Wednesday, January 11, 2006
A modest proposal
Took advantage of the heat today to have a rest day (apart from the 5:30am gym session). No competition this weekend, so I will shift my Wednesday hurdles session to Friday.
The NSW and Victorian State Decathlon championships were on last weekend, and I am disappointed to have missed them. Because of the relatively small number of participants, the two states combine them, and this year they were staged in Melbourne. I had originally planned to compete, but pulled out (or more correctly, never entered) after my run of injuries left me feeling I would be underprepared. On current form, this was probably wise, as the veteran's comp was 40+, so I would have been competing in the Opens, and would have finished somewhere near the end (but probably not last - and probably NSW runner-up as there was only one NSW athlete entered). On current form, I am sitting on about 4400 points, although this includes a soft 1500m.
I am keen to enter a proper decathlon before the end of the season, for a couple of reasons. Firstly to get a feel for multi-event competition, particularly the pressure of the field events, with their limited attempts and knock-outs. But mostly, so that I can have a crack at the National 35+ decathlon record. There - I've said it.
The record currently stands at 5194, which the observant among you will note is nearly 800 points higher than I am currently capable of. The only real opportunity I have is the Australian Masters Multi-event Championships, which are on the 18th and 19th of February - 38 days away. So no pressure!
You might ask why I am in such a rush - I am in this age group for another 4 years. Unfortunately, come October this year, Commonwealth Games silver medalist Matt McEwen also turns 35, and the record will be his whenever he chooses (he currently holds the M30+ record, so he is not adverse to doing the paperwork to register records).
800 points is a lot, and even spread over 10 events it is still 80 points an event. Am I kidding myself? The following is, I believe, a realistic breakdown of what I might be capable of:
The improvements range from the negligible (11cm in shot put) to the enormous (65cm in long jump, 80 vertical cm in pole valut). It is a pretty tight schedule, with no real events where I can build a buffer (particularly if the winds are unfavourable in the 100m and/or long jump). Each performance is close to the best I can expect to be doing in a months time (the exception being the 1500m, where I might be able to pull back 5-8 seconds if I give it everything). For my benefit, more than yours, here is my logic on how the improvements will come:
100m - only 2 tenths, with the benefit of a tartan track. Not a huge concern.
Long Jump - 65cm - this is big, but only 19cm beyond my best. On reflection, I am not hitting the board at full-speed, so combined with jump technique work, this is an event where big improvements are possinle
Shot-put - 11cm - I think that I am close to the best I am capable of in the short-term, so no huge ambitions here. Another 5 weeks in the gym might make a difference, but even a 9m throw is only another 15 points, so not a lot of leverage to be had.
High jump - 10cm - although I am starting with a figure of 160cm as my base, which I haven't confirmed. All will be revealed tomorrow when I do my first high jump training session.
400m - 3.6 seconds - sounds like a lot, but on tartan, I think I can run 54 at the moment - with out any speed training. In 1994/95 I ran 55 seconds in November and 52 seconds in February.
110m hurdles - 1.9 seconds - my benchmark was an appaling run, and my one practice session has given me a lot more confidence. With enough work, this could even be an event where I pick up points (or fall flat on my face and blow the whole thing)
Discus - 1.14m - with weeks of frustration, things have to start coming good soon! Hopefully my hip-shoulder-arm epiphany will pay-off in coming weeks.
Pole Vault - 80cm. This is the key - if I can't make siginficant improvements in this event, then I won't break the record. When I cleared 2.40, I did it with about 40cm to spare, so ideally I am only chasing another 40cm. I will miss this Sunday morning's training (wedding the night before), but have to make every other session, as well as mid-week run-up practice.
Javelin - 1.9m - practice, practice, practice. Keeping the momentum from my run-ups into my release is the key, as is consistency. Am finding that the practice is taking a bit of a toll on my arm and back, so will need to be cautious here.
1500m - 12.5 seconds - the only mark I feel I could comfortable hit right now. Most decathletes dread this event, and don't like to run it exhausted. But the field events don't take much out of me, so if I am a few points down, a super-human effort (say 4:12) might just get me there.
So there you have it - the modest goals of winning the national Masters Decathlon title and breaking the national age record - in my first attempt at a decathlon. Still, Bob Mathias won the Olympic Gold 5 months after he first took up decathlon - and he could only run 4:50 for 1500m!
The NSW and Victorian State Decathlon championships were on last weekend, and I am disappointed to have missed them. Because of the relatively small number of participants, the two states combine them, and this year they were staged in Melbourne. I had originally planned to compete, but pulled out (or more correctly, never entered) after my run of injuries left me feeling I would be underprepared. On current form, this was probably wise, as the veteran's comp was 40+, so I would have been competing in the Opens, and would have finished somewhere near the end (but probably not last - and probably NSW runner-up as there was only one NSW athlete entered). On current form, I am sitting on about 4400 points, although this includes a soft 1500m.
I am keen to enter a proper decathlon before the end of the season, for a couple of reasons. Firstly to get a feel for multi-event competition, particularly the pressure of the field events, with their limited attempts and knock-outs. But mostly, so that I can have a crack at the National 35+ decathlon record. There - I've said it.
The record currently stands at 5194, which the observant among you will note is nearly 800 points higher than I am currently capable of. The only real opportunity I have is the Australian Masters Multi-event Championships, which are on the 18th and 19th of February - 38 days away. So no pressure!
You might ask why I am in such a rush - I am in this age group for another 4 years. Unfortunately, come October this year, Commonwealth Games silver medalist Matt McEwen also turns 35, and the record will be his whenever he chooses (he currently holds the M30+ record, so he is not adverse to doing the paperwork to register records).
800 points is a lot, and even spread over 10 events it is still 80 points an event. Am I kidding myself? The following is, I believe, a realistic breakdown of what I might be capable of:
| Event | Current | Target | Points |
| 100m | 12.30 | 12.10 | 631 |
| Long Jump | 5.10 | 5.75 | 533 |
| Shot Put | 8.64 | 8.75 | 411 |
| High Jump | 1.60? | 1.70 | 544 |
| 400m | 56.30 | 53.00 | 682 |
| 110m Hurdles | 20.40 | 18.50 | 477 |
| Discus | 26.86 | 28.00 | 425 |
| Pole Vault | 2.4 | 3.2 | 406 |
| Javelin | 30.10 | 32.00 | 327 |
| 1500m | 4:32.5 | 4:20.0 | 812 |
| Total | 5248 |
100m - only 2 tenths, with the benefit of a tartan track. Not a huge concern.
Long Jump - 65cm - this is big, but only 19cm beyond my best. On reflection, I am not hitting the board at full-speed, so combined with jump technique work, this is an event where big improvements are possinle
Shot-put - 11cm - I think that I am close to the best I am capable of in the short-term, so no huge ambitions here. Another 5 weeks in the gym might make a difference, but even a 9m throw is only another 15 points, so not a lot of leverage to be had.
High jump - 10cm - although I am starting with a figure of 160cm as my base, which I haven't confirmed. All will be revealed tomorrow when I do my first high jump training session.
400m - 3.6 seconds - sounds like a lot, but on tartan, I think I can run 54 at the moment - with out any speed training. In 1994/95 I ran 55 seconds in November and 52 seconds in February.
110m hurdles - 1.9 seconds - my benchmark was an appaling run, and my one practice session has given me a lot more confidence. With enough work, this could even be an event where I pick up points (or fall flat on my face and blow the whole thing)
Discus - 1.14m - with weeks of frustration, things have to start coming good soon! Hopefully my hip-shoulder-arm epiphany will pay-off in coming weeks.
Pole Vault - 80cm. This is the key - if I can't make siginficant improvements in this event, then I won't break the record. When I cleared 2.40, I did it with about 40cm to spare, so ideally I am only chasing another 40cm. I will miss this Sunday morning's training (wedding the night before), but have to make every other session, as well as mid-week run-up practice.
Javelin - 1.9m - practice, practice, practice. Keeping the momentum from my run-ups into my release is the key, as is consistency. Am finding that the practice is taking a bit of a toll on my arm and back, so will need to be cautious here.
1500m - 12.5 seconds - the only mark I feel I could comfortable hit right now. Most decathletes dread this event, and don't like to run it exhausted. But the field events don't take much out of me, so if I am a few points down, a super-human effort (say 4:12) might just get me there.
So there you have it - the modest goals of winning the national Masters Decathlon title and breaking the national age record - in my first attempt at a decathlon. Still, Bob Mathias won the Olympic Gold 5 months after he first took up decathlon - and he could only run 4:50 for 1500m!
