Prefontaine Classic

It was confirmed Monday evening that Shayla will be competing in the steeplechase at this Saturday's Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, OR. The Prefontaine Classic is part of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) Diamond League series of meets. This series features the premier track & field meets held all over the world throughout the summer.

I.e. This is the next big step in her professional career. The meet will be aired live on NBC and Shayla's race is scheduled for 1:19pm (PDT). The start list has not been announced, but it is sure to feature many of the runners from this past weekends US Championship finals as well as some other international runners.

Another Medal

Volunteer assistant coach and Utah Alum, Shayla Houlihan, ran a gutsy race to finish sixth (10:09) in the steeplechase at the US Championships on Sunday. Competing in her first US Championships meet Houlihan qualified for the final with a new PR of 10:02. In the final she wasn't feeling her best, but was still able to put together a quality race to earn a medal (top six). Going into the final lap she was eighth, but her usual strong finish allowed her to pass two competitors over the final two barriers.

This was her first prelim/finals situation for the steeplechase and she handled it well. She was within seven seconds of her lifetime best that she had set three days earlier. Most (if not all) of the runners who finished ahead of her were 10-15 or more seconds off there personal best times.

The remainder of her season schedule is still being worked on. Check back here for more updates on her next race(s).

5th!!!

Freshmen Megan Combe (front) and Amanda Mergaert get a ride to the track courtesy of the Drake "Bulldog"

Freshman Amanda Mergaert closed out her outstanding track season by finishing fifth in the finals of the 1500 meter run at the US Junior Championships today. Her time of 4:35.37 came off of a slow early pace due to windy conditions. She was among the leaders with 400 to go when the lead group of fourt made a strong move to pull away from Mergaert down the backstretch. Mergaert was in seventh place with 200 meters to go before making her final move over the last 150 meters to finish fifth.

I thought she ran another very smart race, conserving energy early and covering every move the leaders made. However, a lack of experience in championship meets of this caliber was the difference. Her comfort level with going strong at 400 meters to go rather than waiting until 250m or 200m will improve with time and experience. There's no doubt she grew mentally and physically with this experience (as did all of our junior athletes who competed at this meet).

One more race....Former Ute and professional runner Shayla Houlihan will close out our week at the US meet by competing for a national title in the steeplechase tomorrow afternoon at 1:15pm (CDT). The meet will be televised live on ESPN from Noon-1:30pm and on NBC from 2-3pm. Be sure to wish her good luck via twitter!!

Welcome to Iowa

An old Iowa saying is that if the corn is growing right then it should be "knee high by the fourth of July". Another is that "days like these are corn growing days" in reference to the heat and humidity mixed with the thunderstorms. Well I've seen corn as high as my chest and the heat and humidity for this year's US Championship meet is more reminiscent of August than late June.

However, our athletes are handling it well. Our final three junior athletes all competed earlier today and the outcome was pretty much what we expected in regards to making finals. In the 1500 Amanda Mergaert and Megan Combe were both in heat one. The pace was quite slow through 800 meters (2:32), but then Amanda was able to move with the leaders and finish second in her heat (4:32) and advance to tomorrows final. Megan had not raced since the conference meet and just didn't look as sharp. Her final time was 4:50 which I know she was disappointed with. However, to be here and get this experience was a big step forward for her as a freshman.

Lauryn McKay gave her usual strong effort in the open 400 meters. Her time of 56.90 was good enough for 25th overall. I thought she opened well and looked strong down the homestretch. She is another gal who hadn't raced since the conference championship meet back in mid May. It is very difficult to come to this meet not being race sharp, however, if your unable to qualify for the NCAA meet there are no other options for races. That means race simulations in practice and trying to provide the best atmosphere possible even the majority of your teammates are done for the year and have gone home for the summer.

Again....this experience, regardless of how these junior athletes finish, will be invaluable as we make our move to the PAC 10 conference a year from now as well as future NCAA /US championship events.

Amanda will run the final of the 1500 meters tomorrow night at 5:25pm. See my previous post for links to watch the race on the internet.

A Solid Start...

Our first day of competition at the US National/Junior National championships was today. We had two athletes competing and both qualified for their respective finals. Freshman Angie Kaplar ran 14.14 to finish third in her qualifying heat and grab the eighth and final qualifying spot by .01 seconds in the 100 hurdle junior event. This event was loaded with other outstanding college freshmen and some of the best high school seniors in the country. Running in lane eight in the final Angie got a solid start, but clipped the ninth hurdle and ran 14.34 to finish eighth. Based on seasonal best times Kaplar was ranked ninth entering the meet so to make the final and move up a position was a great effort and an invaluable championship experience for her.

Former Ute and volunteer assistant, Shayla Houlihan (now running for Brooks) competed with the "big" girls in the 3K steeplechase marking her first championship appearance. It went as planned as she finished fourth in the first heat to grab one of the automatic qualifying spots and move on to Sunday's final. Her time was a new lifetime best of 10:02.17 which bettered her previous best mark by .83 seconds.

Overall, it was a great first day. This is a championship event and the goal for all of our women is to advance to the finals in their events. After that...anything is possible. It can be anyone's day.

Tomorrow is another big day as our other three freshmen will compete in their preliminary rounds. Amanda Mergaert and Megan Combe will run in the 1500 meter prelims and Lauryn McKay will line up in the 400 meter dash. Go to http://www.usatf.org/events/2010/USAJuniorOutdoorTFChampionships/schedule.asp for live results.

The meet can also be seen on line at http://www.usatf.org/events/2010/USAJuniorOutdoorTFChampionships/video.asp or www.flotrack.org

Yates Wins England U23 Championships

Sophomore Lucy Yates returned to her native England to compete at 800 meters in the Aviva England Under 23 Championships and World Trials only a week after her first appearance at the NCAA Championships. Her homecoming was a good one as she won the U23 Championships in 2:07.82. That time was only half a second from her PR. After a slow opening lap of 64 seconds she closed in 63 seconds, (including 29 seconds for the final 200) to pull away from an outstanding field of runners in windy conditions.

It's Official!!!

University of Utah President Dr. Michael Young made it official today. We are now a member of the PAC 10 conference starting with the 2011-12 academic year! We are all excited and fully comprehend and embrace the challenge in front of us. My staff and I will work tirelessly to continue building on the improvements we have made in the last five years. Congratulations to the country's best athletic director, Dr. Chris Hill, for spearheading this movement. His leadership combined with the outstanding academic reputation of our university afforded the University of Utah this opportunity. Congrats Dr Hill!!!

Low Tide

With another NCAA outdoor wrapping up you might think the season is over for our team. However, that is far from the case. We have several athletes who have qualified for and will compete in the US National and Junior National meet that starts on June 23rd. More details on that in the coming days.

This trip overall was a good one. Lucy was able to get her first NCAA championships experience as a sophomore. The fact that it occurred in Eugene was probably a bonus since the weather for all but Saturday felt and looked a lot like her native England. Her semi final heat was held in a downpour. (See pic in previous post).

However, the weather did finally clear up on Saturday and we were all able to enjoy it in our own way. I drove to the Oregon coast and Sand Dunes National Park near Florence. It was cool and windy as the tide was headed out. However, it was good reflection time on the past season as well as a look forward to next year. Of course that drive and time of reflection cost me $500!! I had to choose between going to a post meet party hosted by Nike or going to the coast. At the must be present to win drawings my name was drawn for a gift certificate in the afore mentioned amount. Can't wait to live that down the next time I see some of my track coaching colleagues. Awesome.....just great?!?!?

Congrats to our former athletic trainer, Holly, who got married on Saturday about 3.5 hours up the coast in Seaside, OR. She is now the track/xc athletic trainer at her alma mater (Oregon State). Who misses the NCAA meet to get married? :)

Back to SLC to see how the completion of our new outdoor track is coming.

60 with an American Record Holder

Yesterday's run in Eugene was expected to be like most here....a little soggy and cool, soft trails, several people of all ages and levels exercising, and peaceful. It was all of those, however Shayla informed me through text that a group was running by the hotel at 9am and we were invited to tag along. This was welcomed because it was a long run day on the schedule. So as the group is running at us Shayla says, "oh yeah the group includes Chris Solinsky." As in...the newly crowned American 10K Record Holder. The first American and only non African born runner to ever break 27:00 minutes for the event when he ran 26:59 at Stanford five weeks ago. The same go who a week ago ran the third fastest 5K by an American when he ran 12:56 in Oslo.

So no pressure!?!?! A 34 year old coach whose PR for 10K is only 3 1/2 minutes slower than the American Record. Fortunately, Chris was just looking for a very relaxed 60-70 minute run as he had another run later in the day. So our group of six (four guys and two women) enjoyed the run through Pre's Trail, the McKenzie River, and cities of Springfield and Eugene before returning to our separate lives.

What's up with me meeting American 10K record holders when I come to Eugene? Last time I was in Eugene two years ago for the Olympic Trials I enjoyed spending and afternoon with then record holder Meb Keflehizgi. That event occured at John Jacqua's ranch which is where the original Nike (known in the beginning as Blue Ribbon Sports) contract was signed between Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight.

I'll be back in Eugene for the 2012 Olympic Trials. I hope the American 10K record holder understands his responsibility of spending some time with me:)

Rainy NCAA's

The opening day of the NCAA championships brought a mix of weather and emotions. Sophomore Lucy Yates represented us in the semi final round of the 800 meter event. In her first time at the NCAA championships she was in a tough heat that featured the defending NCAA champion (indoors and outdoors) as well as another All-American. As rain poured down from the sky she got out well and went through the first lap at 60.7. As she turned down the backstretch she positioned herself well in fifth. As she approached the 600 meter point of the race at 1:33.2 she went to make her move, however nothing was left in the tank. Unfortunately, she faded and finished 23rd overall.

Despite the outcome, she was able to run her race and gain valuable experience for future NCAA championship events. I give her a lot of credit as she was upset, but made no excuses for her race. She went in believing she belonged here and her goal was to make the final. She ran fearless and she ran her race. Many times you see first time athletes at this meet worry too much about the competition and that causes them to run someone else's race. The race she ran is the one that allowed her to get as far as she did. She just wasn't able to finish the way she normally does. Better days will come because of today's outcome.

She did set the school record in Austin, TX two weeks ago (2:06.21) and didn't run hard the last 15 meters. So we know there is more improvement ahead. It has been an outstanding season for sure.

Rockin' the Steeple in Boston

I traveled with Shayla this weekend to her final competition prior to the US Championship (in 17 days). New Balance hosts a Spring Twilight series of meets that feature different distance races. This series is hosted at Bentley University in Waltham, MA (a west suburb of Boston). This women's steeple was the featured race at this weekends meet. Eleven outstanding women toed the line on a warm and humid, but still evening. A little breeze might have actually been nice.

The pace halfway was perfect for Shayla. She took the lead with just over three laps to go and the lead pack went from five to three even though the pace slowed just a bit. With two laps to go the pace was headed for 10 flat which would be a PR, but not quite the goal we had in mind.

With a lap to go Shayla had a 15 meter lead and gaining as she went down the backstretch. She needed to hit the final water jump and final barrier in stride to keep her momentum and have a chance to break 10:00 for the first time. Unfortunately, her final water barrier came with four studder steps killing her momentum. She was still able to clear that barrier and the final barrier with a victory. She ran 10:03 for the third time this year. All in all it was a solid night and a great start for final preparations going into the US National meet in a few weeks. She is also still undefeated in the steeple this year.

Ultimately, I think this will provide her great confidence to run against some of the best women steeplers in the country. We will continue to put the final pieces of the training puzzle together and be ready to race again in a few weeks.