Notes
Ithaca
Prior to the race, I felt some pain in my right quad, I think because I had been doing so many strides in the same direction on small indoor tracks. I also had some pain in my right heel from when I slipped on a rock and fell (and hit my head too, by the way). I couldn't do skips because of my heel. So I was a bit worried, but it turned out alright.
800m. I had no clue what I was doing during this race. I know how to split a 30, and maybe I know how to try and do that four times in a row, but that doesn't mean I know how to race an 800m. I think I would've run faster in the slower heat, which I made it out of by chance since a couple other guys like Cameron were seeded 2:03 like me but were in the slow heat. But I also got some good 800m experience, so I think it was good to be in the fast heat, in a long term sense. I talked to Zach before the race and he told me I didn't need to run in the front of the pack, that I should just be ready to move with 200m out. That sounded pretty similar to my comfort XC strategy, so basically I ran the race in last place until about 500m to go when I started kicking. As a distance runner I figure I have the right to kick early. I still ended up going through the 600m at 1:32, which made me kinda mad at everyone in front of me, since that definitely should've been a 1:30-1:31 at my fastest. Last lap was a 30 and I took third, so in retrospect I wish I respected everyone else in my race less and just followed Garrett out in front. Unlike with my 3k last week, I think I could've done it better. Next time. 800m is a fun event. I hope there are opportunities to run it more in the future.