picture, as training your ass off. I knew in order to last the entire year; I had to take a break in training, so I could come around for the spring season.

The first few races were what Pete Rea likes to call “rust busters” and they were. I felt like I couldn’t go any faster, no matter what I did. The training is definitely there, but my body didn’t want to respond quite yet. After the recent Cardinal Invitational, I got fired up to race even more. The only problem is there are only a few more chances to race. The plan is to race the 10K in two weeks in Portland, Oregon, and the 5K in Hillsdale, Michigan the following week. I am right on the bubble for the 10K, so I’m hoping to knock some time off my previous mark to almost guarantee myself into the Trials. There is nothing like waiting until the last few weeks to run like hell and achieve my dream of racing an Olympic Trials. The pressure is on.

I am ready to run a personal best in both events and this is the only time to do it. I am excited to see what can happen. Training has been swell, but now it’s time to shut up and race. Time to let the Allimal out of her cage and roar.

February 13, 2008 Entry (Posted February 15, 2008)

The Allimal Embarks on an Exciting Winter of Travel

Running in shorts and a tee-shirt is a lovely adjustment to the brutal winters in the mountains of Blowing Rock, NC. Tallahassee is the place to train for runners during this winter season. The past month here has been full of good times in the sun, great training and bonding experiences with my ZAP guy teammates. It can be a struggle when most of your runs involve chasing after the guys, since I am the only female ZAP athlete here. Near the end of our stay in Tallahassee, I was blessed with another female training partner, Caitlin Tormey, who will be joining the ZAP team in NC for the next couple of months, gearing up for the Marathon Trials in April.

This chunk of training in Florida (containing mostly strength based longer sessions with a couple of track workouts) has prepared me for a few indoor races, but ultimately laid the foundation for the upcoming outdoor season. I have been feeling stronger near the end of this winter training cycle. I ran a 3K PR of 9:26 at Boston University, a few weeks ago to achieve a U.S. Indoor National qualifier, and I am primed for a 5K in Seattle this weekend. The main focus of this indoor season was to run a good 3K, as well as a 5k Olympic Trials qualifier for the outdoor season. I am expecting to do that this weekend!

I was also fortunate to have the opportunity to compete in my first overseas competition. A couple weeks ago, I was invited to participate as a member of the U.S. Women’s Yokohama Ekiden team on February 24. While I already qualified and was looking forward to running the U.S. Indoor Championships, we decided this was an opportunity that I did not want to miss!

From Ohio to Tallahassee to Seattle to Japan, I will be ready to get home and continue my quest for the Olympic Trials. More on Japan, the next time I write!

Introductory Entry (Posted December 20, 2007)

Women Can Run Together

This fall has been an exhilarating ride. Every race has been exciting, and has given me the opportunity to improve and become stronger as a runner. I had a base from the spring and summer that helped carry me through the fall, enabling me to set an [Olympic Trials] qualifying standard in the 10K. I also had a few other great races this fall, making me hungrier for more. I want to keep the energy going, and make another Trials qualifying mark in the 5K, as well as improving upon my previous 10K mark. I have many goals in 2008. The more experience I gain and the more elite women runners I meet, the more I realized the need to unite women as a whole in the sport of running.

Past experiences have led me to believe that women tend to be threatened by other women in competitions or training. Where has this come about? I have seen women put each other down to make themselves feel better. Instead of working against one another, women should be striving toward greater goals. Goals of running faster and getting stronger as a unit. This togetherness could create even more success in our sport in this country.

From years of watching both men’s and women’s running events, I have noticed that men prefer to run in packs and use each other to run fast whereas, women tend to be more spread out, preferring to race by themselves. Women need to be proud of who they are and proud that distance running is at an all time high. Performances have improved dramatically in the past 20 years. Women are getting faster which should be inspiring others to want to be better and achieve their goals.

This trend was called to my attention because of a recent experience I had last month. I was given the rare opportunity to run the 10K on the track in the fall. It gave a group of women the chance to qualify for the [Olympic] Trials. Stephanie Duerringer, an Indiana Invaders runner, organized this race for us and took over the pace to target the standard. Every woman in the race had one goal in mind; to work together to qualify. In the end, a few of us succeeded in achieving that goal by running together, a way I was not accustomed to running, until now.

It was an awesome feeling. For the first time in my life, I used other women and they worked off of me so that we could all accomplish an amazing feat. Our sport will only get better the more we come together. The less threatening egos in our sport, the better. We need to get back to the basics of running . . . running for the love of running and running for life. Women should swallow their pride and be excited for the success of others in American distance running.

Change can throw you off guard. It can alter everything you believe in, or create something positive. Change can also enable you to see the big picture. Why not embrace it and support this growing change in running? We want women to get faster, and to push us even further. There will always be someone new, someone who is running even faster than before, changing out perceptions of fast. With change comes sacrifice. Women need to put their resentment toward other runners aside, and create a positive image for younger generations.

This journey towards a sense of community is what I have realized, as I climb the ladder of elite women’s distance running. Our attitude in running should stay positive. There should be positive energy flowing in our sport. This negative energy holds us back and clouds our vision for the future. Let’s set an example for others. Work together to create more opportunities for others. Keep the positive energy alive.