too much Gabe?

[jsquire]

Re: Gabe hammered in letter to editor

>I'm sure the biking is giving
>him great aerobic fitness.

It's how be tailors
>that great fitness over the coming year or two
>which will define his success.

Hardly. Ultra-long-distance cycling gets you in shape for, at best, ultra-long-distance running. He is unlikely to cycle sufficiently hard to maintain, let alone raise, his cardiac efficiency. Lydiard knew this 40 years ago, and he was far from the first. When my father cycled 25,000 miles a year he wasn't a good runner even by old-man standards.

The Kenyans aren't cycling around Central America. It's the crazy attitude that you can become world-class by doing anything but working yourself to the limit that keeps America from producing large numbers of top runners.

There are, by the way, people in the U.S. who are willing to work from sunup to sundown day after day after day for small rewards. They're called "immigrants" -- just ask Khannouchi or Salazar or (were he alive) Prefontaine. They are also called "women", and our women are doing fine on the international level. They used to be called "farmers" but industrialization of agriculture eliminates more of them every day.

[Guest]

Re: Gabe hammered in letter to editor

I hade mentioned in a previous post, there's a specificity of training Jennings requires. Clearly, that's NOT happening

My point in the most recent post said the cycling will give him a great aerobic base.

Nothing else. From his cycling experience, a return to the specific rigors of 1500 training is required.

How will this experiment turn out?

I don't know.

Jennings is milking life for all it can give him.

and it's his choosing, strange as many of us find it.

[BillVol]

Re: Gabe hammered in letter to editor

Pre wasn't actually an immigrant, was he? I know at least one of his parents was German...

Now Pre was definitely a bad-ass.

[Guest]

Re: Gabe hammered in letter to editor

>I hade mentioned in a previous post, there's a
>specificity of training Jennings requires.
>Clearly, that's NOT happening>>

Pray tell, how many Olympic teams have you made that you're qualified to tell us about "specificity of training" at that level? Opinions are like assholes: everybody has one.

[Guest]

Re: Gabe hammered in letter to editor

wow, some people can't see praise of gabe when it's given??

i don't think I've been critical at all in wanderlust...

not knowing mr jennings at all, but only the image portrayed by various media, I can only assume his passion for life is quite strong...

not many 22 year olds have the balls to do what he's doing...

good luck to him in his continuing incarnation

[dl]

Re: Gabe hammered in letter to editor

I don't think anyone would argue that Gabe is doing the best thing for his running by cycling down to South America.

However, Gabe has realized that this is the only way he'll be able to make a shot at the 2004 Games.

The years of intense training at Stanford are not easy. I believe he'd lost his love of running and his zest for life. He's trying to recover those, come back to Palo Alto and then give it a shot. Let's wish him the best.

Personally, I'd rather read about his adventures and thoughts than how some other guys are training twice a day and playing video games in between to fill the void.

[jsquire]

Re: Gabe hammered in letter to editor

>Pre wasn't actually an immigrant, was he? I know
>at least one of his parents was German...

Now
>Pre was definitely a bad-ass.

He was born in the USA; his mother's first language was German. The opening scene of "Without Limits" shows neighborhood boys chasing a young Pre and calling him a "little German boy"; presumably Kenny Moore didn't just make this part of the script up.

[Guest]

Re: too much Gabe?

Gabe's cycling exploits are for "People", "Bicycling" or "Runner's World" not T&F. Devote print in the "Bible" to real track athletes who are doing real training. I don't think pedalling will lengthen that stride or even increase his vo2. He may get good at riding a bike slow. Actually, his stride looks ideal for pedally a bike - he won't have to make any adjustments.

He obviously has some psychological issues he must deal with. I hope he finds his innerself through bike-therapy and that bongo-pilates-ballet will open up his hips. While its an interesting side show I real don't think it is up to the standards of this magaizine.

I would rather read about what it takes to be a serious runner - serious training - than what it takes to ride a clunker. If I want to read about biking I'll read about Armstrong - a real cyclist - in a biking magazine!

[jsquire]

Re: Gabe hammered in letter to editor

>>I hade mentioned in a previous post, there's
>a
>specificity of training Jennings
>requires.
>Clearly, that's NOT
>happening>>

Pray tell, how many Olympic teams
>have you made that you're qualified to tell us
>about "specificity of training" at that level?
>Opinions are like assholes: everybody has one.

Opinions are one thing; research is another. Neither Jack Daniels, Tim Noakes, nor David Costill suggest long-distance cycling as a running substitute for aspiring world-class runners. They'd probably have a good laugh at Jennings' expense.

Other Olympic hopefuls are probably quite happy that Jennings is doing this -- he's one opponent they're sure they won't see.

Back on topic -- I pay (a lot) to read a TRACK AND FIELD magazine. If I wanted to read about guys like Jennings, I'd subscribe to High Times. The honorable Mr. Lilot thinks that the choice is Jennings or another article on training and video games. T&FN has published some unusually good articles in the past few months; how about some more of those?

[tandfman]

Re: too much Gabe?

>Gabe's cycling exploits are for "People",
"Bicycling" or "Runner's World" not T&F.
Devote print in the "Bible" to real track
athletes who are doing real training. I don't
think pedalling will lengthen that stride or even
increase his vo2. He may get good at riding a
bike slow. Actually, his stride looks ideal for
pedally a bike - he won't have to make any
adjustments.

He obviously has some psychological issues he must deal with. I hope he finds his innerself through bike-therapy and that bongo-pilates-ballet will open up his hips. While its an interesting side show I real don't think it is up to the standards of this magaizine.<

If runners were machines, you'd be right in suggesting that the magazine should not be concerned with their personal idiosyncracies or their psychological issues. But they're not. I, for one, would rather read about what Gabe is doing than about the training regimens of other runners which, when you come right down to it, are not very interesting to read about. Whether Gabe fails or succees, his story will teach us something.

[Guest]

Re: too much Gabe?

Yes, everyone has a different psychological makeup but his problem should be discussed in "Psychology Today" not "Track and Field News". This magazine should profile athletes who are focused on improving on the track. There are plenty of those in the US and internationally.

The David Krummenacker writting was interesting and displayed the proper temperment and focus needed for success. Krummenacker is training properly and has his head on straight. For this reason as well as his immense talent he will continue to succeed in the sport. This is what T&F News is about.

[Guest]

Re: Gabe hammered in letter to editor

>>Back on topic -- I pay (a lot)
>to read a TRACK AND FIELD magazine. If I wanted
>to read about guys like Jennings, I'd subscribe
>to High Times. >>

What's this, the John Ashcroft school of logic? Playing bongos equals serious bong time?

[Guest]

Re: Gabe hammered in letter to editor

I'm impressed: a post that threatens to violate the Board's strictures on both politics and drugs, and in just two short sentences!

[sl]

Re: Gabe hammered in letter to editor

>Other Olympic
>hopefuls are probably quite happy that Jennings
>is doing this -- he's one opponent they're sure
>they won't see.

We can disagree on the merits of the tale of Gabe's journey. But it's way too early for you to make the statement above so definitively. As someone else alluded to far up on this thread, a year before Edmonton McMullen was bloated up on mint chocolate ice cream and hadn't had a season near the top of the U.S. 1500/mile ranks in years... yet in 2001 he made the World Champs team, hit the A standard (admittedly softer two years ago than now), and got as far as the Edmonton final. One might bet against Gabe doing the same next year (largely because the odds always favor field bets), but to brand it a certainty at this point doesn't wash.

[Guest]

Re: Gabe hammered in letter to editor

in a sense, jennings is taking a break, much like marion jones is taking a break...

I don't think anyone doubts, MArion Jones will return to a high level, just because of her immense talent level..

jenning's coming year has far more variation...

clearly, his "talent" level is not the elitest of levels as jones...

but I'd dare say he'd be in the TOP 100, USA 1500's next year...

top 3 would get long odds right now...

I'm NOT opposed of following dozens of differently story lines in the coming year...

T&F the magazine might follow a more rigorous report the T&F news style...

but web access here should permit greater diversity of story-line, with greater number of athletes, and those lurking can pick and choose whichever piece they'd wish to consume...