Decathlon Review

My outdoor season has officially begun. I found an early decathlon and decided to go for it this weekend. It takes a lot of prep time and fine tuning to put together a good dec. but we decided it would be healthy for me to get one under my belt before attempting to qualify for Olympic trials. All in all it was a successful meet with 7 decathlon p.r.'s and only a couple major disappointments.
First the bad news:

In the first event, the 100m, they had the finish line camera set up to run into a 15 mph headwind and were unwilling to change directions (even though rules require it). That, mixed with an unseen false start by the guy next to me, had me stuttering out of the blocks and fighting to hold good speed. I figure I threw away about a quarter of a second, losing 50 points.

In the high jump, the facility was such that the approach started on the grass and had us running within inches of the field goal post. I've been dealing with a patella tendon issue that only flares up in the high jump and mostly only when my step is off. With the given approach and not having a teammate or coach there, I never got my step on in warmups. I came in low to make sure I grabbed some points, but had to bail in pain after my first clearance. I went 5'9" but have been jumping 6'2" - 6'4" in practice. Throwing away 5-7 inches cost me roughly 150 points.

The good news:

After the high jump, I hit the training room for some quick therapy and came back out to run a 49.38 in the 400m. I won by a second and a half and ran a lifetime best, posting an early season time that should be among the top 10 for the nation this year.

On day two, my opening height in the vault was a conservative 13'6". All but one of the competitors was out by that height so I vaulted my way up to a 14'9" (4.50 m) clearance by myself. That's kind of the unofficial beginnings of a world class decathlete vaulter. Without other competitors left in the event, it gets very tiring very quickly due to less rest. I had plenty of height for a 15 foot day, but my exhaustion on a lonely 8th event had me drained for the final three attempts at that height.

After the vault I reluctantly went over to warmup for javelin, having 30 minutes before its start. Most of the competition was able to sneak in an extra hour of rest while I was vaulting. (I got my good rest while they vaulted) Warmups were horrible as I was only throwing around 140'-150'. I had a 175' p.r. and have been looking good in practice this winter. Due to a short runway, I was only able to use a three step approach (instead of a full 5) so I lacked hope that anything impressive would happen. However, after my first throw in the competition landed past the 170' line, I got a new boost of adrenaline. My second throw was only 168', but I felt great. I finished the event with an aggressive 3rd attempt and hit my position well, throwing 183 ft! That's a lifetime best, coming from a three step in february. I'm excited to see what happens this year with jav. That throw is only 10 feet off of a world class performance.

My intentions for this meet were to come with no anxiety, leave with no anxiety, no matter what happened. My other goal was to break the 7,000 point barrier to gain confidence going in to the later meets. I threw away over 200 points and saw plenty of room where I could have picked up an additional 500 points fine tuning some things. I finished the meet with 7,018 points and no anxiety. It was a trip worth taking has me fired up to go grab hold of those lingering 700 points in 6 weeks.

Below is a chart showing where I've come from and where I'm heading in the decathlon. It is now more of a time game than anything else. I no longer mull over the question, "can I do it?" but "can I do it in time?"

I will post pictures later if the photographers follow through to email me some. I'm taking the long way home and spending the next day and a half in Yosemite Nat. Park and The Sequoia Forest, much to my brother's jealousy. Sorry bro, wish you could join me.