Sacramento Running News

Simpson wins in 4:04.96! (Photo courtesy of painani.org)

Quiet has settled on Hornet Stadium. The fans are gone. The races and jumps are over. Now the post-event analysis can commence.

All in all, I think the event was a tremendous success. USATF is reporting final attendance numbers of 32,700, which doesn’t include the crowds that showed up for the shot put at the State Capitol. This far exceeded the promised minimum 22,500 that Event Director John Mansoor had promised to USATF in pitching Sacramento as host for the event.

The race of the weekend would have to be the women’s 400 meters, where Francena McCorory  edged out Sanya Richards-Ross in the last 100 meters and won in 49.48, which is the 5th fastest time by an American.

Or maybe it was the Women’s 1500, where we got to watch a super talented women’s field duke it out, Morgan Uceny fall down again, and Jenny Simpson win decisively, but not easily, over the surging Mary Cain and the tenacious Katie Mackey.

(more…)

Starting before sunrise, runners make their way up the hill from Squaw Valley in the 2010 race. (Photo courtesy of Kerina Blue)

I woke up this morning at 7:30 and thought to myself, “The guys running Western States have already been running for two-and-a-half hours!”

I do this every year I’m not running. Then I turn on the computer and check out the live webcast.

Dave Mackey was the first into Talbot Creek (13 miles), but now Kilian Jornet is the first into the Poppy Trailhead aid station! Exciting isn’t it?

It’s a little less thrilling than when ABC’s Wide World of Sports covered the event wire-to-wire and had cameramen in helicopters capturing the race. Those were the good old days.

Of course, by the time it was aired, the race was long over and the result was well known by all who cared.

USA Track and Field Champs:

If you are sitting at home with the computer, you should also be checking out the US National Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The live feed can be watched here.

The sad thing is that USATF sold the rights to broadcast many of the premium events to ESPN, so they aren’t being broadcast live. Fortunately, these events seem to be available for viewing on-line after ESPN has had it’s way with them.

If you are planning to run in this summer’s World Masters Athletics Championships, you should be aware that there will be dope testing.

While reporting on last summer’s National Masters Championships, as national and world records fell like rain, I started to wonder about the lack of doping controls.

I felt bad for the clean athletes who might be setting records. The lack of controls made me questions the results, and I know I’m not alone on this point.

Fortunately, this year’s World’s Masters Championships will have doping controls. (more…)