Once a cheater, always a cheater

Mexico Pol Stripped of Marathon Title

By JESSICA BERNSTEIN-WAX, Associated Press Writer

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

After a humiliating defeat in Mexico's presidential election last year, Roberto Madrazo appeared to be back on top: He'd won the men's age-55 category in the Sept. 30 Berlin marathon with a surprising time of 2:41:12.

But Madrazo couldn't leave his reputation for shady dealings in the dust. Race officials said Monday they disqualified him for apparently taking a short cut — an electronic tracking chip indicates he skipped two checkpoints in the race and would have needed superhuman speed to achieve his win.

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Full article: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/n/a/2007/10/09/international/i074700D07.DTL&type=printable

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The 2nd place finisher at PDR

Apparently, the 2nd place guy at the Philadelphia Distance Run, who was blind in one eye, misinterpreted the finish line and got passed by the 1st place guy at the end, losing by 2 seconds. I feel bad for him. The gloating by the winner was also out of control. (I was going to win anyway with my imposing kick. - paraphrased)

Leading a race is hard work, and leading when you can only kind of see is frustrating. Before I got contact lens, I ran cross-country with glasses with steam on one side and rain on the other. I still remember how inconvenient it was. I guess reading about the PDR puts my mishaps at the half-wit marathon (where I went off the course) in perspective. Only a horse's ass trophy was at stake in my case, but there is a huge difference in the 1st and 2nd place paycheck at the PDR.

I will cheer for you next year, Tom Nyariki! In the mean time, let's get Asics to sponsor both of us.

Too much bengay killed a high school track star

In April, a high school girl in the running-related newsgroup I subscribed to wrote that one of her best friends and track team mates passed away suddenly. Today, I read that this girl died of overdose of topical Bengay or Icyhot; medical examiners found it in her blood. Death from overdose is extremely rare except when ingested. But it seemed like she chronically and over time applied too much of it to her skin, and it got absorbed into her body.

This is unnerving and sad for me. What high school runner never overused numbing creams like Bengay? I mean, that stuff was around at every meet and practice. Who would've known it could kill a healthy person? I'm not sure what to make of this. In the mean time, reports say that the only warning signs she had were fatigue and shortness of breath, and nausea the day before -- pretty common symptoms. So, if you use a lot of Bengay and you have these symptoms, they might be more related than previously thought.

Anyway, to read more:

http://www.silive.com/siadvance/stories/index.ssf?/base/news/1181323808153710.xml&coll=1

http://www.silive.com/siadvance/stories/index.ssf?/base/news/1181371506294920.xml&coll=1

Pirate of the Wissahickon

When Noah and I were out running in the Wissahickon last night, a guy holding a little baby drove a car onto Forbidden Drive. He was going rather fast for a car in the woods, nevermind that cars aren't allowed in the dark woods full of pedestrians. We flagged him down and told him to get out of there, assuming that he just wasn't familiar with the area. However, he yelled some stuff at us and continued to drive for 15 yards where he runs into people he know. They told him that cars aren't allowed on Forbidden Drive. He made a K turn and began to head out of the woods.

At this point, the car was 100 yards away facing us. He aimed the cars towards us. I knew that he wouldn't have guts to hit us, so I didn't move. But it was still scary. Noah stuck his arm and body out while yelling "hey" or something at the guy. Finally, the guy stopped the car in the middle of the trail and got out of the car. I guess the baby was in the passenger front seat.

Standing next to his car and facing us, he told us to keep running or he'd beat us up (said with some curse words in there). Really, there was no way he would win. One look at him, and I knew he's fat and slow. And there are other people around, so he's not going actually going to do it. He was also clearly in the wrong, and he knew it. I forgot exactly what Noah said to him, but I'm sure the guy didn't bother to hear it. He was all peppers. A couple people caught up to us and yelled at the guy to get back in the car. The guy got in the car and drove out of the trails.

Afterwards, Noah told me that during this confrontation, he also reached into his car to try to get something, presumably a baseball bat, but it got stuck, so we didn't see it. What a wimp... first the car, then the bat. Why don't people fight with fists anymore? And why do people curse and threaten others in front of babies? Or endanger others by driving cars onto pedestrians' safe places? Or escalate the situation rather than listen to a legitimate complaint about their behavior?

As we ran back to Valley Green, I hoped that we'd run into a park ranger or a cop. Gosh, I really wished I had memorized the car's license plate, but I didn't think fast enough to do that.

It was a relaxing run until then, and this moron stole our peace and left us with an aggravating experience.

Getting bug spray off your watch

I thought I'd post a follow-up about what doesn't work when you accidentally get bug spray on your watch.

I tried using soap, listerine, alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, saline solution, and WD-40, but the watch surface is still not clear like it was before. I don't think the screen is damaged, but the bug spray on it won't come off. It's more a nuisance than a big deal. I can see the time, but also some sprinkly glare.

Moral of the story: apply bug spray to body, not watch.

PSA about bug spray

Here's something that's not on the instructions sheet of your Timex Ironman watch: If bug spray accidentally gets on the screen of your watch, good luck getting the stuff off.

Mosquitoes love me, always have. Last night, while standing around on a grassy field waiting for "frisbee time" (= announced time + half hour), my 7 miles of sweat and raspberry-scented deodorant were attracting a whole plane of bugs to my limbs. To retaliate, I borrowed some bug spray and sprayed my arms and legs. Ah ha! The bugs bugged off.

Well, the spray got on the watch I was wearing, and I didn't think much of it until today. I just assumed that it would come off as easily as the spray on my skin in the shower. Unfortunately, I soaped and rinsed, rubbed and scratched, but the film of bug spray is still on the watch, clouding my view of the time. Should I try a harsher method, such as alcohol or paint thinner? One of my favoritest watches of all time is on the verge of being imperfect. Argh....

Lesson learned - Remove the watch from your wrist before applying bug spray to your arm.

Putting the foot down

The Honolulu Marathon will test for drugs next year. They're going to test all of the top three and randomly from the top 10.

Good for them. Yesterday, I was wondering why they didn't have drug testing at the Honolulu Marathon in the first place, since the race president was so pissed that Denisova was tested positive later. HM is afterall the third largest marathon in the U.S., with some 26,000 registrants last year and $67,000 in prize and incentive money for the winner. When I was musing out loud, Noah said to me, "well, they didn't test at the Ocean Drive Marathon." True, but the ODM also didn't give prize money, have an elite corral or an expo, or a winner who breaks 2:30. With only 300 finishers, the ODM is never going to be a prestigious or a destination race. (But you can set your PR there and no one will question it.) It's a little different with Honolulu if they want to be major, and not just large. In an ideal world, drug testing would be unnecessary, but we live in a world where we can order performance-enhancing drugs off of the internet and yet can't get the Pill without a prescription.

I know it doesn't matter what I think. But I do get the feeling that Denisova was clean at the time of the marathon. Though I doubt that she didn't know what the supplements she took after were actually PEDs. But what do I know.

One more thought -- Denisova is going to get the ultimate insult -- the next time she runs Honolulu, if she's not suspended, she has to register like a regular person, pay for her own entry, and start behind the elite corral. Oooo....scary...

By the way, Denisova has won races other than Honolulu. But Honolulu might be the only city with a paper that has kept following this story for three straight days.

Honolulu Marathon women's winner tests positive

I had all these ideas of things to blog about, but then this "breaking news" came across my email via Google Alert, a day late. According to an article in The Honolulu Advertiser, Lyubov Denisova, defending champion and course recordholder of the Honolulu Marathon, tested positive for elevated testosterone-to-epitestosterone ratio.

I love how Honolulu's newspaper is called the Advertiser, which I kept typoing as "appetizer," and that they consider running news as breaking news. I'll stop digressing now.

Back to Denisova, according to her publicist, Denisova bought a supplement over the internet instead of a GNC to save money. "She read that it would increase her oxygen capacity and increase muscle strength, and she thought that it was legal to use. Her English is limited so she didn't understand. She should have called me or the Russian (Track and Field) Federation, but she didn't." That's innocent enough. I guess she's not sponsored by GNC.

"She takes responsibility for this. She knows she is responsible for everything she puts in her body." That's a nice change. Floyd, listen up.

She bought the stuff in January and was tested positive in March. So, her race results from March on would be voided. That's fair. But the Honolulu Marathon took place in December, and she wasn't tested then, so she keeps the title, record, and prize money. I'm surprised by that, but I'm not sure if anything could be done about it. The Honolulu Marathon organizers are pissed, which might be why this was at one point yesterday "breaking news." She is banned from the race forever.

All the info I have I got from the Advertiser article Honolulu Marathon women's winner tests positive and Marathon Winner Caught Using Drugs, which includes a good rant by the race president.

Sad news from the Broad Street Run

Man dies at finish of Broad Street Run

While we were celebrating in the big grassy field inside the naval yard, a runner crossed the finish line, collapsed, and never woke up again. I read the news in the paper yesterday while looking up results in the Broad Street special section. The news gave me a major jolt -- this sunny race and death don't go together. I found myself asking, "are you sure we really couldn't wake this person up?" It didn't sink in. I felt very weird, perhaps with some surviver guilt there. I looked over at my watch, which still had my finishing time there, and erased it. Times are frivolous. It seemed not just wrong, but also stupid, to stare and compare the 15,000 finishers' times printed in the paper or to gloat about my own race when someone had died doing the same.

From the articles I've read today, the runner, Robert Massaroni, was a teacher and track coach at the middle school I went to, taught martial arts at a place in Bensalem, got his masters at Temple, and had just completed his third Broad Street Run. He has a wife and a lot of people who love him. He was 29. We had just run the same course. I don't know him, but it's impossible to ignore the few degrees of separation.

I'll probably recover from this feeling of loss sooner than I should, but I hope to remember this, which I used to half-jokingly say: "there is more to life than running."
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Update May 14, 2007 - I learned last night that my 13-year-old cousin William, who goes to Shafer Middle School, ran and finished Broad Street on the team organized by Mr. Massaroni. How hard it must've been to go to a race with your teacher and not see him again. This hits even closer to home.

People walking fast.... marathons

According to this article, a new study found that people in 32 countries are walking 10% faster than they did 10 years ago. Singaporeans walk the fastest, taking only 10.55 seconds to walk 60 feet of uncrowded sidewalk. (If my math is correct, which often isn't, that's under 15 minute pace, which is fast for an average speed.) New York is came in 8th, the 1st US city, in 12 seconds. Guangzhou, in China not far from Hong Kong, came in 4th. Yep, I cannot resist comparing. It's like a race no one knows they're competing in.

Earlier this morning, I overread in the Inquirer that Philly Mayor John Street is walking a marathon this weekend. I guess he's not going to be the starter for Broad Street this year, but hey, at least he made the paper this week. But really...woah! He plans to walk it in eight hours (18mm) but can do it in seven (16mm) if he didn't also sign up to walk a half marathon the next day. That's crazy to me. When I think about what intimidates me about running the marathon, it's not so much the distance of 26.2 miles, but rather the time spent doing it, be it three or five hours. And boredom. I can not imagine being on my feet for 7-8 hours and being away from people for that long every weekend just to train.

So, I did some googling on this whole long distance walking thing and found that there is a whole culture out there --- special walker equipment and gadgets, shoes, nutrition, training plans, regimen, and "races" and events, lots of websites devoted to this topic. According to www.marathonwalking.com, "70% of walkers surveryed stated a desire to train for and participate in a marathon or distance walking event." It turns out that this is a well established thing, with its own advocates and die-hards. I think it's great that anyone can do a marathon now, with so much support out there. I just had no idea before.

Did Cheruiyot have to sign a waiver?

Cheruiyot seeking compensation

It was a real scare last year when the winner of the Chicago Marathon slipped and fell on his back as he crossed the finish line. Originally reported as "collapsed" not "slipped," he was taken to the hospital right away and had been okay, in the sense that he didn't die and can still run professionally, winning Boston last month.

But he's had major headaches since then, and I'm sure they are major and resulted from the fall. The fall has been attributed to the slippery painted banner/advertisement on the ground right before the timing mat. I imagined that it's like running on the crosswalk's white stripes when they're wet, which I try to avoid. So, Cheruiyot is asking for some money for the damages he suffered. If I were on the jury for this, I'd sympathize with him and award him however much. Afterall, my birthday jury gave $1,ooo,ooo to a guy who's never been a professional drummer who claimed that he can't play drums anymore after a car accident.

But this has me wondering: did Cheruiyot sign a waiver when he signed up for the marathon? Whenever I register for a race, I have to sign or check a box on a form that promises that I won't claim the race organizers, the city, the sponsors, etc. in case of any injuries and accident. It's the standard fine print. But do top pros like him register for races the same way? I mean, pros are invited to races and don't have to pay the entry fees. I wonder if he had to fill out a form at all or sign some contract. And if he did, did he also "assume all risks associated with participating in this event, including but not limited to falls, contact with other participants, effect of weather, traffic, and conditions of the road" (active.com) like the rest of us?

Sharing Penn Relays stories at work

When my boss passed by my office, she had a story to tell... me. Me? We talk? Of course, her son ran in the Penn Relays on Saturday. Must tell Helen. it's another example of how running connects people. He lowered his best time in the 400 meters by 2 seconds. I passed on my congratulations. 2 seconds is a long, long time in the 400.

Suckily, story didn't end there. Her son left his wallet and $400 cell phone in his gym bag in the paddock where runners gather before they go out onto the track. When he returned after his race, he discovered his bag open and stuff gone. Someone went into the bag and stole his valuables. That stinks. Why am I not surprised? The paddock is an area right off of 33rd Street. There were some temporary barriers and fences set up to mark the area, but anyone with an athletes pass can walk in and out of it. Also, it seems to me that this year, the paddock is particularly unsecured. On Thursday, before I went into Franklin Field, I lurked around the paddock forever and no one once asked me who I was. I could've gone in. Also, you don't need anything more than what you wear to the race in the paddock. This is not to say that I don't feel sorry for him losing his stuff, but him leaving his stuff in the paddock and walking away is like leaving your car unlocked in the city. Don't do it. Don't make me blame the victim, and don't blame the city, the track meet, or your coach.