On May 10, I competed in the 1,500 meter race-walk event at the National Senior Games in Fort Lauderdale, FL. I qualified for nationals by winning my age group in the 5,000 meter race-walk event at the Minnesota Senior Games last August. There are two race-walk distances: 1,500 meters and 5,000 meters. I didn’t do the 1,500 meter race in Minnesota, but if you qualify in one distance, you can do both distances at nationals.
At the Minnesota Senior
Games, the 1,500 and 5,000 were both held on the same day. I didn’t think I could race both events,
since they were only two hours apart. At
the National Senior Games, the 1,500 and 5,000 meter events are on different
days, so it seemed more reasonable to do both.
The National Senior Games
take place over 14 days. There are
events in 21 different sports. I was
only competing in the race-walk events, which took place on the first two days.
I stayed at a hotel that
was near the airport. Ideally, I would’ve
stayed at a hotel that was closer to where I was racing. The 1,500 and 5,000 meter events were held at
different venues. There weren’t any
hotels close to the track and field complex where the 1,500 meter race was
held. There was one hotel close to where
the 5,000 meter race will be held, but I couldn’t get a room there. No matter where I stayed, I would have to get
up early to drive to the races, so I picked a hotel that had some nearby
restaurants.
I flew to Fort Lauderdale
on Monday. I arrived after noon, so I
made a fast food lunch stop before continuing to my hotel. After checking in at my hotel, I had to wait
until 4:00 before I could pick up my credentials. In the meantime, I went to the hotel’s
fitness rooms to do some leg and back exercises.
Athlete check-in was at
the Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center. We had to check in and pick up our credentials
before we could pick up our race bibs for individual events.
In addition to my badge, I
received a welcome bag that contained a program, some coupons, and some product
samples. The most useful product sample
was probably the pain relief gel.
There were some good restaurants
near my hotel, but I wanted to get to bed early, so I had dinner in the hotel
restaurant before turning in early.
My alarm was set for 5:00
AM. I was already awake at 4:30, so I got
up and started getting ready. I was
planning to leave before the hotel started their breakfast, so I made a cup of
tea in my room and ate some Pop Tarts that I bought the night before.
The race was held on a 400
meter track at the Ansin Sports Complex.
I had to pick up my race bib at the race venue between 6:00 and 7:00 AM. I was planning to get there around 6:30. Since I was up early, I was able to leave a
little earlier than I planned. I got to
the race venue a little after 6:00.
When I checked in, I
received two race bibs. The first one,
which I wore on the front of my shirt, was a standard race bib with a timing
chip. The second race bib, which I wore
on my back, showed which age group I was in.
The race was split into
four heats. I was in the third heat,
which was for men between the ages of 50 and 69. My heat wasn’t scheduled to start until 8:20
AM. In the meantime, I talked to other
walkers and watched the first heat, which was for women, ages 70-94.
While the first heat was
still going on, they were already lining up the men who were in the second heat. Since my heat was next, I put my phone in my
car and made a bathroom stop.
When I checked in for my
heat, I was assigned a number reflecting where I would line up. This number was also used by the race-walking
judges, in case they needed to disqualify someone.
They had stickers with
numbers from one to thirty. I was
assigned number 32. Since they didn’t
have any stickers for numbers above thirty, they had to use a “3” and a “2.” I had to wear stickers like this on the front
of my shirt, the back of my shirt, and on my left hip.
The temperature at the
start was 74 degrees. I was expecting
high humidity, but I really didn’t notice it.
There was just enough of a breeze to keep me from feeling hot. We were also starting before the sun got too
high in the sky. I found the conditions to
be surprisingly comfortable.
I’ve never raced this
distance before. All my training has
been for the 5,000 meter event, which will be held tomorrow. I’m hoping to be competitive at that distance,
but I didn’t expect to be competitive in the 1,500. With that in mind, I viewed today’s race as a
tune-up for tomorrow’s race.
We started on the far
side of the track. We had to go three
quarters of the way around the track and then do three complete laps. I was lined up in the outermost lane. When the gun went off, I focused only on the
first 100 meters. I walked as fast as I
possibly could, with no regard to whether I could sustain this pace for 100
meters. I needed to cross over in the
inside lane before the first turn. My
goal was to pass as many people as possible in the first 100 meters, so I
wouldn’t be behind as many people when I started the turn.
I was going as fast as I
could, but the majority of the walkers in my heat were already in front of me
by the time I got over to the inside lane.
After that, I just followed the other walkers around the turn and tried
my best to keep up my initial fast pace.
By the time I entered the
second turn, I was gaining on the walker right in front of me. I stayed behind him going around the turn,
but sped up and passed him as soon as we reached the next straightaway.
There were five
race-walking judges spread out around the track. Any one of them could give you a warning if
your form was borderline or a “red card” if your form wasn’t legal. There are two possible infractions. The first is called, “lifting.” It means you have both feet off the ground at
the same time. The other infraction is
called “bent knee.” The knee of your
supporting leg has to be straight from the moment you make contact with the
ground. It’s easy to know if you’re
lifting. You would feel it. It’s harder to know if you’re consistently
keeping your knee straight.
I was mostly concerned
with the effort it took to walk so fast, but whenever I saw one of the judges,
I asked myself if I was confident my knee was straight on every stride. I was reasonably sure it was, but I wouldn’t
know for sure unless a judge said something.
As I was nearing one of
the judges, I saw her suddenly move toward the track. Then she said, “Number 3, bent knee.” That was the guy in front of me. Going around the next turn, I heard another
judge say, “Number 3, right knee bent.”
By the end of my second
lap, I passed walker number 3. He was
the last runner I would pass. By then,
we were spread out far enough that I was more concerned with maintaining my
pace than my position relative to other walkers.
Although my number was
32, there weren’t that many walkers on the track. There were several no-shows. I counted about 24 runners in my heat. I didn’t know how many of them were in my age
group. The 50-54, 55-59, 60-64 and 65-69
age groups were all on the track at once.
I could’ve looked for the
age group listed on each walker’s back, but I pretty much only saw the walker
in front of me. I really didn’t have any
idea where I stood against other walkers in my age group.
If three different judges
give you a “red card,” you’re disqualified.
There’s one exception to that. In
the last 100 meters of the race, the head judge can disqualify you, even if you
haven’t been flagged by any other judge.
The purpose of that rule is to keep someone from taking off and running
when it’s late in the race and only one judge is around.
With this rule in mind, I
was very conscious of my form as I entered the last 100 meters. Rather than fight like mad to shave off a
second or two, I played it safe and maintained my same stride.
I crossed the finish line
in 8:59.96, but I would have to wait for the awards presentation to find out how I
placed within my age group. While I was
waiting, I heard one of the judges call for number 3 to come see them. I knew what that meant. He was disqualified. That wasn’t a big surprise, since I already
knew at least two judges had flagged him for bent knee.
Number 4 and number 16
were also disqualified. Number 16 was
flabbergasted, since he didn’t remember getting any warnings. Most likely, he was disqualified in the last
100 meters by the head judge. That’s why
I was extra careful in the last 100 meters.
I eventually learned that
I placed fourth in the 60-64 age group.
They had medals for the top three finishers and ribbons for places four
through eight.
Before I left the Ansin
Sports Complex, I learned that the race bibs I wore today will also be used for
tomorrow’s 5,000 meter race. Since I
already have my race bibs for tomorrow, I won’t have to get to the race venue
as early.
My pace for today’s race
was about what I expected. I didn’t know
if that would be fast enough to be competitive, so I’m happy with fourth place. Tomorrow’s race is the one I was training
for. My goal is third place, but I didn’t
get my training going until March. I’m
not as fast right now as I was last October.
The three walkers who
finished ahead of me today will probably all be doing tomorrow’s race as
well. Can I place higher in a longer
race? I know the pace I was walking
today won’t be sustainable for 5,000 meters.
It stands to reason, however, that everyone will have to go at a slower
pace tomorrow. I’m hoping I have better
endurance than at least one of the guys who finished ahead of me today. If nothing else, I appear to be within
striking distance. That’ll make tomorrow’s
race exciting.
To be continued …
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