Nick Symmonds Training at Altitude for Indoor Success

By David Monti
(c) 2010 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved

ALBUQUERQUE (25-Feb) -- When the USA Indoor Championships open here on Saturday, it will be the first time that most of the competitors will have set foot in this windswept city of 850,000 in the American Southwest.  But for Nick Symmonds, this country's best 800m runner, Albuquerque has been home since January 18, when he and his Oregon Track Club Elite teammates set up a training camp here to acclimate to this city's high altitude of about 5300 feet (1616m).  They normally train at sea level in Eugene, Ore.

"The first week was really tough," Symmonds explained via cellphone from his even higher training camp in the hills on the edge of the city.  "I could really feel that altitude in workouts."

But in typical Symmonds fashion, he toughed it out, and is better for it. The former NCAA D-III runner from Oregon's Willamette University, who couldn't land a shoe company deal out of college, has put together an excellent block of training since last fall and is ready to compete.

"I feel pretty good," he said, his voice betraying his trademark confidence.  He continued: "I'm the only one who's been up here five weeks.  My last three months of training have gone perfectly without a hitch."

Since arriving here in January, Symmonds has only left Albuquerque's altitude, twice: once to visit his girlfriend in Santa Cruz, Calif., and once to compete at a meet at the University of Washington in Seattle.  There, on Feb. 12, Symmonds and his OTC Elite teammates --Matt Scherer, Tyler Mulder and Will Leer-- clocked a USA best of 9:21.77 for the distance medley relay (the 307m oversized track made the mark ineligible for a national record).

Although mildly disappointed that the mark will not count as a national record, Symmonds was very satisfied with his effort as a fitness test.  The 26 year-old knew he was on the right trajectory for these championships and the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Doha next month.  Running the leadoff 1200m leg, he clocked two minutes 51 seconds, meaning he passed through 1000m in about 2:22.  Symmonds was surprised he could run that fast given his month at altitude which tends to slow leg speed.

"The big difference is when I went down to seal level, I felt phenomenal," he marveled.  "The 2:51 on the DMR leg was definitely faster than I thought it would be.  This was more of a time trial with teammates."

In order to get to Doha, Symmonds has to make it through Saturday's first round, then finish first or second in Sunday's final (he already has the qualifying standard for the world meet).  Since arriving here, he's worked out many times on the 200m banked synthetic track at the Albuquerque Convention Center, and his familiarity with the track --including a quirk he discovered-- will be a distinct advantage.

"It's a good track, but it has a weak spot," Symmonds said.  "There's a real dead spot that really saps your energy.  To expect that spot is advantageous if you know you're going to hit it."

If Symmonds makes the team, it will be his second trip to an IAAF World Indoor Championships.  In Valencia in 2008, Symmonds made the final and had one of the best --and worst-- races of his career.  He finished last in a six-man field at the Palau Lluis Puig Velodrome, but like every other man in the field, ran the fastest time of his life (1:46.48) which is still his fastest ever indoors.

"It was fast," Symmonds recalled of the race.  "It went 24-point and never slowed down."

But Symmonds made a mistake and got overly physical in the race.  "I felt comfortable with my position for the first couple of laps, but I needed to move up to have a chance for a medal," he said.  "I got into a couple of pushing wars."

Symmonds said all that jostling wasted valuable energy.  "I learned a lot from that.  You think that a shove here and a shove there isn't detrimental to your race, but it is."

Symmonds had a career year in 2009.  He won the national 800m title for the second year in a row, ran a personal best 1:43.83, and made the IAAF world Championships final.  But his performance in that final, where four men passed him in the final 20 meters to move him from the silver medal position to sixth place, still weighs on him.

"As far as the year as a whole is concered I was actually satisfied," he said.  "Once I was in the final I set a new goal of medaling.  To be 50 meters away in second or third place is tough.  You've got to run 801 meters, almost."

Khadevis Robinson, the four-time USA 800m indoor champion, is likely --once again-- to be Symmond's top rival, and ultimately his teammate in Doha.  But Robinson hasn't run any races since last summer, which makes Symmonds a little nervous.

"You never know," said Symmonds of Robinson.  "I know KD's on the startlist but I haven't seen a race from him."

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