2021 Ontario Masters Championships - day 2

Nice weather continued at the Ontario Track and Field Center in Toronto.  I was a bit worried about the wind but it turned out to not be a problem.  It was sunny and in the 70ºs.  I was sore after yesterday and have made good use of my hotel room's oversize bathtub, both last night, this morning, and after my race.  my principal issue I've identified as a mild case of proximal hamstring tendinopathy.  I say 'mild' because it generally goes away when I stop sprinting for a few days, which I haven't done much this year.  

So, despite the soreness I donned the USA uniform one last time for the season to represent. 

I had just the 200m today, so I thought I could bring it one more time, and get the meet record.  So I chose to wear the London Olympic speed suit.  

I warmed up little in terms of actual sprinting, just two 70m strides on the curve after all the stretching and band work.  I knew I wouldn't be 100%.  The meet record was 25.94.  

I had lane 5, because the 'top seed' was in lane 4.  Mike Lee Foon had listed a seed time of 24.79.   He ran that time in 2015, but hasn't run under 26 in five years.  Not under 28 this year.  

There was a delay at the start with the timer and I taunted him a bit, I said to him, 'Hey, are you Foon?  You're seeded at 24.  You gonna run a 24 today?"  Incredibly he responded, "Yea, I run 23, 24."  I said, "I don't think so, the fastest time in the world in M60 is 25.2."  

Amazingly, unlike all the other heats, our headwind shifted to a slight tail wind just before the start.  Just as I was getting ready to get into the blocks, I noticed one of my spikes with riser had fallen out.  I quickly put it back in, just hand tightening it as best I could.  I got an average start, stayed relaxed, and never saw anyone during the race.  I won my heat by 15 meters in a respectable 25.54,  0.40 ahead of the meet record.   I had a slight legal tail wind (0.9). I turned around at the end and watched the others finish.  I said to Foon, "24, aye?"  He ran 28.02.   I didn't mean to be a bad sportsman, but I hate people lying about seed times, especially in a 200m where lane selection is decided by seeds.  Pet peeve I guess.  I talked to Serge F. about it and he said that Foon had been doing this for years.  25.54 would be #3 in the world M60 if it were by someone else, so not too bad considering my condition.  

But, the big story of this meet was W65 Canadian sprinter, Karla Del Grande, age 68.  Not only did she become the first woman in history to 'run her age' in the 400m, (68.31 at age 68), she set am W65 World Record today in the 300m hurdles, 54.00.  I spoke with her briefly.

Fastest woman in the world over 65.  

So... I got what I came for, and more.  I never imagined I'd run 56 low in the 400m and set a new world lead and season's best.  Fastest 400m in 4 yrs since Korea.  I think the 400m was more about pacing and execution.  All about that second 200m.  

Here's my meet summary of the 49th annual Ontario Masters Championships.  

Three Gold:

100m - 12.63 

ties 5 yr old meet record

200m - 25.54 

breaks 17 yr old meet record by 0.40

400m - 56.23

breaks 32 yr old meet record by 2.77 sec

It's been a great season.  16 meets in 23 weeks.  I could race once more in late Oct in AL.  We'll see.  I need to stop running for a while and rehab and cross train.  Next task is to get back in the US.