And unnaturally. Look I know you guys will grasp at explanations. It is in the board dna. But we just had a college runner toy with an ncaa record two days after winning the 10000m with zero natural fatigue after having a massive leap in her performance this year. It is brazen. All the incentives are there also.
You mean her own record lol. You never ran close to your own pr before?
No. That is someone who has made a mockery of college distance running looks like. As I have long noticed, the complete absence of natural fatigue tells the story. Even the announcer noticed it. That is called chemistry, not talent. So you think she could naturally break the outdoor record two days after running the 10000m? LOL. We just watched someone go for broke to get a contract and not care how it appeared at all. And like clockwork the yahoos here buy it. Every time.
....
No that's someone who if they pushed themselves to their limit with ideal conditions and pacers could run sub 14;45 and sub 30'30. 💥
Except she likely will have to be pacer at the Trials in the 5000m if she runs it.
They are up to 30-40 miles/week of the higher intensity running (plus an additional 3.5-7 hrs/wk of Arc Training).
So the mileage of a 12 year old combined with non-running training. Obviously a better formula than most other elite and professional distance runners.
No that's someone who if they pushed themselves to their limit with ideal conditions and pacers could run sub 14;45 and sub 30'30. 💥
Except she likely will have to be pacer at the Trials in the 5000m if she runs it.
In retrospect, it played out as I suspected.
And in the 10000m, because she is plateauing, I don’t foresee her finishing much faster than the 30:50 Bryan Clay result (even though that race had a huge negative split between the first and second halves), unless maybe she can draft some of the race off of Kelati and/or Schweizer, assuming they are actually running 73-74sec laps.
Not an expert, but an athlete myself. I notice often that lots of track runners have a slightly different gait on their left versus right. I think this happens because your right leg has to turnover faster when you run on the curve. So if a runner runs curves a lot, their right leg has to become much faster.
I don’t discount at all that what we are seeing may be related to the wrenching torque of the track, but “right leg becoming faster” is a poor description of what we are seeing.
Compared to the right leg, her left leg is recoiling faster and more smoothly, with the left foot coming higher up, and the left knee is driving forward slightly higher. This movement pattern is in conjunction with her left arm coming up higher and closer to the chest, than the right arm.
They have done a tremendous job on her form to bring her this far. I’m hoping I’m not seeing something that will have consequences downstream.
As a minimum, they should be running some reps clockwise on the track. There is obviously more that could be said if we actually knew something from her team.
I’ve gone back and analyzed video footage from races over the last year. Even in the 5000m final in which she was limping, in the last lap or two, when she increases effort, her form smoothed out, and I then did not see the leg recoil asymmetry that started showing up in this past spring’s Bryan Clay race.
Except she likely will have to be pacer at the Trials in the 5000m if she runs it.
In retrospect, it played out as I suspected.
And in the 10000m, because she is plateauing, I don’t foresee her finishing much faster than the 30:50 Bryan Clay result (even though that race had a huge negative split between the first and second halves), unless maybe she can draft some of the race off of Kelati and/or Schweizer, assuming they are actually running 73-74sec laps.
Keep in mind the temp was low to mid 60s for the Bryan Clay 10K. It will be around 80 for tomorrow’s race.
I don’t discount at all that what we are seeing may be related to the wrenching torque of the track, but “right leg becoming faster” is a poor description of what we are seeing.
Compared to the right leg, her left leg is recoiling faster and more smoothly, with the left foot coming higher up, and the left knee is driving forward slightly higher. This movement pattern is in conjunction with her left arm coming up higher and closer to the chest, than the right arm.
They have done a tremendous job on her form to bring her this far. I’m hoping I’m not seeing something that will have consequences downstream.
As a minimum, they should be running some reps clockwise on the track. There is obviously more that could be said if we actually knew something from her team.
I’ve gone back and analyzed video footage from races over the last year. Even in the 5000m final in which she was limping, in the last lap or two, when she increases effort, her form smoothed out, and I then did not see the leg recoil asymmetry that started showing up in this past spring’s Bryan Clay race.
It is notable that there were huge bruises on the upper thigh of her right leg at Indoors.
I’ve gone back and analyzed video footage from races over the last year. Even in the 5000m final in which she was limping, in the last lap or two, when she increases effort, her form smoothed out, and I then did not see the leg recoil asymmetry that started showing up in this past spring’s Bryan Clay race.
It is notable that there were huge bruises on the upper thigh of her right leg at Indoors.
Sorry, wish I could edit this, maybe it was her left leg, and no time to check right now; RoJo commented on them in the post-race interview.
It is notable that there were huge bruises on the upper thigh of her right leg at Indoors.
Sorry, wish I could edit this, maybe it was her left leg, and no time to check right now; RoJo commented on them in the post-race interview.
I went back and reviewed the interview after the 3000m Indoors, in which RoJo comments on the unusual bruises on both of her legs.
I just watched the ‘Track: All-access’ yt on Cranny’s pre-race routine. The asymmetric recoil Valby is displaying would probably show up in some of those drills.
I’ve never seen a pro-runner perform a full 180deg split like Valby does. Hopefully she alternates both legs forward, to maintain functional balance.
I just watched the ‘Track: All-access’ yt on Cranny’s pre-race routine. The asymmetric recoil Valby is displaying would probably show up in some of those drills.
To clarify, the asymmetric recoil may or may not show up in drills, and that would be interesting info, either way. (Interesting that Cranny’s coach, a Mike Smith assistant, in prep for the repeats, mentions ‘getting force production into the ground’, which is something Smith said they worked with Nico on to improve his speed.)
Valby said she had three Kombuchas the day of the 5000m Indoors, and more Kombucha the next day for the 3000m final, with little sleep the night before.
On the grass at the South Regional, Valby was not displaying significant asymmetry in her arm carriage, and of course the leg-recoil asymmetry was not there back then:
NCAA Division 1 Women's 6k Cross Country South Regional Championships November 10, 2023 Host School: University of Florida Location: Gainesville, FL Mark Bos...
And in the 10000m, because she is plateauing, I don’t foresee her finishing much faster than the 30:50 Bryan Clay result (even though that race had a huge negative split between the first and second halves), unless maybe she can draft some of the race off of Kelati and/or Schweizer, assuming they are actually running 73-74sec laps.
Keep in mind the temp was low to mid 60s for the Bryan Clay 10K. It will be around 80 for tomorrow’s race.