Also, as a Tucson resident I can confirm you ARE limited to early mornings running basically from May until November. Was at the UA invitational xc meet last year and it was miserably hot - and that’s late September.
I do all my marathon training during summer and early fall and it sucks. I do not know how high schools manage it. At least at UA your dealing with adults who can be responsible to wake up for early training.
Really? The temps are 80 or higher from Mar to Nov. Sorry but did you say "school year?" Don't know about your school but most college runners train in the summer too. There's such a thing called cross country starting in Sept.
I'll just assume that you don't live here. Desert temps are not like the rest of the country. You can't go based solely on numbers. 80s here is not like 80s elsewhere.
Oh please. I’ve been to AZ. Sorry but 80’s is 80’s. “Oh but it’s DRY!!” If you’re referring to humidity there plenty of states that don’t have humid weather but are still hot. NOT conducive to training. My friend lives in AZ and no one goes out after 7am.
A former discus thrower and shot-putter at Arizona who was stalked and physically attacked by her coach was awarded a $999,000 settlement by the state.
The former athletes say they suffered harassment, bullying and assault by teammates. They said coaches dismissed their complaints and failed to report certain allegations as required by federal law.
I'll just assume that you don't live here. Desert temps are not like the rest of the country. You can't go based solely on numbers. 80s here is not like 80s elsewhere.
Oh please. I’ve been to AZ. Sorry but 80’s is 80’s. “Oh but it’s DRY!!” If you’re referring to humidity there plenty of states that don’t have humid weather but are still hot. NOT conducive to training. My friend lives in AZ and no one goes out after 7am.
This has to be a troll post.
Anyway, this is Letsrun, so it's very possible I'm full of it.
Unless you are talking about the summers or the first 4 weeks back to school, Tucson’s weather is about as good as it comes for being outside. The temperature should be a main draw to get kids to go to school at the U of A.
November through April is pretty good weather in Tucson. After that the daily high is 91 in May, over 100 in June and July, and only decent again in November. It is not humid, but you're going to be looking at early morning or late evening runs the rest of the year. To know why Lagat failed, you'd have to have been on the team or been recruited by him to get a sense for what was going on. He's plenty able to discuss training and he knows what got him where he got. Maybe he was just a terrible recruiter.
Lagat might have guessed this. In his country of origin, there are no athletes from the Northern half of the country because its desert or semi-desert. And nobody trains there.
Oh please. I’ve been to AZ. Sorry but 80’s is 80’s. “Oh but it’s DRY!!” If you’re referring to humidity there plenty of states that don’t have humid weather but are still hot. NOT conducive to training. My friend lives in AZ and no one goes out after 7am.
This has to be a troll post.
Anyway, this is Letsrun, so it's very possible I'm full of it.
I’m less concerned with the sweet weather from November to March and more concerned with the other seven months. I was near Tucson late last September. It was 106. It was 98 at 9 PM. It was miserable. October they had 16 days 95 or higher (6, 100 degree days). That basically covers all of cross country season, when one is typically running their highest mileage.
"I was near Tucson late last September. It was 106. It was 98 at 9 PM. It was miserable".
By the way, Phoenix isn't "Near" Tucson. Big difference in temps, PHX can be 10-15 degrees warmer. In case you didn't know, PHX is in a large valley, aka "The Valley of The Sun", Tucson sits at 2600 elevation and is cooler than PHX. That being said, yes, it is the desert and Tucson does get hot, but not to the extreme as everyone thinks. On those "warmer" days, if you're out the door by 7:00-8:00 am and after 5:00 pm you'll be fine. There are great places to run in the local National Parks (East Side-West Side), and the local golf country clubs are very accommodating to running on the their golf courses (when not busy).
When Lagat became the X-C coach at U of A I said it was a mistake. Nothing to do with Lagat as a person, and definitely nothing to do with his running accomplishments. Lagat simply doesn't have the ability to be an elite coach. As with most Kenyans, he does not comprehend the process of what it takes to communicate a training and or race plan. Their natural talent supersedes all conventional training and racing. Simply put, they just run fast and don't know why. IMO, Lagat's path to greatness as a runner is not comparable to most elite athletes. He's insanely naturally gifted, but lacks the coaching acumen to translate that to the athletes he coaches. Fred Harvey put blind faith into Lagat, and got burned. Now both have rode off into the desert sunset leaving a once storied distance program in shambles.
"I was near Tucson late last September. It was 106. It was 98 at 9 PM. It was miserable".
By the way, Phoenix isn't "Near" Tucson. Big difference in temps, PHX can be 10-15 degrees warmer. In case you didn't know, PHX is in a large valley, aka "The Valley of The Sun", Tucson sits at 2600 elevation and is cooler than PHX. That being said, yes, it is the desert and Tucson does get hot, but not to the extreme as everyone thinks. On those "warmer" days, if you're out the door by 7:00-8:00 am and after 5:00 pm you'll be fine. There are great places to run in the local National Parks (East Side-West Side), and the local golf country clubs are very accommodating to running on the their golf courses (when not busy).
When Lagat became the X-C coach at U of A I said it was a mistake. Nothing to do with Lagat as a person, and definitely nothing to do with his running accomplishments. Lagat simply doesn't have the ability to be an elite coach. As with most Kenyans, he does not comprehend the process of what it takes to communicate a training and or race plan. Their natural talent supersedes all conventional training and racing. Simply put, they just run fast and don't know why. IMO, Lagat's path to greatness as a runner is not comparable to most elite athletes. He's insanely naturally gifted, but lacks the coaching acumen to translate that to the athletes he coaches. Fred Harvey put blind faith into Lagat, and got burned. Now both have rode off into the desert sunset leaving a once storied distance program in shambles.
Detailed Weather Forecast in Tucson, September 27. Temperature, wind, atmospheric pressure, humidity and precipitations. Weather Forecast for 20000 cities
The had a great program in the late 80s and 90s. Aaron Ramirez won NCAA titles, as did Marc Davis, Kip Kieno’s sons went there and won NCAA titles. The weather is nice for running 9-10 months of the year. You can’t say that about many places.
Strange that nobody is mentioning Lagat's engagement with Zanzibar and the Element Portal on the rim. I think it suggests his priorities are on the rim of the Indian Ocean, far more than in AZ.
What are you even talking about?
Maybe "nobody is mentioning" your concerns because they seem arcane and trivial. Add some actual information and perhaps someone will care.
The comment got more likes than yours. That otta be a clue. Do some research. Bernard has been invested there for a while. It was his B plan.
Anyway, this is Letsrun, so it's very possible I'm full of it.
Troll post? Why, just because you don’t agree??
Right. I just ran in Phoenix starting at 8 this morning, and I saw a bunch of other people out there. It felt great.
But let's break it down:
"80s is 80s". True in the literal sense. But that's why we have "feels like" temps. Humidity makes things feel hotter. So 80s here is different than 80s in Alabama or Illinois or Massachusetts.
"If you're referring to humidity...". Uh, yeah. That's what we refer to when we say it's dry.
"There are plenty of states that don't have humid weather but are still hot." What? At what point did I say it wasn't hot? May through September can be scorching hot. That doesn't change the fact that 80 degrees is pretty comfortable here and training the other months doesn't require early mornings.
"My friend live in AZ and no one goes out after 7am". That's just blatantly false. See above.
If it's not a troll post, the other option is that it's seriously misinformed, i.e., dumb.
I live in Tucson. Today was an outlier cause the high was only 93 thanks to monsoon yesterday.
Generally speaking though, it's well over 80 by 8 AM and yes there are people out running but it sucks. I start my runs by 6:30 at the latest during summer. I hate being out running past 8.
A "storied" program....yeah "storied" like this...
Baillie Gibson
Hannah Whetzel
Michael Grabowski
Michigan State
Caitlin Schmidt
and more
So the unfortunate and alleged disgraceful treatment of these athletes overshadows the amazing runners from years past that represented U of A with integrity and success? Maybe you should do some research on how "storied" the program was in the 80's/90's both individual and team wise. Not too mention, the individual NCAA champions and All-Americans that became Olympians and Team USA members. No one is defending the unlawful actions that took place with the aforementioned athletes, but don't include the athletes that have represented the U of A and the sport of track and field with respect, integrity, and success.
I live in Tucson. Today was an outlier cause the high was only 93 thanks to monsoon yesterday.
Generally speaking though, it's well over 80 by 8 AM and yes there are people out running but it sucks. I start my runs by 6:30 at the latest during summer. I hate being out running past 8.
I'm not saying it's fun or great in the heat, but neither are winters in the Midwest and Northeast. The point is that there is no perfect place to recruit and the weather is not an excuse as previous Wildcat teams and runners have shown.
In case 8 (+1 with Bailee Gibson) wasn’t already enough to let you know something disturbing was going on in this program behind the curtain, 12 more came forward after the original story surfaced. For anyone keeping score at home, that’s 21 athletes going on record detailing repeated abusive practices by coaches (including r@pe, stalking & assault/battery) in the program. Disgusting and shameful don’t even begin to describe it
Last month, the Star detailed allegations of abuse and neglect levied by eight former members of the UA track and field team. In the weeks that followed, 12 more have
