Americans Nick Arciniaga, Jason Hartmann Hope for Boston Marathon Success
By David Monti
April 13, 2012
(c) 2012 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved
BOSTON (13-Apr) -- For Nick Arciniaga and Jason Hartmann, Monday's 116th
Boston Marathon will be the culmination of two unique journeys that
began at the finish of January's United States Olympic Marathon Trials.
After crossing the finish in eighth and 32nd place, respectively,
Arciniaga and Hartmann embarked on separate roads that led to Hopkinton,
were Monday's race will begin.
Arciniaga's story starts with his 2:11:56 finish at the Trials, a time
the 28-year-old was pleasantly surprised with given a less than ideal
training period before the race. With lingering hip troubles soon
resolved, Arciniaga recovered from the Trials eager to start another
marathon build up.
"I was itching to run another marathon because I feel like I didn't run
up to my maximum potential," said Arciniaga. "My legs were feeling
pretty good [after the Trials]."
Having the Boston Marathon in his sights even before the January Trials,
Boston seemed like a perfect fit for Arciniaga. After all, he was the
top American here in 2008 when he finished tenth in 2:16:13.
"I was really eager to get back out here," he said.
In 2008, the Flagstaff-based Arciniaga ran alone for most of the race,
learning to run within himself and pick off those who fell from the lead
pack one by one. The same strategy will be used on Monday, as he plans
to shy away from the East Africans who tend to push during the early
downhills coming out of Hopkinton.
"If they end up running 1:04:30 [for the first half], that's pretty much
my goal. If they go out in that, I'll be more than happy to run with
them for as long as possible," Arciniaga said with a laugh, hinting that
that is highly unlikely.
For Hartmann, 31, the road to Boston came with many bumps and
challenges. After having an off day at the Trials --finishing in a
disappointing 2:16:44, well back in the field-- he decided to look
towards Boston as a potential rebound event.
"The disappointment of not making the Olympic team, and putting
everything into that day and it not working out, it's heartbreaking. You
can either look at that experience and be depressed, and let it effect
me, or you can move forward and focus on something else. Boston allowed
me to do that, and focus on something else," Hartmann said. "It's
[still] in the back of my mind, [but] it allows me to be motivated."
Training in Boulder, Hartmann has chosen to refocus his career, aiming
to regain the enjoyment he once had in the sport. Allowing more time to
recover and creating a stress free training environment, Hartmann
explained that he has still done everything possible in preparation for
Monday's race.
"The Trials is such a stressful thing, it's all in, all your chips on
red, black, or green. I would say I've tried to take the pressure away,
having fun with [training] and bringing the purity of running back," he
said.
For Monday, Hartmann plans to use a strategy similar to Arciniaga's, running his own pace and letting those who fade come back.
"There will be opportunities to compete. For me, the best strategy is to
be patient early on. If you're going backwards, it's hard to compete,"
he said.
If both Hartmann and Arciniaga find themselves running alongside one
another during Monday's race, the two Americans will push each other to
run faster, the latter said.
"We haven't discussed it," Arciniaga noted. "But with me and Jason, it's
kind of unspoken. We will try to work together if we are next to each
other."
More Boston:
8 Days to Glory Series: LRC Geoffrey Mutai Returns to Boston, Can He Recreate the Magic of 2011?
*LRC 8 Days For Glory - A Kenyan Flavored Preview Of The Upcoming Men's Marathon World Record Assault
LRC: Friday's Press Conference Highlights: Mutai Set to Defend, Wesley Korir Ready to Challenge, Americans Arciniaga and Hartmann Ready
Women: Defending Champ Caroline Kilel And NYC Champ Dado Try and Recreate Drama of Last 4 Years
*Full Boston Pro Fields
Boston on the Boards: Brutal Weather for Boston
*Boston Questions Thread--course, racing, pre-race planning
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