Matt Tegenkamp: Before and After that Pre Two-Mile

Summer 2007 / Courtesy of kimbia.net

Matt Tegenkamp broke the American Record for 2-miles, running 8:07.07 at the Prefontaine Classic. Here he recalls the three spring races that led up to the Pre two- mile, and then discusses that American Record race as he experienced it. (courtesy of Kimbia.com, used by per- mission).

BEFORE: June 4, 2007
It's my favorite time of year--racing season. I've laid pretty low this spring, and I think it's going to pay off this summer. I had a brief but successful indoor season which put me in good position for the start of outdoors. The point of the indoor season was to break up training a bit (it gets boring in the winter) and to remind my body of what race pace feels like. This is important because I want-ed to make another jump in workouts this year, so my body needed a quick refresher on what goal pace was.

So far, my outdoor season has consisted of only 1500s. Coach Jerry Schumacher and I sat down over the winter and discussed running a 5K, but thought that the Pre two-mile would be enough quality work to get me ready for the U.S. Championships. (The Pre two-mile field is insane.)

The point of the 1500s was only to get in a couple of good race-quality efforts. The 5K is my event and what I will be focusing on for the next couple of years, but I can't neglect the developmental work. The 1500s are helping with the turnover work that I will need to close down the last mile or so of a World or Olympic final. So far I am already seeing the benefits in practice: everything has been a touch quick-er but much more relaxed and controlled.

The season starts this Sunday competing against the best in the world at Pre, but for now I'll follow up on the 1500s from the start of the season.

Kansas Relays, April 21: I easily could have found a more quality race, but Kansas University is only an hour drive from where I grew up, so I really wanted to get back. The weather was typical for a Kansas spring, warm but very windy. I wasn't expecting very much from the race because I was training through and we had only been doing strength work. The race felt very much like a time trial, which was good for that early in the eason. I was out in 59-60 and felt comfortable, and I was able to work off the rabbit so I didn't have to fight the wind. The 800 was 1:59-2:00, and the rabbit dropped after that. That third quarter I was still able to hold it together, but with 300 to go, I had no turnover in the legs. I had to just grind it out into the 30 mph wind to the finish.

When I saw the clock (3:43.01) I was very surprised and pleased with the effort. For a low-key race it was a very controlled effort and a great starting point for the season. It was great to be back on my old stomping ground.

Madison Twilight, May 5: I think I get more nervous for this race than any other the entire year. I guess it's because I'm in front of the home crowd and know a lot more people personally that are watching. Once again the spring wind was around, though not quite as bad as KU. It has been windy here all spring, which has made workouts very difficult at times. Chris Solinsky was the rabbit and took us through 1000m in 2:27. (He also was the rabbit for the "B" 1500 and went through 1000m in 2:31 in that one.) The first 200 felt like I was all-out sprinting, but I settled into the pace and the first part of the race was very controlled. After Solinsky dropped, I wanted to put in a hard move to break away from the field, but I had to do it into the wind. The 1200 was 2:55, and 200 meters into the wind trashed my legs. I thought Jonathan Riley was going to get past me on the backstretch, but I was able to hold him off. The last 300 was slow, but it was all out. The finish was all into the wind, and I felt like I was standing still.

The time of 3:40.13 was great considering the conditions, and the first 1200 was great work turning over the legs. That time converts to approximately the same time I ran in the mile last year, so I was very happy with that.

Eugene High Performance, May 26: The weather was finally good, with no wind. The rabbit was supposed to take us out in 1:56 and 2:26, and he was on pace through 400. I was 58-mid but a step off the rabbit, and I think that worried him. I like to leave a gap because I run up on people, and the gap makes me feel more comfort-able and relaxed. Over the next 200 he slowed way down and ran a 62. I knew he was slowing down but I was so focused on staying relaxed that it never occurred to me to take the race. The rabbit dropped with 500 to go, and I started my grinding kick. The 1200 split was 2:57, and I knew I had a least two guys on me .with 200 to go. Around the turn I kept changing gears as much as I could, and I thought I got away from everyone by the straight. I was all out once I was square to the finish, and then Ryan McKenzie was right on my shoulder. I held him off for a short time, but with 30 meters to go I put my head down and tried to find one more gear, and it wasn't there. My lungs said I could go faster, but the legs would not go any quicker. The lesson from that race is make sure I stick to the strength 1500, not the kicker's 1500. The time (3:40.39) is not what I wanted, but the finish was great work. I did not suffer from lactic build-up in the last 100; I just have not worked on that part of race yet. All in all, the 1500s served their purpose, and I am ready for the fun part of the season!

AFTER: June 10, 2007
[Matt stayed off the hot early pace of Tariku Bekele and Craig Mottram, who held a commanding lead over the field after the rabbits dropped out. But with 600 meters to go, Matt passed Dathan Ritzenhein to move into third and slowly closed the gap on Bekele and Mottram. With 300 meters to go Matt slipped in behind the two leaders and looked to have enough momentum to pull off the vic-tory. But with 200 meters to go, Mottram surged into the lead and never looked back. Bekele gave chase, but couldn't catch Mottram. Matt closed strong to finish third, four seconds ahead of the previous AR set by Alan Webb. Below is a quick interview with Matt shortly after the race.]

When did you know you were going to set the American Record?
I knew we were going to be on pace from the beginning. With [Kenenisa] Bekele out of the race, they decided on a pace of 4:03 through the mile. I wanted to stay off that just slightly and be as patient as possible. I came through at about 4:05-4:06 and felt so relaxed. After the next two laps I realized that I still had a lot left. In hindsight, I prob-ably had too much left. As I came to the line with one lap to go I heard someone yelling splits - 7:02, 7:03, 7:04. That's when I knew for sure.

Did you go into the race thinking about break-ing the record?
No, not at all. It's still very early in my season and I've only run a few 1500's to get ready for the U.S. Championships. The only goal today was to compete well. Jerry [Schumacher, Matt's coach] wanted me to relax during the first half of the race and then be really competitive over the last 1200 meters.

You've run faster than any American over two miles. Granted, it's not a race run often, but what type of feeling does it give you to know you are the American Record holder?
To be honest, I don't think it has sunk in yet. My goals are big. I know if I'm able to approach those goals, it will also mean approaching the American Record in a few events. So I won't say that I expected the record tonight, but it's certainly something that I knew I could achieve at some point.

You really got the short end of the stick on the television coverage. Did anyone approach you after the race? I mean, you did just break the American Record.
Actually, no. After the race I took a lap jog and certainly anticipated doing some inter-views. After the lap they pulled me into the media area, but no one from NBC ever approached me. Someone from the local paper asked me some questions, and Flocasts did a quick interview, but that's it. I guess I'm still flying under the radar a little bit, which is fine by me.

So what type of confidence does this give you for the 5,000m later this summer?
Did you see my 3k split?

No.
Me neither, but I'm guessing I was pretty close to my 3k PR. So right now I'm definitely ahead of the game. I know I have to stay focused, though, and not force anything. There's still a lot of racing to do. But certainly this is huge; I think my time converts to about 7:32 for 3k. Running that fast and finishing well over the last 1200 meters defi-nitely helps my confidence, especially in the more tactical championship races. So we'll see. I'm happy. I really couldn't have asked for anything better tonight.

Since these interviews, Matt Tegenkamp has finished second in the USATF 5,000m to Bernard Lagat, (1:30.73 to Matt's 13:31.31), and lowered his 1,500-meter PR to 3:34.25 on July 1 in Athens, Greece. He'll be on the U.S. team in Osaka.